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Perseveres

2/24/2018

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LOVE ALWAYS
Terry R. Baughman

“Let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,
 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith” (Hebrews 12:1–2).

Love always perseveres, never relents, continually endures. There is no limit to love and no boundary to its persistence.  In Paul’s essay on the qualities of love he expanded on the many dimensions and vast extension of its influence. While some may fear that love will be exhausted or stretched to the point of breaking, the extent of love has never been discovered. Love continues as long as it is embraced.  

Paul wrote, “That Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height—to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God” (Ephesians 3:17–19). To be filled with the fullness of God is to also be filled with His love; immeasurable, unexplainable, and infinitely enduring. 

God is love, and the greatest demonstration of love is always illustrated by the Lord Jesus Christ. His endurance of faith, the total sacrifice of His life on the cross, and His absolutely unconditional love for the worst of humanity provides the greatest example and eternal benchmark of attainment. The writer of Hebrews challenged us to greater endurance, “looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith” (Hebrews 12:2).

Other examples of perseverance are found in Scripture. James referred to the suffering of the prophets and the patriarch Job when he said, “Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord—that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful” (James 5:11). We also can persevere in the midst of hardship knowing that the Lord is “very compassionate and merciful.”

After many years of unfulfilled expectation, Abraham was blessed, “After he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise” (Hebrews 6:15).

Moses chose to suffer affliction with the people of God, forsook the pleasures of the palace, and denied the destiny of Egyptian royalty. The book of Hebrews noted the cause of his faithful perseverance, “He endured as seeing Him who is invisible” (Hebrews 11:27).

Love will enable us to persevere beyond our natural ability to endure. How many mothers and fathers have made tremendous personal sacrifices, stretched beyond their resources or what seemed practical to provide, to save children in trauma or provide for their needs. While we may not feel particularly heroic or unusually brave, when there is a threat of danger to one we love, we may find that we have more stamina, courage, and sacrificial strength than we ever thought possible. A natural reaction of love is self-sacrifice, denying ourselves in order that we might come to the defense of another. 

Love always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
​

Scripture:
“Love … rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.…” (1 Corinthians 13:6–8 NIV).

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Hopes

2/18/2018

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LOVE ALWAYS
Terry R. Baughman

“We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians 1:3 NIV).

We hope for that which we do not hold. Paul said, “In this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently” (Romans 8:24–25). So our hope enables us to continue, to endure patiently, expecting the reward of fulfilled hopes in a future day. Hope is the driving force that picks us up and motivates us to endure difficult situations in the firm belief that we will overcome them. 

Paul spoke of suffering and the endurance, even the embracing of suffering, when we recognize the future results of it. He said, “We boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.” (Romans 5:2–5 NIV). Our hope is inspired by the love God continually shows us through the gift of His Spirit. 

God is love and He is our hope. Paul prayed, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (Romans 15:13). With God we have hope. Without Him we are hopeless!

In Paul’s chapter on love we are reminded that “love … always hopes.” There is a perpetual and enduring quality in love that dares to hope when all is lost. Paul reminded us that as Gentiles we were once, “without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world” (Ephesians 2:12). That was our condition … before. Before Christ came. Before He paid the ultimate price in Calvary’s sacrifice. Before God demonstrated His love for us. Before Jesus brought us in, that was the plight of all those outside of the covenant of promise. Paul went on to say, “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ” (Ephesians 2:13). Those who were far off without Christ, without hope, and without God in the world are now given the greatest and most present hope. We are near Him and we have hope. Love always hopes!

Let our love be pure and always sincere. Again Paul said, “Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good.
 Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another; not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer” (Romans 12:9–11). 

We are encouraged to be joyful in hope and persevere. With steadfast determination we cling to what is good and continuously pray in hope. Nothing is impossible, nothing is beyond our reach and unattainable in our goals. Never give up, never give in, never quit loving.

​Love always hopes!


Scripture:

“Love … rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.…” (1 Corinthians 13:6–8 NIV).

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Trusts

2/11/2018

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LOVE ALWAYS
Terry R. Baughman

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths” (Proverbs 3:5–6).

​Trust
is an incredible abstraction. By its definition it is a firm belief in the reliability, truth, ability, or strength of someone or something. Trust involves an inward conviction of confidence placed in a person or an idea. 

Love always trusts. Life is such that there will always be days of doubt and opportunities to give in to despair. In those times we resort to trust and retreat to the foundation of our faith. When we are tempted to surrender to doubt, love will sustain us and enable us to continue to believe.

Faith is the bedrock of our relationship with God and essential to our salvation. So much so that the writer of Hebrews said, “Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is …” (Hebrews 11:6). When our faith is shaken, trust is the only thing that keeps us from falling. We know the source of our salvation and the object of our confidence. Paul said, “I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day” (2 Timothy 1:12). 

Love “always trusts,” according to the NIV. The same passage is translated, “believes all things,” in the NKJ (1 Corinthians 13:7). This phrase taken in isolation sounds like there is a loose boundary of faith; that we can believe any ideology, philosophy, or religion. Postmodernism has embraced that idea and describe truth as this fluid and subjective idea that has no defined foundation. In this definition truth is different for each one, however, and whatever you accept it to be. That is not the intended understanding for the verse.

Taken in context of the chapter an accurate definition becomes clearer. There is listed a full range of the qualities of love. Among those, love, “rejoices in the truth” (1 Corinthians 13:6). Truth is preceded by a definite article. It is “the truth,” not “a truth” or “your truth” but a singular, universal truth. The truth is embodied by Jesus Christ, for He said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). It is on this foundational understanding that we can say, “Love believes all things.” That is, love believes all things true, all things based upon the eternal truth of God’s Word. Only upon this truth can we faithfully trust. 

So completely and unequivocally can we trust in God that all of our lives are subject to the grid of His guidance. The truth of the Proverb is revealed, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, … and He shall direct your paths” (Proverbs 3:5–6). As we pursue God, love Him, and trust His direction, with great confidence we are assured of His constant leading. “The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives” (Psalm 37:23 NLT). It is a sweet and special relationship with a God in whom we can trust. David exulted, “Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!” (Psalm 34:8).

As we walk with God in a deepening relationship of fellowship in His love and grace we find a greater source of faith. We learn the inestimable value of trust. Love always trusts! 

​Scripture:
“Love … rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.…” (1 Corinthians 13:6–8 NIV).

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Protects

2/3/2018

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LOVE ALWAYS
Terry R. Baughman

“From the end of the earth I will cry to You, when my heart is overwhelmed; lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For You have been a shelter for me, a strong tower from the enemy. I will abide in Your tabernacle forever; I will trust in the shelter of Your wings”
(
Psalm 61:2–4).

Love is the most powerful of all emotions. It can overcome anger, resentment, or hatred, even apathy. Some emotions are violent and destructive, but when confronted by love the opposition is powerless. Love will cause hearts to be reconciled and enemies to seek resolution. 

God is love, and in Him we find the fortitude to face every obstacle. David sang a song of affirmation in the security he found in God. He said, “For You have been a shelter for me, a strong tower from the enemy.” He confided with confidence, “I will trust in the shelter of Your wings” (Psalm 61:3–4).

Paul devoted a chapter in his letter to the Corinthian church on the subject of love (or charity in the KJV) and its importance to our relationship with God and with others. We often refer to it as the love chapter and it is regarded as classic writing in literature. The nature of love is explained and its many characteristics elevated. Love is compared to faith and hope, but declared to be greater than either, “And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinthians 13:13).


Paul said that love, “bears all things,” also translated in the NIV as, “always protects” (1 Corinthians 13:7). When everything seems overwhelming, love stands with us, for us, and surrounds us with a protection never imagined. Great feats of endurance and bravery have been accomplished when motivated by love. 


We are secure in the love of Jesus. Paul presented the questions considering what might separate us from Him. He asked, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?” He then answered with an affirming declaration, “We are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.
 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:35, 37–39).

When someone we love is being threatened there is courage that swells up within us to protect them, even to the point of disregarding our own safety. A mother without great physical strength will take on the strongest to protect her children from harm. A father or brother may step in the way of danger to rescue a child or sister. It may be called heroic but to the one who loves it is just the right thing to do. Many times without a second thought there is action to protect those we love. 


Jesus said if we know how to give good gifts, “How much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!” (Luke 11:13). Paul said, "The love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us” (Romans 5:5). Our God loves us, gave Himself for us, and has given His Holy Spirit to empower us. You can trust His love!


Love always protects!


​Scripture:

“Love … rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.…” (1 Corinthians 13:6–8 NIV).

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    Author

    Terry R Baughman is Lead Pastor for LifeChurch in Gilbert, AZ.  See his complete bio at trbaughman.com 

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