Words of Hope

A Word Study on the Biblical Word "Hope"

Study #57 - Waiting in Hope

We have been considering some of the elements that constitute the fullness of the believer's hope in Christ by looking at some of the descriptive phrases used in the New Testament in connection with the word "hope".  Last time we looked at the promise that the believer in Christ can "rejoice in hope of the glory of God" (Romans 5:2).  We would just like to add to that study the thought that we can presently rejoice even though the glory we shall experience is yet in the future.  This is because the future hope we are promised by God in His Word is as certain as a present fact!  If we can rejoice now because of what awaits us, how much more will we rejoice in that day when our hope in Christ is fulfilled?  There is indeed a fullness of hope that we now possess even as we await the fulfillment of hope to come.  The Apostle Paul includes this present rejoicing as a vital part of the responsibilities and privileges of the Christian life:  "Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer ..." (Romans 12:11,12).  Likewise, the writer of the Book of Hebrews exhorts us to maintain this rejoicing unto the end of our earthly lives: "But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end" (Hebrews 3:6).  In other words, it is an evidence of Christ dwelling in us that we continually hope as well as continue to hope all of our days.  But all of this is also a reminder that much of what we hope for is yet future and therefore we must wait for the ultimate fulfillment of our hope in Christ.  In Galatians 5:5 we read these words:  "For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith."  We must wait in faith for this aspect of our Christian hope to be fulfilled.  We have seen the close connection between hoping and waiting already several times in this study.  In the Old Testament we saw that the root meaning of one of the Hebrew words for "hope" (Hebrew - yahal) was in fact "to wait".   Likewise we considered the Greek word "prosdekomai" (waiting, looking) in connection with the Messianic hope of those who looked for the coming of the Christ (see study#48, Jan.5, 2014 for example).  Here we find yet another word translated "wait", the Greek word "apekdekomai".  The Pulpit Commentary states that this verb "in all the six other passages in which it is found, is used with reference to objects or events pertaining to the close of the present dispensation:  Rom. 8:19,23,25; I Cor. 1:7; Phil. 3:20; Heb. 9:28."  It also notes that being a compound verb probably makes it intensive in meaning "expressing thorough-goingness; an entirely assured, steadfast expectation, persistent to the end" (emphasis mine).  It must be noted that the Apostle Paul credits this expectant waiting to the Holy Spirit within the believer:  "For we through the Spirit wait ..." (vs.5).  While some would make this refer to the spirit of the believer (we wait in our spirit, wait in a spiritual way, inwardly, etc. as opposed to in our flesh or in a fleshly, merely external way, etc.) the mention of the Holy Spirit both before (3:2-5,14; 4:6) and after this verse (5:18, 22-25) indicates that it is the personal agency of the indwelling Spirit of God within the believer that produces and makes such waiting possible.  Vincent rightly comments:  "(It is) the Holy Spirit who inspires our faith.... (These words) are not to be taken as one conception, the Spirit which is of faith, but present two distinct and coordinate facts which characterize the waiting for the hope of righteousness; namely, the agency of the Holy Spirit, in contrast with the flesh ..., and faith, in contrast with the works of the law ..." (emphasis mine).  But what is meant here by our waiting for "the hope of righteousness"?  Certainly not that we hope to one day receive righteousness in the sense of being justified before God.  We have already been declared righteous (i.e. justified) by God through our faith in Christ (Galatians 2:16; 3:6,11,24, etc.).  The "hope of righteousness" must therefore mean the hope that results from righteousness (which is freely granted by faith alone in Christ alone).  John Wesley stated that this speaks of the reward of our faith in Christ:  "The righteousness we hope for, and full reward of it.  This righteousness we receive of God through faith; and by faith we shall obtain the reward" (emphasis mine).  The comments in The Pulpit Commentary are again helpful:  "We Christians, as led by the Spirit of adoption, do rest in the confident anticipation of receiving the inheritance which is the future award of the righteous, on the ground of our faith in the Lord Jesus" (emphasis mine).  So while righteousness is imputed to the believer presently by faith in Christ, the hope of righteousness (that is, its reward) awaits us in the future. We should also note that although we have received the righteousness of Christ imputed to us at salvation, the work of imparting and restoring righteousness to the believer through sanctification is a process that will not be fully completed until our glorification in eternity.  Only then will the righteousness which is by faith have its full effect.  As believers we possess righteousness in Christ by faith, pursue the practice of righteousness in life, but will be perfected in righteousness in heaven. Until then we must wait, but wait in faith and in full expectation and joyful anticipation of joining in eternal fellowship with "the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven ... the spirits of just men made perfect" (Hebrews 12:23).

Words of Hope

A Word Study on the Biblical Word "Hope"

Study #56 - Rejoicing in Hope

In our last post we ended with a listing of some of the phrases found in the Epistles of the New Testament that describe the abounding hope given to the believer in Christ Jesus.  The first of these is found in Romans 5:1,2 - "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God."  The Apostle Paul has spent five chapters expounding upon the great Gospel truth of justification by faith alone.  And now at chapter five we come to a "therefore" which indicates a shift from doctrinal facts to practical application of those facts:  from the cause of our justification before God to the effects of our justification from God.  "Being justified by faith" = the basis of our salvation; "We have therefore" = the benefits of our salvation.  It is due solely to God's grace received through faith in Christ that these benefits and blessings are ours; they cannot be received any other way, nor can they belong to those outside of faith in Him.  What are some of the results of our justification through Christ?  1) Peace with God; 2) Access into God's grace; and 3) Hope of God's glory!  God is at peace with the justified believer; We are at peace with Him.  The enmity between us has been removed and the conflict is forever ended (see Ephesians 2:13,14).  The justified believer has access into the grace of God.  Our entrance into grace (God's unmerited favor and approval) is freely granted; Our standing in grace is fully guaranteed (see Ephesians 2:18; Hebrews 4:16; 10:19-22).  Both are given by God's grace and both are received by faith in Christ.  And the believer may rejoice in the expectation (hope) of the glory of God!  But what does this mean exactly?  What is this "glory of God" that we may joyfully expect to receive?  Godet defines it as "the glorious state which God Himself possesses, and into which He will admit the faithful."  In other words it is what theologians call "the glorification of the believer" in eternity.  This "glorification" will consist of an unimaginable and indescribable change in the believer that will complete our salvation and crown our Savior's work in us.  It will entail at least two amazing things that will equip us for dwelling forever in the Presence of God's absolute Perfection and Holiness:  1) The transference of God's communicable attributes to us.  In some way God will share His glory with us.  We will not be deified or become "little gods" as some claim, but we will participate to some degree in the fulness of his love, mercy, grace and goodness as He imparts these aspects of His glory to us for all eternity.  "And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and join-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together. For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed in us" (Romans 8:17,18).  2) The transformation of the believer by God's glory.  We will be given a new body like unto Christ's glorious body:  eternally pure and free from sin's penalty, power, practice and presence!  The old sin nature will finally be eradicated entirely and forever.  Our spirit will dominate us rather than the flesh.  We will finally enjoy all that is pure, holy, righteous and good without the taint and temptation of the old man.  We will be enabled to love God and to enjoy Him forever!  "For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body ..." (Philippians 3:20,21).  "As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly.  And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly" (I Corinthians 15:48,49).  This is the hope of the Glory of God in which we may rejoice!  Such a hope may remain confident even in the midst of trials and tribulations - "And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also" (Romans 5:3).  In fact, such a hope is made stronger by tribulations - "knowing that tribulation worketh patience; and patience, experience; and experience hope" (vs.3,4).  Our being tested and tried serves only to increase our hope, not diminish it.  And such a hope will never disappoint us - "And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us" (vs.5).  How can we dare to claim such a strong hope?  Because the basis of our hope of future glorification is Christ dwelling in us:  "Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Col.1:27). How amazing is God's grace to us in Christ.  We who as sinners all "fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23) are now made to "rejoice in hope of the glory of God" (Romans 5:2).  The only difference being that by faith in Christ we are now justified before God!

Words of Hope

A Word Study on the Biblical Word "Hope"

Study #55 - Abounding in Hope

As we pass from the Book of Acts into the Epistles of the New Testament we find that the subject of the believer's hope is greatly expanded.  While in the Gospels "hope" is primarily centered in the promise of the Messiah (the Messianic Hope), and in the Acts "hope" is plainly linked with the promise of the resurrection (of Christ and of the believer in Christ), in the Epistles we find a plenitude of expressions which serve to reveal the fullness of the believer's hope in Christ.  We have defined "hope" as "the happy anticipation and confident expectation of future good."  And of course we must further define our "Christian hope" as being centered in those "good things" that God has promised to us in His Word.  It is in studying the New Testament Epistles that we come to find out just how plentiful and bountiful the hope we have been given in Christ Jesus really is:  "For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope ... Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost" (Romans 15:4,13).  There is an abounding fullness of hope given by the God of hope to those who will believe all that He has written in the Holy Scriptures.  This abounding in hope is the work of the Holy Spirit in the believer as He illuminates the promises of God to us and impresses the truth of the Word into our hearts and lives, filling us with hope, patience, comfort, joy and peace!  What are some of the elements of this abundance of hope that we find in the New Testament Scriptures?  We may find them in the descriptive phrases the New Testament writers attach to the word "hope".  We have already seen in the Book of Acts such phrases as: "the hope of the promise" and "the hope of Israel" both expressing the truth of "the hope of the resurrection" (Acts 23:6; 26:6; 28:20).  We may add to these the following from the epistles:

1) Romans 5:2 - "By whom (Christ) also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God."

2) Galatians 5:5 - "For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith."

3) Ephesians 1:18 - "The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his (God's) calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints."

4) Ephesians 4:4  - "There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling."

5) Colossians 1:23 - "If you continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not move away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard ...."

6) Colossians 1:27 - "To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you the hope of glory."

7) I Thessalonians 5:8 - "But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation."

8) Titus 1:2 - "In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began."

9) Titus 3:7 - "That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life."

All of these prepositional phrases help to define what all is included in the believer's hope.  This is by no means an exhaustive list of all the descriptions of hope found in the New Testament, but it is a start.  We plan to consider some of these passages in more detail as we go along, but for now a reading of them should give us a sense of the overflowing abundance of hope imparted to the believer in Christ. 

Words of Hope

A Word Study on the Biblical Word "Hope"

Study #54 - The Hope of the Promise

We have been tracing the Apostle Paul's defense of the hope of the resurrection as recorded in the Book of Acts.  First, he reminded his Jewish accusers that his message of the Risen Christ was in keeping with the historical faith of the Jewish people.  This was not some novel doctrine of recent origin but was a part of the faith of the fathers and the very hope of Israel which all of the Jewish people believed except for the radical sect of the Sadducees.  Second, he linked his faith in the resurrection with his faith in God since it was God Himself who had made this promise to His people and had confirmed it in His own Word.  To deny the resurrection, therefore, amounts to a denial of God's Promise or a doubting of God's Power to perform what He has promised.  This was the same two-pronged apologetical argument that the Lord Jesus Christ had used against the unbelieving Sadducees when they questioned Him about the nature and feasibility of a resurrection.  Christ's reply to them was, "Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God ... have ye not read that which was spoken unto you by God, saying, I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob?  God is not the God of the dead, but of the living" (Matthew 22:29-32).  To this statement the account in Mark's Gospel adds, "ye therefore do greatly err" (Mark 12:27).  It was the contention of both the Lord Jesus and the Apostle Paul that the hope of the resurrection was clearly taught in the Old Testament Scriptures!  We may note once again that Paul confessed that his worship of God included "believing all things which are written in the law and in the prophets" and that this included having "hope toward God ... that there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust" (Acts 24:14,15).  Thus he viewed the Scriptures that spoke of the resurrection as God's promise to His people:  "And now I stand and am judged for the hope of the promise made of God unto our fathers:  Unto which promise our twelve tribes, instantly serving God day and night, hope to come.  For which hope's sake ... I am accused of the Jews" (Acts 26:6,7).  It is clear from Paul's earlier preaching what he considered to be the elements of God's Promise:  1) The coming of the Messiah from the lineage of David:  "Of this man's seed hath God according to His promise raised unto Israel a Savior, Jesus" (Acts 13:23); 2) The Resurrection the Messiah from the dead:  "And we declare unto you glad tidings, how that the promise which was made unto the fathers, God hath fulfilled the same unto us their children, in that He hath raised up Jesus again ... that He raised Him up from the dead, now no more to return to corruption ..." (Acts 13:32-34); and 3) Forgiveness of sins through faith in the Risen Savior:  "But He, whom God raised again, saw no corruption.  Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: And by Him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses" (Acts 13:37-39).  Yes, God has promised these things to us in His Holy Word.  We should note that the Scriptures cited by Paul in this great message included Psalm 2:7; Isaiah 55:3; and Psalm 16:10 among others.  We might also note other Old Testament references to the doctrine of the resurrection (Job 19:25-27; Daniel 12:2; etc).  To these Old Testament verses we should add our Savior's own words of promise concerning His Resurrection as given in the Gospel accounts:  Matthew 16:21; 17:22,23; 20:18,19; 26:32; etc., as well as His words of promise regarding our own resurrection to everlasting life with Him:  John 5:24-29; 6:39,40; 11:25,26; etc.  And yes, what God has promised He has the power to perform:  "Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you, that God should raise the dead?" (Acts 26:8).  "And God hath both raised up the Lord, and will also raise up us by His own power" (I Corinthians 6:14).  God's promise is clear;  God's power is unquestionable;  But the hope of the promise is certain only to those who believe in His Son.  The event of the resurrection will include all men (both just and unjust), but only the believer in Christ can have hope toward God in that day.  There will be a resurrection to everlasting life for the Christian, but a resurrection unto everlasting death (separation from God in hell) for the unbeliever (Daniel 12:2; John 5:28,29).  Are you claiming the hope of the promise through faith in the risen Savior?

Words of Hope

A Word Study on the Biblical Word "Hope"

Study #53 - Hope Toward God

As we work our way through the message of hope in the Book of Acts we are constantly reminded that the believer's hope is the hope of the resurrection.  This was the great Apostolic message:  that the atoning death, burial, and bodily resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ is the sole basis of man's salvation, and that this salvation includes not only the full and free forgiveness of all our sins but the gift of everlasting life through faith in the Person and Saving Work of Christ, and that this gift of everlasting life includes the physical resurrection of the believer's body from the grave so that we may live in a glorified state, perfected in body and soul to live for all eternity in the Presence of our God and Savior.  As the Apostle Paul preached this Gospel of the Risen Christ he began to be persecuted by those who refused to believe in the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, largely because they refused to believe that He was indeed the promised Messiah.  This placed Paul in a position to defend his preaching of the Risen Savior before both Jewish and Roman authorities.  And the more he was attacked for proclaiming the Resurrection of Christ the more he defended his message by appealing to the Old Testament Scriptures that prophesied the future resurrection of the dead which even his persecutors claimed to believe.  We may trace his defense of this great doctrine as follows:  First, before the Jewish Sanhedrin he divided his accusers by proclaiming that the doctrine of the future resurrection of the dead was at the very core of his message:  "But when Paul perceived that the one part were Sadducees, and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, Men and brethren ... of the hope of the resurrection of the dead I am called in question" (Acts 23:6).  This produced an immediate division between the sect of the Pharisees who believed in the doctrine of a resurrection and the sect of the Sadducees who did not (vs. 7-9).  It is clear that Paul was appealing to the historical belief of the more conservative Jews while exposing the radical departure from that belief among the liberal and unbelieving among them.  It is a grave error of modern so-called "scholars" who deny that the Jewish people had any concept of a resurrection or of life beyond death.  So much so that Paul could later declare before the Jewish elders of Rome that the very doctrine of the resurrection was the ancient "hope of Israel" (Acts 28:20).  Secondly, Paul not only appealed to the ancient faith of Israel in his defense of the resurrection, he attached that doctrine to his faith in God:  "But this I confess unto thee, that after the way which they call heresy, so worship I the God of my fathers, believing all things which are written in the law and the prophets: and have hope toward God, which they also allow, that there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and the unjust" (Acts 24:14,15).  In this great defense before the Roman Governor Felix, the Apostle Paul made it clear that to deny the resurrection  would amount to a denial of his faith in the God of the Bible!  This would be so for at least two reasons:  1) To deny the resurrection would be a denial of the Word of God, that is, all that is written in the Old Testament Scriptures (the law and the prophets); and 2) To deny the resurrection would amount to denying the Power of God, that is, that God is able to perform what He had in fact promised!  These two arguments are laid out before King Agrippa by the Apostle Paul in Acts 26 where he first speaks of the resurrection as "the hope of the promise" (vs.6,7) and then challenges Agrippa's unbelief by asking, "Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you that God should raise the dead?" (vs.8).  In other words, to assume that belief in the resurrection of the dead is unreasonable or to dismiss it as an impossibility is paramount to doubting God's veracity on the one hand and denying God's ability on the other!  When our hope is fixed upon God, the hope of the resurrection is not only believable, it is inevitable, for God cannot and will not deny Himself or fail to perform everything He has promised!

Words of Hope

A Word Study on the Biblical Word "Hope"

Study #52 - Resting in Hope

Last time we began looking at the hope of the resurrection as mentioned in five passages in the Book of Acts and ended with a list of Scriptural claims we may glean from them, the first of which is: "The hope of the believer's resurrection is anchored in the fact of the Resurrection of Christ".  There is no doubt that the proclamation of Christ's Resurrection was the central doctrine of the apostolic message: (Acts 2:31,32; 3:14,14; 4:10-12; 5:30,31; etc.).  In fact, it was the central doctrine of their gospel message: (I Cor. 15:1-4; II Timothy 2:8; etc.).  There is no salvation apart from the Resurrection of Christ:  "And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.  Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished.  If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable" (I Cor. 15:17-19).  R. A. Torrey wrote:  "Gospel preachers nowadays preach the gospel of the Crucifixion, the Apostles preached the gospel of the Resurrection as well .... The Crucifixion looses its meaning without the Resurrection.  Without the Resurrection the death of Christ was only the heroic death of a noble martyr; With the Resurrection it is the atoning death of the Son of God.  It shows that death to be of sufficient value to cover our sins, for it was the sacrifice of the Son of God."  One of the great Old Testament passages the Apostles loved to quote was Psalm 16:8-11.  Here they found Scriptural proof that the Messiah was indeed to be raised from the dead.  This was the passage the Apostle Peter quoted in his great message on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:25-28) and the passage the Apostle Paul quoted in the synagogue of Antioch in defense of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead (Acts 13:34-37).  We looked at this Messianic prophecy briefly in our study of the Hebrew word betah (see study #35, Sept.29, 2013).  Both the Hebrew of Psalm 16 and the Greek quotation by Peter in Acts 2 speak of the believer's flesh (body) resting in hope because of the assurance that God would not abandon his soul to hell (Sheol / Hades) because of the fact that the Holy One (Messiah) would not experience the corruption of His body after death.  And this is interpreted by the Apostles to both predict and require the Messiah's bodily Resurrection from the dead as the basis of hope for the believer's own eternal salvation and future resurrection.  David's soul could rest in hope knowing that His Savior would one day conquer death by the power of His own Resurrection:  "For David speaketh concerning him ... my flesh shall rest in hope: Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption .... He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ ... This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses" (Acts 2:25-32).  There is a beautiful word picture in the phrase "my soul shall rest in hope."  The Greek word here for "rest" is kataskanao which literally means "to pitch one's tent" (Thayer's Greek Lexicon). Lenski comments:  "The verb means 'to put down a tent,' 'to camp in order to rest,' and thus simply 'to rest awhile.' This verb implies only a transient sojourn; a tent is not a permanent structure .... The temporary tenting comprises both the bodily life of David and the stay of his body in the grave.  In both conditions his flesh makes its tent and camp 'on hope,' on this as the ground .... What that hope contains follows in the next line."

Likewise, Vincent commented:  "It is a beautiful metaphor.  My flesh shall encamp on hope; pitch its tent there to rest through the night of death, until the morning of resurrection" (emphasis his).  Yes, the Savior's Resurrection is the ground of the believer's hope and rest, both in this life and for eternity.  We do not trust in a dead Christ but in the Living Christ who has conquered death, hell and the grave by the power of His own Resurrection.  Because He lives, we also live and  shall live forever with Him in glory!  There is no greater rest than this, no greater assurance, no greater peace!  "Here let me wait with patience, Wait till the night is o'er, Wait till I see the morning break on the golden shore ... There, by His love o'er-shaded, Sweetly my soul shall rest" (Crosby).

Words of Hope

A Word Study on the Biblical Word "Hope"

Study #51 - The Hope of the Resurrection

In our last study we found that the Messianic Hope was confirmed by the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.  Our Lord's bodily resurrection was irrefutable evidence that He was indeed the Promised Messiah.  The Apostle Paul wrote that the Lord Jesus was "declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead" (Romans 1:4).  And so as we pass from the Gospels into the Book of the Acts we find that the word "hope" is almost always associated with the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.  In fact, seven out of ten times the word "hope" occurs in the Acts it is used in connection with the Resurrection of Christ and/or of those who believe in Him as their Savior.  We may list these occurrences as follows:

Acts 2:26,27 - "Therefore did my heart rejoice, and my tongue was glad; moreover also my flesh shall rest in hope:  Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption."  (The Messianic prophecy of Psalm 16 foretelling the Resurrection of the Christ.)

Acts 23:6 - "... of the hope and resurrection of the dead  I am called in question."  (The defense of the Apostle Paul before the Sanhedrin.)

Acts 24:14,15 - "... so worship I the God of my fathers, believing all things which are written in the law and in the prophets:  And have hope toward God, which they themselves also allow, that there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and the unjust."  (Paul's defense before Felix.)

Acts 26:6,7,8 - "And now I stand and am judged for the hope of the promise made of God unto our fathers:  Unto which promise our twelve tribes, instantly serving God day and night hope to come.  For which hope's sake, king Agrippa, I am accused of the Jews.  Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you, that God should raise the dead?"  (Paul's defense before Agrippa.)

Acts 28:20 - "For this cause therefore have I called for you, to see you, and to speak with you: because that for the hope of Israel I am bound with this chain."  (Paul's defense before the Jewish elders of Rome, the "hope" of which he spake being clearly defined by the previous references to it.)

We want to look at these passages in more detail in future posts, but for now even a casual reading of these verses reveals some very clear Scriptural claims regarding the hope of the resurrection:

1.  The hope of the believer's resurrection is anchored in the fact of the Resurrection of Christ.

2.  The hope of the believer is the hope of the resurrection of the dead.

3.  The hope of the resurrection was clearly taught in the Old Testament Scriptures (Law and Prophets).

4.  The event of the resurrection will include all men (both just and unjust), but only the believer can have hope toward God in that day.

5.  The hope of the resurrection is firmly established upon the promise and power of God and is therefore neither impossible nor unreasonable.

6.  The hope of the resurrection was a part of the ancient faith of Israel (believed by all the Jews except for the liberal sect of the Sadducees).  

It is certain that the central message of the Apostles and of the Early Church was the Hope of the Resurrection and that this hope was anchored in the fact of the Resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ from the dead.  All men will face death one day.  Whether we will approach that day with hope or with no hope all depends upon whether or not we believe in the death, burial and resurrection of Christ as the means of our soul's eternal salvation.  "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.  For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation ... For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Romans 10:9,10,13).