The Source of All Hope

Psalm 27:13 (NASB)
^{13 [a]}I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the LORD In the land of the living.

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic much of the world is gripped by fear. Fear, according to Webster’s 1828 Dictionary, is defined as, “to feel a painful apprehension of impending evil.” That painful apprehension which much of the world is feeling has a by-product – despair, which means a state of hopelessness. What should the believer’s response be when the world is gripped by fear and a sense of hopelessness? As one well-known minister of the Gospel put it, every believer should “test positive” for faith. How can we ensure that the outcome will happen?

Psalm 27:13 gives believers a path to follow to remain in faith:

I would have despaired unless… Believers will always have to choose between hope and despair. Life is all about choices on many different levels. The world chooses between a half-empty glass and a half-full glass. Believers have to choose between focusing on the problem or focusing on the promises found in God’s Word. Unlike the world, which at best gets a half-full glass, believers will always find their glass not only full, but running over when they focus on the promises of God.

unless I had believed… Another word for believe is “to trust.” Again, Webster’s 1828 Dictionary defines trust as “confidence; a resting or reliance of the mind on the integrity, the veracity, justice, friendship or other sound principles of another person.” Read that definition and replace “another person” with God. Our faith begins in our hearts, but we must also let it get into our heads, because the mind is the destination of all the enemy’s attacks.

that I would see the goodness of the LORD… Believing in God will not necessarily be enough. Only with a revelation of the Goodness of God, can we get beyond fear and despair. Knowing that God has no part in any evil helps our confidence to grow; we trust that it is His Goodness that is leading us through whatever we are facing.

in the land of the living… some believers put off the good things that salvation brings until they get to heaven. Yet, Jesus made it clear in John 10:10 that He died to give us abundant life here on earth: “¹⁰ The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.” (There will be no thief in heaven – hence, Jesus had to be talking about life on earth!) Hope arises as we realize we have a BLOOD-bought right to experience good things in our lives now and overcome any adverse situation that presents itself to us.

COVID-19 is not the first pandemic to cover the earth and it will likely not be the last nor the most threatening event ever to occur. For the believer GRACE, defined simply as God’s supply, is the ultimate source of our hope. Romans 5:20, The Passion Translation, says it well: “… And yet, wherever sin increased, there was more than enough of God’s GRACE to triumph all the more.”

3/20