Romans 15:13


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 – Romans 15:13

If we are to have hope, the best hope comes from the Lord God, for he is the author of all well-grounded hope in His people. We can have hope in ourselves, hope that he is not the author of, but that will be false hope. God is the writer of true hope, hope that is found in the midst of despair. Hope that is found in grace.
With His hope we find that our hearts are filled with the inward gifts of joy and peace. But too, these gifts come from the Holy Spirit of God. The gifts of joy and peace come not from our own natural self, but from God alone. They come from a heart which trusts in Him. To know joy and peace, we must know what is in scripture, for herein is God revealed to us. We cannot be inspired by that which we do not know.
It is a state of mind brought about by a believing heart. It does not happen by working for it, or just by feeling it. When we are in distress, feelings are the last thing upon which we are to depend for joy and hope. Our hope comes from knowing that God is worthy, that God is faithful, that God has our best in mind at all times.
And how much of this joy and hope does God wish to grant to us? Enough that we are filled and overflowing with it. It is written that “as the sun fills the world with light, even so the God of hope by His presence lights up every part of our nature with the golden light of joyous peace.” What more do we want, or should we want? Paul takes us on this journey so that we might reach to something else, that is to boundless hope.
And what is hope? Is it expectation? No, for we expect sorrow and death. Is it desire? No. one may be poor and wish to live a more affluent life, or a lost soul to find a home in heaven. But if we put these two things together, then we find hope is the expectation of the desirable God, to find oneself in His favour, in His presence, in His friendship. God himself reveals He is the object of hope.
The prayer of the apostle is that we should set no bounds to our requests for these blessings. If we expect little, we will receive little, but if we come to the Lord knowing that His gracious gifts are promised, our faith will work in proportion, and the power of the Holy Spirit will provide.
Devotion by Pastor Julia

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