Hope

“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.” (Romans 15:13 ESV)

With Easter and Resurrection Day now behind us, we will all fall back into the daily grind. The elation over our risen Lord will be swapped for worries and stress over bills, money, jobs, and family, not always in that order.

It is much easier for those truly in Christ to work through these troubles. We are filled with Christ, and the joy of the resurrection never goes away. As Paul wrote, we are filled with “joy and peace in believing. It is the Holy Spirit that lifts us in hope. Not just any hope, but the eternal hope of the resurrection.

Yes, I know things are not great in this world. The economy is terrible, gas is high, and bills are ever rising, but God provides. I cannot tell you how many times I have been struggling, and that a refund check of some sort has been found in my mailbox. People do not believe it, but it happens, often.

To maintain our peace with the Lord, we must trust in Him. We are much more valuable than a sparrow, and the Lord provides all the birds' needs. It is about faith. If you have placed your faith in the Lord, why doubt anything? You have been given the gospel, read the gospels, and the epistles, and know what Jesus did on this earth. Why doubt as Thomas did, why lose hope?

The writer of Hebrews wrote, “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” (11:1). We have assurances not only in the resurrection, but in our life in this world. We have assurances that Christ lives in us, that the Holy Spirit guides us, and that God knows what we need before we know ourselves. We are given what we need, not necessarily what we want, when we want it.

The difficulty lies in our surroundings. In a world that rejects Christ, we are tested by the evil one. People, even our own family and friends, will try to pull us down into the world. We must constantly look to Christ. You have been set apart from the world; you are no longer of it. And in this battle of spiritual warfare, we can easily become casualties if we turn from the light.

We all must carry hope. We have been given the mystery of Christ in us. For those who have accepted Him as our savior, we have the hope of glory. (Colossians 1:27) We have been made children of God, adopted into the family of God, “and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.” (Romans 8:17). Let us not forget who made us and who saved us.

“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.”

If you do not know Christ Jesus as your Savior and want more information, or are seeking Him. Please reach out to us here at In Messiah Ministries; we want to help you on your way to redemption through grace, by faith, in Christ alone.

Grace and Peace!