The Cap of Good Hope

UV 1230/10,000 The Cap of Good Hope
And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.
Romans 5 v 5
There are two kinds of hope: good hope and bad hope or hope that is true and real and hope that is false and unreal and likely to end in shame, confusion and disappointment. Hope keeps people going but a false hope is but an illusion or a delusion. A man who buys a lottery ticket is an example of bad hope. He is more than likely to be disappointed and to only suffer loss and shame for holding such a bad hope. In contrast, the ‘agape’ or selfless love of God fills our hearts with assurance and good hope. Assurance is the near absolute level of confidence that we have in God that He is able to do that which we have committed to Him or that which He has promised us in our specific situations. The Holy Spirit reminds us of the promises of God even in the most hopeless situation such that our hope is kept alive. He will not let us be ashamed or disappointed but will fulfill our faithful expectations. The Holy Spirit is given to us as an advance deposit or guarantee of the hope we have in the salvation of God. There is certainty of fulfillment in good hope.
In the book of Job, it is written – what is the hope of the worldly man when his soul is taken away of what use is his worldly gain and that in vain has he placed his hope in that. People who place their hope in worldly or monetary gain are confounded or confused and eventually put to shame. However, St Paul wrote that “Christ in us is the hope of glory.” It implies that our faith in Christ inspires in us the hope that God’s grace and greatness will be revealed in our lives as well as in the life to come. Our covenant with death and with hell will be annulled. When we trust in God, we will not be confounded or confused or ashamed. Our hopes will not be belied. We will have clarity of purpose and focus in our lives.

The person who waits on the Lord with an attitude of trust will not be dismayed. He will be like a tree planted by a stream, whose roots run deep and wide, whose leaves never dry, who never ceases to yield fruit, who does not worry about the time of summer heat or about the drought for both protection and provision is assured by the Lord. The person who trusts in man or the things of man is cursed or limited unlike the person who hopes and trusts in the Lord who is blessed. Such blessed hope is like a strong anchor of the soul in all of life’s storms and trials. It is the source of great strength, comfort and consolation. The Lord has given us the crown or the cap of good hope. No one can take it away. It is the helmet of assurance of the Saviour. It protects our head or our minds from fears, confusion, doubts and despair.
Prateep V Philip