Romans 5:1-2 “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Paul had “a hope in God…that there will be a resurrection of both the just and the unjust” and what greater hope is there that we too will be raised by Christ and that we will live with Him forever. There are dozens of times that Paul uses the word “hope” in the defense of his faith in Christ before the religious leaders and Roman authorities and in the using it for the churches in Asia, Rome, and Judea (Acts 23:6 24:15 26:6). Here was Paul on trial again for his belief in Christ. So even though this message was to Israel, God has plans for us too, even though we cannot see what they include in the future but we can trust in God that they are for our benefit (welfare) and not meant to do us harm (evil) and His plan is a great hope for us and when our hope is in Him, it is as good as done! Acts 24:14b-15 “I worship the God of our fathers, believing everything laid down by the Law and written in the Prophets, having a hope in God, which these men themselves accept, that there will be a resurrection of both the just and the unjust.”
I understand that this was not written to Christians but to Israel who were being held captive by Babylon and made slave but weren’t all believers at one time held captive by their sins because Jesus said “everyone who sins is a slave to sin” ( John 8:34). Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” That is the know-so type of hope that I wrote about earlier. Our hope is sure and steadfast because it is in His steadfast love and sure deliverance from death and our sustenance in times of leanness and famine. I love the fact that the Lord is watching those who fear Him which is really a type of holy, reverential fear and deep respect, not a fear of being struck down and killed. Psalm 33:18-19 “Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his steadfast love, that he may deliver their soul from death and keep them alive in famine.” If our hope is in the Lord, our hope more certain than the sunrise tomorrow. I pray these verses give you courage, comfort, endurance, strength, boldness, and confidence to see with the eyes of faith. It even changes how we see ourselves, both today and into eternity. It changes what we think might be important to what really is important. It allows us to live today with the end in mind. It changes our perspective about what we are going through today. The world’s hope is a “hope-so” but the Christian’s view of hope is a “know-so.” What does biblical hope do for us? It changes the way we live. For the world, they hope their team wins the Super Bowl or they hope that they might get a raise at their job, but the biblical definition is remarkably different. The world’s view of hope is not the same as the biblical definition of hope. What are some of the greatest Bible verses on hope? What do they say about hope? What are some of your favorite verses on hope? What is Hope?
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