Romans 15:13 – 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.

God is the “God of hope”…

•  the Author of our hope.
•  the Foundation of our hope.
•  the Builder of our hope.
•  the Finisher of our hope.

The things mentioned cannot be possessed apart from God, and we can possess them only as He gives them to us.

1.  There is joy (charas): an inner gladness; a deep seated pleasure. It is a depth of assurance and confidence that ignites a cheerful heart. It is a cheerful heart that leads to cheerful behavior.

2.  There is peace. Note that peace comes through believing. No man has true peace apart from God.  The meaning of peace with God is striking. Peace with God does not mean escapism, a quiet atmosphere, the absence of trouble, the control of situations by positive thinking, the denial of problems, the ability to keep from facing reality. The source of peace is Jesus Christ. Peace comes from knowing and having a personal relationship with Jesus. Men can have peace with God only because of Jesus Christ. It is He who reconciles men to God. The first result of justification is peace with God

3.  There is hope: to expect with confidence; to anticipate knowing; to look and long for with surety; to desire with assurance; to rely on with certainty; to trust with the guarantee; to believe with the knowledge. Note that hope is expectation, anticipation, looking and longing for, desiring, relying upon, and trusting. But it is also confidence, knowledge, surety, assurance, certainty, and a guarantee. When a justified man becomes stronger in character, he draws closer to God and the closer he draws to God, the more he hopes for the glory of God.

When Scripture speaks of the believer’s hope, it does not mean what the world means by hope. The hope of the world is a desire, a want. The world hopes—wants, desires—that something will happen. But this is not the hope of the believer. The hope of the believer is a surety: it is perfect assurance, confidence, and knowledge. How can hope be so absolute and assured? By being an inward possession. The believer’s hope is based upon the presence of God’s Spirit who dwells within the believer. In fact, the believer possesses the hope of glory only by the Spirit of God who dwells within him.

These great qualities come only through the power of the Holy Spirit. God and God alone is the source of the things that give life.

Romans 15:13 comments partly based on Word Search Bible commentary content.