By Steven J. Hogan
~ A Saturday Morning Post #322 ~
You must have hope! You must have hope for both this life and the ages to come! We’ve talked extensively about having hope for the coming ages, specifically that we’ll be in heaven with Jesus Christ and all the believers and in a new body. To live rightly for God in this life, you must have hope for the next life, you must know the infinite and eternal value of living all out for God, you must realize “that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.” 1 Cor. 15:58b, 1 Cor. 3:8
You also need hope for this time on earth. If you don’t have hope during this life, then why would you want to keep living? You must have a godly hope for your present life if you are to be motivated to keep going serving Him until the end of your stay on earth. What does it mean to have hope? What are some principles that will enable you to be “steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord?” 1 Cor. 15:58a
* Having hope means you have faith in God, you are trusting Him and not trusting yourself. If you have hope, then you have faith, and if you have faith, then you will have hope; they are closely connected. “Faith is the assurance of things hoped for.” Heb. 11:1
* Having hope means believing that God has a good and clear purpose for your life, good things stored up for you, good works for you to do. “We are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.” Eph. 2:10, Ps. 31:19
* Having hope does not mean having a fleshly purpose, a worldly goal, or personal ambition. We are talking about God’s will for your life, about moving ahead, not in a worldly way but in a godly way. “Understand what the will of the Lord is.” Eph. 1:17-18
* Having hope means trusting God for the future no matter how you feel, whether your circumstances are good or bad. “We had the sentence of death within ourselves so that we would not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead.” 2 Cor. 1:8-10
* Having hope means you are putting your hope in God’s word, you are believing the truths of God’s word. “I have put my hope in Your word.” Ps. 119:114, 43, 74, 81; Ps. 119:1-8
* Having hope means you are a forward-looking person, and you are looking forward to tomorrow, to next week, to all the days of this year, and all the years of your life. “…forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead.” Phil. 3:12-14
* Having hope means you understand that “to live is Christ.” You know that living in, for, and through Christ is why you are now on earth and not in heaven, that living in this way is “fruitful labor… is more necessary” for others. Soon enough, God will take you home to heaven, and then you will understand that “to die is gain.” Phil. 1:21-24
* Having hope means you are living by God’s commands – and it’s this that puts you on a holy highway. Obeying God’s commands is an essential key to having a godly future, for they keep you going in the right way, on the straight and narrow, in the direction God has planned out for you. “I shall run the way of Your commandments.” Ps. 119:32
* Having hope means knowing that God will lead you in the plans He has for you, that by His word, Spirit, and wise counsel, you will know and be able to do what He wants you to do. “Teach me to do Your will, for You are my God; let Your good Spirit lead me on level ground.” Ps. 143:10; Ps. 32:8; Prov. 12:15b, 24:14; Phil. 4:13
* Having hope means having promises, for they tell you that it’s worth it to trust and obey God, and encourage you to keep living for God in this life. “Trust also in Him and He will do it. He will bring forth your righteousness as the light.” Ps. 37:3-6
* Having hope means believing that God is with you, that you are not alone, and that He will never leave or forsake you. “My presence will go with you.” Ex. 33:14, Heb. 13:5b
* Having hope means knowing God’s name, His character, that He is good, powerful, wise, holy, righteous, truthful, loving, merciful, forgiving, compassionate, patient, faithful, and sovereign. “Those who know Your name will put their trust in You.” Ps. 9:10
* Having hope means knowing that God is forgiving. You know you will sin but you know God is merciful, and if you confess and forget your sins then you can get up and keep moving ahead. “A righteous man falls seven times and rises again.” Prov. 24:16
* Having hope means knowing that God is sovereign. No matter what has happened in the past or will happen in the future, you believe God will work it out for your good and His glory. “You meant it for evil, but God meant it for good.” Gen. 50:20, Rom. 8:28-29
* Having hope means you are excited about the life God has for you. You are not blasé about the days ahead, and you are not dreading the future, but you are looking forward to all the days that God has for you on this earth. “She smiles at the future.” Prov. 31:25
* Having hope means knowing the great love of God. Being satisfied, strengthened, and motivated by God’s love is essential to joyfully going on for Him during your time on earth. “Satisfy us in the morning with Your love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.” Ps. 90:14
* Having hope means knowing what it means to be weak in yourself, but strong in Christ. You understand being sick, tired, weary, in pain, persecuted, or in distress, but continuing on by God’s grace. “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness… for when I am weak, then I am strong.” 2 Cor. 12:9-10
* Having hope means knowing that you will have all the strength you need as you live out your days for God, even as you get close to that time when He takes you home. “Your strength will equal your days.” Deut. 33:25b
* Having hope results in working, fighting, and winning for God. It means laboring on in spite of sin, trials, fear, loneliness, physical tiredness, emotional weariness, gossip, slander, discouragement, and devilish attacks. “… tribulation, distress, persecution… in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us…” Rom. 8:35-39
* Having hope means knowing the Holy Spirit is in you, and will lead you, empower you, teach you, help you be holy, and be with you forever. “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you?” 1 Cor. 6:19; John 14:16-18, 25-2
* Having hope means knowing that God sees your future, and that He goes ahead of you, and clears the way for you. “The Lord is the One who goes ahead of you; He will be with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.” Deut. 31:8
* Having hope means having no fear, for you are trusting God and His word, and are confident and courageous, not dismayed or discouraged by anyone or anything. “… This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth but you shall meditate on it day and night… be strong and courageous… the Lord is with you wherever you go.”Joshua 1:7-9
* Having hope means knowing that God will deliver you from evil and will take you to heaven. “The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed, and will bring me safely to His heavenly kingdom; to Him be the glory forever and ever.” 2 Tim. 4:18, Ps. 18, Ps. 121:7
Life isn’t easy – it has many dangers, toils, and snares. Some of you might be here during the great tribulation, when the Antichrist is ruling the earth and greatly persecuting Christians and Jews. But no matter what happens in this life, you have a future and a hope. What God told Jeremiah is true for you – “‘I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not calamity to give you a future and a hope.’” Jer. 29:11
This godly hope enables you to live in the present and look to the future. If you don’t have hope, you will get stuck, stagnate, and won’t be very useful to God. You need this kind of hope as long as you are living on this earth. It is motivating, encouraging, and empowering. It gives you a reason to keep loving and serving God, to go strong to the end of your life. “Surely there is a future, and your hope will not be cut off.” Prov. 23:18, 24:14
I have spoken of the hope that God wants you to have in this life. As I said earlier, there is a hope that speaks of the ages to come, and this hope must also be in your heart. This hope talks of being in heaven, being with Jesus, being glorified, being with believers, and being rewarded for your work. And you should be looking forward to all these hopes being fulfilled. Heb. 12:22-24; 1 Thess. 4:18; 1 Cor. 15:42-44; 1 Thess. 2:19-20; Rev. 22:12
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Rom. 15:13
P.S. What a blessing that God has given us hope for this life and the next. Here are more posts about the hope that God has given us for the next life, the ages to come: “You Need Hope to Get Through Life”, “Your Great Hope and Most Glorious Future”, “The Best is Yet to Come.”