Hope

"Who [Abraham], contrary to hope, in hope believed, so that he became the father of many nations (Romans 4:18)."

A post by my sister-in-law earlier this week got me thinking about hope...read her inspiring article here.

What does it mean to hope? The above verse describes for us the character of Abraham; when his situation looked dark, he continued to hope in God. We know that in the end of Abraham’s story, he did indeed receive what he hoped for-a son, an inheritance, and the promise of God. But that doesn’t answer our question. What exactly is hope?

Hope is a confident expectation in the goodness of God, rooted first in the character of God and then in our experiences with Him. It’s rooted in God’s character in that we know that God is a good God. We know that we can trust in Him to work for all things together for our good, even if things are difficult for some time. We hope in God because we know He is sovereign, loving, and completely in control of all things on earth.

Next, it’s rooted in our experiences with God because we have seen Him deliver us and bring about His good plans in the past. Experience is an absolutely essential ingredient of hope! What has God done in your past? What sins has He empowered you to overcome? What miracles has He brought about? Which of your friends or family members has He brought to salvation? Hope is built out of these great experiences in God.

This brings us to the difference between hope and faith. Faith is based on the Word of God and is a substance that always brings about results. Hope, on the other hand, isn’t based on a direct word form God but rather from an experiential knowledge of His ways. And when the Bible speaks of faith, hope, and love, telling us that the the greatest of the three is love (1 Corinthians 13:13), that implies that hope is even better than faith! You see, faith is the foundation of everything we receive in the Kingdom of God (and we only come to hope through faith), but hope is greater than faith since it comes through experiences with God. Hope is truly an amazing thing!

So let’s be people who hope in the mercy, grace, and favor of God. Are you going through a difficult time? Be a prisoner of hope (Zechariah 9:12), knowing that God is going to bring about His good purpose through it. Be like David, who reminded himself to hope in God (Psalm 42:5). Hope never, ever, ever disappoints; we are always benefited by hoping in God. So hope at all times!