What Shall We Say Then....?

How would you respond if you were in a similar situation? Verse 18 gives us the condition of the situation! “AGAINST ALL HOPE” You ever been in a situation in which there was no hope? Have you ever rationalized a situation going on in your life to its logical end….that there is no hope? How bout this…. Have you ever worked so hard for something….and it ended up in ruins…leaving you in a heap of despair, with no hope of relief? Further still, Have you worked so hard for something….that you got what you wanted and have since found out that that one thing can never satisfy?

It says here that, “Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations” and also, “he did not waver through unbelief” …. “but was strengthened in his faith” and what other thing can you do when that happens, but do what Abraham did…..gave glory to God. If you have ever experienced victory by doing what God wants you to, then you know that there is blessing in obedience; and I cannot express how much joy comes from glorifying God in the things he is doing in your life. “I like to tell everybody at my workplace (especially when things are tough) that it does not get any better than this!” In other words, whether you feel particularly blessed at this time in your life, or even suffering; we can be content and glorify God in everything we do. It’s not easy, and it may be ‘against all hope,’ but all things are possible with God.

Romans 4:23-25 JUSTIFICATION IS IN CHRIST JESUS

Why was circumcision given? Not only was it a sign that Abraham belonged to God; but it was a seal that God had made a promise that he would keep. God was so powerful, he was a God that Abraham, Paul, and you and I can trust! “Believers today are sealed by the Holy Spirit of God (Eph. 1:13–14). They have also experienced a spiritual circumcision in the heart (Col. 2:10–15), not just a minor physical operation, but the putting off of the old nature through the death and resurrection of Christ.

Now, when the Jews heard Paul’s preaching, do you think they took it lightly? These men were not like the people in our society that rationalize by saying things like, “I never hurt anybody!” But these were the so-called righteous! Can you imagine their response when somebody with Paul’s background was telling them that their way of life leads to death and God’s wrath? Talk about ‘no hope.’ In fact, in Ephesians 2:12; it says that we were at one time without Christ; having no hope and without God in the world.

If you tell a man that there are 581,678, 934,341 stars in the universe, he’ll believe you. But if a sign says, “Fresh Paint,” he has to make a personal investigation. It amazes me, the movements that exist today in our culture!.... Historical revisionism, or a re-writing of history books to slant them towards the political correctness of the day…or changing them in the name of diversity. Things are becoming more and more nebulous, as so-called scholars explain away reality.

An Arlington, Virginia, minister said, “We have closed our minds to such trivial considerations as the question of the resurrection of Christ. If you fundamentalists wish to believe that nonsense, we have no objections, but we have more important things to preach than the presence or absence of an empty tomb 20 centuries old.”