Joyful In Hope

Romans was probably written around AD 57 during Paul’s third missionary journey. The book of Romans has been called the greatest theological document ever written; Paul explains the Good News in the most orderly and thorough presentation of the gospel message. He constantly points back to the fundamentals of God’s truth and teaches us to deal with the problems, failures, and disputes that characterize life in this world.* In this three-part series, we will be taking an in-depth look at Romans 12:12.

“Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.” (Romans 12:12)

Be joyful in hope. If we expect to be joyful in hope, we must first answer the question: what is our hope?

“This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain into God’s inner sanctuary. Jesus has already gone in there for us. He has become our eternal High Priest in the order of Melchizedek.” (Hebrews 6:19-20)

“O Lord, you alone are my hope. I’ve trusted you, O Lord, from childhood.” (Psalm 71:5)

“I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 15:13)

“Let all that I am wait quietly before God, for my hope is in him.” (Psalm 62:5)

Our hope is God. He is the source of our hope; it comes from Him and is found in the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. We will be filled to the point of overflowing with this confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit and it is because of this hope that we can have joy. We are eternally loved by our Father God so much that He sent His Son to save us from our sins—that is our hope and that is all the reason for joy. Hope and joy are inextricably linked; we have joy because of our hope. So when Paul instructs us to be joyful in hope, once we remember and hold onto what our hope is, joy is the result.

May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

*Summarized from the NLT Illustrated Study Bible.