We often get hope confused with faith in our thinking. Hope is different. Hope is first born in our heart when a promise is given. Hope is defined as a desire with some expectation of fulfillment. We only hope for what we want. Anticipating something you have no desire for would be senseless! And so would expecting that which has no chance of ever happening. Hope is the great motivator; no accomplishment—or even action—in life is possible without it first being there.

Hope first comes alive through the promise of the Gospel. Then God gives us the gift of faith by which we are able to act on that hope. We receive His promise through faith. Justification and redemption are ours solely by the grace of God as we act on His promise by receiving Christ. But ultimately the fullness of God’s promise is obtained through a lifestyle of obedience—the proof that our faith is genuine.