Last two weeks we have been looking at the eternal gifts of faith and hope, based upon Paul’s words in:
1 Corinthians 13:13 — “But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love.”
Each of these “gifts” far-surpass any other gift humans can receive.
However, faith and hope will disappear eventually, when we are in the presence of God. For faith and hope both lie in what we have not seen or apprehended. In heaven we will be with Christ—the object of our faith and hope
The final of the three—love—is truly eternal.
John 3:16 NASB 95
“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.
Romans 5:8 NASB 95
But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
The reason that God loves the world comes down to his nature:
1 John 4:7–8 NASB 95
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love.
At the root of Christmas is God’s love. God—whois love—demonstrated his love by sending Christ for our salvation