Have you ever been told, “Don’t get your hopes up”? This is a piece of advice we hear often. Some well-meaning people with the wisdom of sages may even use this to mellow your resolve and dissolve your faith in healing or in any other promises of God you are fanatically holding on to. They may say, “Don’t get your hopes up; God heals some people, but it might not include you.” This is human reasoning and not the Word of God.
Remember Abraham—”Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations, according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be” (Rom 4:18).
Remember Jairus—the ruler of the synagogue who came to the Lord Jesus requesting healing for his daughter? Listen to what this man said to the Lord Jesus:
“And, behold, there cometh one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name; and when he saw him, he fell at his feet,
And besought him greatly, saying, My little daughter lieth at the point of death: I pray thee, come and lay thy hands on her, that she may be healed; and she shall live” (Mk 5:22,23).
How remarkable! Examine the words of faith this ruler of the synagogue spoke. Her daughter is at the point of death, yet he confidently asked the Lord, “Come and lay your hands on her, that she may be healed.” He believed all that needed to happen was for the Lord to lay hands on her, and she would without doubt be healed.
But while they were on the way to Jairus’ house, the members of his household sent him an urgent message not to bother the master anymore, because all hope was lost. The child was dead. The situation was now hopeless.
“As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, he saith unto the ruler of the synagogue, Be not afraid, only believe” (Mk 5:36). Jairus heard the bad report, but against hope, he believed in the Word of the Lord Jesus. The Lord is looking for people among us who will against hope, believe in hope and act upon His Word.
Abram was 99 years old. His wife was 98 and barren. They had been looking forward to having a child of their own for a long time. God had given them a promise 24 years before, and they waited and waited and waited. And now, humanly speaking, there was no hope.
Can you guess one “reasonable” piece of advice Abram must have gotten from those that knew him, and probably from those close to him? I can picture them advising him, with much sympathy and respect, not to get his hopes up, since he had been waiting for a child for almost two and a half decades. But Abram did not seem to be listening to them; neither was he facing the physical realities surrounding him. And, like an unreasonable man, while his wife was still barren and almost a centenarian he called them one morning and told them they should no longer call him Abram, which means “high father,” but instead start calling him Abraham, because he’s a father of many nations. If he was living today, people in my neighborhood here would say—Abram is ‘nuts’.
Yes, as the Scriptures aptly summarized, Abraham against hope believed in hope. When there was no hope, he believed in hope, holding what God said as eternally true in the face of contrary evidence. He had his hopes up! This is what God expects from you and me.
God wants us to exalt His Word above the bad report from the doctors or from our accountant. The doctors may have told you there is no hope, the accountants may have told you your net worth is negative, or your professional management consultant may have given you a grim report about the job market, and now you have to decide what to do.
My friend, do as Abraham did: hope against hope. Take the Word of God, place it against these bad reports, and side with Him who cannot lie. Get your hopes up!
I will not speculate about how those people reacted when they heard Abraham’s name-change announcement; I will leave the rest of the story to your imagination. But the core of the matter is that Abraham was acting on God’s Word of promise in the face of insurmountable physical evidence. He was acting like God and calling those things that were not as though they were.
“As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations, before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were.
Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations; according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be” (Rom 4:17,18).
Abraham believed God, even though there was no physical sign or external encouragement to help his faith. He acted as if what God had said would unfailingly come to pass. He believed God, and this was enough for God to give him a pass mark for everything he did. Abraham was not perfect, not by a long shot. He was not justified by his good works. It was his faith that set him apart and propelled him to becoming a friend of God.
“What shall we say then that Abraham our father, as pertaining to the flesh, hath found? For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God.
For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness” (Rom 4:1-3)
Dear believer, I don’t know what kind of situation you’re in today. If you are in a quandary similar to Abraham’s, or if you have been told by man that there’s no hope, remember what Abraham did.
Get into the Word. Listen to the Spirit of God, and let Him speak to you. And like Abraham, “believe God who raises the dead.” Hope against hope, and like God, begin to call “those things that be not as though they were.”
Abraham did not consider his own body, which was very old and ready to die, nor the deadness of Sarah’s womb. He did not stagger at the promises of God through unbelief. He’s indeed an example for us, of one who stood in faith when there seemed to be no hope. When the state of the economy is hopeless, when banks are collapsing, and retirement and college savings are disappearing because of recession, what we should do, is follow Abraham’s example of faith. Judge Him faithful who has promised. Believe the His Word and against hope believe in hope, calling those things that be not as though they were.