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“For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.”
Romans 15:4 NIV
Pastor Dharius Daniel’s quoted the scripture above in Romans. He explained that when we read the Old Testament, we are reading about the character of God and what we read should fill us with hope. Apostle Paul is writing to the church in Rome. This church is made up of Jewish Christians and some Gentile Christians. The Greek word for endurance is “hypomone.” It means to hyper-stay. It means to endure, steadfast, constancy, patience, and perseverance.
It means to stand firm.
We have to read and interpret the Bible for ourselves. When we read the Old Testament, we should be filled with hope as we are learning the ways that God wants to show up in our lives. God wants a personal and deeply intimate relationship with each of us. When we read Scripture, we should find ourselves being edified and strengthened. Our fellowship with other believers and our church services are where we learn the tools to connect with the God for ourselves.
“You have searched me, LORD
and you know me.
You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.
You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.
Before a word is on my tongue
you, LORD, know it completely.
You hem me in behind and before,
and you lay your hand upon me.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
to lofty for me to attain.”
Psalm 139:1-6 NIV
God is omniscient.
He is all knowing.
“Remember the former things, those of long ago;
I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is none like me.
I make known the end from the beginning,
from the ancient times, what is still to come.”
Isaiah 46: 9-10 NIV
“Surely he took up our pain
and bore our suffering,
yet we considered him punished by God,
stricken by him and afflicted.
But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
and by his wounds we are healed.”
Isaiah 53:5 NIV
This is from the book of Isaiah. God sees the end and has the power to make it known in the beginning. More than 600 years before Jesus was born, God used the prophet, Isaiah, to tell the story of Jesus; his death and resurrection. Once we get this, we really can go through every single experience in life- even when it is horrible- and look for the lesson and God’s power.
“Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
If I rise on the wings of dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,’
even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.”
Psalm 139:7-12 NIV
God is omnipresent.
God is present everywhere.
“The eyes of the Lord are everywhere
keeping watch on the wicked and the good.”
Proverbs 15:3 NIV
This life has good. This life has wicked. God is in control over both of those things.
“For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place,
when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed body;
all the days ordained for me were written in your book
before one of them came to be.
How precious to me are your thoughts, God!
How vast is the sum of them!
Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand-
when I awake, I am still with you.”
Psalm 139:`13-18 NIV
God is omnipotent.
God has all power.
“‘I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'”
Jeremiah 29:11
My study guide beautifully states, “He (God) knows the future, and his plans for us are good and full of hope. As long as God, who knows the future, directs our agendas and goes with us to fulfill his mission, we can have boundless hope. This does not mean we will be spared from pain, suffering, or hardship. That is a guaranteed part of life in this sinful world. But it does mean that God will see us through to a glorious conclusion (Life Applications Study Bible, p.1275).
“If only you, God, would slay the wicked!
Away from me, you who are bloodthirsty!
They speak of you with evil intent;
your adversaries misuse your name.
Do not hate those who hate you, LORD,
and abhor those who are in rebellion against you?
I have nothing but hatred for them;
I count them my enemies.
Search me, God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.”
Psalm 139:19-24 NIV
“Now may the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, equip you with everything good to do his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.”
Hebrews 13:20-21 NIV
