HAVING HOPE – OUR FAITH IS IN JESUS
“Having hope links your past and present to the future. You have a vision for what you hope will happen. Having hope is important to the very act of being a human being.” As Dr. Judith Rich writes, “Hope is a match in a dark tunnel, a moment of light, just enough to reveal the path ahead and ultimately the way out.”
Having hope in God will never lead us into misery or depression, because God has a plan for everyone who believes and trusts him. God is the only one that we as believers can count on for a future that is filled with hope.
In straightforward terms, Biblical hope is built on faith and hope. You cannot alienate one from the other. Our hope in Christ encourages us as believers to rejoice because the Lord is with us now and in the future. We must be patient to endure any tribulation and persevere in prayer with God. This hope provides support for living with a Christ-centred perspective in such a time like this to rejoice, as stated in Romans Chapter 12:12– “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, and faithful in prayer.”
Consequently, we can say that the Biblical definition of hope is “the sure and confident anticipation of getting what God has promised believers in Christ for the future.” In the simplest terms, Biblical hope is built on faith. The believer’s hope is not a faint or obscure wish but a firm foundation in Christ. “This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enters the presence behind the veil” [Hebrews 6:19].
The Word of God lays a clear emphasis on Hope as a virtuous quality because it contains no doubt, always trusting in God’s faithfulness and presence, no matter what and how the circumstances, whether it is good or it is bad. “For you, O Lord, are my hope, my trust, O Lord, from my youth.” [Psalm 71:5].
FURTHER REFERENCES:
“Jesus Christ is our hope..” [1 Timothy 1:1].
“Hope of Israel in time of distress..” [Jeremiah 14:8]
“That is why we labour and strive, because we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Saviour of all people.” [1 Timothy 4:10]
“For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have?” Romans 8:24
Paul the Apostle’s writings explain hope in God and faith in God more than the Christian or non-Christian can imagine and understand.
As Christians, if we have worldly hope in people and things of this life, we will be in realism living in a state of hopelessness. We can’t count on people, else we will be disappointed, but if we have our confidence in Christ, we will never be disappointed as long as we trust in him with Faith and Hope.
Without hope and without God in our lives, the world will be hopeless. [Read: Ephesians 2:12]. In contrast, the believer’s hope cannot be frustrated or hindered by anything in this life. We know what we have safely “stored up for [us] in heaven” [Colossians 1:5]
Paul’s hope was so secured in his eternal future that he was willing to suffer and die for it: “I stand on trial because of the hope of the resurrection of the dead” [Acts 23:6].
Consequently, we recognize at this point that hope is unseen. So, the question is: Can we now trust this assurance from the Scripture and from the Lord? That said, we trust things in our natural surroundings that we don’t see their finality more than what the Scripture says.
When it starts raining, you don’t know when it will end, but you trust that it will, and you have that envisioned. Why that? I will tell you why, for the reason that it is God’s natural law through the physical. Even though you don’t know when the rain will stop, you have the faith and hope that it will stop. Isn’t it interesting?
So, why is it difficult for you to relate or trust the Lord about your request to him the same way you envision this law? Why then do you doubt if your request is going to be answered positively by God?
We are confident in them because these are natural laws. In the same way, although we can’t see the end or when, we can be full of hope that the rain will end. Hope assures us that we can be confident in it because it’s the law of God.
So then, let us consider the following and apply them to our faith and hope in God.
“For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have?” Romans 8:24
“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” [Hebrews 11:1]
“There is surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off.” Proverbs 23:18. Trust in the Lord always, for he is our FAITH and HOPE.
From Faith and Hope Diaries. Share