The Three Graces of Faith, Hope and Love
The Three Graces of Faith, Hope and Love.
[this article is in process, so it is incomplete at this time. Please don’t read until finished]
“Now there are three Christian graces that will endure forever: Loyal Faith, Patient Hope and Agape Love. But the greater of these is Agape Love.” (I Corinthians 13:13).
Faith is a Grace-Gift; Hope is a Grace-Gift. Love is a Grace-Gift. The most powerful description of love, and thus the greatest love chapter in Scripture, is 1 Corinthians 13. One could more accurately comment that it is the greatest agape love chapter. To wrap up this discussion of agape love, Paul concludes with a listing of what is often called the Three Christian Graces, also known as the Theological Virtues: Faith, Hope, and Love. These qualities are called Theological because God is the whole point… He is the source and origin of these graces; He is the main object of these qualities; He is the target of these virtues from us; and God through His Spirit offers us these gifts by infusing them into us who believe and hope and love in Him. These three divine gifts, or graces, form the very foundation of the Christian life. God knows that we can’t manufacture these qualities on our own. We can’t simply demonstrate them through our strength of will or our superior genes. Faith, hope and love are divine gifts in the Holy Spirit. We are given in God’s mercy the ability to believe in Him, to hope in Him, to love Him. And it’s clear that in Scripture these gifts are offered to us on a silver platter, because God knows we are helpless to develop these qualities under our own steam. Do we want a stronger trust in God? A more patient hope in whatever circumstance? An unconditional love for our neighbors and enemies? Only God can make that possible in us, and as Father Cantalamessa says, “The Holy Spirit is the well-spring and the power of all three Theological Virtues.” (Come, Creator Spirit).
“In Christ Jesus, the most important aspect is faith expressing itself in love… In Christ Jesus, the only thing that really counts is faithful trust as brought to perfection through agape love.’ (Galatians 5:6).
Faith Defined – (Hebrew, enumah; Greek, pistis); a relationship word regarding covenant faithfulness to the Faithful One; firm reliance; loyal commitment; confident belief in the truths of Jesus and living in a way that is consistent with that belief; earnest trust in God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit; deliberate choice to develop a relationship with God; being firmly persuaded that the Christian way of life is true and the desire to live accordingly; the trust in God that finds its complete fulfillment in demonstrating agape love. To trust God is to confidently take Him at His word and rely on God’s promises. “Without trusting fully in God, it is impossible to be well-pleasing to Him.” (Hebrews 11:6). To have faith is to believe in God, not merely accept beliefs about God.
In other words, the most important thing to remember as we follow Jesus is that our trust in Him is activated by our unconditional love; our faithfulness to Christ is made effective by the divine love we show others; our belief in the truth of Christ is energized by our demonstration of God’s love; the divine love that we show others reveals our faith to be alive and well; our trust in Jesus gets its exercise through a lifestyle of agape love.
Faith Described – Faith is not merely believing that God exists, it is steadfastly trusting Him with your life;
Faith is that which brings our hopes into reality;
Faith is accepting all the evidence we need to prove what is still unseen;
Faith is our reliance on God’s faithfulness to keep all His promises, even if we haven’t experienced the fullness of those promises yet;
Faith is the absolute conviction that there are divine realities which exist but are unseen;
Faith is the acceptance of the fact that the invisible fashioned everything that we see;
Faith is the attitude that pleases God the most;
Faith is trusting in God’s character and presence;
Faith is convinced that past experiences, even despite appearances, reveal God’s presence and love;
Faith is the confident response of our reliance on God after His initial gesture of grace;
Faith is when we move toward God in trust after He first moved towards us in love;
Faith is the confidence we have in God that guarantees the blessings we hope for;
Faith is the practical ability, the ups and downs of life, to find peace in those beliefs our reason had already accepted;
Faith is perceiving as real fact that which is not revealed by the senses;
Faith is when we find it reasonable to cling to God, while accepting the truth that there is more to God that we don’t know than there is that we do know;
Faith is daily commitment to remain loyal to the God of Scripture;
Faith is being firmly persuaded that God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are the ultimate and eternal truth that is the foundation of the world.
Faith is declaring “AMEN!” (ie, That’s true! I believe it! So be it! That’s the truth and I accept it!) when we hear Scripture being read.
Faith is the steady trust in God that allows a believer to remain faithful.
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 15:13).
Hope Defined. The biblical words for hope point to being able to anticipate the future with pleasure, to welcome whatever comes next, to have confident expectations of good in one’s life. Hope is faith in the future and a deep assurance of God’s hand in whatever is coming around the corner. The Hebrew word in Scripture for hope, “tikvah,” can also mean a connecting cord. Its root word is “qavah” which means to wait, literally to weave together the strings to make an unbreakable cord. Thus in Scripture we find that occasionally the words hope and wait are somewhat interchangeable. The Greek word is “elpis,” and means much the same thing. As has been said by many, hope is faith in the future tense.
“Hope moves the heart of God to come to our help with His grace.” (Father R. Cantalamessa).
Hope Described. Various descriptions of hope might include: Hope is confidently expecting a positive outcome, as opposed to despair, which is fearfully expecting a negative outcome; hope is trusting God for one’s future, as opposed to doubt, which is distrustful of God for one’s future; hope is an optimistic assurance based on reality, as opposed to wishful thinking, which is based on uncertainty; hope is a patient waiting that keeps one actively moving forward, as opposed to a frustrating resignation which passively keeps one stuck; hope is the strong inner urge to work through a difficulty and do what one can to solve it, as opposed to the inclination to avoid a difficulty and thus not solve anything; hope is the positive conviction that there is something substantial to look forward to, as opposed to one’s pessimistic belief that the future holds nothing but a bleak emptiness; hope is the anticipation of a triumphant future in the long run, as opposed to someone who doesn’t even believe in the possibility of a long run of any kind. As the ancient Church Father put it, “Hope is the loving movement of one’s spirit towards that which it hopes for.” (St. Didacus). So hope is not only a deep assurance and steadfast conviction, but also includes the object of the hope itself, the hope in the flesh, Jesus Christ, “our blessed hope” (Titus 2:13).
HOPE: Hebrew word, “tikvah,” its root word being “qavah” which means to wait. Thus in Scripture we find that occasionally the words hope and wait are somewhat interchangeable. “Hope moves the heart of God to come to our help with His grace.” (Father R. Cantalamessa). Hope is confidently expecting a positive outcome, as opposed to despair, which is fearfully expecting a negative outcome; hope is trusting God for one’s future, as opposed to doubt, which distrustful of God for one’s future; hope is an optimistic assurance based on reality, as opposed to wishful thinking, which is based on uncertainty; hope is a patient waiting that keeps one actively moving forward, as opposed to a frustrating resignation which passively keeps one stuck; hope is the strong inner urge to work through a difficulty and do what one can to solve it, as opposed to the inclination to avoid a difficulty and thus not solve anything; hope is the positive conviction that there is something substantial to look forward to, as opposed to one’s pessimistic belief that the future holds nothing but a bleak emptiness; hope is the anticipation of a triumphant future in the long run, as opposed to someone who doesn’t even believe in the possibility of a long run of any kind. As the ancient Church Father put it, “Hope is the loving movement of one’s spirit towards that which it hopes for.” (St. Didacus).
The virtue of hope is getting much more attention in this article because it is the one that has tended to get lost in the shuffle, lingering between those two monumental giants, Faith and Love. Hope has been called by various theologians “the little sister” standing between two big brothers, or even “the poor relation” in a famous family. But the importance of hope has been resurrected by neuroscience, believe it or not. Brain research has uncovered the importance of hope to the degree that there is now a branch of neuroscience that is called “the science of hope.” Here we are in the 21st century, confirming that in the 1st century St. Paul was right on target when said in 1 Thessalonians 5:8, “Hope is a helmet.” We now know that the emotion of hope protects the brain, like a helmet worn on one’s head. Science has proven that our brain was made to function much more effectively when we engage in hopefulness. Inspired by the Holy Spirit, Paul was way ahead of the game.
God constructed our mind in such a way that hope will keep us mentally healthy and efficient. With hope we are mentally stable and productive, and without hope we become mentally unstable and ineffective. Neuroscience has established that the complex emotion of hope is associated with brain networking in the frontal cortex, where our motivation, decision-making, and higher order thinking is stimulated. Hope actually begins a chain reaction in the brain that empowers positive changes in our neuro-chemistry. We now know that hope release endomorphins that increase brain connectivity that blocks pain, “dampens” the anxiety circuits, and acts as an antidepressant. Hope has a significant influence on healing and even on the aging process. And since hope helps the brain to function more effectively, hope improves the ability learn, to think more clearly. A teacher will find her students performing much better when they are hopeful, optimistic, expectant of good things just around the corner in their education. Creator God made our brains to run best on the fuel of hope.
One neuroscientist puts it this way, “Hope is as vital to the human brain as the oxygen we breathe.” (Professor Terry Small). Perhaps we should take more literally Solomon’s observation in Proverbs 13:12, “Hope deferred makes the heart sick.” Other translations put it this way: “Delayed hope makes us heart-sick;” “Hope put off is a weariness to the heart;” “When hope is crushed, so is the heart;” “Delayed hope torments the soul.” If we abandon hope, our entire way of thinking and feeling takes a downward plunge. If we become hopeless, we become heartsick, imprisoned by despair. Hope is indeed a vital Grace, and a central virtue in the Christian life, neither a “little sister” nor a “poor relation.”
“To you who are listening, what I say is this: Agape-love your enemies! Do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who mistreat you… Treat other people as you would like them to treat you. Agape-love your enemies, do good, and lend expecting nothing back! Your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High. For He is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.” (Luke 6:17-36).
Agape Love – Agape love is the supreme of all the loves, and desires the highest good of someone else. Agape is “the highest level of love known to humanity,” (C. S. Lewis), and thus can only come from above with God as its source. Agape love is the ultimate expression of God’s nature, the essence of His character (see Exodus 34). Agape love is not Eros, which is romantic love. It is not Phileo, which is brotherly love. It is not Storge, which is family love. Agape love is the divine love that can only come to us from the heart of God. Agape love is the love shared between the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. God is truly the source of all these other loves, but it is only agape love that is poured into our hearts from the Holy Spirit, to those who believe in Christ. Agape love is an eternal virtue outlasting all the other virtues (1 Corinthians 13:8). Agape love is the primary fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22) Agape love, the sacred love of God, is universal, it is a gift, it is highly active, it is sacrificial, and it is unconditional.
Universal: “For God so agape-loved the world that He gave His only and unique Son, so that everyone who faithfully trusts into Him may have eternal life instead of being utterly destroyed.” (John 3:16).
A Gift: “For we know how dearly God agape-loves us, because He has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with agape love; God has poured out His agape love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit whom He has given us; We can now experience the endless agape love of God cascading into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who lives in us!” (Romans 5:5)
Unconditional: God’s agape has always been offered to the world unconditionally, so that same divine love is offered to others in the same way. Agape is offered freely, no strings attached, to all made in the image of God. When we love an image-bearer, we are honoring our Creator. Agape love is revealed through forgiveness and compassion.
Sacrificial: “No one has greater agape love than a person who is willing to lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13). Agape love is the ultimate demonstration of unselfishness, of self-denial for the benefit of others. Agape develops the habit of forgetting yourself on purpose. It is the willingness to remain a daily martyr of goodwill, picking up one’s cross so others are blessed. The clearest and most profound example of sacrificial agape love was the death of the Innocent One, Jesus Christ, on the Cross. He gave up His life for those who didn’t deserve it, which includes all of humanity.
Active: Agape love is not theoretical, it is not abstract. It is not just a great idea ripe for discussion. Agape love actually does things, it acts out and demonstrates love. Agape doesn’t merely think about loving others with God’s love, agape fleshes out the love and makes it visible. Agape is an act of the will, a deliberate decision to demonstrate God’s love to others whether they deserve it or not. Agape loves what is best for someone else. If one wonders what agape love looks like in action, read the gospels and imitate Jesus, love in the flesh.
The Fruit of the Spirit is Agape Love. In Paul’s phrase “fruit of the Spirit” in Galatians 5, the word for fruit is singular. The passage does not say “fruits.” One fruit, one product, one result of the Holy Spirit’s effect on our life. Agape Love is indeed the one, singular, unifying fruit of the Spirit, and the list of virtues following are all seeds within that one fruit. The fruit is agape, and the seeds of agape love that spread that love are mentioned in that passage: joyful love, peaceful love, patient love, kind love, wholesome love, faithful love, gentle love and a love that is under self-control. Those are the products of the Spirit’s work in the garden of our heart. Those qualities are what love looks like, the outworking of love. Agape is a seed-bearing love that spreads agape love in this world. The fruit of agape love is produced by the Holy Spirit in believers as they abide on the nourishing vine of Jesus. That is the only way to stay fruitful in the Christian life, the only way to grow in the fruit of the Spirit. Paul says much the same thing in Colossians 3:12-14, when, after listing much the same in terms of character qualities, he says, “And over all these virtues put on agape love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.” (NIV).
Jesus is the Author of our Faith and the Finisher of our Faith
“… Let us run with endurance the race set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith…” (Hebrews 12:1-2).
AUTHOR (Gr., archegos): originator, primary source, creator, initiator, one who causes something; the same Greek word also means pioneer, trailblazer, captain, Prince, pathfinder.
PERFECTER (Gr., teleiotes): finisher, completer, consummator.
Christ originates our faith. “It is by grace that you have been saved, through faith; not by anything of your own, but by a gift from God; not by anything that you have done, so that nobody can claim the credit.” (Ephesians 2:8, NJB). Jesus is the author of our faith story. Our faith is of His creation. He began it by drawing us to Him, by dropping a mustard seed of faith into our hearts to get things started. God’s gift. The believer didn’t start the faith. We have no reason to boast about whatever kind of shape our faith is in. We don’t have the right to pat ourselves on the back for walking down the aisle to be saved. We didn’t open the door to a life of faith. We didn’t put ourselves into the position of becoming believers. Christ gave us a seed of His perfect faith, which perfectly trusted in the Father and steadfastly finished the race. He completed what He started in His faithful life. So, Christ has the kind of faith I want. If I have to choose between the faith of Christ or the feeble faith that I manufacture on my own, I will choose Christ’s faith. I want to participate in and be shaped by His perfect faith, not my imperfect faith. I want Christ’s faith to live through me. I want to adopt the faith of Christ as my own. I want my faith to be hid in Christ. I have done nothing to be especially proud of in my faith life. It has been the faith of Christ that is triumphant. It is the faith of Christ that I have been living into. It is a free gift of grace, and I owe it all to Him who originated my faith. I find that the more I recognize the faith of Christ Himself inside me, the easier it is to disengage my ego in my faith development. My own faith is a house of cards. The faith of Jesus within me is a solid house built on a foundation of immovable rock. “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God.” (Galatians 2:20).
Christ completes our faith. “For the righteous shall live by My faith, says the Lord.” (Hab. 2:4). As we participate in the faith of Christ within us, as we live into Christ’s faith, we will notice that our faith depends on Him from beginning to end. Just as He finished what He started in His own life, He wants to finish what He started in each of us as well. He has a strong desire to bring our faith, His faith within us, to full maturity. He wants to perfect our faith, to make our faith complete. Faith continues to be a gift from God, and Jesus wants the faith that we have in Him to be full of life and growth. The job of Christ’s Holy Spirit is to transform us until He consummates our faith at the end of the race, to finish our faith as we reach the finish line. “He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.” (Philippians 1:6). God will sustain His good work of faith in you. We didn’t originate our faith, and we won’t complete our faith. We didn’t start the race of faith, and we won’t finish it on our own. Christ’s perfect faith finished His race as He now sits at the right hand of God, and His faith within us will enable us to run until we also get the prize. This is how we share the life of the risen Christ. We imperfectly participate in His perfect faith. This takes the pressure off, doesn’t it? We don’t have to somehow concoct the perfect faith. Christ’s perfect faith is already within us. We need to instead mature in our participation in His faith, by feeding it, following it, submitting to it, studying it and growing in it. We don’t have to possess a perfect faith. We instead imperfectly live into Christ’s faith within us. And He will be sure to perfect our faith at the finish line.