“we…rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us” (Romans 5:2-5).
By divine design, all of God’s spiritual blessings are intended to be of practical value in your daily life. Peace, for example, is intended to function as a sentinel, guarding your heart and mind (Philippians 4:7). Contentment in Christ will strengthen you in all of life’s circumstances; enabling you to avoid bitterness when you are abased and pride when you abound (Philippians 4:11-13).
The living hope God’s abundant mercy provides when you are born again (1 Peter 1:3) is also a powerful and practical spiritual tool during life’s pressures and distresses. Confident trust in God’s promise that your light, momentary afflictions in life work for you a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory (2 Corinthians 4:17) ought to transform your thinking so you count it all joy when various trials engulf you (James 1:2).
An active hope of glory in times of trials and tribulations fuels spiritual endurance. Instead of shirking your duty as a Christian to stand in God’s grace (Romans 5:2), falling away in time of testing (Luke 8:13), and thus retreating into spiritual defeat and eternal destruction (Hebrews 10:38-39), you bear up under the weight of tribulation. Such fortitude is the fertile soil for the growth of Christian character, the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23).
In its simplest terms, God’s plan of salvation is twofold. First, you must be in Christ where all spiritual blessings are (Ephesians 1:3). Then, Christ must be formed in you (Galatians 4:19), because it is your hope of glory (Colossians 1:27).
When your confident trust in God’s word is exercised as divinely designed, it does not disappoint. When your earthly tent of flesh is destroyed, you will have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens (2 Corinthians 5:1). Therefore, we ought to be pure (1 John 3:2-3), because when Christ is revealed, we shall be like Him—transformed into conformity to His glorious body (Philippians 3:21).
What a tool!
What a blessing!
