How is Faith Different than Hope?
How is faith different than hope?
The opening words of Hebrews 11 give us a helpful definition of faith: “Faith is confidence in what we hope for” (Heb. 11:1). Faith gives us inner assurance and confidence, which are different than mere human hopefulness. Through faith things that are in the future, things that God promised to us, become real and substantial for us in the present. “What we hope for” refers to the wonderful and glorious realities that God has promised to us. They are in the future; they are coming. We are anticipating them. Through faith these things become real and substantial for us in the present, giving us inner assurance and confidence about their reality. Because we have faith, we are able to live our lives and make daily decisions in light of God’s promises to us.
BY Dr. Winfred O. Neely
Dr. Winfred Neely is Vice President and Dean of Moody Theological Seminary and Graduate School. An ordained minister, Winfred has served churches across the city of Chicago, the near west suburbs, and Senegal, West Africa. He is the author of How to Overcome Worry (Moody Publishers) and a contributor to the Moody Bible Commentary and Moody Handbook of Preaching. Winfred and his wife Stephne have been married for forty years and have four adult children and nine grandchildren.