1 Corinthians 13 (6)

Pray Psalm 84.1-4.
How lovely is Your tabernacle,
O LORD of hosts!
My soul longs, yes, even faints
For the courts of the LORD;
My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.
Even the sparrow has found a home,
And the swallow a nest for herself,
Where she may lay her young—
Even Your altars, O LORD of hosts,
My King and my God.
Blessed are those who dwell in Your house;
They will still be praising You.
Selah

Sing Psalm 84.1-4.
(Holy Manna: Brethren, We Have Met to Worship)
LORD of hosts, how sweet Your dwelling; how my soul longs for Your courts!
Let my soul with joy keep telling of Your grace forevermore.
Like a bird upon the altar, let my life to You belong.
Blessed are they who never falter as they praise Your grace with song!

Read 1 Corinthians 13.1-13; meditate on verse 13.

Prepare
1. Which virtues “abide”?

2. Which is the greatest?

Meditation
In the “now”—the time in which we are journeying toward the “then”—faith, hope, and love “abide” as the primary virtues to acquire and use. Faith enables us to believe in Jesus, to know that we have a part to play in building His Church, and to identify and use the gifts His Spirit has given us. By faith we look to the Word of God to guide us in all our ways.

Hope is the anticipation of eternal peace, joy, and rest, which we realize in the “now” by looking to Jesus and trusting in Him. Hope is fueled by faith and, in turn, reinforces faith for a more consistent and fruitful walk with the Lord.

But love is the greatest, because God intends His love to pervade us, soul and body, and to flow from us like rivers of living water to the world. Without love, faith and hope are merely forms of self-indulgence.

For “now”, we nurture and exercise these virtues as members of Christ’s Body, witnesses to His resurrection and reign, and ambassadors of His Kingdom. But “then”, faith will give way to fullness. We will see Jesus as He is, and we will be like Him. We will have no need for faith because we will have reached the end for which God created and redeemed us. Similarly, “then” hope gives way to having; all that we have hoped for of peace, joy, and rest we will have in unceasing abundance in the Presence of our Lord. Love will remain and will last through all the ages.

Love is the greatest virtue for now, and it will be greatest virtue forever. It is truly the “more excellent way” (12.31).

Treasures Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162.
We can think of these gifts as a three-ring circus: faith, hope, and love. But underneath our canopy, instead of clowns, elephants, and flying trapezes, are attributes that please God.

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen”.
“But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Heb. 11.1, 6).

“My hope is in You” (Ps. 39.7).
“For you are my hope, O LORD God…” (Ps. 71.5).
“Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us” (Rom. 5.5).
“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but when the desire comes, it is a tree of life” (Prov. 13.12).

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (Jn. 3.16).
“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5.8).

Paul’s time in the Thessalonian church conjured up happy memories for him. “Their faith, hope, love, and perseverance in the face of persecution are exemplary.” (NKJV notes to 1 Thessalonians) “We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers, remembering without ceasing your work of faith, labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of our God and Father, knowing, beloved brethren, your election by God” (1 Thess. 1.2-4).

They were living out these gifts in the here and now, so that their joy would be full in Jesus there and then—sans the clowns (which are never good), the elephants (which are very large), and the flying trapeze (which is at its core, dangerous business).

Truly, The Greatest Show on Earth, is love.
Here and Now, There and Then, and Forever.

For reflection
1. How would you describe the state of faith, hope, and love in your walk with the Lord?

2. Why is love the greatest of these three abiding virtues?

3. What can you do to grow in love for God and your neighbors?

Faith and hope will cease when the things believed in and hoped for appear. But love then becomes even greater and more ardent. John Chrysostom (344-407), Homilies on the Epistles of Paul to the Corinthians 34.5

Pray Psalm 84.5-12.
Pray for a clearer and more constant vision of the “there and then”, and that God will fill you with faith, hope, and love in the “here and now.”

Sing Psalm 84.5-12.
(Holy Manna: Brethren, We Have Met to Worship)
Blessed are they whose strength is founded in Your strength, O LORD above.
All whose hearts in You are grounded journey in Your strength and love.
Though they weep with tears of sadness, grace shall all their way sustain.
In Your Presence, filled with gladness, they shall conquer all their pain.

LORD of hosts, my prayer receiving, hear me, help me by Your grace!
In Your courts I stand believing; turn to me Your glorious face!
LORD, our sun, our shield, our glory, no good thing will You deny
to those who proclaim Your story, and who on Your grace rely.

T. M. and Susie Moore

Two books can help you see both the greatness and the smallness of God’s salvation. Such a Great Salvation and Small Stuff will show you how to think small, live big, and know the salvation and glory of God in all your daily life. You can learn more about these books and order your copies by clicking here and here.

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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter, available by clicking here.