Week 4 Belief, Hope, and Faith
Quote
“Never talk defeat. Use words like hope, belief, faith, victory.”
Norman Vincent Peale
Passage
1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
2 through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God.
3 And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance;
4 and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope;
5 and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
6 For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.
7 For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die.
8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
Romans 5:1-8 (NASB)
Background
Quote- Norman Vincent Peale (May 31, 1898 – December 24, 1993) was an American minister and author who is best known for his work in popularizing the concept of positive thinking, especially through his best-selling book The Power of Positive Thinking. He served as the pastor of Marble Collegiate Church, New York, from 1932 until 1984, leading a Reformed Church in America congregation. His concept of the power of positive thinking has been criticized and commented on since its publication but his book of the same title has sold over 5 million copies.
Passage- The book of Romans is a Pauline Epistle (letter from Paul). The Apostle Paul wrote it roughly about 56-57 A.D. The key personalities in the book of Romans are the Apostle Paul, and Phoebe who delivered this letter. Paul wrote the letter to the believers in Rome, hence the name “Romans”. He wrote it to give them a concrete theological foundation on which to construct their faith and to live for and serve God effectively.
The book of Romans reveals the answers to important questions and supplies information on many topics, such as salvation, the sovereignty of God, judgment, spiritual growth, and the righteousness of God. Many scholars also describe it as The Gospel and the Righteousness of God, which can be received only by faith in the atoning death of Jesus Christ.
Opening Statement
Christ died for us. Christ died for all the world. God so loved the world that he gave. We should believe these things, not just because the Bible tells us so, but because we have seen the fertile results of those seeds planted 2000 plus years ago in our own lives. That is of course assuming we recognize those seeds were planted in the first place.
Ask: Does every seed planted in a garden spring up as a new shoot? Why not?
Point: Not all seeds are good seeds.
Ask: How do gardeners planting a crop in their garden ensure the plant they want growing successfully germinates and sends forth a shoot to be tended?
Point: They plant multiple seeds.
Ask: After the seeds are in the ground why does the gardener go back out to the plot and look at the churned-up earth with nothing growing?
Point: Hope. The gardener hopes things will grow.
Ask: What fuels the hope that things will grow in the garden?
Point: Faith. The gardener has faith that if the seeds are planted two or three to a hole, covered at the right depth, watered, the temperature is right because he chose the right time of year to plant, and enough sun light comes out to warm the earth that the seeds will germinate and spring forth.
Ask: Is there a link between hope and faith?
Point: First reading (Hebrews 11:1 (NASB)
Ask: What is another word for “conviction?”
Point: Second Reading (Hebrews 11:1 (KJV)
Read the Definition for the word “Conviction” in the Definitions section.
Ask: How are Belief, Hope, and faith intertwined?
Point: Re-read the First Reading
Third Reading (Hebrews 11:6 (NASB)
Ask: Why do we want to “…please God?”
Point: Fourth Reading (1 John 4:15-21 (NASB)
Ask: How do we know God loved us first?
Point: Fifth Reading (John 3:16-19 (NASB)
Closing Statement
No one wants to stay in the dark. We fear what we cannot see, what we do not know, and what we do not understand. People do not understand how Grace works. They do not know how belief becomes hope which grows into faith that drives us to act. God so loved the world that He sent His only begotten Son to die for it. They do not believe that nor understand it, and that failure to understand opens them up to attacks from the adversary. Be of good cheer. Believe scripture is true. Have hope God is real. Put faith in your heart that He is with you.
8 Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
9 But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world.
10 After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you.
1 Peter 5:8-10 (NASB)
Questions for the Week
Where in your life has fear taken over and you are still “…in the dark?”
Spend as little or as much time as you feel led to spend examining what you believe, the hopes that drives, and what if any faith in outcomes that leads to? Write these things down to revisit them at the end of the year.
Read all of Hebrews Chapter 11 either at the end of this lesson or in your favorite translation of the Bible. Write down any thoughts this chapter of scripture brings you on belief, hope, and faith.
Scripture
First Reading
1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 (NASB)
Second Reading
1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 (KJV)
Third Reading
6 And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.
Hebrews 11:6 (NASB)
Fourth Reading
15 Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.
16 We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.
17 By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world.
18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love.
19 We love, because He first loved us.
20 If someone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen.
21 And this commandment we have from Him, that the one who loves God should love his brother also.
1 John 4:15-21 (NASB)
Fifth Reading
16 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.
17 "For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.
18 "He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
19 "This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil.
John 3:16-19 (NASB)
Definitions
conviction
con·vic·tion | \ kən-ˈvik-shən \
Essential Meaning of conviction
1law : the act of proving that a person is guilty of a crime in a court of lawShe hopes to avoid conviction.In light of the evidence, a conviction seems certain.See More Examples
2: a strong belief or opinionreligious convictionsa person of deep convictionsThey share my strong/firm conviction that the policy is misguided.
3: the feeling of being sure that what you believe or say is trueShe spoke with conviction.His words lacked conviction.
Greek Strong's Number: 1650
Greek Word: ἔλεγχος
Transliteration: elenchos
Phonetic Pronunciation:el'-eng-khos
Root: from <G1651>
Cross Reference: TDNT - 2:476,221
Part of Speech: n m
Vine's Words: Reproof, Reprove
Usage Notes:
English Words used in KJV:
reproof 1
evidence 1
[Total Count: 2]
from <G1651> (elegcho); proof, conviction :- evidence, reproof
James Strong, Strong's Talking Greek & Hebrew Dictionary, (Austin, TX: WORDsearch Corp., 2007), WORDsearch CROSS e-book, Under: "1650".
Hebrews Chapter 11
1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
2 For by it the men of old gained approval.
3 By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible.
4 By faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained the testimony that he was righteous, God testifying about his gifts, and through faith, though he is dead, he still speaks.
5 By faith Enoch was taken up so that he would not see death; AND HE WAS NOT FOUND BECAUSE GOD TOOK HIM UP [Gen 5:21-24]; for he obtained the witness that before his being taken up he was pleasing to God.
6 And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.
7 By faith Noah, being warned by God about things not yet seen, in reverence prepared an ark for the salvation of his household, by which he condemned the world, and became an heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.
8 By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going.
9 By faith he lived as an alien in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, fellow heirs of the same promise;
10 for he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.
11 By faith even Sarah herself received ability to conceive, even beyond the proper time of life, since she considered Him faithful who had promised.
12 Therefore there was born even of one man, and him as good as dead at that, as many descendants AS THE STARS OF HEAVEN IN NUMBER, AND INNUMERABLE AS THE SAND WHICH IS BY THE SEASHORE [Gen 15:5; 22:17; 32:12].
13 All these died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having seen them and having welcomed them from a distance, and having confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.
14 For those who say such things make it clear that they are seeking a country of their own.
15 And indeed if they had been thinking of that country from which they went out, they would have had opportunity to return.
16 But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; for He has prepared a city for them.
17 By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was offering up his only begotten son;
18 it was he to whom it was said, "IN ISAAC YOUR DESCENDANTS SHALL BE CALLED [Gen 21:12]."
19 He considered that God is able to raise people even from the dead, from which he also received him back as a type.
20 By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau, even regarding things to come.
21 By faith Jacob, as he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff.
22 By faith Joseph, when he was dying, made mention of the exodus of the sons of Israel, and gave orders concerning his bones.
23 By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden for three months by his parents, because they saw he was a beautiful child; and they were not afraid of the king's edict.
24 By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter,
25 choosing rather to endure ill-treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin,
26 considering the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt; for he was looking to the reward.
27 By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured, as seeing Him who is unseen.
28 By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of the blood, so that he who destroyed the firstborn would not touch them.
29 By faith they passed through the Red Sea as though they were passing through dry land; and the Egyptians, when they attempted it, were drowned.
30 By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they had been encircled for seven days.
31 By faith Rahab the harlot did not perish along with those who were disobedient, after she had welcomed the spies in peace.
32 And what more shall I say? For time will fail me if I tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets,
33 who by faith conquered kingdoms, performed acts of righteousness, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions,
34 quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, from weakness were made strong, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight.
35 Women received back their dead by resurrection; and others were tortured, not accepting their release, so that they might obtain a better resurrection;
36 and others experienced mockings and scourgings, yes, also chains and imprisonment.
37 They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were tempted, they were put to death with the sword; they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated
38 (men of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground.
39 And all these, having gained approval through their faith, did not receive what was promised,
40 because God had provided something better for us, so that apart from us they would not be made perfect.
Hebrews 11:1-40 (NASB)