Salvation is of the Lord!
Hope enables us to overcome temptation and hold on to our way, looking unto Jesus. It gives us peace in death, in the sure prospect of victory over the grave.
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Salvation includes our election, which is past. Our effectual calling and sanctification is the present. And our glorification is what is coming in the future.
We were chosen for salvation by the Father. Jesus Christ redeemed us. The Holy Spirit sanctifies us. God is the author of salvation. His grace is the source from which salvation flows. Jesus is the Savior, and faith is the grace that receives salvation. Separation from the world and dedication to God demonstrates that we are saved, as we manifest the character of our God. To all this, the Apostle Paul adds, “We are saved by hope.” (Rom 8:24). Being saved by Hope is not in the same sense as being saved by faith, which can deliver us from guilt, degradation, and eternal death, by receiving and confiding in Christ.
God’s grace is the source from which salvation flows.
To be saved by Hope is to be sustained in the midst of foes, dangers, and trials. Hope quickens us in duties and prevents us from becoming cold and dead. It comforts us in tribulations and keeps us from being disheartened and gloomy. It enables us to overcome temptation and hold on to our way, looking unto Jesus. It gives us peace in death, in the sure prospect of victory over the grave.
Thus, Hope saves us by preventing despair, into which we can never fall, while Hope lives within us. Hope preserves us from desperation, the verge of which we are sometimes brought. Hope guards us against rebellion, the seeds of which are still thickly sown in our corrupt hearts. Hope protects us from apostasy, into which we can never fall so long as we hope in God. From many evils, at many times, in many ways, we are saved by Hope, sharing in the Hope of Israel, the blessed Hope. Our Hope is with God as its highest object and best focus.
Our Hope is through Christ, who is the way to the Father, the Truth, and the Life. Our Hope is grounded on the Word. Our Hope is for the fulfillment of all God has promised, whether temporal or spiritual, in this world or the next. Our Hope should be encouraged, as it brings glory to God, comfort to our souls, credit to our public profession of faith, and honor to our Lord Jesus Christ.
The Spirit of Truth can fill us with a lively Hope and teach us to expect all God has promised us, all He has revealed in His most holy Word, and all Christ has procured for us.
Timothy Temilola,
(Lagos Ecclesia, Nigeria)