Undeniable hope
Are you a Christian? Me, too. When you wake up in the morning and have had your mug of coffee, tea, or (God have mercy) Pepsi, what do you sense (not feel) inside you? Yes, that’s the Holy Spirit. You may be in a “good place” in your life or a dire situation, but there’s hope there; it’s undeniable hope. Abraham, too, had this kind of hope.
In hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations, as he had been told, “So shall your offspring be.” – Romans 4:18
Hope is not at all like wishing
Abraham was old enough to be a great, great, grandfather, but still, God’s promise to him had not been fulfilled. Nevertheless, he hoped. This very same nature of God is alive in you. You have that hope.
And hope is not at all like wishing. It’s not like daydreaming. And it’s certainly not the misguided teaching of “name it, and claim it.” God’s Word tells us, “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. (Hebrews 11:1)” It is that assurance that acts as a scaffolding for the life of a Christian.
Scaffolding of our life
Our lives are under construction. And where we find construction, find scaffolds that enable the builders to move around the structure, making their repairs and building whole new things. The Holy Spirit, who lives within us, does the construction for our life in Christ Jesus. Our assurance is our confidence in God’s work in our lives.
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” – Romans 15:13
Do we make mistakes? Yes. Do we suffer loss from our trust in others? Yes. Is there anything, anywhere, at any time, that can separate you from the love of God? No!
God is for you
For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. – Romans 8:38-39
Is this hope the same for the people that have not accepted God’s free gift of salvation? No. “Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. (Romans 8:8)” So be full of joy, be kind to the hateful, be at peace in your world of chaos. God is for you. “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31)”
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