Both faith and hope are terms very much abused among God's people. We hear

believers saying that they have "faith" for this, or "faith" for that; yet many times there is

not the slightest foundation for such faith in the "Word". Faith needs something to rest

upon. Show me a promise in the Scriptures, and there my faith has a legitimate basis--

but faith that rests upon the fancies of the mind, however pious, is largely doomed to

With many, hope is almost synonymous with uncertainty. If a person "hopes so" an

element of misgiving is generally implied. But hope in Scripture rests as certainly as

faith upon the Word of God, for "He is faithful Who promised" (Heb. 11: 11).

While it is true that the second coming of Christ is the hope of all the redeemed, it is

not true that all will realize their hope at the same time or in the same place. The word

that stands for the hope of Israel and the church up to Acts 28: is parousia, which

finds its definition in Matt. 24: and I Thess. 4: The apostle does not use this word

for the hope of the church after Acts 28:, but uses epiphaneia instead. This we find

in Col. 3: 3, 4: "For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ,

Who is our life, shall be made manifest, then shall ye also be made manifest with Him in

glory." If we bring the two statements together we shall see their connection the better:--

In Titus we have a statement that unites both passages: "In hope of age-abiding life,

which God, that cannot lie, promised before age times" (Titus 1: 2). This is further

defined in Titus 2: 13: "Looking for that blessed hope, and the manifesting of the glory

of our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ." Christ Himself is the one Hope of all

believers whatever their calling, but prayer and a spirit of revelation in the knowledge of

the mystery, and of Christ's exalted position at the right hand of God, is necessary to

make clear "that blessed hope".

The apostle in his last hours speaks of "all those who love His manifesting", and to

this phase of His coming we cling. So far as the hope of the church of the mystery is

concerned, there are no accompanying angels, no signs in heaven or earth; these all take

place after the hope of the church is realized at the right hand of God, and are associated

with the descent of the Lord "from heaven" (I Thess. 4: 16), whereas the calling of the

one body is in "heavenly places" and can only be realized in the position "far above all".

It is this hope that is laid up for us "in heaven". This is the "Word" upon which our hope

rests.  The ascended Lord is before us in faith and hope, whereas in the earlier

dispensation, while the ascended Lord was seen by faith, hope looked forward to the Lord

"descending" from heaven, and a city "coming down out of heaven". This is very

different indeed from the hope of our calling which is laid up for us in heaven, to be

enjoyed there "at the right hand of God".