Love, Hope, Faith

I. The Shape of Life and Its Essential Terms
The New Testament trio of faith, hope, love (along with others) as essential to Christian life: (1 Thess 1:3, 1 Thess 5:8, Col 1:4-5, 1 Cor 13; N.T. Wright, After You Believe).
Perennially competing life-ordering principles: inward human desires and outward systems of rules,: both producing antagonistic 'works of the flesh' (Gal 5).
We use these terms according to (somewhat overlapping) guiding frameworks or paradigms ("Inconceivable!"):
Developed Christian usage following the creeds' third articles: ecclesial and eschatological life in the Spirit: (overshadowed theologically by sacramentology,
then stress on grace through faith).
The American cultural framework: honor/self-fulfillment, self-realization/American dream, duty/citizenship: (cf. Aristotle's virtue ethics of civic self-improvement).
The folk or cultural Christian framework: a cultural-traditional hybrid: (of ... righteousness by faith, strength through hope, and goodness with love? with what goal?).
Questions to encourage fruitful dialogue across different worldviews (Gregory Koukl, Tactics) are: "What do you mean by that?"
"How did you come to that conclusion?"
"Have you considered this instead?"
The originating apostolic framework (cf. James 1:17-18): these goods are: life-giving gifts from the Father,
bestowed in the Son's death (end of the old) and resurrection (beginning of the new),
enjoyed through the Holy Spirit as we obey God's vision.
These 'theological virtues' (Thomas Aquinas) are essentially relational (other-directed),: having different objects,
whereas their cultural meanings are much more self-directed.

II. Love: not an Attraction, Loyalty, nor Courtesy
The greatest commandments: (Deut 6:5, Lev 19:1-18 [Gal 5:14], Matt 5:43-48, John 13:34-35).
Love misdirected and lost:: Disordered, self-centered, fragile, shallow, destructive, futile love: sin (John 3:19).
Evil desire (1 John 2:16-17, James 1:15, 2 Pet 1:4, 2:10).
How often is this what our cultures call "love"?
Love redirected and restored:: Revolutionary love: Jesus Christ (1 John 4).
Obedient, sacrificial, faithful, hopeful, victorious, infectious love: Jesus' grace (John 13:1).; Love comes from the Father in the Son through the Holy Spirit, to one another through knowledge and faith (1 John 4:7-5:3).
Love heads, ties together, and unites the virtuous fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22-23, Col 3:9-14).
True love ("willing another's good") can be defined and distinguished: from so-called "love" (1 Cor 13, not a Greek dictionary!).

III. Hope: not a Wish nor a Gamble
A motive for this series:: How and why should Christians live as we do?
Hope has different objects.: Definition of 'hope': the feeling that what is wanted can be had, or that events will turn out for the best.
'Third Article' (i.e., traditional Christian) reasons: Sacramental life, made right through grace, in expectation of heaven (Titus 1:2?).
American cultural reasons: Prosperity/power, love/family, beauty/health, autonomy/liberty, friendship/community, justice/advantage (Shepard Fairey's Obama poster); progress; optimism or longing itself.
Folk-Christian reasons: All of the above?
Apostolic reasons: Living in "the hope of Israel" (Acts 26:6-7, 28:20, Ps 16 in Acts 2:26-27; Ezek 37:11-14 cf. 1 Cor 15:19, Luke 24:21, Matt 12:21).
Suffering and its outcomes:: 'Third Article' outcomes: Stoic determination to endure?
American cultural outcome: optimism, or effortful avoidance.
Apostolic outcome: Other-directed hope (Rom 5:1-11, Lam 3).
Living by the Spirit in hope, versus indulging the flesh and depending on rules (Gal 5:4-16).
Hope (along with love and faith) in, with, and under church practices (1 Cor 13).
Believers as Paul's hope (1 Thess 2:19, Rom 15:1-13, cf. Matt 24:14).
Persecution for 1 Peter's and Hebrews' 'living hope' in living Jesus (6:11-20, 7:19; the object of faith in 11:1).
Being perfected through "Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Col 1:24-29, cf. Eph 4:1-16).
What do our usual strivings have to do with the hope of Israel?: Fleshly distractions (Gal 5:16-25, cf. Kirsten Moore's chapel talk)?
Old creation's natural drives (Proverbs)?
Necessary efforts that need God's blessing (Ps 130)?
Incoherent syncretism (1 Tim 6:17)?
Parallel secular/sacred realms?
Signs of the Kingdom (Rom 4:18, 8:18-25)?
Potentially all of the above?

IV. Faith: not a Thought Let Alone a Leap
Where love and hope suffer unclarity from different cultural meanings,: faith also suffers different Christian meanings.
Definitions of 'faith' (Webster's):: 1. confidence or trust in a person or thing [ordinary usage; other-directed: "I don't have much faith in those tires."].
2. belief not based on proof [philosophical; self-directed: "just believe"; "blind faith"].
3. belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion [religious; other-directed? "I lost my faith in college"].
6. ... loyalty or fidelity to a person, promise, engagement, etc. [social; other-directed: "acting in good (or bad) faith"].
In 1 Cor 13, what is Paul's meaning and implication?: Creedal shape: trust in God (confidence specifically in the Triune God),
distinguished since the scholastic era from 'reason' and loaded with Reformation-era theologies.
American cultural shape: ordinary use (pragmatism, optimism, empiricism) is detached from philosophical/religious usage (modernism, pluralism).
Folk-Christian shape: a personal, inward, improbable, heroic (or anti-heroic), even inert existential choice
(or supernatural gift?) of submission that promises heaven.
Apostolic shape: Israel's gifted and warranted confidence in YHWH, responsive service, and loyalty to YHWH's traditions, cf. Phil 3:3-4) (see Matthew Bates, Gospel Allegiance);
taken in steps rather than leaps, sighted rather than blind, shared rather than private, wise rather than heroic;
powered and refreshed through the gospel (Luke 17:1-10, Heb 11:1-12:3).
Images: Abraham (Rom 4 and James 2:12ff); the Psalmist; Job; Hebrews' cloud of witnesses; Paul (2 Cor 4:13-14).: Faith's opposite, doubt, is personified by Thomas's skepticism and especially Judas Iscariot's disloyalty.
By providing for faith with love and more, we escape corrupt desire through God's promises (2 Pet 1:3-8).

V. Conclusion
Exercise: How do these terms as your settings commonly use them compare with their apostolic meanings? How can you help clarify their biblical meaning?
1 Cor 13:8-13 revisited: What does Paul think faith, hope, and love mean?
These virtues order the Christian life that produces them and the eternal future that requires them:: Disciplined faith (grounded in knowledge but strong in uncertainty);
hope through suffering (spawning but outlasting prophecies);
sacrificial love (fueling but far surpassing 'tongues').
1 Cor 14:1's last word: "Seek this love, and go for the things of the Spirit."