Love Hopes All Things and Endures All Things
By Wendy Wood
Love hopes all things. The Greek is elpizō. Hope means to wait with full confidence and joy. A Christian lives a life of hope in the gospel of Christ. A believer doesn’t cross their fingers or wish for an unsure future, but is rock solid in the guarantee of salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ.
Consider what the Bible says about HOPE!
1 Peter 1:3-4 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead; to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you,”. We are born again to a living hope! Our hope is living because our Savior is living. Christ rose from the dead and ascended to be in heaven as our living advocate and mediator. Our hope is alive and we know that we will live eternally in God’s presence because of this promise. Our hope is imperishable - we can’t lose our salvation! Our hope is undefiled - it cannot be tainted in any way! Our hope is unfading - it is eternal!
Colossians 1:27 “To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Christ is our hope. He indwells every believer. We receive His power and His presence! Our hope is in a real person who lived, died, and rose.
Colossians 1:23 “if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation”. The hope of the gospel is that it is the power of God to save and sanctify people for the Lord (Romans 1:16). Our hope is in God’s power and His decisive will to save to the uttermost those who believe (Hebrews 7:25).
Hebrews 6:17-18 “So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath, so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us.” God does not change. Our hope is secure because He will never change! God swears by His own name. There is no variation or shadow due to change in our God (James 1:17). He does not change so our hope is unwavering.
Hebrews 6:19 “We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain”. Our hope is in Christ, who was our perfect substitutionary atonement, who opened the way for us to be in relationship with God. The inner place behind the curtain was only for the high priest in the old testament who would make sacrifices once a year for the sins of the people. When Christ died on the cross, the curtain in the temple was torn from top to bottom. This is a picture of God now providing access to Himself through faith in the atoning work of Christ. We are not dependent on a priest because Christ was the final High Priest whose sacrifice was once for all sins.
Romans 15:13 “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.” God is the God of hope! God confidently and joyfully knows the future. God isn’t an angry person expecting doom. God is directing all things to bring about His purpose and is 100% guaranteed that purpose will stand. He fills believers with joy and peace so that by the Holy Spirit, which He gives us, we abound in hope too!
These are just a few of the many verses about our hope. Hope is trusting God’s nature, His attributes, so that we live in a way that demonstrates how sure His promises are.
So what does this have to do with “love hopes all things”?
Do your relationships reflect a hope that God is who He says He is, that Christ is all you need, and that your future is in heaven with God?
Do your relationships show that you know eternity with God is your real home and that in this life you are an exile, sojourner, a mist that will vanish soon?
When we are not living in this hope, we tend to act like we need to make sure we get what we want now. Oftentimes, our responses to others show we believe we have to be treated with respect to be happy. Maybe we are tempted to be “right” and prove it because our hope is in justifying ourselves. Maybe our dream of what life will be like is so important to us that we prioritize our job or financial security over God. Maybe for you, it’s the picture of what a Christian family looks like that is where you place your hope and you will fret and stew with anxiety over a mistake or sin your child is involved in.
When “love hopes all things” we live with confident and joyful hope in God. We trust His promises that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him (Hebrews 11:6) and that giving up our desires now will lead to great reward (Mark 10:30). If we truly place our hope in Christ, that relationship with Him is what will bring joy and peace and satisfaction, we won’t need to seek those things from other people. We will be able to respond with love even when others do not. Knowing that our hope is secure because it is in Christ, should change how we are in relationship with family, friends, church members, neighbors, and even enemies.
Where do you place your hope?
Is your hope in having your circumstances change or is it in God?
Is your hope in having people around you change or is it in God’s promises?
Is your hope in being loved and respected by people or is your hope in what Christ has already made you to be?
Is your hope in your career, family, status, or possessions, or is your hope in heaven?
The way we interact with people shows where we are placing our hope. Do you live in such a way that you display the greatness and surety of God’s promises?
Love endures all things. Love perseveres. You’ve studied the multi-faceted love God calls His children to live out. Love endures all things means that there is never a time when these evidences of love should stop. Love will continue to be patient and kind. Love will continue to put aside arrogance and boasting and be humble. Love will honor others ahead of self. Love will continue to respond with grace and mercy when wronged. Love will persevere in forgiveness even when sinned against repeatedly. Love will grieve over sin and rejoice when God is honored. Love will continue to cover over other minor sins and be gentle in correction. Love will give charitable assumptions until it is wise to draw other conclusions based on evidence. Love will place its hope in the only One who is secure and steadfast. Love will endure because God has loved us this way!
Application:
What did you learn about love in this section?
Based on how you respond to your circumstance, where do you place your hope?
Write your own summary of the hope we have in Christ.
What scripture about hope do you need to meditate on and memorize? Write it out and start working on it!
What will it look like in your relationships to demonstrate your hope is in Christ?