LookingtoJesus

Hope When All Seems Lost

Bible Reading: 2 Corinthians 1:8-11

My friend Greg drove down from the Seattle area to go fishing with me.  On a cold clear late November morning we drove from Astoria to Seaside to the Necanicum River and launched my drift boat.  I’d run a drift boat many times and on more challenging rivers, so drifting down the Necanicum was a piece of cake in comparison–or so I thought.  We weren’t far from the launch when we entered into a turn in the river in which the river narrowed considerably.  I was approaching that turn as I should, but there wasn’t enough water to get any traction with my right oar.  The water pushed us up against the bank and within seconds the boat started filling with water.  Ultimately the boat flipped over and we and all our equipment ended up in the river.  I remember floating downstream looking up at the surface and wondering if we’d both survive.  I prayed.  About 100 yards downstream the river calmed and we found our footing.  Amazingly, all we lost was one fishing pole and a considerable amount of my ego.  We spent the rest of the day trying to get warm!  Life is filled with all kinds of trials (John 16:33; Job 5:7; James 1:2).  But God is well able to deliver us.  In Him we should set our hope.

The context of today’s passage is a severe trial that the Apostle Paul and his companions faced. We are not told the specifics of what happened, but it was an affliction of such severity that Paul and his companions “were so utterly burdened beyond (their) strength that (they) despaired of life itself” (2 Corinthians 1:8). “Indeed, (they) felt that (they) had received the sentence of death” (2 Corinthians 1:9). We all face trials, and there’s a lesson to be learned in them. We are prone sometimes to think that we can figure out things on our own, but trials are God’s way of teaching us to “rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead” (2 Corinthians 1:9; Proverbs 3:5-6; Romans 8:34). If God can do that, then He can do anything!

“Deliverance” is a key term in this passage.  The Apostle Paul experienced countless trials, like this one, and God delivered him from each and every one (2 Corinthians 11:23-33).  So, “on him,” Paul and his companions “set (their) hope that he (would) deliver (them) again” (2 Corinthians 1:10).  To set one’s hope on God is to determine, by the Spirit, to focus one’s thinking regarding future deliverance on him alone.    

God doesn’t always deliver us from our trials, sometimes he delivers us through them.  Like when the Apostle Paul was harassed by a thorn in the flesh, “a messenger of satan” (2 Corinthians 12:7).  Three times Paul prayed that it should leave him, but God said no and instead provided sufficient grace to see him through (2 Corinthians 12:9). Sometimes God delivers to a place where trials will be no more.  We have Paul’s last works in 2 Timothy chapter 4.  The “time of (his) departure had come” (2 Timothy 4:6).  He’d faced opposition (2 Timothy 4:15).  Friends had deserted him (2 Timothy 4:16).  But he said, “The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed and bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom” (2 Timothy 4:18).

You’ve faced trials before.  You’ll face them again.  In the “God who raises the dead” we have One who is preeminently qualified to come to your rescue.  On Him we should set our hope.  The hymn “Be Still, My Soul” puts it this way: “Be still, my soul!  God doth undertake, to guide the future as He has the past.  Thy hope, thy confidence let nothing shake; All now mysterious shall be bright at last.  Be still, my soul! The waves and winds still know, His voice who ruled them while He dwelt below!”

Hope Set on God is Well Placed Hope

Lord Jesus.  Time after time You’ve delivered us.  From the moment of saving faith, until this very day, You’ve watched over us.  In this life we meet with all kinds of troubles, and it’s to You that we look.  Apart from You we’d have no hope of deliverance.  Thank you for saving us!  Thank you that amidst the darkness of these days, the bright hope bound up in You shines even brighter.  May we have the wisdom to set our future hope on You alone, the One who rose from the dead; the One who has worked to deliver us from this present evil age; the One who will bring us safely into Your heavenly kingdom!  Amen!  

“Our Blessed Hope”

Bible Reading: Titus 2:11-14

January 5th, 1982.  It was a day I had been looking forward to for months, even years.  I had enlisted in the Navy six years earlier, and though I’d been a good submariner, even earning several commendations, all I could think about was being done.  Prowling around under water in a long steel tube with a hundred other smelly men has its shortcomings.  I was counting the days until my freedom.  At night I’d sometimes dream about that day and alternately I’d have nightmares about being stuck in.  I was waiting expectantly for the day I’d be set free. 

Our text speaks to how we as believers are waiting, but for something infinitely better, our blessed hope.  The term translated “blessed” means “spiritually prosperous.” Our passage speaks to two appearings of Christ (Titus 2:11,13).  By both we are “graced,” but in the second we will be so in transcendent fashion.  Note that this blessed hope which we are waiting for is not an event, but a Person–”the appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13; 1 Timothy 1:1).

What are we looking for?  First, Jesus Christ is going to receive us to Himself.  In that, the longing of your heart, for which your heart is even now groaning (2 Corinthians 5:4-7), will be fully and finally satisfied.  Second, Jesus Christ is going to transform you to be like Himself (Philippians 3:20-21).  That great work of grace, which God has patiently been working out in you, will reach its glorious conclusion.  You will be like Him, and perfectly fitted forevermore to dwell in His presence.  Thirdly, Jesus Christ is going to have you forever to Himself, to worship Him and enjoy Him in His glorious presence.  We will marvel at Him!  And Jesus’ long ago prayer to the Father will be fulfilled (John 17:24)!

This waiting for Christ is an attitude of heart.  Much as I was eagerly looking to the last day of my Navy enlistment, we as believers are to be expectantly looking forward to our blessed hope.  It is the one hope that is to rise above all others, preeminently so, in our minds and hearts.  But contrary to repeated admonitions in Scripture, I’m not sure we are always living with this kind of longing for His return.  It’s far too easy to set our minds on earthly things and we will inevitably gravitate to that, if the Spirit is not at work in us.  We are earthbound by nature.  Much like an un-inflated hot air balloon.  It’s only when you fill the balloon with hot air that it defies gravity and ascends above. The Holy Spirit has a ministry of focusing our eyes on Jesus, and thus lifting our hearts and thoughts to a higher plane.  To the extent that He fills us, and the Word richly dwells within us, we will live our earth-bound days with a heaven-bound mindset.  Helpful too, is the encouragement we can offer one another (Hebrews 10:25), as we collectively remind ourselves that our hope lies not in the here and now, but in the there and then!  

In his book “The Christian Life and How to Live It,” W H Griffith-Thomas commented on this, “Hope, in the New Testament, is always associated with the great future connected with the Lord’s Coming. Again and again, indeed no less than three hundred times, is the “blessed hope, the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior,” brought before us as the expectation of the Christian, and the crown of all his aspirations and endeavors…We look forward with joy and satisfaction to the time when we shall see Him as He is, and be made like unto Him in His eternal and glorious kingdom… Joy looks upward, peace looks inward, hope looks forward. The Christian hope is fixed on the coming of the Lord!”

In Our Blessed Hope We Possess Something Well Worth Waiting For

Lord Jesus, How wonderful the day when the Spirit worked to open our eyes to the truth about You!  Since that day You’ve been working to prepare us for the day of Your return.  Though that’s something that should fill our hearts with eager anticipation, we don’t always think and live that way.  Forgive us for our earth-bound ways!  May the Spirit work within us to open the eyes of our hearts to the glory of all You’ve prepared for us!  May we be led to mutually encourage one another as fellow pilgrims on our journey home!  As we look to the blessed hope of Your coming, may others be drawn to look there too!  Amen!

The Hope Laid Up for You in Heaven

Bible Reading: Colossians chapter 1

I was driving the Uhaul truck, filled with all our belongings, Laura was following in our family car, filled with our kids.  We were on our way from Columbia City to Astoria, for I’d been called to serve as the Pastor of Lewis and Clark Bible Church.  I’d find out later Laura was driving with tears in her eyes.  We’d left behind our nice newer home, our home church, along with all of our friends.  Our new home in Astoria was the parsonage at the church and to say it was needy would be an understatement!  It hadn’t been painted in years.  The dining room stunk, as cats had urinated in the attic area above, even staining the sheet rock.  The living room carpet was threadbare, the kitchen linoleum was torn and there were a couple of holes in the walls.  The parsonage bedroom had a red/pink shag carpet and the walls were adorned with a red velvet kind of wallpaper.  We’d find out later the basement was subject to flooding during the frequent winter storms.  Needless to say, it needed some major fixing up!  

Moving can be difficult.  There’s all the stuff to pack and move.  Sometimes the move can be from a nicer home to a more needy one.  If you are a believer in Christ, no matter how nice your present home might be, one day you will make one last final move to a new glorious home in heaven.  Colossians 1:5 speaks of “the hope laid up for you in heaven.”  The term translated “laid up” is an interesting one.  It was used in ancient times of the stored goods a king would lay up to reward his faithful servants.  Your salvation was not just a salvation from sin, death and judgment; it was a salvation to heaven, your new home.  This world is not your home, as the song says you’re just “a passing through” and your treasures are “laid up somewhere beyond the blue.”

So what’ll this new home be like?  First, note it’s “a house not made with hands” because its builder is God Himself (2 Corinthians 5:1).  Unlike the earthly tent (your body) you now reside in,  your new home is “eternal in the heavens.”  What you have now is only a temporary dwelling place, not fit for the long haul, but once you meet heaven you’ll never move again.  It is a house with “many dwelling places,” which Jesus Himself has been working to prepare for you (John 14:1-2).  Inasmuch as “He does all things well,” how glorious our new home must be! 

It’ll be a home not subject to rot or disrepair or theft of any such troubles.  How much thought and work and energy and money do we spend on upgrading and maintaining our earthly homes!  But our new home will need no improvements.  Our new dwelling place will be both safe and free from any sort of degradation (Matthew 6:20).  Did you know you’ve already got reservations (1 Peter 1:4)!  It’ll be a home free from all the problems which plague our earthly experience.  In the world we have tribulation, but that which ails us now will be “no longer” in heaven. There’ll “no longer” be any tears, or death, or mourning, or pain (Revelation 21:4).  One other thing will be “no longer” and that is sin, for heaven is a home “in which righteousness dwells” (2 Peter 3:13).  It’ll be a home of preeminent value.  I regularly get an email from Zillow with an estimate of the current value of our house.  Can you imagine the estimated value of the new home God has prepared for us in heaven!  The Apostle deemed it of such value he said it’d be “very much better” for him to go to be there with Jesus (Philippians 1:23).  Its value transcends our present ability to comprehend (1 Corinthians 2:9).

It’ll be a home to which we are well-fitted.  A glorious transformation awaits when we move from this home to that one.  God will put off from us all which remains of sin so we will be perfectly fitted for our new home.  Philippians 3:20-21 speaks to this, “For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to himself.”

Finally, it’ll be a home with a marvelous view!  I’ve been in some homes having gorgeous views–of the deep blue ocean, or some majestic mountain.  Yet there’s nothing in all of creation as beautiful as Jesus, our glorious Lord and Savior!  We will see him as he is and he “will be marveled at among all who have believed” (2 Thessalonians 1:10).  We will be with Him!  And we will praise Him together with all those “in Christ” who have gone on before us!  One final move awaits every believer.  One final move to a new glorious home.  You were saved to that end, dear friends.  And therein lies your hope.  

You’ve Been Saved to the Hope Laid Up for You in Heaven

Lord Jesus,how wonderful is Your salvation, which has worked not only to save us from sin, but to save us to this glorious hope laid up for us in heaven.  Forgive us that we don’t think quite enough about heaven, that place you are even now preparing for us.  May our hearts be set on it.  May we yearn for it. Remind us amidst our present sorrows and tears, that our new home will lack all that troubles us here on earth.  Captivate our thoughts to that day when we will be glorious transformed and brought into Your presence.  When we will marvel at You!  And praise You forevermore with unfettered hearts!

A “Wretched Man’s Hope”

Bible Reading: Romans 7:7-25

In his classic book, “The Mortification of Sin,” John Owen wrote, “Longing, breathing, and panting after deliverance is a grace in itself, that has a mighty power to conform the soul into the likeness of the thing longed after…unless you long for deliverance you shall not have it.”

From the time of his new birth, until he’s taken home to glory, every believer battles daily with temptation and sin, longing for complete deliverance.  Tragically, nothing can do more to diminish hope in the heart of a believer than falling into sin. What hope do we have for a full and final victory?

One of the questions raised regarding the passage in today’s reading is the identity of the “wretched man.”  Three possibilities have been suggested: 1) an anonymous unconverted man; 2) the Apostle Paul before his conversion; and 3) the Apostle Paul in his “present tense” experience.  Since the verbs used in verses 24-25 are all in the present tense, the logical conclusion is the Apostle Paul is speaking of himself in his “present tense” experience as a converted (i.e. saved) person.  The deliverance he longs for and anticipates can only be realized by the Spirit and finally in the redemption of his body.

The Law, though “holy and righteous and good” (Romans 7:12), has no power when it comes to defeating sin (Romans 7:9-11, 22-24). In fact, the law works to incite the flesh to rebellion, thus revealing our own inability to gain any sort of victory in our own self-doings. If we try to win the battle on our own, we are always defeated. The law works instead to expose our shortcomings, thus revealing our need to look to Christ for deliverance.

It is as Pastor Ray Stedman explained, “If we think that we have got something in ourselves that we can work out our problems with, if we think that our wills are strong enough, our desires motivated enough, that we can control evil in our lives by simply determining to do so, then we have not come to the end of ourselves yet. And the Spirit of God simply folds his arms to wait and lets us go ahead and try it on that basis. And we fail, and fail miserably — until, at last, out of our failures, we cry, “O wretched man that I am!” Sin has deceived us, and the Law, as our friend, has come in and exposed Sin for what it is. When we see how wretched it makes us, then we are ready for the answer, which comes immediately!”

What’s the answer and hope then for the wretched man? “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (Romans 7:25). Our hope for a full and final victory lies not in ourselves, but in Him! In Romans chapter seven, the pronoun “I” occurs twenty seven times and the Holy Spirit is not found once. The passage, in it’s self focus, ends with this question: “Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?”

But a triumphant change of perspective takes place in the transition from Romans chapter seven, to Romans chapter eight. In chapter eight the pronoun “I” is found only twice and the Holy Spirit is referred to repeatedly. The chapter begins with a declaration of freedom (Romans 8:2) and concludes with a promise of overwhelming triumph (Romans 8:37). With respect to sin and salvation, “it is the Spirit that gives life, the flesh profits nothing” (John 6:63). Wretched men are set free from sin only through the work of Jesus and by indwelling power of the Spirit (Romans 8:13). In Him we have this hope (confident expectation) amidst our struggles. Now we “groan inwardly as we wait eagerly…the redemption of our bodies” (Romans 8:23), but the day is coming when we will groan no more! And our struggle with sin will be over!!

A Wretched Man’s Hope Lies in a Wonderful Savior!

Heavenly Father. You alone know the full measure of the depth of our sin problem, but we are ever learning that we’ve no hope for any measure of victory in our own self efforts. How amazing Your grace that has worked to pay the penalty for our sins! And how thankful we are for how Jesus has worked to deliver us from its power. Coming to an end of our own self efforts, we look to Him alone and the indwelling Spirit for victory. We groan now, but our hope is fixed on You and the future redemption of our bodies. And the day when sin will be no more! Amen.

Hope Amidst Trials

Bible Reading: 2 Corinthians 4:16-18

Vic was one of our deacons at Lewis and Clark Bible Church.  A big-hearted man, Vic was always cheerful and more than ready to help anyone with anything.  He almost always wore a dilapidated red ball cap, imprinted with the words “Older than Dirt.”  I went to visit Vic one day, and asked him where he got that ugly old hat.  “It was a gift,” he explained.  One day, he let his dog out to do its business and it returned to the door clutching that odd ugly hat in its teeth.  He’d worn it ever since.  Apparently even Vic’s dog knew he was getting old!  Vic has gone home to be with Jesus, but I’ve never forgotten about him, or that ratty red hat.

We’re all getting older.  Our “outer self is wasting away” (2 Corinthians 4:16).  I don’t need to add up the years, or for anyone to tell me that, my body gives me daily reminders.  Yet “we do not lose heart,” the passage says.  Why don’t we?  “Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day.  For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison” (2 Corinthians 4:16-17).

Last month was the five-year anniversary of Laura’s cancer diagnosis.  Not only is she dealing with Stage IV metastatic breast cancer, she’s got something called PostHerpetic Neuralgia, which causes chronic pain, kept under control only with the daily dose of three pain medications.  Bi-monthly, for seven days, she takes her five chemo pills twice a day.  They keep the cancer at bay, but chemo makes her nauseous and causes pain in her hands and her feet.  The cancer itself has caused irreparable damage to her body.  How can Paul–inspired by God as he was–call something like that “light momentary affliction?”

Paul was actually an expert on trials (2 Corinthians 11:23-29). He’d experienced more than his fair share. So what’s the deal? The afflictions can only be deemed light and momentary when weighed against something else. Imagine a balance scale in your mind’s eye. On the one side of the scale, place your afflictions, having gathered them all up, big and small. It seems like a lot, doesn’t it? In Laura’s case it seems way too much, overwhelming! Now, on the other side of the scale place the “eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison.” The weight of what God has prepared for us makes our afflictions, though they appear huge to us now, seem smaller by way of comparison. God has prepared for us “an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison!” To be sure, there’s some mystery there. The term “glory” is itself a big word! Yet bound up in there is the redemption of our bodies, Christlikeness and our future home in heaven! There is the work Jesus will do when he will “transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body” (Philippians 3:21). The trials we face in the here and now, are temporary, the glory we will experience in heaven with Jesus will be forever!

The key to having a confident expectation about our unseen future blessings, is “to look to the things that are unseen.  For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:18).  If you want a heart filled with hope in these uncertain days, you must make use of your eyes of faith.  As you depend upon the Spirit and allow God’s Word to speak, God will strengthen and lead you “to set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth” (Colossians 3:2).  Treat the matter like making a trip to some glorious destination. There may be hardships along the way–but keeping our focus on where we are going is good food for a strong hope.

Present Troubles Weigh Less When Measured Against Future Glory

Heavenly Father. The trials and suffering sometimes work to weigh us down. And sometimes we grow weary and discouraged. Thank you for the reminder that though our troubles here might seem too much, they are not so large or so long when compared to the eternal weight of glory You’ve prepared for us. Grant us grace and mercy, we are sin-prone to search with our physical eyes for help, when instead we need to look through eyes of faith to the unseen realities bound up in You! Amidst our troubles, help us to trust in You and long for heaven all the more. Amen!

Hope in God’s Steadfast Love

Bible Reading: Psalm 33

According to a study done by Brown University in October of 2021, “Depression among U.S. adults persisted, and worsened, during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic.”  The study found that nearly 33% of US adults experienced elevated depressive symptoms in 2021, compared to only 8.5% before the pandemic.  That’s an alarming statistic!  It’d be fair to say that in these days of uncertainty many people are losing hope.  But you already know this.  You hear the news.  You have friends and family members who’ve expressed their concerns to you about where things are headed–be it the pandemic, the divisiveness, the economy, the increase in crime, the border crisis; or the threat of pending war.  

What is going to make the difference for us?  Remember, hope is an attitude, a way of thinking about things.  The only way we can experience confident hope in uncertain times, is when it is well-founded in our minds and hearts, based within a strong and stable source.

The Psalmist knew where and where not, to set his hope.  Not in the nations.  The counsel of the Lord stands forever, but the Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing.  The ship of history is captained by our sovereign God.  It is on course and will not be deterred from reaching its final destination.  Nations come and go. They have.  They will.  Yet Our Creator God has always been and will always be.  “Though the wrong seems oft so strong, God is the ruler yet.”  So we set our hope on Him.

A leader and his people could place their hope in the strength of their military or the wealth of their economy, or the supposed wisdom of their leaders and their plans, but “the King is not saved by his great army; a warrior is not delivered by his great strength” (Psalm 33:16).  Even “the war horse is a false hope for salvation” (Psalm 33:17)   Though I suppose most of us don’t have one of those!

If we look in any horizontal direction, it can be a struggle to find a valid place to set our hope.  We are sinners.  None of us are perfect.  None of us is able to predict the future, let alone secure it.  Instead, we must look to God for hope.  Note what the Psalmist declares about our Creator!  “All His work is done in faithfulness,” which means we can count on Him to always do what He says (Psalm 33:4).  He will fulfill every promise.  As our powerful Creator, He has the power to secure our future (Psalm 33:6-9).  He is not aloof to our situation, He “looks down from heaven, he sees all the children of men” (Psalm 33:13).  In fact, “the eye of the Lord is on those who fear him” (Psalm 33:18).  That’s why the Psalmist declared, “Let your steadfast love, O Lord, be upon us, even as we hope in you” (Psalm 33:22).

The words “steadfast love” translate from the Hebrew word, “hesed,” a word which is sometimes translated “lovingkindness” or “mercy.”  The term is rich in meaning and carries with it three different related meanings: “strength,” “steadfastness,” and “love.”  The term was commonly used in the Psalms, and appears twice in this one. The heart of God is for the child of God.  Our Heavenly Father is strong and loyal in His love towards us.  So we set our hope on him (Psalm 33:22).

The story is told of a young man who was aboard ship during a raging storm.  His fellow passengers were full of fear and worry, but he appeared to be at ease and unconcerned.  When asked the reason, he answered, “The captain of the ship was his father, and he knew that his father would take good care of him.” 

A Certain Hope is a Hope set on a Sure Source

Heavenly Father. We praise You as our Creator God, the One who is always faithful to do what You say! How thankful we are that You know all and see all and are Sovereign over all. We are forever grateful for Your strong and loyal love for us! Grant us the wisdom and resolve to fully set our hope on You, and that which You have prepared and secured for us. Amen.

The God of Hope

Bible Reading: Romans 15:1-13

My first car was a 1952 Plymouth Station Wagon.  It was a beast of a vehicle, with a flathead 6 engine, a 3 speed on the column, and a top “safe” speed of about 60 miles per hour.  The one thing it didn’t have was a working fuel gauge, so unsurprisingly, on more than one occasion, I ran out of gas.  That happened once at the entrance to the high school I attended.  Kind of embarrassing!  We humans don’t come with “hope gauges,” but if we did, what would we see?  I’ve personally run out of gas, so to speak, when it comes to hope.  Have you ever felt so discouraged, the only word left in your prayer vocabulary is “help!”  I’ve been there, and thankfully God responded to my plea.  

God longs for His people to be filled with hope.  Because of His lovingkindness, we have good reason to be, even amidst our troubles.  Romans 15:13 constitutes a prayer by the Apostle Paul, a beautiful prayer, that we might “abound in hope.” 

A confident expectation regarding the believer’s favorable future is given to us by the God of hope.  God is both the source and giver of hope.  God Himself—who declares “the end from the beginning” (Isaiah 46:10)—has no need of hope.  He who “works all things according to the counsel of his will” (Ephesians 1:11), will frame the future according to His plan.  Hope is a creature need.  Unlike God, we live and exist in the realm of uncertainty.  On our own, we lack the ability to foresee, or dictate the future.  Confidence regarding a favorable destiny must be ministered to us from One who is faithful, who has the power and ability to achieve that which is hoped for.  He is our reason for hope (Lamentations 3:21-24).

God is able to fill His children with hope.  The Holy Spirit indwells every born again believer.  Jesus called Him the Helper (parakletos, lit. “called to one’s side”).  Preeminent amongst His many tasks as the Helper is His work in directing our hearts “Christward” (John 16:13-14).  It is in Jesus Christ we find “strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow.”  It is He who caused us to be “born again to a living hope” through His resurrection (1 Peter 1:3).  It is He who has become, in His imminent return, the “blessed hope” of the believer (Titus 2:13).  As the Spirit of God–the “Spirit of Promise” (Ephesians 1:13, KJV)–works to apply the Word of God to our hearts (Romans 15:4), He ministers a confident expectation in Christ regarding all He has provided and prepared for us.  He works to turn our eyes upon Jesus.  And in Him we find hope!

God’s desires that we “abound in hope.”  The word “abound” translates a Greek term meaning “to be abundantly furnished, to abound in a thing” (Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary).  It is elsewhere used of the fragments left over after the feeding of the multitude (John 6:12-13).  In this context the term speaks of an overabundance of confident expectation!  It is in the present tense and because of that, pictures God’s saints as continually abounding in Spirit-imparted hope.

J B Phillips paraphrases Paul’s prayer this way, “May the God of Hope fill you with joy and peace in your faith, that by the power of the Holy Spirit, your whole life and outlook may be radiant and alive.”  Is your outlook “radiant and alive?  By the Spirit it can be.  These are troubling times.  “Out in the highways and by-ways of life, many are weary and sad.”  God gives us the ability to “carry the sunshine where darkness is rife.”  He desires for us to be filled with this kind of hope to such an extent others will see it in us and wonder where we got it (1 Peter 3:15).  In the God of hope we have good reason to be filled to overflowing with hope!  Take some time to pray this beautiful prayer for yourself and others.

No Matter Your Troubles, The Spirit Can Work to Fill You With Hope

Heavenly Father. We praise You as our God of hope! Regardless of our situation or circumstance, there is a plentiful supply of hope sourced in You. Forgive us for our sinful tendency to try to find hope in worldly ways and in worldly things. May we ever look instead to You, that by the power of the Spirit our hearts might be filled up to overflowing with all joy and peace and the certain hope of Your promised future blessings. May Your hope abound within us, that others might wonder as to where it has come from and look to You for salvation. Amen!