The times we live in are very troubling. People losing their jobs, the stock market goes up and down, natural catastrophes, and uncertainty in what the future holds. In today’s economy there is little to hope for in the future. However, God is never caught off guard or by surprise. God knows the future. You are not the only one that has felt that there is no hope. Even Bible heroes had their times when they wanted to give up. Job, Moses, Jonah, Jeremiah, even the powerful prophet in the Old Testament, Elijah.
Humans have definitions of hope that are different from God’s. We might hope our team wins the Super Bowl, or we might hope we don’t lose our jobs or our houses. But the biblical definition of hope is not a hope-so but a know so. Our hope in God is surer than the sun rising in the morning. Just read these verses of hope and put yourself or your own name in the place of “I” or “we”. Where is hope found? It is in the Bible, the Word of God. Psalm 119:74 “…because I have hoped in thy word.”, in Psalm 119:81 “… but I hope in thy word.”, and in Psalm 130:5 “… and in his word do I hope.”
Here is real hope. When a person reads the Word of God (Bible) they can know for certain that they have a secure and certain future for God will never allow us to suffer beyond the capabilities He gives to us to handle it. “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” 1Corinthians 10:13. There is nothing on this earth more certain than hope in God. He will never leave us nor will He ever forsake us. He is our anchor in the present and for the future.
Note the following expressions of hope found in scriptures. Several verses speak of those who “wait” on the LORD. That is they look to him, are silently listening for Him, hoping in Him for their needs, desires, and future.
Redemptive Hope
"Let Israel hope in the LORD: for with the LORD there is mercy, and with him is plenteous redemption. And he shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities." Psalm 130:7-8
If you are a believer you can rest assured that God’s love is unfailing and He will deliver us in the days of calamity. He has rescued the believers from certain judgment and promised us an eternal home with Him. Instead of using ink, God has signed this redemption with Jesus’ own blood which seals you permanently. When our hope is in the Lord and not in ourselves, it is a rock solid hope.
Gift of Hope
"Remember the word unto thy servant, upon which thou hast caused me to hope." Psalm 119:49
We know that there is always hope when we trust in God for He has given us His Holy Spirit to seal us as we read in Ephesians 1:13, “In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,”
Future Hope
“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.” Jeremiah 29:11. The New King James says, “…to give you a future and a hope.”
God has plans for you. You can bank on that. His plans are not intended to harm you but to prosper you. Now this does not mean that He plans to make you rich but He does plan for you to have a secure future. God says that He has plans for you and He knows them even if we do not. Your stockbroker or financial adviser might have plans for you too, but they do not know the future, they may try to plan for a secure future but they do not have the ability to bring it about. God knows your future and is planning it better than anyone else can, ever ourselves.
Unending Hope
“Let Israel hope in the LORD from henceforth and for ever.” Psalm 131:3
Hope is for now, it is for today, and it is for tomorrow too. Jesus clearly tells Christians that He will never leave us, never forsake us, and will never, ever caste us away. "All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.” John 6:37. This promise is for tomorrow morning, next week, and next year. This hope is the believer’s hope that covers their entire life. It is without end and will stay with us until Jesus comes for us.
Lovely Hope
"The LORD taketh pleasure in them that fear him, in those that hope in his mercy (his unfailing love)." Psalm 147:11
I am a father, grandfather and great grandfather. My children have troubles at times. They sometimes come to me for advice. I am always offering them hope that all things will work out for their best despite what today may seem like. “and we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28. I delight when they come to me with their troubles. The Lord also delights when we put our hope in Him and His unfailing love. He wants us to depend upon Him for everything. He delights to give us the desires of our hearts. “Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.” Psalm 37:4.
Unashamed Hope
“Yea, let none that wait on thee be ashamed:” Psalm 25:3
If we have our hope in the right place, that is not in ourselves, our jobs, our circumstances, but in God alone, we will never be disappointed. We will never be ashamed for placing our hope in Him because He has the power to deliver us out of all our troubles. We do not possess that power. Our 401K does not have such power. God owns the whole earth, He owns every animal in the forest, and He is the owner of the cattle on a thousand hills as Psalm 50:10-11 says, “For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine.”
Guiding Hope
"Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on thee do I wait all the day." Psalm 25:5
We are finite creatures and cannot look beyond today but God has planned every step we take. He guides us and protects us, even in areas where the dark shadows of death seem imminent in the lowest valleys (Psalm 23). We might plan our own course but God Himself determines where our steps go. “A man's heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps.” Proverbs 16:9.
Protective Hope
“Our soul waiteth for the LORD: he is our help and our shield.” Psalm 33:20
Our hope in God is a shied of life. Not only a shield in eternal life but in the present life. He is our help when we need it and our shield when we need protecting. God alone is our help and our shield.
Praiseworthy Hope
“Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God.” Psalm 42:11 This is repeated in v. 5 and also in Psalm 43:5.
Here the Psalmist examines his own heart in asking, why am I so downcast? Why am I so disturbed? When really he has no reason to be because when hope is in God we have reason to praise our Savior and our God. If you do not know Christ, then I would agree that there is every good reason to be downcast, to be depressed, and to be so disturbed. The world is the most uncertain place to live in today above any other day but not so for those whose hope is in God.
Restful Hope
“My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him.” Psalm 62:5
I have often times wrestled with tomorrow while I lay down to sleep. The many “what if’s” haunt my mind and do not allow me to sleep as I rehearse the day’s events and worry about what happens tomorrow if…. But worrying about tomorrow is borrowing trouble from tomorrow and spending it on today. When you realize that tomorrow is already taken care of by God alone and the hope you have in Him, then you can find rest. It is easier to sleep tonight if you know tomorrow is in God’s hands.
Where is your hope? Whom do you hope and trust in for today and tomorrow and forever?