Message from Scripture: 8/20/2020

Today our message from Scripture comes from Rom. 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.”

What an encouraging passage of Scripture this is to us. It begins and ends with the theme of hope. Paul’s desire for these Christians is that the God of hope may enable them to overflow with hope. With hope comes joy and peace, knowing God is at work in us and what He is working to accomplish, the salvation of our souls.

The sphere, or realm, where hope and its blessings dwell in us is in faith, in believing. The term faith in Scripture, when it is addressed of God and His Son, carries the idea of being firmly persuaded in something, with the idea of hope and certain expectation. This is why, when it is used of salvation, it carries the idea of obedience, of responding positively to the will of God. So, Mark can write in Mark 16:16 of one who has believed and has been immersed as being saved, while the one who does not believe is condemned, as without faith one cannot truly obey. Without faith one is unable to please God (Heb. 11:6).

This is one reason why John could write how our faith helps us overcome the world (1 John 5:4). If we truly believe, we will truly obey, and in surrendering our will to the will of God, we will find all the blessings in life we can never truly experience without Him. They are all provided through His Son, whose blood ushers us into this special and unique relationship that the world will never know. It is completely amazing to consider how the God of hope is able to fill us with all joy and peace through our faith, so we abound, overflow, in hope. Here is our source of courage and strength, our endurance, our ability to press on no matter what, because we know what lies ahead. Feed your faith from God’s word today, and find all you need for life and eternity. God bless.

Robert