FAITH, LOVE AND HOPE

As the body of Christ known as Mosaic Church worshipped through prayer in small groups this past Sunday, one of Paul’s letters to the Thessalonian Church came to mind.  It reminded of the critical principle borne out in 1 Thessalonians 1:-10, which is that believing and applying the Word of God changes our lives.  Paul is continually thankful in prayer for these believers, for their faith, their love and their hope.  He refers to a faith that works, a love which labors and a hope which endures.  If we as Christ-followers at Mosaic have true faith, love as God loves us and hope in the coming of Christ, we will be motivated to live as Christ intended.

Faith is not merely belief; it is something that changes us.  We see that this happened to the Thessalonians in verse 9, “…how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God”.  Faith enables one to discover the beauty, the glory and greatness of God, to recognizing it and wanting it for one’s own life.  Along with that recognition comes the realization of how cheap and shallow are idols, which are cast aside with new life beginning.  The process of God’s calling first begins with the Word but the Word doesn’t come alone.  It is accompanied by the power of the Holy Spirit.  We see the first sign of love at work in verses 6-9 through the changes in the attitudes toward their afflictions.  Instead of complaining, there was “joy of the Holy Spirit”.  They were responding to God’s love by loving Him in return, welcoming the opportunities to bear suffering for His Names’ sake.  Lastly, verse 10 speaks to hope: “…and to wait for His Son from heaven”.  As a side note, each of the five chapters of First Thessalonians ends with a reference to the coming of the Lord.  Their hope lay in that.  They believed what the angels (men in white robes) had said to the disciples on the Mount of Olives, quoted in Acts 1:9-11, as should we as we stand together, praying for one another, for the body, its leaders and worshipping Him.