From God comes…
From God comes hope. There are times in life when our circumstances seem so daunting it feels hopeless. Yet as Christians we never need to feel as if there is no hope because our God is a God of hope.
Spiritual hope is not merely wishful thinking. The Old Testament word for hope is “yachal” and means to wait or be patient. The Greek word for hope in the New Testament is a little different. It is “elpis” which means favorable and confident expectation. We aren’t just waiting; we are confident our wait will reap positive results.
Hope is as necessary to the human spirit as oxygen is to the physical body. When people lose hope they are overcome with despair and lack of purpose. They lose all desire to go on. Problems overwhelm them. Not having hope can literally destroy lives.
There is a lot of pain, tragedy, trauma, and suffering in this world which can lead to feelings of hopelessness—if we don’t have God in our lives. (Ephesians 2:12) Those without God don’t understand that the problems of this world are temporary. Even death is a temporary condition. (1 Thessalonians 4:13)
Hope is not something that magically appears. It comes from a relationship with God. Christ is our hope. (1 Timothy 1:1) When Jesus died and was resurrected we were begotten to a living hope. (I Peter 1:3-5) In other words, we have an inheritance that will not fade away. Our hope is blessed assurance that everything God has told us is true. We know salvation is a done deal. We don’t have to wonder about it. We don’t have to doubt it. We can be confident about that! Everything God promised us is true and God cannot lie. (Titus 1:2)
Hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our soul. (Hebrews 6:18-19) What does an anchor do? When the boat drifts a little this way or that way, the anchor tugs it back. The anchor keeps the boat centered and steady. We need to be anchored to our living, loving God so we don’t drift away.
Much is said in the Bible about Christian trials and suffering. Although it’s not something we like to think about, trials and suffering happen to all of us at one time or another. Hope helps us make it through the hard times because we are patiently waiting on God with confidence and expectation for His will to be done.
Hope cannot be seen with the human eye. (Romans 8:24-25) In other words, hope is not held in our hands, only in our hearts. It comes from God. Christ living in us is the hope of glory! (Colossians 1:27)
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“Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God…”
~James 1:17 (NLT)
