The Trinity’s Part in Endurance
Salvation in the life of a Christian is supposed to produce godly works, love that enables them to labor in the Lord, and hope that produces endurance. If you study the Scriptures closely, you will come to the conclusion that when the Scripture mentions faith, love, and hope, it is not talking of these virtues in a worldly sense but with regard to that which has eternal and spiritual significance. None of these virtues have spiritual and eternal significance outside of the Trinity. We shall single out hope for the purposes of our reflections. In 1 Thessalonians 1: 1-7, Paul lays out how the Trinity is displayed in the Christian’s life of endurance motivated by hope. He tells us his response of thankfulness for the saints (those who have responded in faith to Jesus) because they have a hope that produces endurance is to God the Father. Paul wants us to understand that it is God the Father who has produced this kind of hope in these saints.
Additionally, he tells us that God the Father has chosen these saints, and that is why they are able to display such a hope through a life of action. He confirms that they are chosen saints because they display their fruitfulness in their dispensation of endurance as a result of their hope. Secondly, Paul tells us that these saints display hope in Jesus Christ, who is God the Son. What he means is that because these saints have a relationship with Jesus, we can see steadfastness of hope evident in their lives. Whatever the definitions of faith, love, and hope are according to worldly standards, we know that because of Jesus Christ, these chief virtues are not as the world considers them in the life of the saints because they count for eternity as they are rooted in the savior. Lastly, Paul tells us that the Holy Spirit, He who was promised to help saints in their journey of faith, is powerfully at work within them. The fact that the saints in Thessalonica were able to endure in hope shows that the Holy Spirit had empowered them.
What all this means is that the presence of and proclamation of hope in a Christian’s life is evidence that they have been chosen by God the Father. Secondly, that exercise of endurance in hope is evidence of being in a relationship with Jesus Christ. Lastly, exercising such a hope is done by the empowerment of the Holy Spirit by believing and accepting the message of the Gospel.
How Do We Endure?
Having said the above, we focus on one of the fruits of hope, which is endurance. What Scripture means by telling us “Endurance inspired by hope” (1 Thess. 1:3) is that endurance/steadfastness/patience comes from hope. Please note that we can endure many things in this life because we are hopeful. Still, in the end, we understand these words in a spiritual sense, that is, having an endurance motivated by biblical hope. Especially with regards to the difficulties of life, whatever they may be (emotional, relational, financial, and spiritual), the question to every Christian is how do you keep it together and find the strength to keep on going? Life can be brutal at times because it is filled with so many twists and turns. Where do you get the zeal to hold on and look forward to better things ahead when things seem to get you downcasted? A biblical hope is the only answer.
Why We Need Endurance
Isn’t it easy to hold on and look forward with delight when things are working out and everything is going great? What happens when things are not looking so delightful? Is it God’s intent for us to only be hopeful when all is going well? The truth we gather from the Scriptures tells us that that is not the intention of our God because what is needed in both situations is endurance. As Christians, we cannot afford to give up, and we cannot afford not to be hopeful even when things are not working out as we move towards glory in obedience to our Lord. The reality is that many of us need to be prepared to endure in the long run despite the emotional, relational, financial, and spiritual obstacles that may come our way. In spite of afflictions, the saints in Thessalonica had to exercise endurance. The reality of this life is that, at times, encouragement, motivation, and the joys of this life fade away, and it is not “if” but “when” they will fade away. Have you had those moments when you had great joy and were enthusiastic about what was ahead, but only to get to a moment of despair, sadness, or stress? At that moment, does God require less of you or from you? The truth is that He still needs to see you endure. Is God a sadistic God as to be so far removed from our situations not to perceive that He must not require endurance from us? No, this endurance that is expected of us comes from the hope He has laid up for us, that biblical hope we have been talking about. We must understand that God the Father is the source of endurance that is founded on hope.
Our Response
We must swim against the tide of the world. I mean that the world does not provide much encouragement for one to endure. Our society is sadly filled with a generation whose majority knows not how to endure but who find solace in giving up quickly, letting go, and calling it quits. Whether we are talking about relationships, work, or even spiritual matters, we must be willing to do what seems unnatural and difficult (having an enduring spirit) as a result of our nature because we seek to be obedient to our Lord. There is an urgent call to all of us to learn to endure because of secure and guaranteed hope. Above all, we need to endure in our salvation so that we may not end up being consumed by God’s wrath, as the Apostle John tells us in Revelation 14:12. The ultimate assurance of endurance in the Christian faith is salvation at our life’s end here on earth.
In contrast, it is also true that because of our salvation, we must endure. Remember, salvation is both a here-and-now reality and a future reality for those whose faith rests in the Lord Jesus Christ. Thus, because of both realities of our salvation, we have hope not because all goes well and is well but because of Jesus our Lord and what we are guaranteed in Him, that is, salvation for all eternity. Having this salvation secured, we, therefore, endure through the help of the Holy Spirit.
