Hope.
What is the world is hope?
Natural hope, according to Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, is a noun that is a desire of some good, accompanied with an expectation of obtaining it, or a belief that it is obtainable; an expectation of something, which is thought to be desirable; confidence; pleasing expectancy.
This hope gives us a reason to go on, based a premise that the desire can be achieved.
If you watched Saturday's Indianapolis Colts vs. Kansas City Chiefs NFL football game you saw what a team and a gifted player – Andrew Luck – can do when they have hope.
In natural eyes the situation when they Colts came out of the locker room from the half time break was somewhat hopeless.
But they believed they could win – even down 28 points in the second half. They had an expectation of obtaining a win. They had confidence and achieved their goal exercising their God-given talents to provide a stunning epic comeback victory.
Bible hope is similar in that it is also a belief in the possible expectation of a desire. The difference is that the foundation for Bible hope is not founded on earthly reason, but rather on the promises given to us in the Bible from God.
Romans 15:4 (AMP) says, “For whatever was thus written in former days was written for our instruction, that by [our steadfast and patient] endurance and the encouragement [drawn] from the Scriptures we might hold fast to and cherish hope.”
Hope is a desire based on a promise of God.
Bible hope is based on faith.
We see hope as a promise that communicates the possibility of God blessing us.
Hope encourages our soul and gives us the ability to go on when our minds says give up, there is no use, there is not hope.
Without hope life has little or no meaning.
Hebrews 11:1 (AMP) says faith is based on hope.
It reads, “Now faith is the assurance (the confirmation, the title deed) of the things [we] hope for, being the proof of things [we] do not see and the conviction of their reality [faith perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses].”
Like faith, if we can see it in the natural physical form, then it is not hope.
You can't see, feel, taste or hear faith or hope. But they are there for our taking, if we desire it.
It's kind of like asking someone to describe the taste of chocolate. You know it's delicious, but how do you put that into words to someone who has never tasted it.
Hope is the start of the walk of faith. Hope believes we can have it someday. Faith believes that we have it now (in our heart). Hope is the possibility; faith is the surety.
Faith transforms hopes into realities. Hope is the raw material from which faith builds the house. Transforming our godly desires into reality is the purpose of hope and faith.
When the Bible talks about ‘hope’, it is not talking about wishful thinking. Many say, “I hope to have (something)” when what they really mean is “I wish to have (something).” Therefore, it is important to get a good grasp of what hope means to the Christian.
Hope can be defined as ‘a desire of something good, with a certain expectation of obtaining it’.
Is biblical hope a 'wishy-washy' maybe or a kind of unsure optimism?
Biblical hope is certainty, not ‘probability’.
God is called “the God of Hope.”
He is the source of all real hope. If we are going to have hope, it must come from him for he alone has the power to give it.
These morning messages are now available by email. Simply write me with you email address at schneider.nick@gmail.com, and I'll be happy to forward them to your in-box.
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