Words of Hope

A Word Study on the Biblical Word "Hope"

Study #63 - The Hope of Eternal Life (Part III)

This is our third post on the subject of the hope of eternal life as referred to in Paul's epistle to Titus:  "In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world (or this age) began;" (Titus 1:2); and, "That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life" (Titus 3:7).  In our last post we left off by noting that the Biblical concept of "life" often includes much more than the thought of mere animal existence, but involves the possession of "life real and genuine ... a happy life and every kind of blessing" (Thayer).  We wanted to explore this idea a little further.  There is a great contrast presented in the Bible not only between the life of the believer and the unbeliever in eternity (which we have already discussed), but in the quality of life possessed by the saved and the unsaved in this present world.  For example, the Bible describes the condition of the unbeliever as being "dead in trespasses and sins" (Ephesians 2:1,5).  Likewise, "But she that liveth in (sinful) pleasure is dead while she liveth" (I Timothy 5:6).  Just as we have considered the "death" of the unredeemed in hell as meaning separation from God for all eternity, so the unsaved sinner is spiritually dead or spiritually separated from God even while he is physically alive in this world.  There is no true life apart from being in fellowship with God through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ!  But once we have accepted Christ as our Savior and Lord, He imparts spiritual life unto us and we are spiritually born:  "And you hath he quickened (made truly alive) who were dead in trespasses and sins" (Ephesians 2:1,5).  The Bible presents this "quickening" under three figures:  1) Regeneration or the New Birth (John 1:13; 3:3); 2) Resurrection or being "made alive" in Christ (John 5:25; Romans 6:13; Colossians 3:1); and 3) Re-creation or becoming a new creature (II Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 2:10).  Thus the eternal life of the believer begins at conversion and lasts for eternity.  The present aspects of eternal life are described in numerous passages of scripture, in both the Old and New Testaments.  In Psalm 73:24-24 Asaph wrote:  "Nevertheless I am continually with thee: thou hast holden me by my right hand. Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel, and afterward receive me to glory."  In John 17:3 Christ said: "And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent."  John Walvoord commented on this verse by noting that "eternal life is described in its experiential aspect of knowing God and having fellowship with God through his Son, Jesus Christ" (emphasis mine).  This is what the Lord Jesus meant when He said, "I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly" (John 10:10).  This is an echo of the cry of Wisdom in the book of Proverbs:  "For whoso findeth me findeth life, and shall obtain favour of the LORD.  But he that sinneth against me wrongeth his own soul:  all they that hate me love death" (Proverbs 8:35,36).  It is a profitable study just to look at all the verses in the Bible where "life" means so much more than merely "being alive" but that is beyond the scope of this post.  But we must also note that the gift of eternal life means much more than merely existing forever. Unger speaks to this matter very plainly:  "Life is endless in every human being, saved or unsaved.  Natural life has a beginning but no end.  For the saved it involves eternal life or endless union and fellowship with God.  For the unsaved it involves eternal existence in separation from God.  (Eternal life) must not be confused with mere endless existence ... it involves the endless continuance and perfection of blessedness and communion with God ..." (emphasis mine).  Thus the Psalmist wrote:  "Thou wilt show me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore" (Psalm 16:11).  Some of the "pleasures" the believer will enjoy for all eternity are described as "everlasting habitations" (Luke 16:9); an "eternal inheritance" (Hebrews 9:15); "eternal glory" (I Peter 5:10); and participation in an "everlasting kingdom" (II Peter 1:11).  Quoting Unger once again, "Immortality, then, is not simply a future conscious condition, however prolonged, but a state of deliverance, of bliss, due to redemption and the possession of a glorified body, united to the soul and the spirit ... a glorified body that is immortal, deathless, painless and sinless ..." (emphasis mine).  So much more could be said about this indescribable gift of eternal life promised to those who will receive it by faith in Christ.  But we will close this post with the invitation and ultimatum that God gave to mankind long ago:  "I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life ... that thou mayest love the LORD thy God, and that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for He is thy life ..."  (Deuteronomy 30:19,20). 

Words of Hope

A Word Study on the Biblical Word "Hope"

Study #62 - The Hope of Eternal Life (Part II)

In our last post we looked at the promise of eternal life granted by God's grace to those who have believed the Gospel of Jesus Christ (Titus1:2; 3:7).  But what exactly does this promise mean?  As John Walvoord states, "Both the terms 'eternal' and 'life' are difficult to define except descriptively" (Evangelical Dictionary of Theology).  The phrase "eternal life" is made up of two Greek words:  "aionios" (eternal) and "zoa" (life).  The Greek word "aionios" according to Thayer's Greek Lexicon may mean: 1) without beginning or end, that which always has been and always will be; 2) without beginning; or 3) without end, never to cease, everlasting.  In the first meaning it is used only of God (Romans 16:26).  The second meaning is found in our text in Titus 1:2 and is translated by the KJV as "before the world began".  This speaks of the "eternal promise" of God found in the Gospel which was established in the eternal counsels of God before the beginning of time (or the ages).  It is the third usage that is applied to the life of the believer both presently and after physical death.  John 3:36 states: "He that believeth on the Son hath (as a present possession) everlasting life:  and he that believeth not the Son shall not see (now or in the future) life; but the wrath of God abideth (now and forever) on him."  Those who refuse the gift of eternal life in this world will never experience it after death.  This is the "perishing" that is spoken of in John 3:16 that is only escaped through faith in Christ:  "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."  There is everlasting life and there is everlasting death:  "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord" (Romans 6:23).  "And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire.  This is the second death.  And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire" (Revelation 20:14,15).  Death in the Bible never means "to cease to exist" but always refers to a "separation" of some sort.  Physical death is the separation of the soul from the body.  Spiritual death is the separation of the soul from God.  And the second death is the eternal separation of the unsaved from God in hell:  "Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power" (II Thessalonians 1:9).  The Lord Jesus made it very clear that everyone will live forever somewhere, either in heaven or in hell.  No one simply ceases to exist after this life is over:  "And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal" (Matthew 25:46).  The words "everlasting" and "eternal" are exactly the same in the Greek text.  You cannot limit the one and not the other.  Both the believer's life in heaven and the unbeliever's punishment in hell are eternal and without end!  Leon Morris wrote:  "In the NT there is no indication that the punishment of sin ever ceases."  And so, at the very least, the promise of eternal life includes the believer's escape from the eternal penalty of hell.  But there is even more in this promise of eternal life that is implied in the very word "life" as it is used in the Bible. Once again we may cite Thayer on the meaning of the Greek word "zoa". While this word may refer to the mere physical life or animation of the body, it is also used in the New Testament to refer to "life real and genuine ... a life active and vigorous, devoted to God, blessed, the portion even in this world of those who put their trust in Christ, but after the resurrection to be consummated by new accessions (among them a more perfect body), and to last forever" (Thayer's Greek Lexicon).  It is this expanded definition of "life" that we wish to explore in our next post.

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?

Words of Hope

A Word Study on the Biblical Word "Hope"

Study #60 - The Hope of Salvation

Our next descriptive phrase of the believer's hope in Christ is found in 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."  This passage is dealing with the protective armament of the believer in Christ that is needed as we live in a world of sinful darkness and spiritual conflict.  We may compare it to Paul's even fuller description of the Christian's armor (the whole armor of God) as found in Ephesians 6:11-17 where in verse 17 he states: "And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God." Both of these passages refer to the believer's salvation as part of a spiritual armor that guards and protects the head of the Christian.  Obviously the head is a vital part of the body and a blow to the head can lead to serious consequences in battle.  The head is also the source of thought, decision making, reason, hearing, speaking, and sight.  It is both the receptor center and the command center of the rest of the body.  Many if not most of all spiritual battles take place in the mind of the Christian!  We must carefully guard our minds with the helmet of our salvation.  Simply put we should continually think about what it means to be saved and then seek to think and act accordingly.  We must be thinking Christians! The consecration and renewal of the mind is essential to spiritual growth and success (Romans 12:1,2).  Likewise, complete mastery of our thought life is critical to spiritual victory (II Corinthians 10:3-5).  But what is meant by "the hope of salvation"?  Many times we have heard it said that we must have a "know-so" salvation, not merely a "hope-so" salvation.  While I would agree with this statement wholeheartedly, I do not believe that Paul is here speaking of a salvation that is merely "hoped for" in the modern sense of the phrase.  Rather we must remind ourselves of our previous findings in this study on the Biblical meaning of the word "hope" as used in the Scriptures.  We have consistently observed that the word "hope" in the Bible is not used of merely "wishful thinking", but always of "confident expectation", especially of future good.  Thus Paul is referring to the expectation of salvation that gives the believer complete confidence in times of spiritual conflict.  The word "salvation" is a rather broad term that includes all aspects of the spiritual deliverance and safety that the Christian has been given and/or will be given.  The basic meaning is "to be rescued from danger and to be placed in a safe condition."  There are present aspects to the believer's salvation which include, among other things, forgiveness, justification, reconciliation and the new birth.  There are progressive aspects of salvation which include such things as sanctification, spiritual growth and maturity, spiritual virtues and fruit bearing, conformity to the image of Christ, etc.  And there are future aspects of salvation too - such as resurrection, redemption of the body, and glorification.  Thus the Scriptures speak of :  1) having been saved (past tense) - Romans 8:24; Ephesians 2:5,8; II Timothy 1:9; Titus 3:5; etc.  (This is more clear in the Greek text since both the Aorist and  Perfect tenses are used in these verses). 

2) being saved (present tense) - Luke 19:9; I Corinthians 1:18,21; 15:2; II Corinthians 2:15; etc. And,

3) shall be saved (future tense) - Matthew 10:22; Romans 5:9; 13:11; I Corinthians 3:15; etc.

The past tense speaks of our past reception of salvation at which time we were delivered from the penalty of sin.  The present tense speaks of our present possession of salvation and the progressive deliverance from the power and practice of sin.  The future tense speaks of the future consummation of our salvation and the perfect deliverance from the very presence of sin in heaven!  This comprehensive view of salvation should serve to give us hope indeed -  A confident hope of spiritual deliverance and victory that is a settled fact, a present enjoyment, and a future guarantee!  Let us guard our hearts and our head with this great helmet: the hope of salvation!

Words of Hope

A Word Study on the Biblical Word "Hope"

Study #59 - The Hope of the Gospel

In our last post we looked in the Book of Ephesians at the hope of the believer's calling.  We noted that there are two aspects to our calling in Christ:  God's perspective of an eternal calling (He loved us in Christ before the creation of the world); and man's perspective (We accepted His calling through personal faith in Christ at a definite time and place in our lives).  From God's standpoint of eternity (He sees and knows all things past, present and future as one eternal "now") He has either always known us or He has never known us (II Timothy 1:9; Matthew 7:23).  J.I. Packer has defined our calling as "the temporal execution of (God's) eternal intentions."  The means by which God extends His eternal calling to us in time is the evangelical call of the Gospel! The only way we can "make our calling and election sure" (II Peter 1:10) is to be certain that we have believed the Gospel.  This is the means that God has ordained in order to make our calling effectual for salvation (many are called, but few are chosen - Matthew 22:14).  Thus the hope of our calling is inseparably linked to the hope of the Gospel:  "If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven ..." (Colossians 1:23).  This verse comes in the context of the Apostle Paul's presentation of Christ as the Preeminent One:  He is preeminent over all creation because He is the Divine Creator (Colossians 1:15-17);  He is preeminent over the Church because He is her Divine Head (vs.18-23).  The Creator of the universe is the Sovereign of the Church!  And He alone is our Savior:
1) He made peace (between a Holy God and sinful men) through the blood of His cross - vs.20.
2) He made reconciliation possible to those who were once alienated as the enemies of God - vs.21.
3) He will present the believer as holy, unblameable and unreproveable in His sight - vs.22.
All of this constitutes the hope of the Gospel!  This is what we may confidently claim and expect to receive because we have believed the Gospel of Christ, but only if we have believed.  The peace and reconciliation Christ died to provide is offered conditionally.  He does not reconcile everyone unconditionally  or else the devil himself and all his demons would be reconciled to God (which is clearly not the case).  He does not reconcile anyone apart from faith in Christ which is a grounded and settled trust in His Person and Saving Work.  To "move away" from this Gospel message is to be excluded from the hope of salvation it offers the sinner.  Only the Gospel of Christ offers the sinner any hope for eternal salvation!  Do you have this hope?  "We give thanks to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ ... since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus ... for the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof ye heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel" (Colossians 1:3-5).

Words of Hope

A Word Study on the Biblical Word "Hope"

Study #58 - The Hope of Our Calling

We have been attempting to look at the various descriptions of the believer's hope in Christ.  We have considered "the hope of the glory of God" and "the hope of righteousness".  We now come to a third descriptive phrase, one that is found in Paul's epistle to the Ephesians in two similar but distinct forms:

Ephesians 1:18 - "... that ye may know what is the hope of his calling ..."; and,

Ephesians 4:4 - "... even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;".

Right away we might notice that while both verses refer to the hope of the believer's calling, the first verse refers to it as His (i.e. God's) calling, while the second verse refers to our (i.e.the individual's)calling.  The Bible presents the calling of the believer unto salvation from two different vantage points:  1) God's perspective from eternity; and 2) Man's perspective in time.  We may note the combination of these two perspectives in II Thessalonians 2:13,14 which states: "But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth:  Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ."  God's calling becomes our own calling when we respond in repentance and faith to the invitation of the Gospel of God's saving grace extended to us in the death, burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.  Both of these perspectives are a source of hope for the Christian.  They do not refer to the prospective "hope" that we might one day be called by God, but to the present possession of hope that we have because we have been called by God unto salvation in Christ.  In the first passage, this hope forms a part of the Apostle Paul's extensive prayer for the Ephesian believers that they would come to a fuller understanding of the spiritual riches they possessed in Christ.  The prayer takes up seven verses (1:17-23) and forms an example to us of the spiritual desires we should be expressing in our own prayers to God.  We need to come to a greater awareness and appreciation for the hope that is ours because God has called us by His grace!  The greatness of that hope is expressed in verse 18 - "the riches of the glory of his inheritance in (or among) the saints".  This is a recurring aspect of our hope in Christ:  our eternal reward in heaven.  The guarantee of this hope is given in verses 19 and 20 - "the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places ...".  God works in us with the same power by which He has exalted the Risen Christ!  Richard Lenski commented:  "When we know the excessive greatness of this power, nothing will ever disturb our hope."  Amen!  In the second passage Paul refers to the hope of the believer's calling in Christ as one of the nine elements that form the basis of Christian unity.  Seven times he writes of the oneness we possess with other believers described in three groups of three items in each group, all centered in the Unity of the Holy Trinity: 

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

2)  "One Lord, one faith, one baptism" (vs.5).

3)  "One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all" (vs.6).

All believer's possess this one hope, that is, the hope given to one believer is given to all believers.  We share the same hope because we share the same calling.  Our calling is from the same God who summons us by the same Spirit to believe in the same Christ.  We are baptized into that same body as a testimony to our same faith in the same Lord.  And the same God who calls us and is infinitely above us becomes our Heavenly Father, indwells us, and exercises His power and grace in us and through us!  

Yes, our calling is a tremendous source of hope once it is fully understood and comprehended. The greater our understanding and comprehension of our calling becomes, the greater our hope will be.  And the more our hope is shared with other Christians, the greater our oneness will be experienced within the Body of Christ.

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).