Latest / Reformed Thinking / The God of Hope: Joy, Peace, and Abounding Hope (Romans 15:13)

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The God of Hope: Joy, Peace, and Abounding Hope (Romans 15:13) · Reformed Thinking

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If you ever watch one of those documentaries about how they
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construct those massive gravity defying skyscrapers.
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Oh yeah, the engineering involved is just staggering to
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look at. It really is like when engineers
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set out to build something that touches the clouds.
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Yeah, there is this non negotiable expectation of solid
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bedrock. Right.
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You know you do not pour thousands of tons of concrete
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and structural steel onto a shifting sand dune.
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No. Or a known fault line.
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That would be catastrophic. Yeah, disastrous.
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So the architects dig down, sometimes hundreds of feet into
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the earth until they hit something absolutely immovable.
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They anchor the structure to the crust of the Earth itself,
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right? Because the builders need an
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absolute guarantee that when the hurricane ones batter the glass
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or a seismic event rattles the city, the base will not give
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way. That makes total sense.
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But then, you know, you step out of the world of civil
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engineering and into the landscape of modern human
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existence, and suddenly it seems like everyone is trying to build
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their entire lives on top of a fault line.
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Yeah, that is a very accurate assessment.
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We are looking at a cultural landscape today that is
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desperate for stability but utterly lacking any actual
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bedrock. Spot on.
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Welcome to Reform Thinking. Today's deep dive into the
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sources is taking a stack of material centered around a
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single ancient text. Romans, chapter 15, verse 13.
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A phenomenal text. It is our mission today is to
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conduct a rigorous theological exposition of this verse.
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The material we have provides A precise look at the anatomy of
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Christian hope. Specifically, we are looking at
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this through the lens of Reformed theology and a strict
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adherence to the Westminster Confession of Faith.
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We are looking at the actual mechanics of assurance.
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I'm really looking forward to getting into this.
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OK, let's unpack this. We are observing a modern
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society that is practically drowning in the despair of
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evolutionary godlessness and, well, utter vanity of self help
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philosophies. Yeah, it is everywhere.
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People are frantically seeking a piece they simply cannot
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manufacture on their own. They want their personal
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skyscraper to stand tall, but they are pouring their emotional
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concrete onto the shifting sands of their own internal feelings.
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Right. They look inward for strength,
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and they find nothing but exhaustion.
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That architectural analogy captures the modern crisis
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perfectly, I think. It really does.
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What the text we are examining today provides is a direct,
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unapologetic counter to this cultural despair.
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Yeah, it counters the shifting sand with a blood bought
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certainty. But we must define our terms
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with absolute theological precision right from the start.
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We have to because the English word hope has been severely
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diluted. Biblical hope is not a fragile
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wish, right? It is not a psychological coping
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mechanism you summon when things get difficult at work or you
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know a medical diagnosis comes back with bad news.
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Yeah, it is so much more than that.
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It is an objective reality grounded entirely in the
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finished substitutionary work of Jesus Christ and his certain
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premillennial return. World treats hope like a lottery
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ticket. That is precisely it.
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It is a vague desire that circumstances might just happen
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to improve. You hear people say I hope it
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doesn't rain tomorrow. Right, All right.
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I hope the economy bounces back. Yeah, that is wishful thinking
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based on variables completely outside of their control.
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But the biblical text defines hope as a guaranteed future
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reality that is already breaking into the present.
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It is the bedrock you mentioned. Yes, the believers assurance
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does not fluctuate based on the strength of the storm because
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the base was laid at the cross, vindicated at the empty tomb,
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and will be fully realized when Christ returns physically to
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establish His millennial Kingdom.
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And the texts we are looking at highlight that this return is
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premillennial. Right meaning Christ returns
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bodily before a literal 1000 year reign of peace and justice
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on. Earth this specific
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eschatological detail matters for you, the listener, it.
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Does because it grounds our expectations.
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Expectation in a physical historical future, not just a
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spiritualized metaphor. It means the rescue operation
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for this groaning creation is a scheduled event.
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Yes, I'm glad you brought up the sheer scale of that rescue
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operation, because we must begin by identifying the absolute
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origin point of this assurance. Right.
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Where does it actually come from?
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Yeah, the text demands that we set aside all human attempts to
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generate optimism from within. We have to stop looking in the
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mirror. Exactly.
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Yeah, we have to look outside ourselves directly to the
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unchangeable character of God. The phrase the Apostle Paul uses
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in the verse is the God of hope. But before we isolate that
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specific phrase and put it under the microscope, we need to
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understand the background. Right, exactly where this verse
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sits in the timeline of redemptive history.
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Paul does not drop this sentence out of nowhere like a random
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inspirational quote on a coffee mug, No.
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It sits at the absolute climax of of a massive, sweeping
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argument he is making to the Church in Rome.
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Context is everything. When we handle these texts, we
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are looking at the redemptive, historical framing of the verse,
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right? It sits at the climax of Paul's
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argument regarding church unity. Specifically, he is addressing
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the intense friction between Jewish and Gentile believers in
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the 1st century. You have to put yourself in
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their shoes. Yeah, these were two groups with
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massive cultural, dietary and religious divides.
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Suddenly thrust together into one local body by the gospel.
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Right, by quoting Isaiah Chapter 11, verse 10 in the immediately
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preceding verse, which speaks of the root of Jesse, the text
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points out a crucial dispensational distinction.
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Christ is the Jewish Messiah. Yes, fulfilling the ancient
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covenant promises made to the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and
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Jacob. Yet simultaneously, He is the
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distinct, glorious source of hope for the Gentiles in this
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current church age. Isaiah prophesied centuries
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earlier that the Gentiles would put their trust in this root of
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Jesse. And Paul brings that ancient
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prophecy directly into the Roman congregation.
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To prove that God's sovereign plan always included bringing
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the nation's to himself. God is the God of hope because
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He actually fulfills His covenant promises in real time
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history. He promised a savior, and he
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delivered the root of Jesse, right?
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The unity of these diverse people in one church is the
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living proof that God keeps His Word.
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I have to pause you there, though, because I think a lot of
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people hear the phrase God of Hope and they immediately
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picture, well, cosmic Santa Claus.
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Oh, absolutely. They picture a grandfatherly
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figure who just wants everyone to be happy.
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But the Reformed texts you brought in are incredibly
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intense about God's wrath and his justice.
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They are. So how do we reconcile a God of
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holy consuming wrath with this title, the God of Hope?
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That seems contradictory to the modern year.
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It does. In our natural fallen state.
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Worldly optimism is like a weathervane, spinning
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frantically with every change in circumstances, every financial
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dip, or every personal emotional fluctuation.
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How does this specific God of hope act as an immovable anchor
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for the believer, especially when his absolute holiness
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demands severe justice against our sin?
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What's? Fascinating.
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Here is the precise Greek construction the Apostle Paul
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utilizes to answer that very dilemma.
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OK, he uses the phrase hotheos TS alpidos.
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Grammatically, this is what scholars call a genitive of
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source. A genitive of source.
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Yes, it identifies God not just as the object we aim our hope
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toward, but as the very fountainhead, the originating
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spring from which all true hope flows.
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And to answer your question about wrath, we have to look
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squarely at the cross. The sources are uncomfortable
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compromising on this. To the unregenerate Sinner, God
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is absolutely not a God of hope, not at all.
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Apart from the substitutionary atonement of the Lord Jesus
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Christ, God is a consuming fire. Without the cross, the only
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expectation A Sinner can logically have is a fearful
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expectation of judgment. Exactly.
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But this is where the mechanics of the gospel come into play.
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Substitutionary atonement means that Jesus Christ stepped in as
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a substitute. He took the full weight of
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divine wrath that the Sinner deserved.
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Yes, through His finished work on the cross, divine justice is
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fully satisfied. The wrath is entirely absorbed
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by the sun, right? Therefore, for those who are
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united to Christ by faith, the exact same God whose holiness
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demanded judgment now becomes The Fountainhead of hope.
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That is amazing. His justice actually guarantees
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our salvation now because a just God will not demand payment
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twice. Christ already paid the penalty.
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The wrath is exhausted. That is the bedrock.
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That distinction is massive. It completely shatters so many
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popular theological frameworks operating today.
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It really does. The source texts explicitly call
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out these widespread errors, drawing a razor sharp contrast
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between this sovereign decree of God and the theology of
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Arminianism. Yes.
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Now, for anyone listening who might not be familiar with that
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term, Arminianism essentially places ultimate trust in human
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free will, right? It suggests that humans somehow
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initiate, maintain, or finalize their own salvation by making
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the right choice. It is the idea that God casts a
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vote for you, the devil casts a vote against you, and you cast
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the deciding tiebreaker. Yeah, that is a great way to put
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it. The text we are analyzing also
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refutes Roman Catholicism, which insists on looking to inherent
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human goodness. Or a cooperation of faith and
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works to maintain a righteous standing before God.
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Right. If hope flows exclusively from
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The Fountainhead of God's sovereign decree, then human
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works and human free will cannot be the engine.
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They cannot. It also completely dismantles
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the modern prosperity gospel that basically treats the
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creator of the universe like a celestial vending machine.
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Yes, dispensing temporal wealth, physical health and perfect
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relationships on demand. If you just insert enough faith.
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Right. The refutation of those specific
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errors is central to understanding the reformed view
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of this text. Let us break them down.
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Let's do it. If hope were something we could
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manufacture by our own free will, as Arminianism suggests,
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Paul would have framed this verse as a command.
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He would have told the Romans to work harder at being hopeful.
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Right to muster up more willpower.
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Instead, the verse is formatted as an opted of prayer.
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Paul is asking God to grant this hope.
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Fully acknowledging that it is a gift of sovereign grace from
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start to finish. We are spiritually bankrupt.
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We have no inherent hope to offer.
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And furthermore, confronting the Roman Catholic view, the
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Westminster Confession clearly establishes that our
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justification is entirely outside of ourselves.
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Right. Our works, our charity, our
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religious rituals add 0 merit to the equation.
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We are declared righteous solely based on the imputed
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righteousness of Christ. Yes, and As for the prosperity
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gospel, the text makes clear that the God of hope sustains
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the weary St. through persecution, terminal illness,
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and trial. He does not promise to
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immediately remove all earthly suffering in exchange for a
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certain amount of faith. No, the bedrock we are talking
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about is the character of God, the omniscience, His
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omnipotence, and His immutable holiness.
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We hope in Him, not in the temporal gifts He might
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temporarily withhold or bestow based on His own hidden wisdom.
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Exactly. OK, so if God is the absolute
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sovereign Fountainhead, and this hope originates completely
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outside of us, a massive question naturally arises.
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What is that? How does this assurance actually
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transfer into the subjective daily experience of the
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individual believer? Right.
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That is the practical side, yeah.
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Tuesday morning when my car breaks down and I lose my job, I
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do not always feel like I'm standing on bedrock.
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You feel like you are falling. Yes.
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So how does a person tap into that objective reality in a
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subjective, emotional way? The text points to a specific
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commanded instrument. It is not passive.
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The avenue for this transfer is faith, the text says.
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Fill you with all joy and peace and believing.
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There is a brilliant analogy from Charles Spurgeon that the
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source text highlights. Oh I love this one.
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He compares the believers faith to a wooden bucket let down into
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a deep well of God's grace. The bucket itself does not
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create the water right. The bucket has no inherent
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hydration, it is just dry wood. But the bucket is the required
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instrument to bring the living water up to parched lips.
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Faith is the empty hand receiving the sovereign gift.
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That bucket analogy is perfect because it keeps the focus on
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the water, not the wood, right? The Greek phrase here is on,
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which translates to in believing.
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In believing. Yes, this is a continuous,
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ongoing state of trust. The preposition combined with
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the present act of infinitive indicates that God does not just
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dump a lifetime supply of joy and peace into a passive vacuum.
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He mediates these graces through the active, intellectual and
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heartfelt embrace of the gospel, day by day, hour by hour.
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We have to view this through the lens of the Westminster
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Confession, specifically Chapter 11, which deals with the
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doctrine of justification. The divines who wrote the
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confession in the 1640s made a brilliant, necessary distinction
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here. Right between objective peace
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and subjective peace. Think of it like a war.
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Objective peace is the actual cessation of hostilities.
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The treaty is signed by the generals.
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That happens the exact moment a Sinner is justified by faith.
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The war between a holy God and the rebel center is over.
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But subject of peace is the experience of the soldier in the
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trench, finally hearing the news, putting down his rifle and
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realizing he gets to go home. Oh wow, that is a great image.
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The quieted conscience, the actual feeling of rest that
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comes through the ongoing exercise of Antu Pistuan.
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You experienced the subjective fruit of peace only as you
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actively lean your mind and heart upon the objective truth
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that the treaty has already been signed in the blood of Christ,
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Yes. So what does this all mean for
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how local churches operate today?
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Well, we look at the modern landscape and we see an
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overwhelming reliance on pure pragmatism.
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The source texts show a total rejection of modern seeker
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sensitive methodologies. We see churches trying to
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manufacture the subjective joy through mystical emotional
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highs. Massive light shows, fog
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machines and highly produced atmospheric music.
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They are trying to create the feeling of peace without the
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theological substance. But this text argues that true
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joy requires A cognitive, heartfelt embrace of
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propositional biblical truths. It also completely refutes the
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concept of easy believism. For those who do not know, the
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term easy believism treats faith like a cheap fire insurance
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policy. Right.
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You walk down an aisle, you say a repeating prayer once, and
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then you live however you want for the rest of your life,
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assuming you have a ticket to heaven.
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The text says that is a catastrophic misunderstanding of
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faith. The rejection of that pragmatism
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is vital for the health of the listener.
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Pragmatism operates on the assumption that whatever gets
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the biggest emotional response or puts the most bodies in the
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seats is the right method. But the text we are studying
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says joy and peace come exclusively in believing.
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You cannot bypass the intellect. You cannot bypass the hard
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propositional truths of Scripture.
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When a church relies on atmospheric music, dim lighting,
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or emotional manipulation from a charismatic speaker to make
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people feel peace, they are creating a synthetic substitute.
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And the danger is that the moment the music stops, or the
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moment a real tragedy strikes, that synthetic piece evaporates
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instantly. Right.
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True saving faith is a living act of grace that constantly
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looks outside itself to Christ. Easy believism is a deadly error
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because it divorces the initial claim of faith from the
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continuous daily action of onto Pistuane.
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If you lack joy today, the diagnosis, according to this
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text, is not that you need to find a church with a better
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worship band or a more entertaining pastor.
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The diagnosis is that you have stopped believing the specific
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promises of God in the midst of your trial.
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You have taken your eyes off the writ of Jesse and started
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staring at the storm. But here's the rub.
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According to Reformed theology, the human will is naturally dead
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in trespasses and sins. We are not just sick, we are
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spiritually deceased. So this on ongoing continuous
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act of believing is completely impossible in our own human
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strength. It requires an external divine
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operation to ignite it initially and to sustain it perpetually.
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Think of the believers faith like the massive canvas sails of
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a galleon ship. We are commanded to raise the
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sails. That is the active cognitive
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engagement of believing, of reading the word, of praying.
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Right, but without the wind, which represents the
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supernatural operation of the Holy Spirit, that massive ship
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goes absolutely nowhere. We can hoist the canvas all day
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long, we can tie the knots perfectly, but we cannot command
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the Gale. So how does this divine
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operation occur practically in the life of the believer?
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How does the wind actually blow the?
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Text explicitly attributes this capacity to the Holy Spirit.
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The Greek term used here is dunamis.
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Dunamis, yes, which signifies an inherent effective ability.
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It is a supernatural force that achieves its intended purpose
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infallibly. When the Spirit moves, he
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accomplishes regeneration. This raises an important
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question, however. How do we experience this divine
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operation, this dunamis, without falling into the experiential
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excesses we see so often today in certain religious circles?
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Yeah, the source text demands strict linguistic and
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theological precision right here.
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To guard against the errors of modern evangelical trends that
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equate the spirits work with chaos.
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Yes, the text provides a very strict cessationist
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clarification regarding this operation.
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Let me translate that for you, the listener.
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That is a big term. It is cessationism is the belief
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that the miraculous sign gifts of the early Church, like
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speaking in unlearned foreign languages, prophetic revelation
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and miraculous faith healing, ceased with the death of the
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original apostles and the completion of the New Testament.
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The source material refutes the charismatic and continuationist
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movements directly. When the verse speaks of the
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dunamis of the Spirit filling the believer, it is absolutely
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not talking about the pursuit of ecstatic experience.
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No, it is. It's not about speaking in
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tongues, being slain in the Spirit and falling backward, or
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receiving novel extra biblical revelations in a dream.
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The operation of the spirit here is an invisible, invincible
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reality that changes the affections of the heart, not a
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chaotic public spectacle. That cessationist framework is
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key to understanding the historic Reformed view of this
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text. We align this directly with the
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Westminster Confession. Specifically, chapters 10 and
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13. Yes, which cover the doctrines
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of effectual calling and sanctification.
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The Holy Spirit applies the finished work of Christ to the
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believer, but He does so using the established means of grace.
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And what are these means of grace?
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They are not mystical trances. They are primarily the
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faithfully preached Word of God, the reading of the Scriptures,
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and the visible administration of the sacraments.
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Baptism and the Lord's Supper. The Spirit does not work in a
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vacuum. He works through the very
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scriptures he inspired. This divine operation is not the
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product of human psychological resilience or reading enough
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positive thinking books. It is the supernatural internal
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call of the elect. The Spirit takes a human heart
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that is totally depraved, dead as a stone and hostile to God,
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and he makes it alive. He then sustains it in a
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continuous state of joy and peace.
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The dunamis is the energy that empowers the sails, to use your
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excellent analogy. But the wind always, always
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blows in the direction of the scriptures.
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It never blows you toward a new revelation that contradicts the
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written word. Never.
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I love that the wind always blows in the direction of the
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Scriptures. Now, the result of this divine
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wind filling the sails is not just a state of bare survival.
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The text does not describe a Christian limping across the
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finish line of life, exhausted, battered and totally empty.
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The goal is an abundant surplus that actually overflows into the
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corporate life of the church. Here's where it gets really
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interesting. The Greek verb used for this
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overflow is perisuan. It is a present active
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infinitive that denotes a super abundance.
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Picture a bank account that doesn't just have enough to
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cover the monthly bills and avoid an overdraft fee.
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But an account with such a massive surplus that the wealth
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literally spills over into the lives of everyone around them.
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It means exceeding the standard measure.
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How does this overflowing, super abundant surplus actually equip
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you, the listener, to face the intense contemporary societal
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pressures we see on the news every single night?
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Well, the source texts provide specific real world examples of
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what this looks like practically in the modern era.
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An abounding hope creates a steady, unshakable disposition
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that defies the shifting tides of the culture.
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The authors of our materials specifically note that a
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believer anchored in this parasuan surplus will not be
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swayed by political upheaval. Or the intense pressures of
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modern social justice movements. Or rapidly changing sexual
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ethics. Now, as we look at this, we are
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objectively reporting the stance of the source of material.
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Right, we are just conveying what is in the text.
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The text posits that believers must remain tethered to the
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objective gospel rather than being tossed about by these
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cultural movements. The argument the authors make is
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that these secular movements offer a false hope based on the
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illusion of human progress. While the believers hope is
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rooted entirely in the unchanging decree of God.
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When society panics over an election cycle for a cultural
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shift, the believer who is abounding in hope remains calm.
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Because they know who holds the future.
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Right. The authors are making a bold
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claim that the Christians anchor is the biblical text, not the
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current cultural moment. It is a striking contrast to how
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secular culture approaches these exact same issues.
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The source then takes this concept of abounding hope and
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applies it directly to the corporate reality of the local
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church. This is where it gets very
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practical. A congregation that lacks this
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overflowing surplus becomes suspicious of one another.
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They become cynical. They divide over minor secondary
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issues. But with his Paris, you in
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believers suddenly have the spiritual capacity to bear with
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weaker brothers. They have the stamina to uphold
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biblical standards even when it is unpopular.
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The text explicitly mentions upholding complementarianism in
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the home and in the sanctuary as an outworking of disobedience.
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For clarity, complementarianism is the theological view that men
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and women have different but complementary roles and
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responsibilities in marriage and church leadership.
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The text argues that upholding these standards requires a
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surplus of hope. This grateful obedience is known
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in Reformed theology as the third use of the law.
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The third use of the law is a beautiful doctrine that often
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gets overlooked. To understand it you have to
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know the 1st 2:00. The first use of the moral law
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is civil. It restrains the wicked actions
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of men in society through fear of punishment.
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The second use is pedagogical. It acts as a schoolmaster to
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show us our sin and drive us to Christ for mercy.
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But the third use teaches that the law of God is no longer
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covenant of works that condemns the believer.
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It becomes a joyful guide for the believers grateful
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obedience. We do not obey the commandments
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to earn our salvation. We obey because we are filled
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with an overflowing hope that desperately desires to please
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the God who has already saved us.
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When a local church abounds in hope, it has the durability to
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handle internal friction. You can be patient with a fellow
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believer who annoys you because your ultimate satisfaction is
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not dependent on their perfect behavior.
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Your satisfaction is anchored in Christ.
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The corporate dimension is massive here.
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A church filled with this supernatural optimism becomes an
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undeniable living witness to a world that is swinging wildly
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between arrogant presumption on one hand and crushing despair on
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the other. Bringing these massive
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theological concepts down to the practical reality of you, the
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listener, we must synthesize what the mind must grasp, what
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the affections must desire, and what the hands must do.
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We break this down into head, heart, and hands.
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Let's start with the head. The text demands that we
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prioritize objective bibble doctrine over secular therapy.
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Hope is not a psychological state to be managed by
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medication, breathing exercises or self help books.
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It is a spiritual reality sovereignly dispensed by the God
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of hope. We must train our minds to
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believe that this hope is an objective certainty anchored in
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the covenantal faithfulness of God.
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Regardless of what our brain chemistry is telling us on any
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given Tuesday. Moving from the head to the
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heart, the text calls for a radical reorientation of our
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innermost affections. It explicitly calls the believer
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to repent of the sin of anxiety. In this rigorous theological
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framework, chronic anxiety regarding the future is often a
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symptom of functional unbelief. It is a failure to exercise that
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continuous trust, the ontop pistuan we discussed earlier.
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The heart must learn to love the absolute sovereignty of God more
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than its own desire, fire for comfort or predictability.
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We must find our total satisfaction in our mystical
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union with Christ. When we find our highest joy in
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Him, the cultural idols of financial security, social
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standing, and personal fulfillment are exposed for what
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they truly are. Broken cisterns that can hold no
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water. They promise peace, but they
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deliver drought. Finally, we move to the hands.
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What must we actually do with all this theology?
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The tech starches. The diligent use of the means of
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grace we talked about. Families are called to lead
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their households in the hope of the Word opening the Bible
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together daily. Singles are called to find their
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total completeness in Christ rather than putting their hope
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in a future spouse to fix their loneliness.
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Church office bearers, the elders and deacons must lead the
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congregation with a radiant optimism that completely rebukes
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the sterile pragmatism of the corporate business world.
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We must actively place ourselves under the preaching of the Word
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and the administration of the sacraments.
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We have to do the work of hoisting the sails so the divine
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wind can catch them. The text also issues a stark
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urgent warning to the unregenerate.
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If you are listening to this and you have not placed your faith
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in Christ, the message from the source material is severe.
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To be without Christ is to be completely, utterly without
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hope. You are facing the impending
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righteous judgment of a holy God.
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Any hope you have placed in your own moral goodness, your bank
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account, your career, or your secular philosophies is a house
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built directly upon the sand. It will inevitably collapse
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under the weight of divine justice.
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The urgent call of the gospel is to repent of yourself
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righteousness and flee immediately to the root of
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Jesse. There's no overflowing surplus,
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no perishoon for the soul that remains under the curse of the
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law. Christ is the only shelter from
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the storm. I want to leave you, the
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listener, with a final thought to Mull over as you go about
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your day. It is something that builds
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directly upon the escalological foundation we just discussed.
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It is a sobering thought. If our expectation of Christ's
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premillennial return and the literal bodily resurrection of
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the dead is so objectively certain, if it is an unshakable
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bedrock reality, how does that dictate the way we mourn our
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earthly losses tomorrow? That is the real test.
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Does knowing the definitive, victorious end of the story
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obligate us to grieve so differently from our secular
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neighbors that our very tears become an undeniable apologetic
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for the Gospel? When the storms of life hit and
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you find yourself standing on that fault line we talked about
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at the beginning, the world expects your foundation to
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crack. They expect you to collapse into
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bitterness. But when the hurricane passes
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and your faith remains standing, anchored to the God of hope,
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that immovable bedrock becomes the greatest testimony to the
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grace of Jesus Christ.