The Power of Faith and Hope

On Feb 11, 1949 – 58 years ago – I was in a small church on a Sunday evening. During the testimony time the pastor’s daughter, Rosie Robertson, stood to testify. She thanked God that she was a Christian then said, “Daddy, I did something you told me not to the other day. I asked Jesus to forgive me, and he did, but he said I needed to tell you what I did.”

Rosie was 9 years old, I was 11. She asked her dad to forgive her for breaking some burned out light bulbs after he told her not to. I was amazed! Her dad was a strong disciplinarian, just like my dad, and I would never have volunteered that information to my dad!

At the end of the service I asked Jesus to be my Savior.  He saved me that day and I have never regretted the decision!

Did I deserve to be saved?  Not at all!  None of us deserve such a wonderful gift.  Why then are we saved?  Because God chose to love us!  Because God began dealing with us and someone helped us understand that God was asking to come into our lives – and we accepted the gift.

Salvation is available to 100% of the people in the world – Jesus’ death paid the price for our salvation.

The free gift is to whosoever will.  Therefore people are not saved on the basis of need, but because they will receive salvation as a free gift from God.

Please find your Bible and read Romans 4:1-25, Romans 5:1-5

However, there is a lot more available than merely being saved!  Having our sins forgiven and our future in heaven assured is absolutely fantastic!  Praise the Lord for such a wonderful hope!

We are not only saved FROM SIN AND ETERNAL DAMNATION, we are also saved TO FELLOWSHIP WITH GOD, HOLINESS, AND GOOD WORKS!

Romans chapter four tells the story of Abraham, the father of faith! Abraham was a fantastic man. God instructed him to leave his home and family and go to a place to be designated as they traveled. God wanted him to leave his home and family so He could deal with him without everyone contradicting Him! Sometimes we have to get away from everyone else to hear God!

As Abraham traveled, God promised to make him the father of many nations!  Abraham believed God, and never looked back!  God counted that faith as righteousness.

It is one thing to believe in God. Everyone does that – even some so-called atheists and agnostics. But that won’t save us. You have to believe God!

Abraham’s faith saved him – just as your faith saved you.  Abraham was circumcised as a sign and seal of his belief.  If you are saved and baptized, the act of water baptism did not save you – it is the sign and seal of what God has done.

When Paul wrote Romans, all the Jewish males were circumcised; however, not all were saved because they did not believe God for salvation.  In the same way, not everyone that has been baptized in water is saved – only those that trust God for their salvation.

Abraham was saved 400 years before Moses gave us the law; keeping the law – the Ten Commandments – will not save us. It is our faith in God that does that.

One of the things that surprised me was that in order to please God, I have to walk in the same kind of faith that Abraham did. I have to walk in Abraham’s footsteps!  Romans 4:16 emphasizes that!

But if we stop at salvation, we sell our relationship with God short.  God promised Abraham that he would be the father of many nations.  I always thought Abraham just wanted a son.  No, he wanted more than that!  He wanted to be the father of many nations!

At age 75 he was promised a son. Isaac was born 25 years later – when all hope of ever having a son was gone! But ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD – AGAINST ALL HOPE HE BELIEVED IN HOPE!

Biblical hope is greater than what we consider hope today.  Romans 5:1-5 tells us how to get that hope.  It isn’t pleasant!  We have to learn to hang in there when everything is going backwards!

1. Accept your justification through faith – even if you don’t feel saved.
2. Enjoy your peace with God – even when Satan tells you that you are not saved.
3. Rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.
4. Rejoice in our sufferings – thereby producing perseverance/patience.
5. Enjoy the perseverance because it produces character,
6. Knowing that character produces hope;
7. And hope does not disappoint us because God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit.

Jesus had problems, we will have problems. Count on it!

I don’t know about you, but I still have some unfulfilled dreams. There are many things I want to accomplish before the Lord takes me home! Most of my dreams focus around the future ministry of this church.

And quite frankly we are going to need the same kind of faith that Abraham had when he accomplished God’s will for his life. Now you may say, “If it was God’s will it would have happened no matter what he did.”

Sorry, but that is not the way it works!  God’s plan for Adam and Eve fell through because of their sin.  King Saul had to be replaced by David because he got to trusting himself instead of obeying God.

Judas failed because of his love for money.  He had part in the ministry of the Apostles until he decided to sell Jesus. Yes, it was prophesied that he would do that, but God knows the end from the beginning.  God did not make Judas fail – he did that on his own!

Many ministers and ministries have failed because of sin and lack of prayer and belief!  Even Jesus prayed, “Father if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me.” Thank God, Jesus also prayed, “Nevertheless, not My will, but Yours be done.”

What is your dream?  What has God laid on your heart that has not come to pass yet?  What is Satan fighting you over? Jesus told us, “All things are possible to him that believes.” Mark 9:23

If you do not believe that, you do not have the faith of Abraham!

Actually we think God can do anything – but we think we have to merit it – to do enough good works to deserve it.  Not at all!  We just have to believe – then walk in obedience.

James wrote, “In many ways we ALL stumble.” James 3: 2  God understands that!  He will put us back on track when we fail. Abraham failed several times.  King David failed many times.  But God did His work through them because they remained in faith – and returned to the faith when they failed.

Are you ready to return today?

~Pastor Leon