![]() The New Testament writer James encourages us to learn from their experiences. They learned that God could be trusted in the toughest times. God’s ability to work on our behalf has been repeatedly tested in the lives of men and women just like us. Because of the object of our faith, followers of Christ are people of genuine hope. We will experience the “many dangers, toils, and snares,” but not like those who have no God and no hope. The reality that Paul expressed is an honest reminder that followers of Christ are not immune from heartaches, turmoil, challenges, and struggles. Yet looking back we can say with the apostle Paul, “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed perplexed, but not despairing persecuted, but not forsaken struck down, but not destroyed” (2 Corinthians 4:8–9). Together they are sources of hope that we don’t fully comprehend until we experience them amid conditions that threaten to destroy us. According to the writer of Hebrews, because Jesus understands our weaknesses and temptations, we are to “draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (4:16). We can engage life with confident expectation. We do not have to approach life with a heart of dread or despair. The power of God is such a ready source of hope that it caused the psalmist to worship:īut as for me, I shall sing of Your strength Yes, I shall joyfully sing of Your lovingkindness in the morning, For You have been my stronghold And a refuge in the day of my distress (Psalm 59:16). Our safety in Christ gives us hope through His power, for followers of Christ are those “who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time” (1 Peter 1:5). But when we persevere by faith, we will discover that God is our protection even in the darkest times. ![]() The uncertainties of life can fill our hearts with terror. He records God’s response for us in 2 Corinthians 12:9: “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” To which Paul responded, “Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.” Three times he had asked God for deliverance from a certain trial. Paul discovered this grace to be greater than any season of suffering. To our inadequacy, God responds with lavish grace. ![]() In the things we are not able to do, God is more than enough. And the hope that it produces will be deeper and greater than anything we could have gained through ease and comfort. In seasons of struggle, perseverance allows us to experience the love of God in new ways. We can never fully understand or develop hope without trials, because trials bring about the need for perseverance. As such, hope is both the means of our perseverance and a byproduct of it as we rest in God. Yet at the same time, our perseverance produces hope. We persevere by hope to realize a worthy goal. Taken together with Romans 15:4, this establishes an important truth. … patience motivated by seeking the good of others… In the same letter he wrote:Īnd not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance and perseverance, proven character and proven character, hope and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us (5:3–5). The apostle Paul saw one such goal of perseverance to be hope.īut Paul also saw another relationship between hope and perseverance. Wilberforce and his friends show how perseverance can help us reach a worthy goal. But he persevered.įinally, on March 25, 1807, the king gave royal assent to the Slave Trade Act-after 20 years of perseverance on the part of William Wilberforce and his colleagues. It cost him a large part of his fortune and had a debilitating impact on his health. Over time, Wilberforce and his growing team of abolitionists continued to wear down the opposition. Repeatedly, Wilberforce introduced bills to abolish the slave trade, only to have those bills resoundingly defeated. His Christian faith proved to be fertile ground for seeking freedom for all.īut the path to abolish slavery did not come easily. The abolitionists pursued a young Member of Parliament named William Wilberforce. In the late 1700s, a small but growing movement to abolish slavery from the British Empire needed a voice in the British Parliament. History shows the worthiness of such perseverance.
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