Faith Versus Hope (Part 1)

Thus far, we have seen the difference between Faith and sight and between Believing and seeing. We will now examine the difference between Faith and hope. Herein lies one of the greatest sources of misunderstanding among Christians today. Many Christians are disappointed and frustrated with Prayer because they do not receive what they think they should.

Often it is because they are praying in hope, but not in Faith. The results promised by God to Faith are not promised to hope. So, there is a difference between Faith and hope. The essential difference is that Faith is in the heart, while hope is in the mind. In Romans 10:10, Paul said, “For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness”. True Biblical Faith originates in the heart. Faith is never static. It always expresses itself in motion, change and activity.

A person who truly believes will be changed by what he believes. On the other hand, a person who merely accepts truth with his intellect can remain unchanged by it. Mental acceptance of truth is not Faith. To produce Faith, truth must penetrate beyond the conscious mind into the centre and source of life, which is called the heart.