Love Brings Clarity

Well, as we come to study God's Word, we come this evening and we read in a passage that many erfahren many of you will know many of you will have read and some of you maybe even had this passage erfahren at your wedding service.

And I want this evening to maybe touch and overlap a wee bit on what Thomas spoke of this morning. As he spoke of the mystery and the security.

We can find our passage in verse 12. For we now see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face.

Now I know in part, then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known. So now faith, hope and love abide.

These three, but the greatest of these is love. A passage that's, as I say, known to us. But a passage that has so much to teach us.

Even as we come on a night like tonight. In a week that we thought wouldn't come. But as we prayed, we do not know what this world holds for us.

But we trust in the one that does. As we turn to this passage, we're reminded of what it says in 2 Timothy 3.16. That all scripture is breathed out by God.

And is profitable for teaching. For reproof. For correction. Be complete. Training in righteousness. That the man of God may be complete.

Equipped for every good work. I give the title tonight for our sermon. Love brings clarity.

And hopefully as we go through the passage. And as we listen to what God has to say to us. We will see the love of God. And it will maybe bring clarity.

Even slight clarity into the situation that we face here. As we seek God's guidance. And as we seek God's direction. Three points.

How we see now. How we will see. And how we are seen. If we look at the passage.

If you've got your Bibles open. Or if you're following on the screen. Verse 12. For we see in a mirror dimly. But then face to face. Now I know in part.

Then I shall know fully. Even as I have been fully known. And many of you here will have learnt that passage. In the authorised version. Where it says.

For now we see through a glass darkly. But then face to face. Now I know in part. But then shall I know. Even as I am fully known.

What does it mean. To see through. A mirror dimly. Or to look. Through a glass. Darkly.

Why does Paul write to us. In that way. Well we know that if we look through a dark mirror. Or if we try and look through. Glass. Darkly.

If you can imagine trying to look through. A brown bottle. We never ever. See the full picture. Our vision. Is obscured.

In some way. First of all. Think. Of what it says. In the ESV. It refers to being in a mirror dimly.

Not sure if you've been in an old house. Or maybe there's been a mirror. Hanging in a wall. For a number of years. And the reflective. Elements. Of the mirror.

Have maybe started to peel off the back. And it's become pitted. And you look in the mirror. And you wonder. What you're actually seeing. Is it your own face?

For those that maybe haven't been in. An old house like that. Maybe you've stepped out of the shower. And the mirror's obscured. And you wipe.

Across the mirror. In the hope that it's going to bring some clarity. But the heat in the room. Starts to mist. The mirror up again. And you don't really see. All that there is to see.

When we look into a mirror. What is it? That's at the center. When we look into a mirror.

We're looking at ourselves. We're looking at ourselves. We're focusing in on ourselves. And if that mirror. Is dark. If it's misty.

We very often. Look further in at ourselves. And start to see. All. That our face. Is about. And we focus.

Purely. On ourselves. We lose the vision. Of what's happening. Around about us. We become the center. Or. As we learned.

Many of us. In the authorized version. To look through a glass darkly. Similarly. We don't get the full picture. Our vision is obscured.

We can't really understand. All that's going on. Brings us. To a dangerous point. As we look in.

On these things. No one likes. Being in the dark. No one likes. Not having. The full picture. We want to be able. To understand. It's in our nature.

To try and discern. What's actually there. We try and fill the void. Our thoughts. Run away with them. With ourselves. And sometimes.

When our thoughts. Run away. When we're in a situation. That we don't understand. Sometimes. We start to speak. And we start to say things. And what does Paul.

Teach us. In the passage. That we read through. We look at the beginning of the chapter. Verses three. Verses one to three. If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels.

But have not love. I am a noisy gong. Or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers. And understand all mysteries.

And all knowledge. And if I have all faith. So as to remove mountains. But have not love. I am nothing. If I give away all I have.

And if I deliver up my body to be burned. But have not love. I gain nothing. Paul gives us a warning. About the way that we are to speak.

And in situations. When we don't. Have all. The understanding. That we would maybe want. We don't know. The situation. We're seeing.

As through a glass darkly. Teaches us here. That we need to pause. Not just to make a noise. Not just to speak.

Thinking that we have knowledge. I don't know. Is the microphone. Getting feedback. You have an insight. Into a situation.

And you speak. Thinking. That you know. Everything that's going on. Paul teaches us. To take the gaze off self. Not to try and elevate self.

Because of our own knowledge. Our own understanding. He teaches us. To speak. In love. As one commentator. Puts it. Paul says.

That whenever a person. Foregrounds knowledge. And backgrounds love. He is nothing. Or as another. Puts it. If I speak in the tongues.

Of men and of angels. And love. Love does not motivate. The control of my speech. I am only. A resounding gong. Or a clanging cymbal.

Instruments used. To produce. A variety of sounds. That command attention. But only frustrate. Their audience. Unless accompanied. By music. Or words. That interpret.

The meaning. Similarly. To have the gift. Of prophecy. Which conveys. Insight. Into the mysteries. Of God's activity. And knowledge. About God himself. Or a faith.

That can move mountains. Is of no value. Unless these abilities. Are motivated by love. As they are used. Within the body of Christ. James.

Writing. In a similar vein. Says to us. In chapter 1. Verse 19 to 20. Know this. Know this. My beloved brothers. Let everyone be quick to hear.

Slow to speak. Slow to anger. For the anger of man. Does not produce. The righteousness. Of God. Be quick.

To listen. Slow to speak. Feel. Feel that you have to fill the void. Silence is good. Don't feel. That you have to fill the void.

And if you do feel. That you need to. Fill that void. Stop. And ask yourself. The question. Is what I going to say. Been spoken in love.

Or is it. Out of selfish. Desire. We see through. A glass darkly. Or we see. As looking in a mirror dimly.

How do we change the focus. From looking through. A dimly lit mirror. Or looking through. A glass darkly. Thomas.

This morning. Pointing us. In John 3.16. To believe. In the only. Son of God. We previously looked.

At the seven. I am sayings. Of Jesus. And we can think. As we looked on. I am the light. Of the world. When Jesus spoke.

In John 8. And at verse 12. Again. Jesus spoke to them. Saying. I am the light. Of the world. Whoever follows me. Will not walk.

In darkness. But will have. The light. Of life. This does not mean. That we'll see. Everything clearly. And have understanding.

And knowledge. Of everything. That happens. This week alone. Has shown us. That we don't. But what it does mean. Is that we should have. A different perspective.

Why? Because Paul writes. In 2 Corinthians. 5. 7. And he says to us. For we walk. By faith. Not.

By sight. Not always. By what we see. But we put our trust. Our trust in Jesus. And we walk. By faith. There are unknowns.

In life. But we do not face them. On our own. If our trust. Is in Christ. Remember. As promised. As disciples. At the end of Matthew.

28. And at verse 20. Behold. I am with you. Always. To the end. Of the age. If we put our trust.

In him. As we have encouraged. This morning. He has promised. That he will never leave us. He is with us. To the end. Of the age. There are many things.

That as we journey. Along life. There are mystery. To us. That we don't understand. We can spend time. Trying to rationalize them. We can try.

And use our given wisdom. To explain them. And provide a solution. But Paul warns us. To be careful. About how we do that. Not for our own gain.

But at all times. To speak. To speak in love. And Paul gives us. A beautiful definition. Of what love is. Verse 4. Love is patient.

And kind. Love does not envy. Or boast. It is not arrogant. Or rude. It does not insist. On its own way. It is not irritable. Or resentful. It does not rejoice.

At wrongdoing. But rejoices. With the truth. Love bears. All things. Believes. All things. Hopes. All things. Endures.

All things. Love. Never ends. Is that the love. That we know. Is that the love. That we show.

As we go. Through life's journey. How we see. And then. It takes us. To our second point.

How we will see. Verse 12 again. For we now see. In a mirror dimly. But then. Face to face.

Now I know in part. Then. I shall know fully. Points us towards. A day that is coming. That we will get.

And be given understanding. That while we go through this. Life. That we don't have full understanding. But a day is coming.

When we will see Christ. Face to face. And while now. We know in part. Then. We shall fully know. No longer looking dimly.

At life. Through a mirror. But gazing. On the face. Of our saviour. Revelation 21. 23 to 25.

Says to us. And the city. Has no need. Of sun. Or moon. To shine. For the glory of God. Gives it light. And its lamp. Is the lamb. By its light.

Will the nations walk. And the kings of the earth. Will bring their glory. Into it. And its gates. Will never be shut. By day. And there will be. No night there. I am the light.

Of the world. Said Jesus. And as we see. God gives light. To the city. The new Jerusalem. And the lamb. Is its lamp.

Do you have the promise. Of going there. Thomas pointed us. This morning. To believe. In the Lord Jesus Christ.

The reward. That awaits. Is that. We will not perish. But have. Everlasting life. Paul says to us. I know.

I know. In part. Then I shall know fully. Maybe the easiest way. To explain this. Is to return. To a poem. That. Many will have heard.

Many will have read. Many will have quoted. The weaver's poem. My life is but a weaving. Between my God and me.

I cannot choose the colors. He weaveth steadily. Of times. He weaveth sorrow. And I. And I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. I. Tolkien. I. I. I. I. War. I. I. I.

lip. sees the upper and I the underside. Not till the loom is silent and the shuttle cease to fly will God unroll the canvas and reveal the reason why. The dark threads are as needful in the weaver's skillful hand as the threads of gold and silver in the pattern he has planned.

A reminder to us that God has a plan for those that trust in him. He has a plan and he is the skillful weaver and he sews the threads into our lives and sometimes there are dark ones, sometimes there are ones of gold and silver. But God is working his purposes out. We don't always see it, we don't always understand it. But he is a God that loves us. That brings us to a final point.

How we are seen. We see in the passage, now I know in part, then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known. Well, we do not understand all that happens. We don't have insight into everything. What this passage teaches us is that God knows us. And as we learned this morning, God not only loves us, knows us, God loves us. We have a God in heaven that loves us just the way we are. Before it's even on every thought, our every action and every word. Before it's even on our lips. He knows every detail of our life. We are fully known by him. And you know what's incredible is, despite all that, he loves us. We looked this morning, as we said, at John 3.16, for God so loved the world that he gave his only son that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life. God loves us. He knows us. And even in spite of who we are, he sent the son to die for us. One commentator says, in view of God's love, instead of hearing what we need to do for God, or even for others, we need to hear what love has done for us. This is God's posture towards us in our brokenness. In love, God is patient with the sinner. In love, God is kind to us.

In love, God bears the believer upon his shoulders. In love, God endures us in all our unendurableness. We can't wear him out, and he's not backing down. His love never ends.

The beautiful impossibility of love is a beautiful, beautiful possibility in the hands of God. And that causes Paul to write at the end there, so now faith, hope, and love abide.

These three, but the greatest of these is love. Hebrews 11 verse 1 says to us, Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, The conviction of things not seen.

While we walk here by faith, In eternity, We will have sight. Sight of all that we had faith and hope in. The one thing that will remain Will be love.

As it will continue to be central to our relationship with God. Because God is love. Until then, We have to trust In the one that knows all things.

And knows us better than we know ourselves. We read the Weaver's poem, But there's also a final verse to it. And it goes, He knows.

He loves. He cares. Nothing this truth can dim. He gives the very best to those Who leave the choice to Him.

Life is challenging. There is a lot we find difficult to understand. But we don't need to face it on our own. God knows.

God loves. And God cares. The question is, Are we trusting in Him? Trusting in Him.

That as we go through life, And things look dark, Things look difficult. Are we trusting in the one That knows the beginning From the end?

Because one day, Those that love Him Have given their lives to Him Will see Him face to face. And what has been difficult to understand Will be shown.

And we will see the plans That He has been unveiling for us. Love. Love for Jesus. Can bring clarity To a life That is dark And challenging.

Do you know Him? Are you walking with Him? Are you walking In the light Of the world? That you no longer have to walk In darkness.

Let us pray. Be all we have to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to do to