The Benefits of our Hope
A Study of B-O-B HOPE
Part 3 – The Benefits of Our Hope
By Harold and Bette Gillogly
We have looked at the Basis of HOPE and the Operation of HOPE. Now it’s time to finish our B–O–B HOPE Study with Part 3 – the Benefits of HOPE.
BENEFITS – What wonderful benefits does God have for us when we hold on to HOPE? The Scripture is full of the benefits we receive from putting our HOPE in God. Let’s take a look at some of them:
No one whose HOPE is in you will ever be put to shame, but they will be put to shame who are treacherous without excuse. (Psa. 25:3) (See also Psa. 25:21 and 69:6) If we hold on to HOPE, we will never be put to ____________ . God will never embarrass us by not doing His part. But please notice that our HOPE must be in God, not in what we want God to do. If you are hoping in your loved one getting well or if you are hoping in being offered a particular job, instead of hoping in the God Who sees around corners, then you may be disappointed. But you will never be disappointed or ashamed if you are putting your HOPE in God alone. We just don’t know what God is up to, do we? When I (Bette) was told I was dying of cancer, we prayed God would heal me if that was His will. And He did heal me of cancer and I am still alive almost 40 more years later. But you must understand. If God had taken me to heaven right then, I would still be healed today. In fact, I would be completely healed.
May your unfailing love rest upon us, O LORD, even as we put our HOPE in you. (Psa. 33:22) God’s unfailing _________ will rest upon us. What an amazing promise! God’s unfailing love will actually rest upon you IF you put your HOPE in Him!
May those who fear you rejoice when they see me, for I have put my HOPE in your word. (Psa. 119:74) Other believers will ______________ when they see us putting our HOPE in God’s Word. Other believers rejoice when they witness what God does in your life. Put your HOPE in God’s Word. Let others know that is where you are putting your HOPE. Your testimony will encourage and bless others in ways you could never imagine – simply because you are putting your HOPE in God’s unfailing, trustworthy Word! Encourage someone today by sharing with them that you are putting your HOPE in God’s Word.
Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose HOPE is in the LORD his God. (Psa. 146:5) The LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their HOPE in his unfailing love. (Psa. 147:11) _______________ and the Lord’s help are on those who HOPE is in Him. When you openly put your HOPE in God and His unfailing love, everyone gets blessed…especially YOU. Do you want to be able to say, “The LORD delights in me …in me”? That’s almost too wonderful to say out loud, isn’t it? But it is absolutely true, because that is what God says!
But those who HOPE in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. (Isa. 40:31) Renewed ________________ belongs to those who HOPE in the Lord. We claim this promise often, because we NEED renewed strength. We want to run without growing weary and walk without fainting. Do you? The secret is to put your HOPE in the LORD GOD, and in Him alone.
Then you will know that I am the LORD; those who HOPE in me will not be disappointed. (Isa. 49:23) (See also Rom. 5:5) Those who HOPE in the LORD will not be ____________________. Look back at the very first Scripture verse above, Psalm 25:3. How many times does God have to say something to make it true? It only takes once. But God repeats this truth over and over again. It must be really important. He must really want you to understand it and live it!
May the God of HOPE fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with HOPE by the power of the Holy Spirit. (Rom. 15:13) ________ and ____________ accompany HOPE; and the power of the Holy Spirit will make us ___________________ with HOPE. He proved Himself as the God of all HOPE to us during those long months of cancer treatment and pain. Pain and problems do not have the power to take away your HOPE. If we choose to turn to the God of all HOPE, He will fill us with His joy and peace and HOPE. It is our choice to TRUST in Him that makes all the difference!
The LORD is good to those whose HOPE is in him, to the one who seeks him. (Lam. 3:25) God is __________ to those who HOPE in Him. Even when we can’t see Him, He is working for our good. Even when we can’t feel Him, He is working for our good. Put your HOPE in Him and His goodness!
Therefore, since we have such a HOPE, we are very bold. (2 Cor. 3:12) If we have HOPE we become very ___________. When we truly believe in God’s joy and peace and goodness, that’s what makes us bold!
We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by HOPE in our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Th. 1:3) Our _______________ is inspired by HOPE. These are “IF” “THEN” declarations. IF we put our FAITH in God, THEN He will produce meaningful, worthwhile kingdom work in and through us. IF we let His LOVE fill us, THEN He will produce our labor for other’s good, even when we are tired or inconvenienced. And IF we put our HOPE in Him, THEN He will grow all kinds of endurance in us.
Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no HOPE. (1 Th. 4:13) If we have HOPE we will not _____________ like those who have no HOPE. We know we will see our loved ones again. You can’t have that kind of HOPE without Jesus. Because He lives, we and our loved ones who die in the Lord, shall also live!
God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the HOPE offered to us may be greatly encouraged. (Heb. 6:18) Great ________________________ comes to those who take hold of HOPE. The two unchangeable things are that God gave us His oath and His promise that He will never change His mind. So when our HOPE is in Him, we can rest assured that He will never change. He is our steady ROCK! Our HOPE will always be safe in Him!
God also wants us to understand that HOPE does not always exclude us from trials or afflictions.
And now it is because of my HOPE in what God has promised our fathers that I am on trial today. (Acts 26:6) Paul was put on _____________ because of his HOPE. We had a neighbor one time who hated us because of our HOPE in God. He would sometimes get drunk and point his gun at us if we were outside. We don’t have proof, but we are sure he tried to burn down our garage one night. We lived in the mountains of Southern California and did not have police anywhere near. The closest thing we had to police were park rangers. They would simply throw up their hands and say it was his word against ours. So nothing could be done. We knew because of his many years of alcohol abuse he was not thinking straight. We had to put our HOPE in God! We did a whole lot of praying and trusting God to keep us safe. And He did. He didn’t take away the stress, but He kept us safe through it.
For this reason I have asked to see you and talk with you. It is because of the HOPE of Israel that I am bound with this chain. (Acts 28:20) Paul was put in _______________ because of his HOPE. Paul was in chains more than a few times because his HOPE was in Christ the Messiah. In fact, if you read 2 Corinthians 11:23-33, you will see Paul’s long list of the trials and tribulations he went through because he boldly proclaimed his HOPE in Jesus Christ the Messiah!
We don’t know if God will ever call you to be persecuted because of your HOPE in Him, but it is a possibility. Christians all over the world are being persecuted because of their HOPE in Jesus Christ. What would you do if that happens to you? You might get a neighbor like the one we had. Or you might lose your freedom of speech. Would the Benefits of HOPE be worth the persecution?
We challenge you to look back over all the Benefits of HOPE in this part of our study. Pick three Benefits that especially appealed to you. Circle them. Memorize the Scripture that promises them. The three we chose are – We will know God’s blessing and His unfailing love. He will fill us with joy and peace and encouragement. And even when trials come, our strength will be renewed and we will be able to endure.
Before we finish our B-O-B HOPE Study, we want to leave you with this warning. When you become disappointed or frustrated because your prayers are not answered the way you wanted, you should ask yourself – Where is my HOPE? Was I placing my HOPE in something I wanted God to do? Or was my HOPE in God doing His will? We stress this warning because we know how easily we fall into this sin.
So…this our prayer for you and for ourselves: May the God of HOPE fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with HOPE by the power of the Holy Spirit. (Romans 15:13)
If you missed the first two of these studies on Hope then go to: The Basis of our Hope or The Operation of our Hope.
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