A Reason for Hope

	Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

—Romans 5:5

Sometimes God is glorified through the removal of an affliction. When we have a problem, people pray with us about it, and it is resolved, we praise God for that. If a physician performs surgery, and that loved one is cancer-free, we thank God. We thank the doctor, too, but we realize God is the one who is ultimately in control.

But then there are times when the surgery doesn't go as well as we had hoped. There are times when the illness is not removed. The problem is not taken away. It is then that God can be glorified through the enduring of the affliction. And it is through hardship that we will develop hope.

You would think the best way to find hope is to have a trouble-free life. No, the best way to find hope is through the crises of life. In Romans 5:3–5 we read, "But we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us."

Hope is going to come through hardship. So when a Christian suffers and still glorifies God, it reassures the rest of us there never will be a valley so deep that God will not get us through it.

It also reminds us that death is not the end. Physical death is not the end of existence; it is just a change in the state of existence. The tomb is not the entrance to death, but the entrance to life. Heaven is the earthly life of the believer, glorified and perfected. When a believer dies, he or she goes into God's presence. That is the ultimate hope.


Greg Laurie
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The Last Thing God Wants

	The Lord isn't really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent. 2 Peter3:9

Heaven is not for good people; it is for forgiven people. Case in point: the thief on the cross. He was a murderer, most likely, but he was forgiven. And anyone can be forgiven if they will turn to Christ.

And just as heaven is a real place, hell is real too. We can't deny it. The Bible teaches on it many, many times. C. S. Lewis said, "There are only two kinds of people in the end: Those who say to God, 'Thy will be done,' and those to whom God says, in the end, 'Thy will be done.' All who are in Hell, choose it. Without that self-choice there could be no hell."

So let's get over the notion that God is so cruel in sending people to hell. God poured out His wrath on His own dear Son so we wouldn't have to go to hell. The last thing God wants is for anyone to perish. But if we are bound and determined to reject His offer of forgiveness, then it is really on us.

The Bible tells us that God "does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent" (2 Peter 3:9).

So we can't change the script, and we can't rewrite the story. As R. Albert Mohler, Jr. wrote, "We have no right to determine which 'story' of the gospel we prefer or think is most compelling. We must deal with the gospel that we received from Christ and the Apostles, the faith once for all delivered to the church."

My job, your job, our job is to deliver what God says—not to edit it . . . not to change it . . . not to add to it . . . and certainly not to subtract from it.

Greg Laurie

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