HOW LOVE HOPES AND ENDURES

Our previous podcast on 1 Corinthians 13:7 considered the first two characteristics of love, namely that love 'bears all things' and 'believes all things'. Here we complete the verse by explaining why and how 'Love hopes all things' and 'Love endures all things.' We distinguish between two kinds of hope—'happy' hope (hoping that things will turn out well) and godly hope (future certainty grounded in God’s promises and the work of the Holy Spirit)—and shows how the believer’s hope in eternal life shapes his/her present conduct. The sermon also explains how love for self and for God empowers Christians to endure suffering, exemplified by the book of Job, Romans, 2 Corinthians 4:16–18, Paul's letter to Titus, and 1 Peter.