WE have these in 1 Cor. 13:1313And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity. (1 Corinthians 13:13), Col. 1:4,54Since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love which ye have to all the saints, 5For the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof ye heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel; (Colossians 1:4‑5), and 1 Thess. 1:2,32We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers; 3Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father; (1 Thessalonians 1:2‑3)-stated didactically to the Corinthians, and acknowledged as practically exemplified in the Colossians and the Thessalonians. I am not aware of their occurrence together elsewhere in the word. But taken together they are the three characteristic and distinguishing principles of Christianity, and as such they may well claim consideration.
Very fully and blessedly the higher truths of the word, are set out before believers in these latter days-death, resurrection, union with Christ and standing in Him in the heavenlies, the truth concerning the body and bride of Christ, the indwelling and presence and rule of the Holy Ghost, and concerning the assembly of God. But while we cannot very well be too much occupied with these truths-with all dispensational and church truth in its place-these three foundation truths which we have proposed to notice here, which are of so very personal and practical and experimental a nature, do much need our individual consideration.
Throughout 1 Cor. 13. there is an obvious-contrasting of love with gifts, maintaining the excellence of the former. There is deep admonition in this-even in the very place in which it occurs; the chapter of love (13.) occurring between that wonderful chapter of the body of Christ and gifts therein (12.), and the chapter of the exercise of gift in the assembly (14.). All gift, we thus see, to be properly exercised, and in right spirit, must first have its baptism in love-must pass through love. In other words, love must pervade and characterize the entire exercise of gift; exercise of gift, so to speak, coming up out of love as its animating principle. This contrast, but now including faith and hope, as a sisterhood of three, has its climax in the closing verse of the chapter, " Now abide." The gifts being more temporary and less necessarily possessed-less of the nature of a Christian-these three graces are vital and essential, as constituting the very nature of the Christian. Now, therefore, these abide-now here their sphere and arena-these are to be exercised, not set aside nor their use postponed.
Now a few words as to each of the three distinctively.
What of FAITH? This assuredly is essential. Disallowance, rejection first of the word, and then of Him who was the Word, was the culmination of Israel's guilt. God simply claims credence for all He says. And if faith is, properly speaking, simply an assent or credence on account of the veracity of Him who speaks, then there is not any merit of itself in my believing God. Nothing else than assent or credence ought for a moment to be; and if my soul assents to the testimony of God's word both as to what I am and as to what God and His Christ have done for me, then I am saved on the principle of faith (Heb. 11). There is thus the mixing of faith with the hearing of the word, and there is rendered the due and resulting obedience of faith. It cannot be otherwise. So Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him for righteousness (Rom. 4).
God's complaint of old was, " How long will it be ere ye believe me? " for He was not believed either as to His promises or threatenings. This was man; and it reflects a sadly exact historical character upon Israel's failure to have it said, as in Deut. 32: 20, " They are children in whom is no faith," being the first occurrence, we believe, of that word in the Old Testament. Here was want of the first principle of that which should characterize God's people. For God's people should be simply and necessarily believers (Heb. 3.). And it is only they who live on the principle of faith who really live (Heb. 2:44God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will? (Hebrews 2:4)). We see from the word what is lost through unbelief, what owing to their little faith the disciples lost, the very sin and failure of believers being unbelief. This is, indeed, the root of failure.
See that picture gallery of illustrations and exemplifications of faith in Heb. 11 What scope faith has faith in God, faith in Christ; faith for justification, deliverance, obedience, walk, service, as, indeed, apprehending what the Father, and the Spirit and the Son are to me and for me, as opposed to the world and the flesh and the devil against me.
HOPE. This is inclusive of much, and has wondrous scope. It is living hope exercised upon certainties which have been revealed. The Lord's coming is the fullness of it. He Himself is our hope. As to His coming, what is really the heart's expectation is Himself-the person of Christ. Revelation and intelligence are needed to know all that will be brought to us, or we brought into at that event, but He Himself comprises it all and is superior to it all, so that it is He who expresses it all, and He suffices to the heart.
LOVE. Who can tell it out? God is love. And it is because He is love, and we are made the children of God, that love is the manifestation and development of the new nature which is of God. The expression of that nature and conformity with it is " the acting and feeling," as another has said, "according to His likeness." In that 1 Cor. 13 how love is dilated upon! It results from birth and relationship as God's children. It is the exercise of the affections of the heart upon an object which is supreme. With the believer it is God Himself, because He has revealed His love. We love Him because He first loved us, and we love the children of God because they are His. This is its principle and its order in sequence. That it is to God and to be exercised towards His people down here see 1 John 3-5 His saints are thus the objects given us to love next to Himself. Without love the the family characteristic-that which expresses the nature of the children of God-is wanting.
A fully stated conversion is, being turned from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for His Son from heaven, with the knowledge of sins forgiven, having these three elements-and in its nature really including these three principles-faith, hope and love; and while these three principles constitute the Christian character, the measure of their exercise results in the more or less developed Christian character of truest type. Faith sees Him; love communes with Him, and realizes what He is, and loves those who are His; and hope looks for Him. Faith in Him, love to all His saints, and the hope of His coming are, therefore, very real exercises of the soul; and comprehensively enough perhaps, but very briefly, we may have shown what we are to understand by the faith and hope and love of these three quoted scriptures. They admonish us of failure. Not that Christianity is a failure, but Christians, tested by these ever-abiding first principles, are very generally failures.
Be it remembered these graces have their place and are to be exercised now and down here. They have present, positive and active character, and as distinguished from gift, they are expected of all who are in Christ, whether male or female, without difference or distinction, and it is very blessed to know that these graces, which are so precious and so paramount, and which stand so truly in our individual responsibility as Christians, may be and are so fully exemplified by those who are denied the exercise of gift in the assembly-the sisterhood in Christ. Here is room for them for all the exercises of faith and hope and love.
The practical question for our consciences and hearts is, " Are these graces laid upon the shelf, so to say, unexercised and unused, or are they in use and actively now abiding in each of us, not doctrines stored away, but exercises of the heart in daily practice? " We are otherwise not acting in true and proper Christian character. These three must needs abide, and the greatest of these is love, because that which expresses God's nature, that which most goes out towards others, that which most endures, that which continues and will have its fullest exercise in the glory. There is, indeed, a character of continuance for the other two, no doubt. Confidence and trust may be exercised in the glory, and hope, which though satisfied when the Lord comes, may stretch onward throughout the glory. But love must have its largest scope in the glory.
But, nevertheless, more exactly speaking here, faith is in the Lord as the now absent One, hope is in Him as the coming One, and -love is to all His saints as those who are His and are to be gathered with Him. Thus these are a present test of the present condition of one's soul. Conscience may be exercised about them, as truly to be considered the foundation principles-the sine qua non of Christianity. T. M. T.