Love Shows Up

VERSIÓN EN ESPAÑOL

Why do you have hope? Again I ask. Why do you have hope?

Jesus is the greatest leader of all time.

Why? Two big reasons.

He answered the questions of the world.

He gave solutions to the world’s problems.

They asked him about marriage and taxes. He gave them wisdom.

He saw a sick man and healed him. He saw a hungry man and fed him. He saw a dead man and raised him.

He answered the world’s questions and solved their problems.

Our job as the church (Jesus’ hands and feet) is to do the same thing our leader did. This is why we need to do things with excellence. With excellence, we have a greater capacity to love our neighbor. Our love needs to be courageous enough for people to see and feel it. We need to be driven by a love for God and we need to be driven by a love for others.

The church cannot shy away from the world’s questions and we must strive to confront the world’s problems.

We can make the crooked paths straight. We can make the rough way smooth. We can do this in Jesus’ name.

Many people in the church believe that the work of the church is to bring hope to the nations.

That is not the main thing. We need to have the right priorities. We need to have the right order.

The problem with hope is that it is waiting for something in the future while the present is broken.

When the church starts answering questions and solving problems, the healing of the nations begins. Marriages become stronger. Families become more united. Societies become more orderly and peaceful. In short, there is more freedom. With freedom, comes opportunity. With opportunity, love shows up.

People saw that there was a problem and Jesus had a solution. He gave us evidence. They had questions and they got answers. People need to have a reason to hope. We can give them a reason. When people start seeing their present being restored and rebuilt then they can look to a greater future. The present needs to be addressed first.

This is why the Bible says, “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.” 1st Peter 3:15

When the power of God and the love of God flows through the people of God, we will not only see the purpose of man, we will also see the goodness of God. Then there is reason to hope and hope is born in the hearts of our people. Oftentimes, hope needs evidence. When we align our life with our worship, our life will become that evidence to others. If we can change, they can change. If God can heal my family, it can heal yours. I become the evidence. You become the evidence. We can give people a reason to hope again.