Living Hope
Tonight my non-believing friend said this to me,
“Always hope.”
It got my thinking of the love passage in scripture,
“Love always hopes, Love keeps no records of wrong, Love endures all things, hopes all things, believes all things…Love never fails. (Capital letter added for emphasis.)
For many of us wives, we have known a love that does fail us and some days it’s hard to hope; its hard to believe again that our husbands could be changed, and believing only lets us down the next time they look at porn or break another promise to us. In many ways it’s easier to not hope…for then we can never be disappointed.
But I believe God doesn’t call us to put our hope in a human being; surely even the most regenerate heart WILL fail and this is why we need the righteousness of Christ (His perfect life of obedience, credited to me before the Father, despite my sinfulness, therefore making me accepted by God,) to cover us.
But we as wives can “always hope” by putting our trust in the “Living hope,” (see 1 Peter 1:3)
Tonight I was thinking that this “love passage” is not only a call for us (the church) to love others as Christ has loved us, but more importantly a picture of how Christ, our Living Hope, loves me. Take some time to read the full passage in (1 Corinthians 13).
4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful;6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Now let’s look at this again in view of Christ…
Love- (a person- our living, resurrected Savior) is patient with me. His love is not conceited or self seeking, He doesn’t think of Himself but instead thinks of me (insert your name here.) He is kind to me (despite me having once been His enemy.) He is not rude to me, despite the nails I hammered through His feet, and He does not turn me away. He forgives me (despite having every right to resent me); He receives me with open arms and takes me back when I repent.
He is never happy when I fail, and He rejoices in the truth. His delight is in my victory and joy.
Love-my Savior bears all things for me, (including a cross and the wrath of the Father.) He took what I deserved, and gave me what He deserved. He believes in me, and sees what I can be (not what I am.)
He hopes in all circumstances, because He is Living Hope; He, Himself has the power to do something about my life. He has endured all things on my behalf and His love (for me, and the Father) has never failed. He has never broken a promise, or lusted after a woman, He is fully worthy of my trust.
Love-(Jesus)-never-fails.
Notice the tense of that verse: Love never fails- meaning, never has in the past, isn’t failing you now, and won’t fail you in the future.
Do you believe He loves you Beloved?
He does.
Romans 15:13 says:
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.
May you abound in hope this week dear sisters. May you believe in the greatness of our great and powerful God. He has the ability (and desire) to turn the heart of stone to a heart a flesh.
Will you ask Him to do this work in your life (and the life of your husband)? Are you willing to believe in His life changing love for you (and your husband?) Do you have hope?
Please respond with how your feeling and lets “bear one another’s burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ,” together.
Love,
Bethany