Romans 15:4-6, 13 4For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and with encouragement they provide we might have hope. 5May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, 6so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. ... 13May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
How many of these phrases have you heard recently? I hope I win the lottery. I hope I get a raise. I hope I meet Mr. (or Mrs.) Right. These are common uses for the word hope. And yet, a quick check with a dictionary reveals that hope is actually wanting or wishing for something with “a feeling of confident expectation.” In other words, hope is believing with assurance that what we wish for will become a reality.
Today’s text reminds us that God is the true source of all hope. The hope spoken of in this text is the fulfillment of God’s promises. Contrary to some of the more frivolous earthly hopes mentioned above, the true desire and hope of every Christian should be the soon-coming return of Christ! This is the Blessed Hope for which we wait with patience and endurance. Oh that we would live with confident expectation that God’s promises will indeed become a reality! This is a call to renew our expectation and anticipation of Christ’s imminent return. What a difference this will make in our daily walk with Him!
Gracious Heavenly Father, our LORD God Almighty,
Thank you for the gift of your Holy Spirit, in whom we live with confident expectation of that Blessed Hope, the promised and imminent Second Advent of Jesus Christ.
In the Name of Jesus Christ, our LORD and Savior, Amen.
The devotion Confident Expectation was originally written for Tuesday, July 3, 2012; for Maranatha Devotional Guide, an Advent Christian Publication https://acgc.us As the original author of this devotion, I reserve the right to update and share it on my current devotional blog Write From My Heart at https://writefrommyheartblog.blogspot.com
Email: Dotty Willmon, writefrommyheartblog@gmail.com
Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®, Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
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