Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. (Romans 5:1-6 ESV).
It’s been said that our souls need hope the way our lungs need oxygen. Paul knew about our need for hope. It’s good to keep in mind that Paul was writing to Christians living under the dark, oppressive grip of Roman power. With such uncertainty and threats hope was not something easily attained. That was a day when people worried that they would make it through the day without being betrayed, arrested, and tortured to death. Today our greatest worry is far less than that. Of course that’s not to say we don’t have valid reasons for concern in our personal and family lives; however, we must understand those early believers found a way to overcome every threat with the powerful hope of the gospel.
Perhaps you find yourself surrounded by situations of uncertainty and turmoil. Maybe a loved one has received a troubling diagnosis and the path ahead is frightening. Maybe you have a strained relationship with a child or friend and you’re uncertain if or when it might be restored. Or maybe you are uncertain whether God, who knows your past and heart completely, will accept and love you. Here’s the answer that the Apostle Paul extends: God provides a hope to each one of us that is so powerful that it can both calm our fears and move us to give thanks. That hope is built on the truth that even though we are powerless and sinful, Christ died for us. And there’s more: Christ rose again from the dead. So our hope is forged out of death’s destruction, out of Christ’s victory over the grave. There’s no greater hope in this world.
The darkness and uncertainties in the world around us do not get the final word. God does. And God reaches out with life-renewing love to us. So let’s live this day with hope, giving thanks for Christ, our Savior!