Abounding in Hope
Romans 15:13 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.
More than Wishful Thinking
Hope is one of those Christian words that gets thrown around, and people have an idea of what it means, but they don’t know the full meaning. Many people look at hope as wishful thinking. I hope everything works out, and then we quote Romans 8:28. The Biblical definition of hope isn’t even close to wishful thinking. It is full of promise and power, and it should be one of the three pillars that propel every Christian. Jesus wants you abounding in hope.
Our Hope in Jesus
The Bible dictionary defines hope this way: “An expectation or belief in the fulfillment of something desired. An expectation or belief in the fulfillment of something desired.” There are two ways that we are filled with hope. First is the belief that Jesus came to earth and died on the cross for our sins. We call that salvation. We have hope because we are new creations in Christ. (2 Cor 5:17) Second, we have hope that one day Jesus will return for His church and we will live with Him for eternity. Hope in the present and the future.
The Source of Our Hope
Paul tells us that God is the source of our hope. There is no wishful thinking in the way God operates. He operates in certainty. If that is the case, then we can abound in hope. Hope is the gateway to joy and peace. When we put our hope in Jesus, we are given peace and joy. (See Romans 5:1-5) God is the one who fills you with hope. No person or thing can fill you with hope. That is wishful thinking. They will eventually let you down.
Abounding in Hope
What do you do if you aren’t feeling hopeful? You need to pray to the Holy Spirit. It is through the power of the Holy Spirit that we abound in hope. Abounding in Hope means that you are filled to overflowing. When we ask the Holy Spirit to fill us with hope, He does it above and beyond what we could imagine. Are you lacking the hope that comes with new life? Ask. Are you worried about the future? Ask the Spirit to focus your hope on Christ’s return.
Fighting With the Right Weapons
1 Samuel 17:45 Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied
Weapons Exclusive to Christians
Weapons make a difference. Fighting with the right weapons is important. Ever heard the saying, “He brought a knife to a gun fight”? Doesn’t matter how good a fighter you are; if the weapons are better, you’re most likely going to lose. As Christians, we have a special set of weapons exclusive to us. These are not carnal weapons, but exist in the Heavens. That may not sound impressive to you, but it was what David used to defeat Goliath.
Not Intimidated
Goliath was nine feet tall and a seasoned warrior. The Bible says that his spear was like a weaver’s beam. That’s big. None of that intimidated David. He saw Goliath as someone who defied the armies of God, and it was his job to set things straight. David had a boldness that only came from the Lord. This would serve him well later on as men gathered to him out in the wilderness.
Unparalleled Power
In the world, a sword and javelin will always be chosen over the name of the Lord because they don’t know the power. David knew there was an unparalleled power in the name of the Lord. He didn’t have to fear because the Almighty God was on his side. How do you react when you’re faced with weapons that are beyond your powers? Do you shrink back in fear or go boldly forward under the power of the Spirit?
Fighting With the Right Weapons
Christians are called to be meek, not weak. Meekness is strength under control. When a confrontation happens, we don’t have to shrink back or overreact. We can calmly address the situation because God is with us. Peace can often be our biggest weapon, and Jesus gives us a peace that passes all understanding. Fighting with the right weapons is half the battle.
Face the Giant in Your Life
1 Samuel 17:32 And David said to Saul, “Let no man’s heart fail because of him. Your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.
Time to Face the Giant
There comes a time when you have to face the giant in your life. That giant could represent several different things in your life that you have been running away from. It could be relationship problems. It could be financial problems. This giant is something that has been dogging you for a while, and it is only getting bigger. No matter what that giant is, you don’t have to worry because you have Jesus on your side. You can boldly attack that giant because your God is bigger.
Don’t Forget What God Has Done
For days, Israel had been cowering in fear over Goliath. He was challenging them to a one-on-one battle, and all Israel saw was his size and strength. They had forgotten all of the stories of how God had protected and provided for Israel. They were measuring their giant against their own abilities, not against Almighty God. It wasn’t until David came into the camp that things changed. He quickly volunteered because he knew that God would be on his side.
Don’t Lose Heart
Our hearts fail when we encounter challenges or obstacles. For some reason, we think if we encounter opposition or resistance, it is because of something we have done wrong. Then we start to focus more on the obstacle than on where God was taking us. That focus can turn into complaining, and soon we are completely paralyzed. We have forgotten what Jesus is capable of. Don’t lose heart.
Face the Giant in Your Life
Don’t let the giants in your life derail what God wants to do in your life. Look at obstacles as opportunities for growth and for God to shine His glory through your life. Face the giant in your life and watch as God does something incredible. First, you will realize the giant wasn’t as big as you built it up in your mind. Second, you will see that God will take your little strength, combine it with His power, and defeat your giant. Trust more in Jesus than you fear in your giant.
The Medicine You Need
Psalm 32:1-2 Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. 2 Blessed is the man against whom the Lord counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.
Medicine that Brings Healing
Forgiveness is the medicine you need. I’m not talking about forgiving other people; I am talking about being forgiven by God. Forgiveness brings so much healing to your soul. It removes the burden of guilt, wipes away the shame, and cleanses the spirit. For some it is a bitter pill to swallow, but for most it is a treatment that brings life.
A Blessing to be Forgiven
David knew something about needing the Lord’s forgiveness. He was publicly called out by Nathan and had to repent. He knows what a blessing it can be to be forgiven. To have his sin covered and not be held against him was a big relief. He encourages everyone to seek that forgiveness and get right with God. 1 John 1:9 says that if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive.
Failure to Admit
The difficulty today is that many people, especially younger generations, don’t think they do anything wrong. They are experts in what everyone else is doing wrong, especially the older generations, but when confronted with their own sin, they make excuses. They know where they have fallen short, but to admit it would be the worst possible scenario. Most people walk around carrying the burden of their sin, and they don’t know the cure is one prayer away.
Choose to Be Happy
The word blessed means to be happy. David is telling us that the really happy people are those who have had their sins forgiven AND are clean before the Lord. When a Christian walks around with unforgiven sin, they are often depressed and search for happiness in all the wrong places. When they do confess their sins to the Lord, their spirit is clean. Take the steps today to get a right heart before the Lord. It might be the medicine you need.
A Stumbling Block to Peace
Romans 14:17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit
This Has Gotten Out of Control
Too much is made of food and drinking today. My whole YouTube feed is how you can hack your way to health by eating 50 grams of protein a meal and drinking a gallon of water. I don’t click on these videos. They are there because I clicked on a retirement video, and they assume I want to live till I am 120 years old, so they flood my feed with these helpful insights. Click on one video about vitamins, and the next thing I know I am thrust into the middle of a debate on how much creatine I should be taking based on how much sleep I got.
Culture Clash
The church in Rome was embroiled in a debate about food sacrificed to idols. There were some in the church who were buying meat from the pagan temples because it was cheaper than buying it from the market. The Pagan temples would sacrifice animals but only use a small portion of the meat and then sell the rest for cheaper than market rate. Some in the church had no problem buying this meat, but to the new converts who had just come out of pagan worship and the Messianic Jews, this was an abomination. Paul addresses this with the Corinthians, too, and tells them not to cause an immature believer to stumble.
Don’t Get Distracted
I see a lot of Christians fall into this trap, and Paul is trying to prevent us from being distracted. We can’t make ourselves more or less holy by the foods we eat. A Kosher diet doesn’t elevate our spirituality, and eating too many carbs doesn’t mean we are any less worthy. Food is there to serve our needs. WE do get to enjoy it from time to time, but mainly it is there to give us nourishment and energy to do the Lord’s work.
Pursue Peace & Righteousness
The Kingdom of God is about the righteousness that Jesus deposits in us at Salvation, and the peace and joy the Holy Spirit brings us. As we walk with Jesus, that righteousness should become more apparent in our actions and words, and the peace and joy take a primary place in our hearts. If something like food takes our joy, then we need to put it in submission. You are right with God because of what Jesus did on the cross and the new covenant that God started in the upper room.
Live for the Lord
Romans 14:7 For none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. 8 For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s
The Greatest Lie
The greatest lie told today is to live for today or live for yourself. We are fed a constant diet of pursuing your passion, and you’ve got to love yourself before you can love anyone else. Paul contradicts all of that with these two verses. We don’t live for ourselves; we live for the Lord. That means we live for His purposes. What most people don’t realize is that when your focus and energy are directed toward His purposes, passion, joy, and peace follow.
Played a Part
In Western civilization, we are told to celebrate our individualism. Being a self-made man or woman is the greatest achievement. The problem there is that there is no such thing as a self-made person. Hundreds, if not thousands, have played a part in your development. It starts with your parents. You have their DNA, and that can’t be debated. If you had siblings growing up, they played a huge part in molding you. Add the numerous teachers, leaders, and caring adults who poured into you, and you start to realize that while you may have a great work ethic and have overcome incredible odds, it didn’t come in a bubble.
The Greatest Adventure
Living for the Lord is the greatest adventure. Jesus will take you places and bring you opportunities that no one else can match. If we are willing to trust Him and follow His lead, we will be amazed at what He brings to our life. After serving Him for over 30 years, I could’ve never dreamed of what I have done and where I have gone. That doesn’t even bring up the people He has brought into my life. I will never regret making the choice to live for the Lord.
Focus On This
There is one aspect of living for the Lord that we need to focus on, obeying and growing in our knowledge of His Word. Discipleship is following in the footsteps of Jesus. That means learning about Him and then trying to live like that. Living for the Lord means making those daily choices to follow Him and asking for forgiveness when we blow it. You are the Lords. As you live, live for the Lord.