I Hope So
Scripture Reading: 1 Corinthians 13:7
Love…hopes all things…
When we love someone, we have hope for them. Hope, in the New Testament sense, is more than wishful thinking. It is more like a joyful expectation. We can expect different kinds of things. Some people live with all kinds of negative expectations. They always anticipate the worst in life. They expect to be struck by a disease, fired from the job, and hated by their neighbors. We wouldn’t call that hope. At least I hope not.
Hope, then, is on the positive side of things. It is looking for the good that is to come. Yes, for some people that can be a fantasy world. They can have wild-eyed imaginations of a utopian life that can never possibly materialize in this life. We aren’t talking about that either. We are talking about good expectations that are based on the Person and Promises of God. We are confident because it is God who makes the promise. He doesn’t lie and He has the power to do whatever He promises.
How does that apply to other people then? We have hope for them because we know the nature and power of God. We aren’t thinking about the power of their potential. We are thinking about the power of God and His love for that person.
And that gives us hope.
