Romans 8, 24, 25, saved by hope. Paul says it here as he writes
unto them, for we are saved by hope. But hope that is seen is
not hope. For what a man seeth, why doth
he yet hope for it? But if we hope for that that
we see not, then do we with patience wait for it. Now look at 24 again. For we are saved by hope. And some people prefer in hope,
saved in hope. Now, you know, no longer had
I settled upon this as my subject and this as my text. But I soon
became aware in searching it out that it is a very, very extensive
subject that is laid out for us in the New Testament. But
not only that, but also that this hope that we talk about
today is also a strong part of the Christian life and the Christian
experience as we live out our life in this world. For it is
in this life that we have hope, and it is in this life that hope
is exercised in us. And Paul writes here, for we
are saved by hope. Though as I said, some prefer
to read it, we are saved in hope. Yet not that we are saved by
hope as the means of our salvation, or because we hope. We're not
saved because we hope. but we hope because we are saved. We have hope because God hath
begotten in us a lively hope. But before we get into the particulars
of our subject today, I'd like for us to enter several more
scriptures in the record that might impress upon us how often
and frequent is it mentioned in the New Testament. Titus 1
and verse 2, in hope of eternal life, which God that cannot lie
promised before the world began. Again in Titus chapter 3 and
this time verse 7, that being justified by his grace. We shall be made heirs according
to the hope of eternal life. Hebrews 11 and verse 1. Remember that very famous verse?
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for. Faith is the
substance of things hoped for. We'll consider this in detail
a little later. In Ephesians 1 and verse 18,
Paul prays for the saints that they may know what is the hope
that is attached under their being called into the great salvation
of God. In Ephesians chapter 4 and verse
4, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling. And then
there's Romans 5 and verse 2. We have access into this grace
wherein we stand and we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Romans 15 and verse 4, the scripture
were written for our learning that through them we might have
hope. Now these are just a few of the
verses in the New Testament where the grace of hope in the life
of a Christian is mentioned in the scripture. Then I decided
to do something. I decided to count all that I
could find of the uses of this word hope in the New Testament. And by my count, there are some
50 individual mentions of this grace of hope in the New Testament. and it is mentioned in 15 of
the books or the epistle under the churches and under the saints. Most of them are from the pen
and the hand of the apostle Paul. I found that one time in Hebrew
chapter 10 In verse 23, at least in the King James Version, the
word is translated faith. Now the first thing for us to
do is to define the word that is translated hope and that we
are considering this morning, so that we understand what is
meant by it and how it applies unto the Christian life, how
it is exercised in their life, what is the ground and what is
the object of this hope that we're talking about this morning. It is the word, and again, I
probably will butcher it and probably will say it wrong, but
it is the word or something of that nature, and it is not a
wishful thinking. If you think about hope and you
think about wishful thinking, it is not that in the scripture. As some people say, I wish so-and-so
would happen, or I wish I could do this, or I wish I could do
that. Neither is it, as some say, I
sure hope that so-and-so comes to pass. I hope it don't rain
tomorrow. I hope my check comes. I hope
I get that job. I hope that it will work out. This is not the kind of hope
that we have here in the scripture. The most common meaning of this
word hope is and of this doctrine is to have a happy anticipation. If you think about that, happy
anticipation of a coming good. That's a good description of
the word hope. It involves a confident expectation
something promised by God but not yet seen or not yet fully
realized. Something for the most part that
is yet unseen and is future and yet the hope has substance. We hope for those things that
God has promised us. And this hope has substance. It is not a baseless longing
for something that we desire, nor is it an empty delusion that
will bring us to some disappointment, because the hope that is mentioned
here will be realized and it will be fulfilled. And that's
why Paul said, saved in hope. And this word just keeps on jumping
out at us from the pages of the Word of God, and we take quick
note of some of the ways that it is so. One that I read pointed
out something. That is that there are at least
three adjectives, that is a word that modifies the noun, that
are found in the New Testament in connection with his hope.
First of all, number one, there is good. Good hope. 2 Thessalonians 2 and verse 16. Good hope through grace. So this is a good hope. Second,
we read of a blessed hope, the blessed hope, Titus 2 and verse
13, looking for the blessed hope, which Paul defines as the glorious
appearing of our great God and of our Savior, Jesus Christ. And then thirdly, there is a
living hope. A living hope. 1 Peter chapter
1 and verse 3. Which according to his abundant
mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively, literally a living
hope, by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. Now all of this and much more
will come before us later in our study. But for now, let's
focus our attention on the verses that we read, Romans 8, 24, and
25. It has the word hope in it five
times as we look at those two verses. And the last four are
used in relation under the first. for we are saved by hope or saved
in hope. Now, this does not say that we
are saved by or because of our hope. Hope is not the initial
cause of our salvation as seen by the fact that we do not have
this hope until we are saved and converted and such like.
We do not have this hope until we are called. We do not have
this hope until we believe. And by the fact that hope will
be terminated, or could we say hope will be consummated when
the object of hope is fully realized. Notice that Paul contrasts that
which is seen with that which is not seen. Saying in verse
24 and the last part, hope that is seen is not hope. If you can see it, that is, if
it is real and has been realized, then it is not hope, because
one quits hoping when they see or reach the thing that has been
hoped for. But then, look at verse 25. While
one is in hope of a thing, while one is living in confident expectation
of a certain thing to come or to appear or to be fulfilled,
One patiently waits for the object and the desire of that hope. One waits patiently for that
which is hoped for, hoped for because it is promised, and confidently
expected because it is the promise of God. And perhaps this might
be a good time for us to make the point that hope is not a
synonym for faith because they are not one and the same thing. Hebrews 11 verse 1 again, faith
is the substance of things hoped for. They are distinct graces
begotten in the children of God. And though they're distinct,
yet they are very closely related. For where one is, there will
be the other. Where you find the one, you will
find the other. where faith is given as the gift
and the work of God, hope will soon follow along after it. I Peter 1 and verse 21, that
your faith and hope might be in God. Again, they are distinguished,
one from another, There they appear closely allied together. In Romans 5 and verse 2 it says,
By whom, that is Christ, we have access by faith and rejoice in
the hope of the glory of God. In 1 Corinthians 13 and 13, Now
abides faith, hope, charity, or love. 2nd Corinthians 10 and
verse 15 having hope when your faith is increased Therefore
distinct they are again, but closely connected together Galatians
5 And verse 5, we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness
by faith. Colossians 1 23, if you continue
in the faith and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel. 1 Thessalonians chapter 5 and
verse 8. Here Paul speaks figuratively
of Christian graces, even as he does in Ephesians chapter
6, 13 through 17. Remember the Christian in complete
armor, that great book. But he says here, putting on
the breastplate faith and love and for an helmet the hope of
salvation first Thessalonians 5 and verse 8 figuratively of
the Christian grace it let me put it again the breastplate
of faith and love the helmet the hope of salvation thus in
these and other passages the knot is tied very tightly between
faith and hope, while at the same time making a distinction
between the two. That faith and hope are not one
and the same thing, but that they follow along together. Once again, consider those few
words found in Hebrews chapter 11 and verse 1. The three words,
things hoped for. The things that hope for. One interlinear has it, things
being hoped. Things that are in our hope. And I found that some versions
have the word things here in italics, making it as a supplement. It is from faith that hope emerges
in respect to things that are not seen. even things that have
not yet occurred, but we hope they will, we confidently expect
that they will, and what might those things be then that are
hoped for by the child of God? Well, they are, to quote one,
all things that are promised unto them that believe, unquote. Both present grace, future glory,
are our hope. That all things that are promised
by God are the objects of our hope. While the promises of the
word of God and the foundation of such hope, and hope comes
into being through faith. When God works faith within us,
then out of that is begotten hope. Any hope apart from faith
in Christ will come to nothing and will be of no profit. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15,
I believe it is in verse 19, if in this life only we have
hope, then we are of all men most miserable. Therefore, back
to Romans 8, 24 and 25. And look now at the context,
enlarging a bit, to see the larger context. We see the word far
in the first part of verse 24. That usually makes some connection
or draws some conclusion with what has gone before and with
the flowing of the content. And Paul had just written in
Romans chapter 8, verse 23, that we have the first fruits of the
Spirit, and that we are waiting for the adoption, and then he
specifies what he means by that adoption, that is, the redemption
of the body. We are waiting for our adoption,
our manifestation of sonship, and that is the redemption of
our body. And our text in Romans 8, 24
and 25 follows one of the most unusual illustration and passages
of scripture from the pen of the Apostle Paul in verse 18
through verse 22 of Romans chapter 8, where he compares and, yea,
even illustrates the experience of the saints by a reference
to the experience of creation. And we see a sort of conclusion
in verse 23, where he says, and not only so, not only this, but
we ourselves also. Making an application from that
illustration that he had just used concerning creation. Now,
let's look at some comparison that he brings before us between
the experience of creation and the hope of the child of God. I think there are three of them
here in this passage of the scripture, such as verse 19, it waits, creation
waits. And then look at verse 23, we
wait. It waits, we wait. Literally,
we are waiting, awaiting, or we wait. Notice something else
in verse 22. It groans and travails. Creation groaneth and travaileth. And then look at verse 23. We
ourselves also groan. And then there is a major likeness
between the two, and that is in verse 20, creation is or was
subjected in hope. Look at that word there. subjected
in hope. Then in verse 24, and we are
saved in hope. God has subjected it in hope
and we are saved in hope. Now let's go back over the passage
and pick up some statements in a few previous verses here in
this chapter of God's Word. In verse 17 and the last part,
if we suffer with Christ, we also may be glorified together. Verse 18 speaks of the glory
that shall be revealed in us. Verse 19 speaks of the manifestation
of the sons of God. And verse 21, the glorious liberty
of the children of God. That glorious liberty that awaits
the children of God. Now, concerning Paul personifying
inanimate things and creation, giving them emotion and feeling
and such like, if that gives you a problem, then we're going
to try to sort it out. For example, he ascribes unto
it will in verse 20, hope in verse 20, and groaning in pain
in verse 22. Now this is very common in the
Old Testament scripture to ascribe both joy and mourning under such
inanimate things as trees and mountains and the land and the
sea and almost always Is it done either in relation to God or
in relation under the people? For example, in Psalm 98 and
verse 8, let the hills be joyful together. In Isaiah 55 verse
12, the mountains and the hills shall break forth in singing
and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. On the other hand, there is a
mourning of them, Ezekiel 31 and 15. All the trees of the
field Spainted and in Amos chapter
8 verse 8 shall not the land Tremble the prophet says under
them Joel chapter 1 and verse 18 How do the beasts groan and
the herds of cattle are? Perplexed and of course there
is Genesis chapter 3 verse 17 Genesis chapter 4 verse 10 through
verse 12 and where God has put a curse upon the earth. And the
Apostle Paul, in our Roman text, wants to impress upon believers
the important place that hope occupies and the impact that
it has upon those and their behavior as they live as Christian in
this world in expectation of that glory that is to come, saying
we are saved in hope. Though we cannot overemphasize,
as Gill wrote, not that hope is the cause of salvation, but
the means by which souls are brought to the enjoyment of it,
unquote. They are already saved, and that
by grace through faith, Ephesians 2 verse 8 and 9. They have already
received the first fruits of the Spirit. In spite of that,
they still groan, groan for entravail to be delivered. First fruits. is an Old Testament expression. When the first fruits of the
crop or the harvest were gathered, they were presented before the
Lord in great glory and rejoicing, and the first fruits gathered
were but a foretaste of the fuller and complete harvest that was
yet to come. But the first fruit of the Spirit
is also, to the elect, a pledge of the consummation of coming
glory, and that is the object of our hope. We live in hope. in expectation of the glory that
God intended and that is promised to us in the gospel of our blessed
Lord. We are saved yet not fully consummated
as to that salvation which is in Jesus Christ with eternal
glory. John said, it has not yet appeared
what we shall be. 1 John 3, verse 1 and 2. It has not yet appeared what
we shall be, though we are now the sons of God. But we're not yet clothed upon
with our house from heaven, but when this frail, frail tent fallen
down we have a building from God a building from heaven not
made with hand and eternal in the heavens 2nd Corinthians chapter
5 and verses 1 through 4 and notice in that passage that Paul
twice says We groan in 2nd Corinthians chapter 5 verse 2 and verse 4
we groan Longing are our dwelling from heaven verse 2 we groan
Not wanting to be naked or unclothed in verse 4 we live our present
lives in this world how then shall we ever get up to heaven
and We live in dying flesh. We live in a rotting house. How shall we be rid of it and
enter into a state of glory? John Murray wrote on Romans chapter
8, Hope is an inseparable ingredient of the salvation already bestowed. And he said salvation is characterized
by hope. It is oriented unto hope. We're not saved because we hope
to be. We hope, we have hope, we live
in hope because we are already saved and such salvation can
never be separated from that hope to which we have been begotten
by the resurrection of Jesus Christ. And not until salvation
is consummated in glory, when we are with the Lord where he
is. when we see him as he is, will
hope be realized and also be terminated on its grand and glorious
object, Christ Jesus, and eternal glory. For as Romans 8 24, the last part. Hope that is seen
is not hope. For what hope? Who hopes for
what he see? When hope has been realized,
when it has come to fruition, for seen is the same as realized,
then such hope being fulfilled gives way unto absolute reality,
just as faith will give way to sight, 2 Corinthians 5 and verse
7. Paul says that when we hope for
that which is not seen, we wait in patience for that, Romans
8, 25. At the same time, must we not
be forced to admit that at At times, our faith is weak and
our faith is frail, that at times it is stronger, at times it is
weaker. And so can we say hope may also
be the same, at one time frail, at another time stronger, though
neither are fully extinguished in this life. Neither faith nor
hope. Grace is produced by the Holy
Spirit of God will never die out or be exterminated. And notice something else, this
hope. This hope that we have makes
not ashamed. Romans chapter 5 and verse 5. That hope in verse 2 and in verse
4 referred to will not be a cause of shame to those that believe
or to those that hope. This hope will not be disappointed. For all that God has promised
in Jesus Christ, all that he has purchased and done in our
behalf, will be brought to fruition in the life of that individual.
And Paul fortifies it. by adding, for, or because, or
sent, the love of God is shed abroad in our heart. That's back
in Romans chapter 5. Now, let's go to Romans chapter
4 for a minute, and then later to Hebrews chapter 6, for a case
study in this grace of hope, first of all, in the life of
Abraham. We read in Romans chapter 4 of
Abraham, who against hope believed in hope. Now get that. Is that
a paradox? Who against hope believed in
hope. And notice the substance of his
hope, that he would be the father of many nations. And the ground
or foundation of this hope was the promise of God, God's word
that said unto him, Abraham would be the father of a multitude,
a father of many nations. Now how says Paul in Romans four,
Abraham against hope, believed in hope. Some versions invert
the order that in hope, Against hope, Abraham believed. Now this might seem a contradiction. Against hope, in hope, believed. Against hope. Remember what Luke
writes in Acts chapter 27 and verse 20, when they were caught
in the great storm in the ship and at sea. He writes this, all
hope that we should be saved, that is from death, was taken
away. All hope that we might be saved
was taken away. It had been dark days and nights. The sun had not been seen, nor
the stars. They'd cashed up overboard, trying
to save themselves and the ship in the great storm. And finally,
all hope that we should be saved was taken away. But after days
in the violent storm, As the NASB renders it, all hope of
our being saved was gradually abandoned, unquote. And yet in
the end, not a single life was lost, I believe, because of Paul
on the ship and the purpose of God, but that's another subject.
Abraham, in Romans chapter four, against hope, hoped. Abraham against hope hoped. He hoped though there seemed
to be no hope. He hoped when hope did not seem
to be possible. No hope seemed to be for him
being the father of one, let alone the father of many or a
multitude. First of all, remember, do you,
that his beloved prince's wife, Sarah, Was a barren woman Genesis
11 and verse 30 and then God rejected his son by Hagar the
servant woman in Genesis 16 and 21 and then Sarah passed the
time of life Genesis 18 and verse 11 and then the couple together
became according to Romans 4 and verse 19 procreatively dead,
their bodies now dead, still no heir, still no Isaac, still
no son, but in he believed in in hope, which does not mean
that he trusted in his hope or had faith in his hope, but that
his hope was in the fulfilling of the one who had been promised. And in Romans 4.21, he remained
fully persuaded. that what God had promised he
was able and would perform. Abraham was fully persuaded what
God had promised he was able to perform. In spite of all those
things mentioned, the barrenness of Sarah, the rejection of Ishmael
and on and on, one God quickens the dead, calls the things that
be not yet as though they were. And that was the belief of Abraham. Consider, if you will, Psalms
100, no, Psalms 16 and Acts chapter 2 and verse 26. The words that
I'm interested in, my flesh shall rest in hope. now in psalm 16
and peter quotes that in the second chapter of the book of
acts my flesh shall rest in hope which in the context is referring
to the three days and nights that the body of the Lord Jesus
Christ was in the grave. And Peter shows in verse 29 through
31 of Acts 2, he gave himself to death, he was buried, his
body was lifeless, and was entombed, and yet my flesh shall rest in
hope. in hope that it would live again,
that his soul would not be left in Hades. And the word moreover
introduces or interjects what Alexander called an emphatic
addition, unquote. Moreover, also, my flesh shall
rest in hope. Neither would God permit His
Holy One to see corruption. And this does not refer in the
end to David, because David died, David was buried, and his grave
is with us until this day. Acts 2 and verse 29. Says Nehemiah,
chapter 3 and verse 16 David's grave was known and kept and
beside in Acts 13 and verse 36 Paul said David fell on sleep
and saw corruption. So that prediction or prophecy
is not about David, it is about the Lord Jesus Christ. My flesh
shall rest in hope. But now, let's go back to the
grace of hope in the saints and the practical effect upon it. Peter writes in 1 Peter chapter
3 and verse 15, he really says, to have an answer, be ready to
have an answer to every man that asks you of the hope that is
in you. Be able to give an account of
the hope that is in you if you are asked. about the hope that
is in you. Now, this hope is in you, which
may be summed up as final glorification, living in heaven, based upon
our relation and our union and the work of Christ. Now, this
hope genders patience, Romans 8, 25. If we hope for what we
see not, then we with patience wait for it. We hope for what
we have not yet seen, but being promised, we wait for it, and
we wait in hope. It is said of Abraham in Hebrews
6 and verse 15, after he had patiently endured, he obtained
the promise. In 1 Corinthians 9 and 10, he
that plows should plow in hope and he that threshes in hope
should be partaker of his hope. That is, he that plows a field
and plants it and cultivates it and such like, does so in
the hope of a harvest to fill his table. For between the birth
of hope and the obtaining of the promise, There may be some
trials that will cause despair if hope were not strong enough
to gender patience in the Christian individual. So the stronger the
faith, the stronger the hope, the greater the patience in the
child of God. Again, in Hebrews chapter 6,
hope carries assurance with it, as we read in Hebrews chapter
6 and verse 11, that every one of you to show the same diligence
to the full assurance of hope unto the end. Reading Thomas
Goodwin, he equated hope with assurance. When we talk about
hope, we're talking in part about assurance. He called hope assurance,
calling it confident persuasion, that this hope begotten in us
is a confident persuasion. It is reflected in the attitude
of Abraham. Chapter 4, verse 21 of Romans,
being fully persuaded that what he had promised, he was also
able to perform, and the confident and assured of it. Job 19, 25-27,
I know that my Redeemer lives. and after skin worms destroy
this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God, mine eyes shall behold
him and not another." Now again, this hope is a purifying hope. You find that in 1 John 1, 1
through 3. The apostle in the first two
verses said, the blessing of being called the children of
God. It has not yet appeared what
we shall be, but we know that if he appear, we shall be like
him, for we shall see him as he is. And in verse 3, everyone
that has this hope in him purifies himself even as he is pure to
live unto God. And lastly, but by no means,
Hebrews 6 and verse 9. when laid open, when laid hold
upon, is an anchor of the soul. It's an anchor. This hope is
an anchor. And the writer said, both sure
and steadfast. It's an anchor of the soul. It's
sure and it's steadfast. Now, the anchor keeps the ship
from drifting while it is moored. keeps it from drifting away,
gives it an anchor, whether in the calm of the harbor or in
the midst of the storm. Hope, therefore, under the metaphor
of an anchor, has two qualities, according to that verse. It is
sure and it is steadfast. So that, Colossians 1, 23, we
continue in the faith grounded and settled and be not
moved away from the hope of the gospel. Now, the Christian's
hope is to be with Christ where he is. And a quote from the New
Geneva Bible, a note there on hope in the footnote, hope gives
strength and confidence to run the race. Fighting the good fight
and enduring the tribulations of this life Unquote. There is a description of hope. Blessed are they that have both
faith and hope of God's elect. They have the faith of God's
elect, they have hope as God's elect, because so many in the
world and in the churches are clinging to a false hope that
will disappoint them in the end. Blessed are those who have the
faith of God's elect and hope, the hope of salvation in and
through Jesus Christ. What a blessedness is that. This life is not all. This life
is not the end. We hope for the glory that is
sure to come.