May 27 Daily Devotional

Bible Reading

Devotional

The Lord Jesus gives many special gifts to his people. These gifts are richly varied and sovereignly bestowed. Yesterday we read about them.

However, next to these special gifts of the Holy Spirit there are also certain abiding gifts the Spirit gives to every Christian. These are faith and hope and love, sometimes called the three gifts that "abide" ("So faith, hope, love abide," RSV). Abiding gifts are gifts that endure, that remain.

The special gifts may never be used as a criterion for being Christian. Nobody may say, "Since you do not speak as I speak or teach as I teach, you are not a Christian." But of the abiding gifts it may be said, "If you don't have these, you aren't a Christian." A Christian has faith and hope and love—these three.

Faith is the means through which we receive Christ and all his benefits. Although it is a human activity, it is a gift of the Holy Spirit. That's what makes us so grateful and so humble about having faith in Christ.

Hope is the same thing as faith—but with a view to the future. It is the expectation of things to come—the kingdom, the great change, the completion, Christ himself. A church that does not live in expectation is no church.

"But the greatest of these is love." By faith we receive him, and by hope we stretch ourselves out to him, but in love Christ himself is present among us. Wherever there is Christian love, the presence of God has become a reality.

The value of all gifts must be measured by their usefulness for church-building. No wonder, then, that love is the greatest. Love is the cement that unites the members. Love is the Spirit of Christ putting us in his service for the glory of God and the benefit of others.

Next to these three gifts, a church and a person may possess other gifts. That is not only common but necessary. But faith, hope, and love— these three abide; and the greatest of these is love.

REFLECTIONS

Pick one of the three abiding gifts and reflect on its meaning for your life as a Christian.

Andrew Kuyvenhoven's Daylight, a modern devotional classic, was originally published by Paideia Press in 1977. This updated edition is copyright 2009 by Faith Alive Christian Resources. You can order a copy of this revised version of the book directly from the publisher.

A man of many accomplishments, Andrew Kuyvenhoven is probably best known for his contributions to Today (formerly The Family Altar), a widely-used monthly devotional booklet associated with the Back to God Hour. Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations for this updated edition of Daylight are from the Holy Bible: Today's New International Version copyright 2001, 2005 by the International Bible Society.