But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8
Hope! What kind of hope do you have? Do you have guarded hope? Or do you have optimistic hope? Either way, there are pitfalls to both postures. IF you are overly optimistic, you might not be prepared for the outcome. However, if you don’t let yourself be too hopeful, you can miss blessings.
Read Romans 4:13-25. What are you hoping for?
What is the good news of hope?
Paul speaks about faith, however, it brings in the connection of promises and hope. This brings us to a deeper understanding of the gospel.
How many times do we find the word promise in the passage of Romans 4:13-25?
What is God’s promise to Abraham not based on?
If God’s promise is only for those who obey the law, what does that make the promise?
How is the promise received?
What kind of God did Abraham believe in?
God made promises and keeps them. Romans is the first usage of promise (epangelia). The importance of the word promise cannot be overstated as it relates to the word faith. Paul emphasizes the promises of God that are tied to our faith. Faith alone isn’t powerful. When the Israelites put their faith in false idols, they got nothing but disappointment. When our faith is rooted in our one true God, who loves, intervenes, and has the power to work in our lives, that’s where we find our hope.
Abraham believed in a God that was not made of sticks or gold. He believed in a God that did miracles like bringing the dead to live and bring something out of nothing. Abraham believed in God who revealed Himself to Abraham. When the way of God didn’t make sense, Abraham still believed in God and his ways.
What promises to you stand on in your life?
Abraham received God’s promised directly from God. We have the bible filled with promises that we can apply to our lives. We need to also know and understand that our main promise from God is a person! It is Jesus. He is our savior who came to rescue us from sin and restore our relationship with God. The Old Testament foreshadows Jesus’s coming.
Read Actis 13:23; Ephesians 3:6; and Hebrews 8:6
Jesus fulfilled the promises of God. The bible is filled with the prophecy about Jesus. Our faith must be connected to the promise of God. This promise is Jesus. Let’s look at some of the keywords we have been talking about. Faith is the Greek word pistis, which according to the Strongs concordance defines as conviction of the truth of anything, belief. The word hope is from the Greek word Elpis, which means expectation of good, according to Strong’s concordance. Let’s make these two words more personal. Faith means that I believe something to be true, while hope means that I expect it to be good. It takes faith to believe that following God will lead to good. Jesus died on the cross for our sins. This wasn’t good or easy, yet it leads to reconciling with God, it restored our relationship with God. This is all good.
Read Romans 4:18-19. What do we learn about Abraham’s hope?
Read Romans 4:29-25
Abraham’s faith did not do what?
What did his faith do?
We sure can learn a lot about faith through Abraham!! His faith supersedes human reasoning and emotion. Yes, he did have seasons of doubt. This did not discourage him and it shouldn’t discourage us when we doubt. Over the course of time, Abraham hung onto his faith. We can do the same.
Faith is still believing in God’s love when the worst happens. Faith is trust in God’s strength. This was Abraham’s faith and we can have the same kind of faith.
Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for showing us faith through our spiritual father – Abraham. I pray that we will take to heart the meanings of faith and hope. I pray that no matter what we go through we will keep our faith and hope in you and all that you promise to us.
In Jesus Name
Amen
