We are saved by HOPE

(James Smith, "Salvation by Hope" 1862)  Play Audio!  Download Audio

"Salvation is of the Lord!" Jonah 2:9

Salvation includes . . .
  our election, which is past;
  our effectual calling and sanctification, which are present;
  and our glorification, which is future.

We were chosen to salvation by the Father;
we are redeemed by Jesus Christ;
we are sanctified by the Holy Spirit.

God is the author of salvation;
grace is the source from which salvation flows;
Jesus is the Savior;
faith is the grace that receives salvation;
while separation from the world and dedication to God, prove that we are saved.

To all this, our apostle adds another view, and says, "We are saved by HOPE." Romans 8:24

Not in the same sense as we are saved by faith, which delivers us from guilt, degradation, and eternal death, by receiving from Christ, and confiding in Christ.

To be saved by hope, is to be kept, preserved, upheld, or sustained, in the midst of foes, dangers, and trials.

Hope quickens us in duties, and preserves us from becoming cold and dead.
It comforts us in tribulations, and keeps us from being disheartened and gloomy.
It enables us to overcome temptation, and so to hold on our way, looking unto Jesus.
It gives us peace in death, in the sure prospect of victory over the grave.

Thus hope saves us:
by preventing despair, into which we can never fall while hope lives within us;
by preserving us from desperation, to the verge of which we are sometimes brought;
by guarding us against rebellion, the seeds of which are still thickly sown in our corrupt hearts; and
by protecting us against apostasy, into which we can never fall so long as we hope in God.

From many evils, at many times, in many ways, we are saved by hope!

Hope is in God, as its highest object and best end.
Hope is through Christ, who is the way to the Father, the truth, and the life.
Hope is on the ground of the Word, which warrants, excites, and regulates it.
Hope is for all that God has promised, whether temporal or spiritual, in this world or the next.
Hope should be encouraged, as it brings . . .
  glory to God,
  comfort to our souls,
  credit to our religion, and
  honor to our Lord Jesus Christ.

Holy Spirit, fill us with a lively hope, and teach us to expect:
  all that God has promised,
  all that Christ has procured, and
  all that You have revealed in Your most holy Word.