Romans 8:24-25 For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.
Introduction
Before I get into the message, I want to share a few things. I saw a connection I thought was worth mentioning. I really believe that Paul is still handling the same subject. He hasn’t moved onto something new, but rather he is still writing about the same thing. Remember in Chapter 7, he spoke of this turmoil, this ongoing battle that was happening in his members. He said, “For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin!” He said, “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.” I have a will, but I can’t find a way! He said, “I find then a law that, when I would do good, evil is present with me!”
Paul has a problem. And it seems to drive him to despair because he finally says, “O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?” I know a lot of people read the next verse, “I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord…” and they close the book and go home. They think that is the end of the answer. It’s just the beginning. A whole chapter later in verse 23 of Chapter 8, Paul declares, “Ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.” In verse 24 of Chapter 7 he asks, “Who shall deliver me from the body of this death?” The body of this death! And in verse 23 of Chapter 8 he’s still talking about that body, and the redemption or the deliverance of that body. This turmoil, this conflict, this war that is happening in his members, or his body, that he describes in chapter 7 is, in fact, the bondage of corruption in verse 21 of Chapter 8.
Paul asks, “Who shall deliver me?” in chapter 7. In chapter 8 he says, “The creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption…” You know I have to admit, I’ve studied Romans Chapter 8 thinking that there is some quick fix that is going to make that turmoil go away, make the conflict of our flesh, and this battle go away. But as I get to these latter verses of the chapter, I’m seeing that it was never Paul’s intent to give me that impression. I think as we get to these latter verses Paul is making it clear that there will be no deliverance from the body of this death, until the resurrection. This body will be subject to corruption until the trump of God sounds. Your spirit and your soul may have a place to go, but your body is subject to vanity and corruption until it is delivered into the glorious liberty of the children of God.
So this groaning, this travailing, this waiting in the bondage of corruption, in this body of death, everybody is subject to it and everybody must participate. Verse 22 “For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.” And the Christian is not exempt from this. Paul goes on to say, “And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.” He says we groan within ourselves! That’s what Paul is doing in Chapter 7. He’s groaning when he says, “O wretched man that I am!” That’s a groan from within himself.
So to understand the mind of Paul, and thus the mind of God, we must understand that the deliverance to which Paul cries for in Chapter 7 is the same deliverance that he speaks about waiting for in Chapter 8. In other words, it hasn’t happened yet. And this was a big revelation to me. For months, I’ve sought the scriptures for some path to that deliverance. And now that I get to these latter verses, I realize that this deliverance is not something that can be realized in this life. And this is not a downer by any means. This is truth. And Jesus said that the truth will make you free. Now if you don’t believe me; if this sounds strange to you, read the next verse where we are:
Romans 8:24-25 For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.
If this deliverance has come upon us, this deliverance from the bondage of corruption, the subjection to vanity, the body of this death… If this deliverance has come upon us, then we don’t have a hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? Why hope for the redemption of our bodies, if it is already apparent. No. We hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it. I ask you, what need is there to patiently wait for something you already have? There is no need, and there is no hope, if you’ve already attained. Paul said for us to wait for it. Paul was waiting for it.
For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Titus 2:11-13
Can I say this? Paul is still waiting for it. He may already be absent from the body and present with the Lord, but he is still waiting for the deliverance of that body. That body still lies in a grave somewhere decomposing for 2000 years and it has not yet been resurrected and changed and delivered into the glorious liberty of the the Sons of God. No he’s still waiting.
But that’s no reason to be pooch-mouthed though. Why? Because the soul and spirit have already made the crossing. Remember Paul said, “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.” (Romans 8:2) Paul wrote tot he Galatians, “Ye have been called unto liberty…” (5:3) He said, “Stand fast therefore in the liberty whereith Christ hath made us free.” (5:1) So we’re free, but we’re not free.”
“Giving thanks unto the Father… Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:” (Colossians 1:12,13) Paul said, “But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter.” (Romans 7:6) But the he says, “…the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.” (8:21) And he says we also groan within ourselves for the redemption of our bodies. So we’re delivered, but not delivered. Free, but not free! Delivered but not delivered!
There’s an interesting verse that embodies this truth: “But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead: Who delivered us from so great a death, and doth deliver: in whom we trust that he will yet deliver us; (2 Corinthians 1:9,10) This kinda gives us a road map as to where we are. If you’re saved, you are between two deliverances. You are delivered from the sentence of death in yourself and waiting to be delivered from the bondage of corruption, the redemption of your body. So how does that help us? Well in 2 Corinthians it puts us in those three words between those two deliverances and doth deliver. We are in the doth deliver stage of this Christian journey, amen? Or we can say that we are in the doth stage of our deliverance!
I really think that is what Paul is trying to help us with and teach us about to help realize along this way. He’s trying to help us realize that doth stage of our deliverance. So understand that when Paul says in our text, “For we are saved by hope…” he may not be talking about that 1st deliverance, the one where you came to Christ a lost sinner and he washed you and saved you from the death sentence within you. But he may be talking about that doth stage of our deliverance. In this doth stage of our deliverance, I still have to endure this flesh, and I’m still subject to the temptations that are common to man. I still have to deal with this world, the devil and his devils, and the old flesh. On this stage of the journey there are things that I need deliverance from. Therefore, I need a doth deliver God to help me along the way. That’s why we pray, “Lead us not into temptation, but deliver from evil!”
So let’s look at the text from that perspective. And that brings me to the first point I want to make about this passage, and it’s that…
#1 Hope Saves
The bible says, “For we are saved by hope…” Like I said, I don’t think Paul is trying to teach someone how to be saved right now. He’s trying to encourage us to walk in the newness of spirit, to walk after the Spirit, to mind the the things of the Spirit, and encourage us to, through the Spirit, mortify the deeds of the body. I believe he’s trying to tell us that there’s one thing that can help us with that and get the job done, and that’s hope. Hope saves!
He’s talking about having victory over this flesh. Hope saves. This is current help. We’re talking about this present time: hope saves. Hope delivers. Jeremiah the prophet said, “Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is.” (Jeremiah 17:7) If we want to realize the blessings of God, our hope must be in Him. Hope saves. Jeremiah also said (14:8) “O the hope of Israel, the saviour thereof in time of trouble…” That time of trouble for me is not just when I found out I was lost. Jesus said, “In the world ye shall have tribulation…” (John 16:33) There will be no deliverance from “the body of this death” in this world. But there is deliverance and help in our trials and our tribulations. We are going to have trouble and tribulation, struggles and sorrows, problems and trials. God never said that he’d take that all way. But he will bless you through them, if you trust and hope in Him.
So I want to spend a little time on the blessings and benefits of hope. We have a saving faith. We also have a saving hope. There is salvation in hope; the salvation of the Lord. Hope has benefits. Hope has rewards. You think about this: Looking forward to our future blessings will bless us presently. Hope will affect you and God. If hope saves then if must affect the savior and the saved.
Hope affects God’s eyes. (Psalm 33:18) “Behold, the eye of the LORD is upon them that fear him, upon them that hope in his mercy;” Sometimes, the greatest blessing to me is just knowing that God cares for me, that God is still interested in me. Hagar in her affliction, in the wilderness, God visited her. There at that well, Hagar found peace and consolation. God blessed her there and promised he would multiply her seed exceedingly. The bible says “And she called the name of the LORD that spake unto her, Thou God seest me.” God didn’t take the child from her. God didn’t take her situation away. In fact, he sent her back into the frying pan with Sarai. But Hagar was blessed because she hoped in God. She said, “Thou God seest me… Have I also here looked after him that seeth me?” She looked for him, and he looked for her. Hope affects God’s eyes. “Behold, the eye of the LORD is upon them that fear him, upon them that hope in his mercy;”
I believe he will place his eyes upon us, if we would put our eyes upon him. “Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;” We can’t see him with these eyes, but we can see him with the eyes of hope and faith. And the real blessing is when God sets his eyes upon us. Thou God seest me. I’ll always remember the way Peter quoted David in Acts 2: “Thou shalt make me full of joy with thy countenance.” It’s a blessing Lord just to see your face. It’s a blessing Lord just when you look upon me. Hope affects His eyes.
His affects God’s ears. (Psalm 38:15) “For in thee, O LORD, do I hope: thou wilt hear, O Lord my God.” Sometimes, when my wife is telling me her struggles and things. I immediately go into solution mode. I start trying to think up a solution for her. That’s what I do at work. We sell solutions. (Work Testimony) So I start trying to figure out how to solve here problems, and I have to stop myself sometimes, and just ask, “You’re not looking for a solution, you just want me to listen?” And she says, “Yeah, that’s it!” Sometimes, we just need someone to listen to us. We don’t need a solution. We don’t need our situation changed. We just need someone to talk to about it.
The bible says to cast all your care upon him for he careth for you. God cares for us, but maybe it seems like God is not listening sometimes. (I know some people might disagree with this) Maybe it seems that he is not listening because he’s not listening. Maybe we need to get God’s attention? How did David get God’s attention? He said, “For in thee, O LORD, do I hope: thou wilt hear, O Lord my God!” Maybe in our prayers, we’ve put our hope in the change of our circumstances instead of the changer of those circumstances. I remember my teacher, Brother Henderson, said, it’s not so much that we ask for things in prayer, but that we have intimacy with the supplier. Casting your cares upon God does not mean for you to demand that God change your circumstances, but rather to put your hope in Him, to trust in Him through your circumstances.
Hope saves, but that doesn’t mean that we’re going to be delivered from the bondage of corruption or from the body of this death. But rather God will deliver you in the bondage of corruption. He’ll deliver you and save you in the body of this death! He may not remove the suffering, but he will suffer with you. And the bible says, if we’ll suffer with him, we will also reign with him. Look, better circumstances are not going to help you or benefit you. But a better relationship with God will. You think your circumstances are bad? There’s worst around the corner. We have to get where we want God and God’s ear and God’s attention more than anything this life affords. What good is better circumstances without the love and attention of the Lord. Wouldn’t you rather cry and weep in the ears of God than have all the ease and comforts of this world. “For in thee, O LORD, do I hope: thou wilt hear, O Lord my God.” Hope affects the ears of God.
Hope affects God’s heart. (Psalm 147:11) “The LORD taketh pleasure in them that fear him, in those that hope in his mercy.” The Lord taketh pleasure. What a concept? To think, that God would take pleasure in me. I fall short everyday. I’m in Romans 7 everyday. O wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from the body of this death! When I would do good, evil is present with me! I don’t see how God can take pleasure in someone as sorry as me. But if I’d put my hope in him… We’ve talked about taking our eyes off our circumstances. Well, if we’d take our eyes off our self also. Sometimes our circumstance really is just us, our sin and our weaknesses and infirmities. And we just can’t see how God would take pleasure in something like us. But the benefit and blessing of hoping in God, looking for the blessed hope, is the manifestation of the pleasure of the LORD.
There’s an old song called Jesus, I my cross have taken. There’s a small section of that song that says, “And while Thou shalt smile upon me, God of wisdom, love, and might…” Oh to know and to have made real that someone so great and wonderful as Jesus Christ takes pleasure in me is one of the sweetest experiences I’ve ever known. Hope saves. The salvation of God in this present time the smile of God. We don’t have to wait to get to heaven to experience the smiles of God. There’s another old song my wife likes to sing called The Unclouded Day. The lyrics say, “Oh, they tell me that He smiles on His children there, And His smile drives their sorrows all away.” You don’t have to wait til you get there for that to be real. All you have to do is hope for there and look for that blessed day that you will be there, and he’ll smile upon you. “The Lord taketh pleasure in them that fear him, in those that hope in his mercy.”
Hope affects God’s eyes, ears, and heart. If hope saves then it must affect the savior and the saved. Hope will affect you also. Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is. I want to remind us what this hope is. This hope is the waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our bodies. This hope is the earnest expectation of the deliverance from the bondage of corruption, the body of this death. John said, “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.” (1 John 3:2,3)
We shall be like him. That’s it. That’s the resurrection and the rapture of the church. The bible says, “In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” (1 Corinthians 15:52) Paul said to the Phillipians, “For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body…” (Phillipians 3:20,21) That’s what John means when he says, “We shall be like him!” This hope is the earnest expectation that one day, we will be like him. If we can just get that expectation at the forefront of our hearts and minds, it will change us. It will bless us.
Hope strengthens your heart. Just like hope affects the heart of God, it will affect your heart also. (Psalm 31:24) “Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the LORD. The Lord told Joshua something after Moses died. “Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.” (Joshua 1:9) Joshua had come out of Egypt, he crossed the Red Sea, he endured 40 years in the wilderness, and had seen all the men his age other than Caleb die and their carcass fall in the wilderness. There was one more place to go, the blessed promised land. He got a glimpse of it 40 years prior but he wasn’t allowed to possess it. So for forty years he waited for that promised land, he looked forward to that promised land, he desired that promised land, and took hold of the promise of God. He hoped for it. He was going into a land of enemies. He was going to have to fight his way in. He’d go up against the walls of Jericho, and the giants of Anak. He did not hope in flesh, horses and chariots. He hoped in the LORD, and the promises of the LORD. Hope strengthens your heart.
Sometime we’re afraid to go down the road that God would have us go. Sometimes we need a little encouragement. That means we need a little courage put in (the heart). Once again, in the case of Joshua, God did not take away his circumstances. “You know what Joshua, you don’t have to go through Jericho. You can go around it. You don’t have to do into Canaan, you can settle right there where you are.” No, but he did say, “the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.” We have that same promise. The Holy Spirit of promise is with us. The bible calls it the earnest of the Spirit, the down payment. The promise and the surety that he will return to claim what he has duly bought and paid for. We just need a little courage to get us to that glorious day. To walk after the Spirit is to wait for the glorious appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ. For the Spirit to bear witness with our spirit that we are the sons of God is to remind us and give us hope that we have a Father and an inheritance in heaven. That should give us courage and strengthen our hearts to hold on a little longer.
Joshua had already seen a lot of battle, and a lot of blood. Joshua had already suffered through the wilderness, through Egypt, seen all his comrades die. He was already past 60 years old. Maybe God told Joshua to be strong and of a good courage because he knew that Joshua’s heart was weak and his courage was failing. Hold on a little longer Joshua. Hold on to the promises of God. Hope strengthens your heart.
Hope will put praise on your lips. (Psalm 71:14) “But I will hope continually, and will yet praise thee more and more.” Hope will put praise on your lips. Now remember I’m talking about how hope will save us, bless us. It is a blessing to bless God. It is a blessing to be able to lift up your hands to heaven and say, “Bless the Lord! Praise his holy name!” Hope saves. That tell me the salvation of God is praise. The devil’s children don’t get to praise God. We do. We are blessed to be able to praise him. The bible says let everything that has breathe, praise the Lord.
We talk about groaning and travailing while we’re waiting for the redemption of our bodies. How about we do a little praising instead of groaning? And like the Psalmist said, how about me praise him more and more. How about we praise more today than we did yesterday, because we’re one more day closer to being delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. How about we praise him more and more because it’s one less day we have to live in the body of this death, amen?
The Psalmist said, I will hope continually, and will yet praise thee more and more. If we want to get in the glory, get the can’t help its and praise him more and more, we need a steady drip of hope. Not just once on Sunday. Everyday, all the day, let’s look forward to the resurrection, the day these vile bodies will be changed. The day that graves will bust wide open. The day that we’ll be caught up in the air, to forever be with the LORD. Let’s look forward to that day. Hope is the salvation of God. Hope will put a song in your heart, and praise on your lips.
(2 Corinthians 5;4) “For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life.” NOT for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon. He saying in this flesh, we don’t moan and groan about what we got on, about our circumstances, about our present condition. But we press on and yearn for and expect the promises of God. Our focus is on the future, on eternity. If we would spend just a fraction of the time we do complaining and criticizing on praising God instead it would revolutionize our life. We need a steady drip of hope. We need to stop and sing about 10 times a day:
On that bright and cloudless morning
When the dead in Christ shall rise
And the glory of his resurrection share
When His chosen ones shall gather
to their home beyond the skies
And the roll is called up yonder I’ll be there
It’s a blessing to praise the Lord. Psalm 72:15 says, “Daily shall he be praised!” Psalm 119:164, the Psalmist says “Seven times a day do I praise thee…” Hope will put praise on your lips.
Hope will put a smile on your face. Amen! (Psalm 146:5) “Happy is he that hath the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the LORD his God:” (Proverbs 10:28) “The hope of the righteous shall be gladness:…” There’s no reason to walk around like you just ate sauerkraut if you got your hope in Christ. Some of us, ought to let our face know that we have eternal life in Christ Jesus. Some of us, our face hasn’t gotten the message that we’re not going to hell. It still stuck on “The wages of sin is death!” It hasn’t quite gotten the good news yet.
I don’t know about you, but I’ll get to work and the phone starts ringing, the problems start coming, the workers start goofing off, the demands start coming, and I’ll go half a day with the pooch mouth. I got permanent wrinkles up here on my forehead I’m still working on getting rid of. (Psalm 42:5) “Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God.” Amen. He is the health of your countenance. That means hope will put a smile on your face. Hope saves. Hope will save you from being cast down, from being disquieted. The bible says, I will keep thee in perfect peace, he whose mind is stayed on thee!
When Paul and Silas were in Phillipi, things didn’t go very well for them. The bible says, “And the multitude rose up together against them: and the magistrates rent off their clothes, and commanded to beat them. And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely: Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks.” (Acts 16:22-24) They had reason to have a pooch mouth. They had reason there to get discouraged and downcast. But what did they do? The bible says, “And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God:” (Acts 16:25) Their hope was in God. Hope will put a smile on your face.
No matter what you’re going through, he can give you peace. He can give you songs in the night. Paul said I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us… Now he doesn’t say to not compare them. He doesn’t say to not compare the sufferings of this present time to the glory which shall be revealed in us. Go ahead and compare them, or try to. Compare the sufferings of this present time to the glory which shall be revealed; and see which one wins. The winner will show on your face, Amen?! Hope will put a smile on your face. (Romans 5:1-2) “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.” Hope gives us joy. Hope will put a smile on your face.
Hope will put fruit in your basket. (Proverb 13:12) “Hope deferred maketh the heart sick: but when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life.” Oh, the blessings of hope. Do you remember Psalm 1?
Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.
Down here in South Texas we know what it’s like to not have water, especially here in Corpus Christi, where they ban water for days at a time. There’s been summers where we’ve mowed once at the beginning of the summer and then we don’t break out the mower until September or October. There’s no rain, so nothing grows. But not this summer. Summer rain here in South Texas can be a mowing nightmare. The trees grown, the grass grows, the bugs grow. Everything grows in the summer rain. Can I say this? Hope is like the summer rain.
(Isaiah 44:3,4) For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring: And they shall spring up as among the grass, as willows by the water courses.
(Romans 7:4) Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God.
John the Baptist said, “Bring forth the fruits!” Hope will put fruit in your basket. Romans 5:5 says “And hope maketh not ashamed because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us…” I’ve spoken about this before. Nothing will count for Christ less the Holy Ghost sanctions it. Everything done in the power of the flesh will burn at the judgment seat of Christ. But, if we are filled with the Spirit and walk in the Spirit, and mind the things of the Spirit, our fruit will endure. The Holy Ghost gives us a hope that we will not be ashamed at the judgment seat of Christ. Hope will put fruit in your basket.
Conclusion
Hope will put strength in your heart, put praise on your lips, put a smile on your face, and put fruit in your basket. This is the salvation of God. For we are saved by hope. The Salvation of God is strength in the heart, praise on the lips, joy unspeakable and full of glory, and fruit unto God. Do you have these things? Do you want these things. “Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is…”
My hope is built on nothing less, than Jesus blood and righteousness. I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus name.
Would you place your hope in him?
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