One of my favorite authors, C.S. Lewis, referred to the Shadowlands in his literary and philosophical works. The Shadowlands signifies that the temporary and imperfect nature of this world is not our home, that our lives are merely a shadow and reflection of the reality of the spiritual realm, because Heaven is our true home. He taught that life on Earth is filled with illusions and distractions that keep us from recognizing the profound truths about Heaven. The Shadowlands remind us that what we experience in life is just a precursor to the ultimate joy and truth found in spending eternity with Jesus.
I come from a full-tilt boogie Pentecostal ministry background, starting when I was a young teenager, and have personally experienced countless legitimate supernatural manifestations of God's power and love. I am more than glad that God is not a cessationist and heals today just as He did 2000+ years ago. However, despite my firm belief, "my" faith has been severely challenged over and over again.
In my early twenties, while I was engaged to be married, my fiancé made an appointment with a Doctor to see about some health issues that had cropped up. After a series of tests, both a diagnosis and a prognosis were given. The diagnosis was that she had contracted a life-threatening illness. The prognosis was that she had seven years to live.
God had filled me with such love for her that even when confronted with the harsh reality of the long-term effects of her disease, I could not bear the thought of being without her. I considered that far worse than any hardships we would ever face through the years.
I was active in ministry, and I blew off the news because I figured the Lord would heal her, and we'd ultimately get back to normal. During the first few years of our marriage, there were various challenging physical problems and concerns, but nothing seemingly insurmountable.
However, at the seven-year mark, my wife's health began to deteriorate rapidly—so much so that she was put into an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at the Hospital for almost six weeks. The doctors were trying everything they knew to control what was happening to her body, but nothing worked.
Soon after her move into the ICU, a nurse called me that the Doctor needed to see me right away. I tried to swallow the big lump in my throat as I headed to the hospital. Her Doctor said that things did not look good and that I should prepare for the inevitable. I was devastated and afraid. Why was God letting this happen? We had gone to healing crusades and hobnobbed with well-known ‘faith healers.” Our church had even called for fasting and prayer for her recovery.
I was confident in ‘my’ faith that God could heal her, but so far, He had not. I reread and restudied every Scripture that spoke of healing, looking for something I may have missed - trying to find answers, but no easy answer came. My formal Pentecostal Bible training had proven it was full of unanswered questions. The doctors had done all they could. The decision was made to send her home to die.
Days turned into months and then years that went by with no change. I was numb from the circumstantial roller-coaster I was on and withdrew emotionally. I was so tired of all the pain and stress that I didn't feel I had the strength to do anything. The storms of life have a habit of crashing one's hopes and dreams on the rocks of reality. However, through it all, the presence of God was palpable, giving me the strength to persevere, and it has never diminished to this day.
Everything I had been taught about faith and healing proved insufficient to provide answers and solutions. Yet my understanding of God's grace, mercy, and sovereignty continues to grow exponentially. My wife had beaten the seven-year curse, but after 36 years of marriage, she finally succumbed to the ravaging effects of the disease, and her desire to stand before love Himself was fulfilled.
Over our life together, we consistently fought back the depths of despair and sorrow that were drawing us into the darkness of the Shadowlands. I can genuinely say that through it all, God’s grace was and always will be sufficient, and His strength is continuously made perfect in weakness.
“Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me." (2 Corinthians 12:9 KJV)
I know of many faith-filled, humble, and repentant Born-Again Christians who have health challenges and struggle with hope. I have seen far too many treated as second-class Christians because they weren't ‘healed’ and then accused of living in unconfessed sin or lacking faith. This has made many feel disqualified from praying for others' healing because of their own struggles, as their hope quivered.
Just when I thought all the health challenges were finally behind me, fifteen years later, after my Wife’s graduation, I was diagnosed with an incurable terminal disease called Generalized Myasthenia Gravis (GMG), which has changed EVERYTHING - again! Its effects have put a hold (temporarily, I hope!) on my pulpit/teaching and ministry travel opportunities. My frustration levels have run at peak performance dealing with all the challenges, and trying to get all the medical professionals to coordinate with each other has been like herding snails! I am praying diligently that all this nonsense comes to a positive outcome sooner rather than later – BEFORE I graduate from this world!
I have done a LOT more than usual prayer and intense soul searching to try and understand what my personal, emotional, and spiritual culpability could be for my immune system going haywire. That has led to a deeper dive into topics I had already studied and taught, prompting some uncomfortable realizations about how much I don’t know.
When Hope Begins to Quiver
Throughout my life, hope has been my lifeline through the trials and tribulations. However, my personal health challenges have affected me emotionally so much that I needed to take another look at what biblical hope actually is to remind myself and regain the attitude of gratitude.
One day, while Jesus and the Disciples were out fishing,
"Without warning, a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. The disciples went and woke him, saying, 'Lord, save us! We're going to drown!' Jesus replied, 'You of little faith, why are you so afraid?' Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm." (Matthew 8:24-26 NIV)
Why did Jesus say that to them? Didn't the Disciples prove they had faith by going to Him in the first place? Too often, people think that faith in Jesus is something they can possess and that it guarantees having things wanted or they won't have bad experiences. Yet here Jesus is telling the Disciples that faith is actually trusting Him to get through the storms of life—not just keeping them away! Jesus didn't abandon His Disciples. He was right there with them through the storm. Faith without works is dead. The working of faith is trust. People can choose to live their lives tossed around by the devil and his tormenting fears, or they can boldly believe the Word of God and trust God through the storms of life.
The Biblical Meaning of Hope
The New Testament portrays hope as a dynamic and life-affirming force that sustains us through difficulties and nurtures a deep sense of expectation regarding God's promises. This hope ultimately points toward the fulfillment of God's kingdom and eternal life through Jesus.
Strong's Bible dictionary states that the Greek word for hope is “elpis,” which is defined as: “meaning to anticipate, usually with pleasure; an expectation or confidence.” Biblical hope is not a denial of reality or a desire for good things to happen in the future, but an honest, realistic, confident expectation and desire for a positive outcome, because the promises of God are already being fulfilled.
Biblical hope includes desiring something good for the future and confidently expecting that God is at work in all things to produce good in our lives (Romans 8:28). The Bible tells us that there will be some people who pretend to be a Christian and have had amazing spiritual experiences but will turn away when things get tough, but reminds us that:
“Even though we speak like this, dear friends, we are convinced of better things in your case—the things that have to do with salvation. God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them. We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, so that what you hope for may be fully realized. We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.” (Hebrews 6:9-12 NIV)
The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines hope as “a desire accompanied by expectation of or belief in fulfillment, or success, or obtainment.” Hope is most often considered as a way of thinking, feeling, and acting that may help a person find the means to live with difficult situations and challenges, no matter how discouraging the future may seem. It is the belief that there might be a remote chance of getting something desired.
Hope is far more than just an optimistic attitude. When the world uses the word hope, it is actually an expression of uncertainty rather than certainty. It makes no sense unless there is a personal and loving God who desires an intimate relationship with each person on the planet. The present world was never intended to satisfy the desires of mankind.
Religious and supernatural experiences do not prove a person is Born-Again, nor does just reciting the ’Sinner’s Prayer.’ It is perseverance in godliness that is the proof of the genuineness of a person's salvation, which is confirmed by hope that is confident with moral certainty in it. Hope and faith are virtually synonymous.
“let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” (Hebrews 10:22-25 NIV)
Hope is a central theme in the New Testament, reflecting the Christian belief in the promise of salvation, eternal life, and the fulfillment of God's plans. It forms the foundation of the Faith and encourages us amid trials and suffering.
The Bible says that faith is "the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." (Hebrews 11:1). This verse emphasizes that hope is not just wishful thinking but a firm belief in God's promises.
Jesus is the “God of hope" who fills us with joy and peace, allowing us to abound in hope through the Holy Spirit (Romans 15:13). This underscores that hope is rooted in a relationship with Jesus and eternal life promised by Him and is the foundation of trust, motivating us to live righteously (Titus 1:2).
The Bible also tells us that suffering produces perseverance, character, and ultimately hope (Romans 5:3-5). The amazing spiritual dichotomy is that hope often emerges from life's struggles. The resurrection of Jesus is the most significant source of hope, assuring us of our own resurrection and inheritance (1 Peter 1:3-5).
“having a hope in God which these themselves accept, that there will be a resurrection of both the just and the unjust. And have hope toward God, which they themselves also allow, that there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust.” (Acts 24:15-16 NIV)
It is vitally important that we understand hope is not a thing, or a feeling, or an object, or a way of thinking. Simply put - hope is Jesus! The confident certainty and expectation of hope that is provided to us emanates from experientially knowing and understanding the character and nature of God.
Hope is actually placing our trust in Jesus, because He is our hope! It is all about living in the moment, taking no thought for tomorrow, casting all our cares upon Him, leaving them at His feet, and then walking away!
Faith Defined
The word “faith” comes from the Greek word “pistis.” It means assurance, persuasion, conviction, and reliance upon another. The root of “pistis” is “peitho,” which is a primary verb, an action word that is in a continual state of being, moving forward or reverse. It means to actively convince, to rely on, to assent to, and to have confidence. It is best described as Trusting-Faith. Faith without works is dead. Trust is the working of faith.
One of the biggest errors that has crept into the church over the years is the teaching of faith as if it were a thing or a power to be obtained or possessed. Yet it is the absolute fundamental essential of Christianity. The world can’t exist without faith. No matter how much a person tries it can’t be increased by conjuring it up with positive proclamations. It is just milk, a tricycle with training wheels in the nursery school of discipleship (Hebrews 5:12-6:3).
Without faith, it is impossible to become a Christian and please God. It is the basic element of Christianity. There is no exhausting it. God gave us all the faith we needed to believe Jesus is the Savior. It is God who gives us the faith to trust Him. We must learn to put on the faith He has given us, just as we put on our clothes each day.
"But since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet.” (1 Thessalonians 5:8 NIV)
The biblical truth is - we have the faith of Jesus!
“Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:” (Romans 3:22 KJV)
"The righteousness of God" is not a law righteousness but a faith righteousness. It comes through the faith possessed by Jesus and is imparted to all who are willing to receive. Faith, as described in the Bible, is God's gracious gift:
"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves." (Ephesians 2:8 NIV)
To believe is to respond to God's gracious gift, exercising the faith He offers to all. Jesus is the “author and finisher” of our faith (Hebrews 12:2).
“For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also. (James 2:26 KJV)
Beyond Belief
Trusting-Faith is more than believing. Faith is a continual state of mind of being totally secure, and it needs a subject to trust in. The subject is our choice. The choice we make is the object of our faith. Faith exists no matter what the object. God requires faith for eternal life because it is trusting Him exclusively! Having faith means we must act as if God can be trusted!
Trusting-Faith is plugging into God, and He takes care of everything else. It is like building muscle memory. We must be constantly put into situations that require us to trust. The more we do it, the easier it becomes to appropriate without consciously thinking about it. It must become a recurring habit pattern. We can choose to have faith in ourself, the created, and our own blood, or faith in Jesus, the Creator, and His blood. It can only be one or the other. It can’t be both. Light and darkness can’t dwell in the same place together.
Leaning Upon The Rock
“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil. This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.” (Proverbs 3:5-8 NIV)
Trusting-Faith requires that we “lean not on your own understanding.” The word "lean" comes from a Hebrew word that means "to support oneself, as though leaning for assistance." This is the same word used when Samson leaned on the huge pillars supporting the Philistine temple. It is the idea of putting our weight on a crutch (Judges 16:29). God wants us leaning upon Him, not upon ourself. We can’t do it unless we're right next to Him. Leaning is a progressive state of mind. We have to commit our ways continually. It must become the pattern of our life.
The word "understanding" refers to our human understanding, intellect, knowledge, talents, experience, reasoning, or perspective. We are commanded to STOP “leaning” for this is the opposite of trust. We can’t "trust in the Lord" if we are leaning on our “own understanding." It's impossible.
The way to grow in Trusting-Faith is to “Trust in the LORD with all your heart.” The root idea behind the Hebrew word for "trust" is to "take refuge" or "have confidence." This word carries the idea of throwing oneself down and lying on the ground before another, casting all hopes for the present and the future to someone else, and finding shelter and security. We must learn to lie down at the feet of Jesus and cast “all your cares upon Him, for He cares for you" (1 Peter 5:7 NIV). We must give Him all the concerns and cares of our heart (the inner you - our emotions and intellect) that frustrate us. This isn’t just saying we "trust in the Lord" or acting as though we do, rather, we are to be genuine in that "trust." We must do it with everything within us.
When we trust the Lord with all our heart, we relinquish ownership of those problems. We must still deal with them, but we won’t worry or stress over them because they belong to Him. When we do give them to Him, they’re His problems now!
We must “not be wise in your own eyes.” Moving in Trusting-Faith means that we must stop trusting in our own reasoning, intellect, education, abilities, talents, and experience and “acknowledge him” in everything we do. We must learn to turn away from ourself and turn to Him, remembering that He is ever present, continually loving, caring, and providing for us. When we fully rely on the Lord to handle any situation, He will "direct” our “paths" and remove the obstacles. He doesn’t promise that our life will be easy or free of problems. But He does promise straight paths as we journey through this life. When we learn to completely trust Him, “This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.”
The reason His mercies are new every morning is that our trust has to be new every morning if we are to grow in His grace and be a fresh vessel of His Glory. Yesterday’s new wine is now today’s old wine. We need new wine every day. We never really arrive. We are either going backwards or forwards, which makes it all the more about Him and not about us. It is beyond trust…it is trusting Him daily, hourly, minute by minute, second by second, pouring out everything of ourself breath by breath so that we are constantly being filled with His blood, His wine, His oil, His anointing, His glory, and His love. He wants us to live in a state of knowing that we can count on Him, no matter what!
The Full Assurance of Hope
For us, hope is confident and fully assured because God is in control. Hope and trusting-faith are virtually synonymous. The Bible implores us to diligently demonstrate the full assurance of hope by pursuing it just as the Saints of old who, through trusting-faith and patience, inherited the promises of God.
“And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence to the full assurance of hope until the end, that you do not become sluggish, but imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.” (Hebrews 6:11-12 NKJV)
The term "full assurance" in the verse above is found in only one other passage of Scripture. However, instead of "full assurance of hope," it says;
"let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith…”…“Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.” (Hebrews 10:22, 23 NKJV- emphasis mine)
Hope is something that should not quiver because it is rooted in the faithfulness of God. It is a necessary part of trusting-faith because it is directed into the future. Biblical hope is a strong confidence in Jesus and not unrealistic or wishful thinking. Hope and trust are related. Without trust in God, hope is futile and meaningless.
“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1 NKJV)
It is often said that this verse defines biblical faith. However, I would say it is more of an explanation of faith's workings than a true definition. Take away hope, and the explanation of faith in the verse is destroyed. We are not just saved by grace through faith, we are saved by grace through hope because hope is Jesus! (Acts 15:11)
"Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the commandment of God our Savior, and Lord Jesus Christ, OUR HOPE." (1 Timothy 1:1 NJKV - emphasis mine)
Edward Mote understood this when he wrote the following words in the famous hymn, “My Hope is Built”;
My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
But wholly trust in Jesus’ Name.
His oath, His covenant, His blood,
Support me in the overwhelming flood.
When all around my soul gives way,
He is then all my Hope and Stay.
The Hope of Abraham
Abraham was justified by faith in God's future work.
"being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised. This is why “it was credited to him as righteousness.” (Romans 4:21-22 NIV)
He was fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised because he had the full assurance of hope (Hebrews 6:11).
Biblical hope is never based on what is possible with people and looks away from them to the promise of God with confident expectation of great things from Him in the future. There is moral certainty in it. Hope is present whenever trusting-faith in God looks to the future and rests on His Word.
The Bible says that the faith which justified Abraham was faith in the future work of God. His faith was his strong confidence in the reliability of God's Word, and hope was his strong confidence in the fulfillment of His promises. In other words, whenever trusting-faith in God looks to the future, it can be called hope. Whenever hope rests on the Word of God, it can be called trusting-faith.
Biblical hope is never based on what is possible with mankind. When we understand this, it becomes the "full assurance of hope," which is the expectation of great things from God. The world views hope differently than the Bible does. The world believes that hope happens when someone sees something, decides it is desirable, realizes they may not get it, but still believes there is a chance. They believe that hope is expectation moderated by probabilistic estimation of a desired event, so for hope to flourish, their estimation of the desired event's likelihood must be high enough to consider it a reasonable chance, yet not so high as to make them complacent.
To the world, fear is a form of negative hope, built on a sliding scale that ranges from virtual certainty to utter desperation, because both are anticipations that forecast the future and elicit emotions in line with their hopeful, optimistic predictions. A desperate person will do almost anything to satisfy their hope. At zero probability, people tend to remain realistically pessimistic and stay that way until the probability is sufficiently high to overcome the fear of loss. As the event becomes more likely, they become disproportionately optimistic. However, their “hope” will ultimately be dashed on the rocks of reality.
Biblical Hope, on the other hand, is realistic because it is based on a fair estimation of probabilities and the goodness of God. It is not a form of denial, pretending things are going well when they really aren’t. True hope is being honest about our situation in life while still looking forward to possible positive outcomes, because Jesus only wants the best for us. It is a way of thinking, feeling, and acting that will help us live with difficult situations. Even if some things about the future seem discouraging, we can choose how we will face those challenges.
Hope Versus Trust
The worlds definition of hope is: “a desire for some good, accompanied with at least a slight expectation of obtaining it, or a belief that it is obtainable, to want and expect, to trust or rely. The definition of trust is: “a confident expectation of any event; anticipation or hope.”
Hope and trust are related. Without trust in God, hope is meaningless. Hope itself is futile without trust in the One we direct our hope to. We are asking for God’s mercy when we talk about being hopeful. When we “hope it works out,” our desire is that God will have mercy on us.
The hope that comes from God is not in the things of this world. Jesus said, "In this world, you will have trouble, but take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33 NIV). It is because He overcame the world that we can, too. Our trusting-faith in Him is the assurance that one day we will find ourselves in a better world because we accepted His death as payment for our sins which gives us admission into it. This is what we hope for.
“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” (2 Corinthians 4:16-18 NIV)
Hope is the expectation that God's promises are already being fulfilled.
“We are to look for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ.” (Titus 2:13 NIV)
“We know that the whole creation has been groaning in travail together until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is not seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.” (Romans 8:22-25 NIV)
We must understand that the nature of hope means accepting the fact that we live in a state of tension and yearning. Our instinct is to flee from tension and fulfill the yearning with false hopes and dangerous distractions. We are meant for eternal communion with Jesus, but we are pilgrims while on Earth. We are meant to rest in Heaven, but we struggle and work on Earth. This tension affects our lives daily.
Despair and Presumption
The two biggest distortions of hope are despair and presumption. Both are based on inaccurate views of God and mankind. Presumption is a form of hopelessness because the person who presumes has come to believe that they are no longer "on the way" to a future fulfillment, which comes by God’s grace, only after death, but that they have already attained the goal of eternal life in this life.
“If we have died with him, we shall also live with him; if we endure, we shall also reign with him; if we deny him, he also will deny us; if we are faithless, he remains faithful—for he cannot deny himself.” (2 Timothy 2:11–13 NIV)
We were not made for the present, and the present was never intended to satisfy us because it fails miserably. It is for the hope of spending eternity with Jesus that our hearts sigh and yearn.
"For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently." (Romans 8:24-25 NIV)
Although we currently live in the Shadowlands, we are possessed by the “Father of Lights,” who is the only one who can fully satisfy our longings.
“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” (James 1:17 NIV)
Jesus said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12). Light is His Shadow! He is our life, peace, joy, portion, and our hope, even though we have yet to see Him face to face as He really is. It is by trusting-faith we enjoy Him, and the more we enjoy Him, the more we long to behold Him! That is our ultimate hope no matter what this world throws at us!
"Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls." (1 Peter 1:8-9 NIV)
