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Hope is the promise that the future will be better than the present because God is at work in our lives and in our world. (1) It is the opposite of despair, gloom, cynicism, fatalism, anguish, and dejection.  Jesus lives a life of perpetual and unquenchable hope, and offers that hope to those living in despair and shame. (2) Indeed Jesus is the hope of the whole world. (3) Read Mark 5:21-43 where a desperate father and a suffering woman come to Jesus hoping for a miracle.

Hope is love looking to the future. (4) It is the promise of Jesus to renew all things (5) and put an end to all suffering and evil. (6) Hope produces courage, (7) strength, (8) and joy. (9) Scripture teaches us that hoping in God leads to fulfilment, (10) but misplaced hope can lead to destruction. (11) Those who know the love of God have hope in the midst of suffering (12) because they wait patiently for God’s promised future, (13) namely the resurrection of the saints. (14) Indeed, Jesus teaches us to expect trouble, but to live in hope. (15) Hope includes anticipation, expectancy, promise, and desire.

Anticipation - excitement and joy in what God is about to do. (16)

Expectancy - certainty that God’s promises will come to pass. (17)

Promise - attentiveness to the future, waiting for God’s hand. (18)

Desire - deep longing for God’s future to happen. (19)

Hope: Waiting on God

In waiting on God, Jesus made clear His hope in a future that only God could make a reality. (20) Will we hope in God’s future? (21)

Hope: Expecting Others to Succeed

Jesus never wrote anyone off; he never treated anyone as though they were beyond hope or help, and he expected that the future would be full of promise.  (22) Do I have hope for others, expecting that their future will be full of glory? (23)

Hope: A Future of Glory and Honor

Jesus was able to walk through tremendous difficulty and profound darkness because He knew what was promised to Him, and trusted that it would come to pass. (24) Do I expect that my future is to reign with God as a co-heir with Jesus? (25)

Hope: The Coming Kingdom

Jesus lived in the promise of a world where all things have been made new, and all wrongs have been set right. (26) Do I look forward to a day when the whole universe will be renewed, without suffering and without a curse? (27)