Bear, Believe, Hope, Endure
1 Corinthians 13:7 - It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Hey, let’s be honest… life can be tough sometimes. It can be easy to say, ‘I give up. I’m not doing this anymore.’ then sulk in self-pity because things aren’t going in the way you expected them to. But that isn’t love. That isn’t truly showing love to… yourself.
If we look at 1 Corinthians 13:7, we can see that love is filled with belief, hope and endurance. It doesn’t say when things are going well. Notice that the scripture says ALL things.
Love bears all things
All things? Yes, all things.
This can be something that takes a moment to grapple with. Why would God want me to bear all things? Well, the word grace comes to mind. As Christians, we should look different to the world and we are called to extend grace to others in the same way that we freely receive it.
It doesn’t mean staying in situations that aren’t good for you or lead to sin. You can lovingly walk away from those situations and still be consumed with love in your heart. But as Christians, we can also (with the help of the Lord) extend forgiveness and grace to others because we know that God lavishes us with those on a daily basis.
Love believes all things
Now, this doesn’t mean going around believing all manner of lies. We are also called to ask for wisdom and we have access to guidance from the Holy Spirit to be able to discern what is true and what is not.
But to love in this way, allows us to really trust the people that God has placed in our lives. We can live believing that people have our best interest at heart & we can extend the same grace to others.
Love hopes all things
This is one of the most beautiful things about love: it is lavished with hope. No matter what, love hopes.
After being patient, being kind, bearing all things and believing all things, we are called to have hope as we love.
Love endures all things
What does it mean to endure all things?
Well, I’ll start off by explaining what it doesn’t mean. It does not mean to stay and endure sin, or circumstances where you are being harmed mentally or physically.
But when difficult situations arise, with the help of the Lord, we are able to endure and go through those trials. We are able to stand firm knowing that are hope is in the Lord and He will make a way.
