Most people understand hope as wishful thinking, as in "I hope something will happen." This is not what the Bible means by hope. The biblical definition of hope is "confident expectation." Hope is a firm assurance or definite certainty regarding things that are unclear and unknown (Romans 8:24-25; Hebrews 11:1,7). Hope is a necessary part of the life of a righteous person (Proverbs 23:18). Without hope, life loses its meaning (Lamentations 3:18;Job 7:6) and in death there is no hope (Isaiah 38:18; Job 17:15). The righteous who trust or put their hope in God will be helped (Psalm 28:7), and they will not be confused, put to shame, or disappointed (Isaiah 49:23). The righteous, who have this trustful hope in God, have a general confidence in God's protection and help (Jeremiah 29:11) and are free from fear and anxiety (Psalm 46:2-3). In the New Testament, the second part of the Bible written after Jesus came, the idea of hope is the recognition that Christ fulfilled the promises of the Old Testament (Matthew 12:21, 1 Peter 1:3), the first part of the Bible written before Jesus came. Christian hope is rooted in faith in the divine salvation in Christ (Galatians 5:5). The hope of a Christian is basically having faith in the unseen (Romans 8:24-25). It is the future hope of the resurrection of the dead (being brought from death to life) (Acts 23:6) the “redemption of the body” (receiving a new spiritual body in heaven) and redemption of the whole creation (Romans 8:18-25). In summary, hope gives us a focused vision on eternal life and the inheritance of God’s blessings (Titus 3:5-7). The certainty of this blessed future is guaranteed through the Holy Spirit of God who lives in every Christian (Romans 8:23-25). Hope is produced by endurance through suffering (Romans 5:2-5) and is the inspiration behind endurance (1 Thessalonians 1:3; Hebrews 6:11). Trustworthy promises from God give us hope (Hebrews 6:18-19), and we may take pleasure in this hope (Hebrews 3:6) and exhibit great boldness in our faith (2 Corinthians 3:12). By contrast, those who do not place their trust in God are said to be without hope (Ephesians 2:12, 1 Thessalonians 4:13). Along with faith and love, hope is an ongoing, honorable part of the Christian life (1 Corinthians 13:13). In fact, the Bible says that love comes from hope (Colossians 1:4-5). Hope produces joy and peace in believers through the power of the Spirit (Romans 12:12; 15:13). Paul says the reason for his apostolic calling is because of the hope of eternal glory (Titus 1:1-2).
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