Saved by Hope

Thought: "In all things it is better to hope than to despair." -Johann Wolfgang van Goethe

Bible text: "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?" (Romans 8:24)

We cannot exist without hope. We need something to look forward to. Today's disappointments make us long for better tomorrows.

Success doesn't do away with our need for hope. Even a lifetime of accomplishments and happiness fails to bring complete satisfaction. There must be something more to live for.

This is what prompted the Apostle Paul to say, "we are saved by hope" (Romans 8:24).

The Bible says there is more to life than meets the eye, ". . . the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal" (2 Corinthians 4:18). Life's true success is attained when we learn to place proper value on our houses, vehicles, investments and personal properties. When we do this, we'll realize that all the material things we have are only ours to use temporarily. Sooner or later, we leave them all behind. I once had a neighbor who frequently remarked, "I have yet to see a Brinks truck following a hearse!"

It isn't hard to see why things never bring lasting happiness and fulfillment. We need to make our heaviest investments in those securities that last. Why not consider the following portfolio, "now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love" (1 Corinthians 13:13). These lasting enjoyments may be experienced through
(1) trust in God and in His Word, the Bible;
(2) through quality time spent with family and loved ones;
(3) and through a joyful expectation of endless life in the world to come.

These are the only things that endure.