I came across a verse today in the Bible and unexpectedly (which shows how strong my faith is) heard a truth from God in a new light. No, I did not literally “hear” anything, but my mind was distinctly opened to new insight as I read this passage. So, I asked a few more questions, found a few more references, and decided to share…
I went looking for this passage because I needed a pep-talk today, a really basic one, one that I could grasp not only because of it’s familiarity but because of it’s simplicity. This is the passage I went to:
“Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.” -Romans 5:3-5
What struck me most about this familiar passage was the last verse, where Paul describes exactly why hope does not disappoint. Think for a moment about your concept of hope. How would you define hope, in general? Now, how would you define hope as it is referred to in the Bible? What is it that we are to hope in? How can we know that hope will not disappoint?
In my experience, society in general presents hope as a desire that something specific will happen in the future. For example, we may hope to one day have children. If we have children, we hope that they will be successful adults. If we don’t have a job, we hope we can find one. Right? So let’s take these hopes and put a “Christian” spin on them. Now I am hoping for the same things, but I think that if I pray for them the right way, or frequently enough, or if God loves me (which I believe He does), then I will certainly get what I hope for. If you ask me point blank, I will deny that I can earn any favor from God, but deep down I tend to believe that I will get what I hope for. That’s what scripture says, right? “Ask and it will be given to you…” – Matthew 7:7 I believe that this concept of asking and receiving is often misunderstood, by myself as much as anyone else. I want to believe that I will be able to pray for and receive all that I hope for in this world, but now we have to ask again: what is hope and how can I know it will not disappoint? Another common tool we use in society (in and outside of the Christian church) is the practice of boosting our hope because of someone else’s encouraging story. I do not want to belittle the power of encouragement that we can and should take from hearing stories of perseverance, luck, healing, provision, or any other means of attaining certain circumstances or joys. However, as we look at this particular hope that does not disappoint, Paul is not referring to a hope that is boosted by the success or joy of other people. In fact, success and joy are not really required. Unfortunately, not everyone can experience the same encouraging stories, and sometimes what we hope for doesn’t happen. We know all too well the reality from Proverbs 13:12 that “hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.”
Thankfully, the truth does not end there. Two things that Paul says about hope stood out to me in the passage from Romans. First of all, hope does not originate from what we look forward to. Hope is the product of character, which is developed through perseverance, and perseverance is required as we experience suffering. Hope, then, originates from our past experiences. Paul does not say, “Well, life’s been pretty rough, but I can look forward with hope that it will improve.” Instead, he describes a hope that is grown through experience, a hope that has not been satisfied in this world and does not pretend that it will be. Yet, in the face of dissatisfaction, there is rejoicing. What? This is the second truth: hope does not disappoint. How? Paul clearly describes that the reason hope does not disappoint is because it is based on what has already been done, not on what is yet to come. “Hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.” As is often the case with God’s truth, this is totally counter-intuitive. Instead of looking to the future for our hope to be fulfilled, we must look to the past and even embrace the present. God has already poured out his love by the Holy Spirit, which he has already given to us.
I have often allowed myself to believe that hope is not meant to be satisfied in this world, not fully. Our real hope will be fulfilled in heaven. I think that is partially true but slightly misconstrued. Based on Paul’s explanation, we can fully experience hope fulfilled in this life if we hope in what God has already done. What must wait for heaven is a full experience of the glory of God.
“In His great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” -1 Peter 1:3
