Hope That Does Not Disappoint
Christian hope is certain, grounded in God's love poured into hearts by the Holy Spirit.
Paul writes, 'Hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit.' This hope is not wishful thinking but confident expectation based on God's character and demonstrated love. The chain runs: suffering produces perseverance, perseverance character, character hope. Unlike worldly hope that may disappoint, Christian hope is certain because its object—God—is unchanging and faithful. This hope sustains through suffering because it rests on something greater than circumstances.
And hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit.
Jürgen Moltmann's 'Theology of Hope' recovered the future dimension of Christian faith—hope is not peripheral but central to Christianity.
Epistle to the Romans
Written about in
- What Christianity says about longing and hope
Paul writes that this hope does not put people to shame. His chain runs from suffering to perseverance to character to hope, which makes hope what is left standing at the end rather than the mood you begin with.