Let’s talk about HOPE. Yesterday my oldest son said “I hope I get to drive a Lamborghini one day.” This was the perfect opportunity to take advantage of a teachable moment. We know the Bible talks frequently about faith, hope, and love. But our culture and context have adapted each of these words, subtly changing their meaning and definition from what we find in the Bible. Most often – and in the case of my son’s comment – the word hope is now used as a general substitute for “wishful thinking.”
So what does hope really mean?
The Bible uses a few different words to communicate the concept of hope, and together they appear about 129 times! Many of these references are in Hebrew. The first is yachal, which means to wait or to be patient. It’s used throughout the Old Testament in association with waiting on God, waiting on His word, His promises, or His actions. Another is tiqvah, which means to wait for, to expect, or to look eagerly. Finally, Qavah is used, which means a feeling of tension while waiting for something to happen.
There is also a Greek word for hope: elpis. This word means expectation, trust, and confidence. Elpis is an expectation of a defined outcome. In a Biblical context, hope is a confident, reasonable expectation of what’s to come, looking toward the future with assurance. That’s quite different than wishful thinking!
I also noticed that when hope is used in the Bible, it’s often accompanied by references to joy and pleasure. That’s no coincidence! We can find joy, even in uncertainty, by focusing on the guaranteed outcomes God has promised us.
This week’s verse is Romans 15:13, “May 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.”
It’s my prayer that this week you will be filled with hope; that you would look expectantly toward the future with peace, assurance, and joyful expectation!
Looking forward to talking more about HOPE in week thirty-one as well!
Know you are loved,
