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Against all Hope

Words of Faith Final

Against all Hope
Words of Faith 8-12-2021
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2021
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL
www.faithfellowshipweb.com
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Romans 4
    [18] Against all Hope, Abraham in Hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, "So shall your offspring be." [19] Without weakening in his Faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead--since he was about a hundred years old--and that Sarah's womb was also dead. [20] Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the Promise of God, but was strengthened in his Faith and gave glory to God, [21] being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised. [22] This is why "it was credited to him as righteousness." [23] The words "it was credited to him" were written not for him alone, [24] but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness--for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. [25] He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.

       Hope is not the same as Faith.  Faith (pistis) is trust that casts its whole weight upon something. Hope (elpis) is a confident and pleasurable expectation that anticipates an outcome. People who have Faith may have Hope, but not always.  
       Those who have Faith may actually discover its strength when there is no hope left.  This is because Hope is usually rooted in some reasonable possibility that can be seen.  People often have Hope that is rooted in positive circumstances but yet have no faith in God.  Deep Faith is what often emerges when Hope is gone.
        Great Faith is exercised in situations where there is little Hope or no hope, or, as Paul puts it, "against all hope."  Abraham had Faith in the face of the most hopeless of situations.  He wanted to hope in the future but his body was "as good as dead."  He was hundred years old, and Sarah's "womb was dead."  To all appearances, there was no reason to hope anymore.  There was no confident pleasurable anticipation that he would ever be a father. Yet, the Faith of Abraham was not weakened.  
       Abraham did not waver in unbelief regarding the Promise of God.  He believed in God in spite of hopeless circumstances.  Hope is often inspired by circumstance, but Faith is not.  Faith is trust that casts its whole weight upon the character of God rather than the circumstances of life.  Abraham was "fully persuaded that God had the power to do what he had promised."  This is the Faith that was credited to Him as righteousness.

        Even when the Faith of Abraham was tested, he did not waver.  When Abraham was told to sacrifice his son Isaac, the very thing that had given him Hope, he did not waver in unbelief.  He believed in the character and the power of God even in an apparently hopeless situation.  Biblical Faith can offer back to God even the gifts from Him in which we have found Hope! Faith trusts that God really is God, and He will find a way to fulfill His promises even when we cannot see them.
        When we talk about Biblical, saving, Abraham's faith, we are not talking about being hopeful that there is a God.  We are not talking about circumstantial optimism.  In biblical Faith, we cast our whole weight upon the character and the power of God, no matter the circumstances, against all Hope.  We trust that He is the One who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead, and even as we stare into the mystery called "death," we do not waver in unbelief.
       Biblical Faith trusts wholly in the God of the universe who delivered Jesus our Lord over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.  We cast our whole weight upon the One who raised Him from the dead.  That is Faith.  

         Lord, give me "Abraham faith."  Give me biblical Faith. Give the Faith that is unwavering even in situations that seem hopeless.  Give me the Faith the cast my whole being with total abandon upon You and Your work of justification for me, against all Hope.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.
    
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© Jeffrey D. Hoy 2021
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy - Faith Fellowship Church (EFCA)        
2820 Business Center Blvd.
Melbourne, Florida 32940 (321)-259-7200
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
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The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail, excluding Federal holidays. Please feel free to forward this devotion to a friend who might be blessed by this devotion. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2021 Jeffrey D. Hoy. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to forward this copyrighted material or use portions of it with appropriate notation of the source for non-profit purposes.