DAD'S RAMBLINGS -- FAITH, HOPE, AND LOVE

DAD'S RAMBLINGS – FAITH, HOPE, AND LOVE

"Therefore. Having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in the hope of the glory of God....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." (Romans 5:1. 5)

If you could encapsulate the Gospel into three words, what would they be? It might be a difficult assignment to boil it down to three words.

There are so many words in Scripture that carry profound meaning. There is justification – the declaration of our righteous standing before a holy God. There is redemption – where our souls are purchased from sin. There is faith by which we are justified. There is grace by which God allows us to stand before Him. There is hope for a glorious future planned by God. And there is love – God's love that was demonstrated by Christ's death on the cross, and which has been lavished on us by the Holy Spirit.

But the three words which seem to be Paul's favorites are faith, hope, and love. Throughout his epistles, we find these words over and over again. In fact, he said that these three abide (I Corinthians 13:13).

It is our faith that sets in motion the work of God in our lives, bringing us to relationship with Him. It is the hope of eternal life and the deliverance from God's the judgment of God's wrath on sin that motivates us to trust Him for salvation. It is His love that makes all of this possible for us fallen creatures.

Although the other words – salvation, grace, justification, redemption, adoption as sons, forgiveness, and all of the blessings of God – are important, it seems to me that they all flow out of these three words – faith, hope, and love.

May we never forget His love toward us that makes all of this possible.

Love, Dad