A heart full of Hope

O love the LORD, all ye his saints: for the LORD preserveth the faithful, and plentifully rewardeth the proud doer. Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the LORD. (Psalms 31:23-24)

Through Faith and faithfulness, acts of obedience to the word we receive the goodness of YHWH and hope which is an expectation of great and greater things in YHWH.  Hope is a fruit of faithfulness in the promises of YHWH.  When you believe  the Word of YHWH hope springs eternal in your life.  Hope is many things to the believer.  Peter says that we have a living hope, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, (I Peter 1:3)” Hope is a living thing in our spirit driving us through the wilderness of life despite difficulties detours and disruptions that the enemy brings across our paths.  Hope is not a wish because hope has a foundation that is built on what YHWH has promised the Saints and all of the promises of YHWH are Yes and it is so.  His word cannot fail, YHWH is not a man and cannot lie so the foundation of hope is reliable.   Hope is confidence , we don’t have to rely in ourselves, our natural abilities when we can trust in YHWH and hope in his power.  “That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments: (Psalms 78:7)”.  Hope is fortified with patience,  it causes you to not be anxious or troubled by the troubles of the world.  The climate of this epoch in time is highly unstable  geopolitically mentally and economically but when you trust in the Lord  and stand under the shelter of hope in YHWH he will take pleasure in undergirding you with good things that will fill your mental physical and spiritual needs.  And now, Lord, what wait I for? my hope is in thee. (Psalms 39:7)”.  “The LORD taketh pleasure in them that fear him, in those that hope in his mercy. (Psalms 147:11)”.

There are no strings attached to the promises of YHWH  he only requires a faithful life, a life that glorifies him and not to selfishness or the glorification of material things and man. “ A faithful man shall abound with blessings: but he that maketh haste to be rich shall not be innocent. (Proverbs 28:20)”.  The blessing of the LORD, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it. (Proverbs 10:22)”. Spiritual, mental and psychological survival rests on maintaining strong principles of  purification and the tenets of what it takes to survive in the state of fellowship of principle beliefs. “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure. (I John 3:2-3)”.   The scripture tells us that the old testament is our example, “Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. (I Corinthians 10:11)”, the law is a school master,  mark the perfect man and Yeshua said “learn of me.  YHWH vehemently expressed to his people not to mix with any other ethnicity in case they were drawn away from their faith in him to worship the idols of other nations.  He has not told us not to mix ethnicity but he has told us to not be inappropriately mixed with unbelievers especially in marriage as it may cause one to become beset from the way of Christian principles. “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. (II Corinthians 6:14-18)”.  We must first look at this exhortation in the context in which it was written.  Corinth was filled with outward idolatry and the christian community was outnumbered.  It isn’t much different today when we live in a world where there is a lot of inward idolatry.   Yeshua prophesied when he said, “there be few that find it. “ Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it. (Matthew 7:14)”.  The way of Faith is a narrow way but when you find it, walk circumspectly, don’t turn to the left nor to the right, line by line, precept by precept, inch by inch, step by step according to the purified Word of YHWH and hope will brighten the way.   “LORD, I have hoped for thy salvation, and done thy commandments. (Psalms 119:166)”.  Hope shines the light on the promises of YHWH and there is an expectation of life here and life with Him in eternity.  “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. (John 10:10)”.  Yeshua took off his robe of glory, put on flesh, lived a sinless life, suffered,died, was buried, rose the third day ascended to heaven and sent the Holy Spirit to dwell in us to give us hope undeniably.   

A hopeful heart is a joyful heart which is a heart of strength, a heart of a lion courageous and encouraging.  It is a heart that doesn’t get let down, a heart that doesn’t get heavy and a heart that doesn’t fail because of fear.  A heart full of hope is healthy nourished by the Word of YHWH which is tried perfectly and proven not to fail.  A hopeful heart know! “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified. What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:28-39 )”.