In this world, two groups of people exist. One group has hope. The other group has no hope. Ephesians 2:12, 1 Thessalonians 4:13 and Revelation 21:8 all deals with the man with no hope. Hope is a choice and so many today chose to have hope. This morning, let’s explore what that means.
What is hope? According to Romans 8:24, biblical hope is desire plus expectation. We often confuse the idea of “wishing” with hope. One might say, “I hope I get 1 million dollars.” In reality, that person wishes; it is not hope. Hope is a promise from the One who can provide that promise. When you and I have a hope of Heaven, then we have a desire to go to Heaven and an expectation to receive that reward through faithfulness. Hope drives us to live and love correctly. Hope pushes me to see the world through the sympathy and compassion. Do you have sound Biblical hope?
After understanding hope, for what do I need to hope? In 1st Corinthians 15:17ff there is a hope if the resurrection. Titus 1:2,3:7 there is a hope of Eternal life. Throughout the Bible ,we read of these hopes: a home (2 Corinthians 5:2), rest (Rev.14:13), a Room (John 14:1-3),to avoid destruction (2 Thess.1:7-9), toward the promise of God (Acts 24:15, 26:6). As we meditate on the idea of hope, we often think of those men and women found in Hebrews 11:13-16. May God help us retain our hope of that great promise as we live lives of faithfulness and honor for Him.
There is a result of this proper Biblical hope. The result is a confident life. According to Hebrews 6:19, the anchor of our souls is the hope of God. A few verses earlier, (Hebrews 6:13-18) reassure the child of God to rest on the promises of God. Paul, by the inspiration of God, writes about the hope of glory that is laid up in Heaven (Colossians 1:5,27).
Hope- a desire with an expectation to receive that desire.
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