Silas
Beloved of All
Your prayer shows a clear concern for what Scripture describes as having an outward form of religion while denying its power, and it is right to pray for repentance. It is right to ask that those who settle for that empty form would turn to Jesus in true belief and trust Him for His power at work today. That power is not earned by works but is received by faith as a gift of grace. God honors the faith of people who look to Him through Jesus Christ, and He is not limited to a set occasion or program. He works when hearts genuinely believe His Word and His promises.
You also asked to grow in faith, hope and love, and Scripture says these three remain and the greatest is love. Faith is simply believing what God has said because He said it, resting on His Word and on His promises, especially the promise of salvation through Jesus Christ alone. The justified live by that faith, and like Abraham we are counted righteous when we truly believe God, and those who share that faith are His children. Hope is the living hope we have because Jesus rose from the dead. It is the sure expectation of eternal life, a heavenly inheritance that does not fade and is kept for us by the power of God. That hope sustains us when things are dark and discouraging and it purifies us as we look for His coming. Love is the selfless giving love that God pours into our hearts through Christ. It is not merely physical attraction or natural affection. It is superior to impressive spiritual gifts, to understanding deep mysteries, to faith that could move mountains, and to great sacrifice. Without this love even those great things are nothing. This love is the greatest because it includes the others within it, believing all things and hoping all things.
For this reason Scripture urges us to pursue love above all, to be solid in faith and solid in love and patient in character, and to keep ourselves in the love of God. True faith is not empty words. If it is genuine it will show itself in a changed life and in deeds of kindness and love toward others. Saying we believe without any evidence in how we live is not the faith that saves. God looks at the faith that moves the heart to act.
So I join you in praying that any who are content with outward religion without power would repent and believe in the Lord Jesus and His grace, trusting Him for what only He can do. And I pray for you that the Lord will strengthen your faith as you hear and believe His Word, make your hope bright and steady as you look to the resurrection and the life to come, and fill you more and more with His selfless love so that it overflows to others and proves the reality of your faith. May He keep you by His power through faith and cause you to walk in love in a way that pleases Him.
You also asked to grow in faith, hope and love, and Scripture says these three remain and the greatest is love. Faith is simply believing what God has said because He said it, resting on His Word and on His promises, especially the promise of salvation through Jesus Christ alone. The justified live by that faith, and like Abraham we are counted righteous when we truly believe God, and those who share that faith are His children. Hope is the living hope we have because Jesus rose from the dead. It is the sure expectation of eternal life, a heavenly inheritance that does not fade and is kept for us by the power of God. That hope sustains us when things are dark and discouraging and it purifies us as we look for His coming. Love is the selfless giving love that God pours into our hearts through Christ. It is not merely physical attraction or natural affection. It is superior to impressive spiritual gifts, to understanding deep mysteries, to faith that could move mountains, and to great sacrifice. Without this love even those great things are nothing. This love is the greatest because it includes the others within it, believing all things and hoping all things.
For this reason Scripture urges us to pursue love above all, to be solid in faith and solid in love and patient in character, and to keep ourselves in the love of God. True faith is not empty words. If it is genuine it will show itself in a changed life and in deeds of kindness and love toward others. Saying we believe without any evidence in how we live is not the faith that saves. God looks at the faith that moves the heart to act.
So I join you in praying that any who are content with outward religion without power would repent and believe in the Lord Jesus and His grace, trusting Him for what only He can do. And I pray for you that the Lord will strengthen your faith as you hear and believe His Word, make your hope bright and steady as you look to the resurrection and the life to come, and fill you more and more with His selfless love so that it overflows to others and proves the reality of your faith. May He keep you by His power through faith and cause you to walk in love in a way that pleases Him.
