20251116 Romns 8:23-25 Biblical Hope is not Wishful Thinking
The Book of Romans • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Welcome to Vertical Church
Good morning.
Let Us Continue to Worship God
A Psalm of Asaph, an interesting psalm of praise.
If the Psalms are a guidebook to prayer, how would you pray through this Psalm?
Psalm 76, a psalm of praise
1 God is known in Judah; His name is great in Israel. 2 So His tabernacle is in Salem; His dwelling place is in Zion. 3 There He broke the flaming arrows, The shield and the sword and the battle. Selah. 4 You are shining, Majestic from the mountains of prey. 5 The stouthearted were plundered, They sank into sleep; And none of the warriors could use his hands. 6 At Your rebuke, O God of Jacob, Both chariot rider and horse slumbered into a deep sleep. 7 But You, You are fearsome; And who can stand in Your presence when once You are angry? 8 You made Your cause to be heard from heaven; The earth feared and was quiet 9 When God arose to judgment, To save all the humble of the earth. Selah. 10 For the wrath of man shall praise You; With a remnant of wrath You will gird Yourself. 11 Make vows to Yahweh your God and pay them; Let all who are around Him bring gifts to the Fearsome One. 12 He will cut off the spirit of princes; He is feared by the kings of the earth.
Let’s pray
Scripture Reading- Romans 8:23-31
Romans 8:23–31 (LSB)
23 And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body. 24 For in hope we were saved, but hope that is seen is not hope, for who hopes for what he already sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we eagerly wait for it.
26 And in the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness, for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; 27 and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.
28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose. 29 Because those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers;
30 and those whom He predestined, He also called; and those whom He called, He also justified; and those whom He justified, He also glorified.
31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?
Introduction: Romans 8:24-25 Why Biblical Hope is not Wishful Thinking
Perhaps the richest passage in the entire Bible
Romans 8:1 - no condemnation
Now we are reminded that there is no separation
But we are also reminded that in this life the true Christian life is no vacation
What helps us to go through difficulty, struggle, persecution? - biblical hope
12 For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known. 13 But now abide faith, hope, love—these three; but the greatest of these is love.
We may know about faith, we may know about love
But do you now about Hope, biblical hope?
1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
And so the apostle Paul presents us with one of the greatest words in Scripture: Hope
Here’s your definition of hope:
Hope is faith looking forward
I posted this online:
I hope you come to church this morning to learn why my hope is in the Lord
How does this explain biblical hope?
My hope in people, my hope in God
(1) Wishful thinking or Certain Hope?
34 “Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom, which has been prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
Romans (Creation Delivered)
How wonderful it is to hear the promise of what God will say: “Come, my beloved. Inherit the kingdom that I have prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” That is our expectation and hope.
24 For in hope we were saved, but hope that is seen is not hope, for who hopes for what he already sees?
“For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees? (v. 24). Paul talks constantly about hope. As I noted earlier, he does not use the term hope the way we commonly use it.
We use the term hope to express our desire for some future result that is at present uncertain, but the concept of hope in the New Testament indicates a situation in which the future is absolutely certain. It is faith looking forward.
It is faith being certain and receiving the assurance of what God promises for tomorrow.
(2) Biblical hope gives us assurance of what God promises will happen tomorrow
19 This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and confirmed and one which enters within the veil,
Our hope is the anchor for our souls. It is what gives stability to our faith.
We stumble and fall in this life but God remains constant. His promises are firm.
When we stumble and trip today, when we become uncertain in our faith because of afflictions, hope kicks in. We are reminded of God’s promise for tomorrow. That is the great explanation for the behavior of the saints of the ages who were willing to go up against the lions in the arena and to be human torches in the garden of Nero. They knew where they were going. They had a hope that would never embarrass them or leave them ashamed.
If you read Hebrews 11, they were people of faith and people of hope
They were persecuted, stoned, sawed in half, beaten. Believers were thrown into the arena and crucified, killed by lions, used as human torches
But they were people of hope. They lived the words of Paul to Timothy
12 For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day.
25 But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we eagerly wait for it.
Paul mentioned perseverance in Romans 5, it’s like he’s expanding on Romans 5 in Romans 8 -
In Romans 5:1
1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
Paul says that hope in what is seen is not hope, but if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance (v. 25). Paul has linked perseverance and character many times in this epistle. It is hope that keeps us going.
2 through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we boast in hope of the glory of God.
5 and hope does not put to shame, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
But notice what verses 3 and 4 say
3 And not only this, but we also boast in our afflictions, knowing that affliction brings about perseverance; 4 and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope;
The struggles that we face produce hope
25 But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we eagerly wait for it.
Paul is saying that if you are truly in Christ, and if you are going through struggles and difficulties, and if you are persevering, remaining faithful, standing firm, continuing to trust and to hope, the Lord will fulfill his promises and the Lord will bring you to the finish line
Christian character and perseverance and hope are al linked together and work to gether for the glory of God and the fulfillment of His promises to you who have believed
Let us not misunderstand what the Apostle means by the word hope. We often use the term hope to refer to something that may or may not happen, but Scripture views hope as a sure thing. Indeed, hope is related to that which we do not yet see (Rom. 8:24–25), but that does not make that for which we hope any less real than if we could see it right now. On this side of eternity, we do not see or experience the full glory of God, but this glory is certain. Its reality is so sure that it serves as an anchor for our souls (Heb. 6:13–20). Dr. R.C. Sproul notes in his commentary Romans: "Hope is not taking a deep breath and hoping things are going to turn out all right. It is assurance that God is going to do what he says he will do."
But I am weak in my faith, I am constantly worrying about the future…
Romans 8:26 (LSB)
And in the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness
And this is next week’s passage
Now may the Lord who hears your cry when your heart is faint continue to be the rock beneath you, the shelter above you, and the strong tower around you until Jesus comes. Amen.
In addition to peace and access into the gracious presence of God, our justification—being declared righteous in Christ—also provides us with the blessing of the "hope of the glory of God" (Rom. 5:1–2). Because we are in Christ, we have the hope of one day seeing the Lord face-to-face in all His refulgent glory, of being glorified ourselves so that we experience Him in the blessedness for which we were created (1 Cor. 13:12; 15:35–57; 1 John 3:2).
Let us not misunderstand what the Apostle means by the word hope. We often use the term hope to refer to something that may or may not happen, but Scripture views hope as a sure thing. Indeed, hope is related to that which we do not yet see (Rom. 8:24–25), but that does not make that for which we hope any less real than if we could see it right now. On this side of eternity, we do not see or experience the full glory of God, but this glory is certain. Its reality is so sure that it serves as an anchor for our souls (Heb. 6:13–20). Dr. R.C. Sproul notes in his commentary Romans: "Hope is not taking a deep breath and hoping things are going to turn out all right. It is assurance that God is going to do what he says he will do."
This hope of final salvation is so certain that today we rejoice in it, knowing that it will never put us to shame (Rom. 5:2, 5). We need not fear that we will one day find out that our hope is unreal and that we will be embarrassed by the false confidence we had in it. We need never doubt that the final day will arrive. We can rejoice in it now, knowing that we will rejoice in it then. On account of this hope, we also rejoice in our sufferings (v. 3). This seems strange—who in their right mind gets excited about feeling pain? But Paul is not telling us to take joy in tribulation's pain itself. Instead, as he expands upon his point in Romans 5:3–4, Paul says we rejoice in our sufferings on account of what they produce in us. As we suffer, our faith is tested and tried. The impurities are removed, and as we see the Lord keep His promises to us, we grow in the certainty that our hope is already providing for us.
Moreover, we are convinced that hope will not put us to shame because God has poured His own love into our hearts (v. 5). By His Spirit, He convinces us of His love for us, and being convinced of His love for us, we love Him in return, persevering in faith. Augustine wrote, "That God may be loved, the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts, not by the free choice whose spring is in ourselves but through the Holy Spirit, who is given to us." Pouring His love for us into our hearts, He creates love for Him in us that perseveres to the end.
