Words of Hope

A Word Study on the Biblical Word "Hope"

Study #61 - The Hope of Eternal Life

In our last post we considered the hope of salvation in its past, present and future aspects.  One of the future aspects of the believer's salvation is the hope of eternal life in heaven with God.  This aspect of hope is set forth twice in the Epistle to Titus:  1)"In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;" (Titus 1:2); and 2) "That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life" (Titus 3:7).  We must immediately state that once again the word "hope" in the New Testament speaks not of "wishful thinking" but of "confident expectation."  In other words, the Apostle Paul fully expected to inherit eternal life along with the all the believer's at Crete.  In the first reference the Apostle Paul spoke of his apostolic calling and ministry as being "in" or more literally "resting upon" (Greek - epi) this hope.  Lenski gives the following comment:  "The thing that Paul wants to emphasize in view of what he here writes for the benefit of the recently formed churches in Crete is his connection with the entire gospel and its eternal blessings and with all true Christians who are joined with him in all that this gospel bestows on them .... Paul is God's slave and Christ's apostle 'on the basis of (the) hope of life eternal ....'".  This hope is said to have been "promised" by the God who "cannot lie" making the reality of it a certainty.  God cannot lie since to do so would be contrary to His very nature and character, thus making Him to be something less than He truly is!  To doubt God's promise or word therefore is to call Him a liar.  Perish the thought!  The God of the Bible is the "God of truth" (Psalm 31:5) and His Holy Word, the Bible, is the "word of truth" (II Timothy 2:15).  We have the very promise of the never-lying God!  Furthermore, this promise is said to have been made "before the world began" or literally "before eternal ages"!  This makes the plan of redemption pre-date the present eons of time and places it within the eternal counsels of the Godhead.  While this is hard for us to comprehend other passages speak in these same terms (compare Romans 16:25 and II Timothy 1:9 which use the same Greek phrase).  The Eternal God views all time as one eternal "now" and only such a God who is eternal in Himself could grant such a gift as eternal life to us!  But what are the conditions for receiving such a wonderful promise?  The context provides the answer:  "according to the faith of God's elect, and the acknowledging of the truth which is after (i.e. accords with) godliness" (verse 1).  We are also not left wondering what this "truth" is we must acknowledge and place our faith in:  "But hath in due times manifested his word through preaching ..." (verse 3).  The promise of eternal life is therefore found in believing the gospel which Christ and His apostles preached which in time was recorded in the Word of God, the Bible.  And this gospel may be found spelled out in connection with our second text as well:  "But after that the kindness and love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our savior; that being justified freely by his grace we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life" (Titus 3:4-7).  So many wonderful truths are found in this passage, but the essential facts are:  1)  Eternal life is a gift of God's grace and mercy (we do not deserve it!); 2) Eternal life is granted apart from our own works or efforts (we cannot earn it!); 3) Eternal life comes to us solely through the Lord Jesus Christ (we cannot save ourselves!  Christ must save us!); and 4) Eternal life is a life-changing gift that is the product of a new birth imparted by the Holy Spirit of God (He must wash us and renew us!).  If we have placed our faith in the Person and Work (sacrificial death and resurrection) of the Lord Jesus Christ then God has saved us by His grace and we have been made His child and therefore heirs of eternal life!  And we may confidently expect (hope) to obtain this inheritance because we have the eternal promise of the never-lying God! Have you received His promise of eternal life?