The Virtue Series: Hope Part 2

THE VIRTUE SERIES

HOPE PART 2

With all of these theological virtues, we are aware the opposite side of the coin, the vices, can prevent us from growing in these virtues. Let us explore what are these vices/ sins against the virtue of Hope.

While hope is the virtue to which we, through faith and love patiently expect eternal life, there are two vices that oppose the virtue of hope: despair and presumption.  Despair expresses itself by saying there is no hope (eg God cannot save a wretch like me.. I am not worthy to be saved).

The following scripture passages tells us why we should hope in God and not despair.  They also indicate how we can lured into despair.

• John 3;17: God intends to save the world through Jesus, not condemn it.
• John 17:1-4: Jesus has the power to give us eternal life.
• Galatians 4:4-7: God has sent his Son to redeem us and has adopted us as His children.  We are no longer slaves of this world.
• Ephesians 1:11-14: We have been sealed with the Holy Spirit, who guarantees our inheritance of eternal life.

SINS AGAINST HOPE

All of the above verses express the promise and power of God to give us eternal life.  A person can be lured into despair by believing the lies of the devil.  Two effective lies of the devil that could lead one to despair are are (1) an exaggeration of our unworthiness and (2) to 'earn' our salvation.

We can be lured into despair therefore when we lose our focus from God. From there, it is relatively easy to turn to despair, since our lives are filled with busyness and worry at many levels in our families, work and parishes. We can very quickly lose sight of God's goal for us- to be happy with Him in Heaven for ever. When we get drowned in life's worries and the daily routine of life without God being central to it, then the sin of despair is inevitable. It is essential to keep God as our number one priority,turning to Him first with our worries and anxieties and indeed our whole life. We need to remember we are pilgrims on the journey- our goal is Heaven. We need to have a growing relationship with God, otherwise why would we hope to live with Him for ever, if we do not know and love and serve Him. Why would we want to live with someone whom we have never known or are only remotely acquainted.!!!!!

2. PRESUMPTION

The second sin against hope is presumption.  If hope is patient expectation, and despair is the refusal to expect salvation, presumption assumes that our individual salvation assured irrespective of our cooperation with God's grace. 

The following Scripture passages warns us again the sin of presumption and explain our need to continue in the hope of eternal rewards.

• Matthew 24:13: We need to persevere in the faith to the end of our lives.
• Romans 8:24: Hope is not something that we see or have obtained, but a patient expectation rooted in the promises of God.
• Hebrews 6:7-12: Faith is demonstrated through actions and done because of our hope in the promises of God.  If we presume that our salvation is already sealed and we have no need to demonstrate our faith, hope and love, we may choose to be lazy in our prayer life and good works.  We can guard ourselves against this sin by prayer and maintain a true understanding of our salvation.  Jesus as accomplished the salvation of humanity, but as individual we must choose every day whether or not we will accept this gift of salvation and show our acceptance by living the power of grace and obedience

Presumption is the sin of false confidence. It negates the virtue of hope becuase it assumes to know for certain what can only be longed for with hopeful expectation.  It can also be a misplaced confidence in God's mercy or our own goodness.  Presumption rears its head in many forms in the modern world such as the following:

1. 'Once saved, always saved".  This philosophy holds that once you have expressed to God your faith in His power to save, the actions of Your life will bear no consequence on your eternal destination.  This form of presumption confuses faith with hope.  Scripture and the Church are quite clear that faith in God is demonstrated by our faithfulness to God and His commands.  In fact, when Scripture speaks of faith, it is often in the context of obedience.
2. "Wishful thinking": this is the modern philosophy that asserts God would not send anyone to Hell or even that hell does not exist.
3. "Pelagianism" This is the old age heresy that hold that we can 'earn' our way into Heaven by our good works irrespective of God's grace.

MAGNANIMITY

Magnanimity is the natural virtue by which we demonstrate our hope by 'thinking big'.  A magnanimous person is one who aims high and is confident of God's ability to do the impossible. The following scripture passages exhort us to be magnanimous in various ways.

• Luke 1:37
• Mark 16:15-20
• 2 Corinthians 1:2-9
• 2 Timothy 1:7

 You may wish to pinpoint how these scripture passages exhort us to be magnanimous.

Hope is also the virtue that enables us to look at death with a proper perspective. During the week, you may wish to consider your previous and present perspective on death and dying and how the virtue of hope impacts on your understanding.  You may be challenged to reconsider your understanding or perhaps change aspects of your life to reflect the use of the virtue of hope in your life.

May God continue to bless us on your journey and increase in us the virtue of Hope.

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