Living by Faith - Romans

The Spirit and Hope

Professor: Dr. R.J. Rushdoony

Subject: Living by Faith

Lesson: 32-64

Genre: Talk

Track: 032

Dictation Name: RR311Q32

Location/Venue:

Year: ?

Let us worship God. Serve the Lord with gladness, come before His presence with singing, enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful unto Him and bless His name; for the Lord is good, His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endureth to all generations. Let us pray.

Oh Lord our God, lift up our hearts unto Thee in praise and adoration and in gratitude every day, that we may ever by mindful that our times are in Thy hands and that Thou art He who dost order all things in Thy wisdom. Give us grace to know that the powers of darkness shall not and cannot prevail, that Thy kingdom grows in terms of Thy holy purpose, and it shall cover the earth as the waters cover the sea. Give us grace therefore to hear Thy word with rejoicing, and to wait on Thee day by day knowing that Thou art He who dost order all things in terms of Thy wisdom, Thy justice, Thy grace and mercy. Our God we praise Thee, in Jesus name, amen.

Our scripture is from Romans 8:24-28, our subject: The Spirit and Hope. Romans 8:24-28.

“24 For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?

25 But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.

26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.

27 And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.

28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”

In this which many regard as the greatest chapter in all of scripture, and Romans 8:28 as the greatest verse, we come to grips with so much that Paul has to say. In verses 24-25, the hope and expectation of the new humanity is described. Then in verses 26-27 he tells us that the Holy Spirit works in us to remedy our weaknesses, that He is basic to our hope and our expectation, that He prays in us and for us. Then in verses 28-30, Gods perfect purpose, we are told, ensures the inevitable realization of our hope, and our triumph in and through all things.

Now first of all, In verses 24 and 25, Paul speaks about hope. The Greek word here is ‘elpis’ but it cannot help us, because the meaning that is given to hope in the New Testament is the Hebraic meaning, the meaning which we find throughout the Old Testament. Hope is in the Old Testament very different from anything that in Greek or in English can be called hop. Too often hope can be described as day dreaming, wanting something badly, hoping things will work out as we want them to. But in terms of the Old Testament, hope is waiting on Gods assured promises. It is not a vague longing, but an assured dependence on the nature and integrity of God’s word, of Gods promises. It is an eschatological word, because it deals with what will most surely come to pass, and our confidence that God will bring that to pass.

Hope is thus closely connected with predestination, and this is why when Paul discusses hope he then goes on to predestination, the absolute and perfect plan of God. Moreover, hope is disciplined waiting, it renounces our longings for Gods promises. Hence Paul says we are saved by hope, when we hope we trust in that which God will most certainly do. No one can say that we are saved by humanistic longings, but Paul says we are saved by hope.

In 1 Corinthians 13 Paul speaks of the virtues of grace as being faith, hope, and love; so that hope is the necessary accompaniment of faith and of love, godly love. In this connection, the association of faith, hope and love, Bernard of Clairvaux said very beautifully and I quote: “The soul is more where it loves than where it lives.” The souls is more where it loves than where it lives. The same is true of hope. We live in terms of the unseen.

Now, because of this hope, we wait in patience. Our normal and eternally natural condition is ahead of us, sin and death are deformities, they came into the world because man separated himself from God, and the more we associate with God and become in union with Him, the more we abolish sin and death, not totally in this life, but perfectly in the world to come and in the new creation.

So that, for us, patience is the necessary virtue. We gain endurance in the face of this worlds evils because of our hope. We are never alone in our hope, the Bible tells us and Paul tells us, because the Holy Spirit is our comforter, and He is inescapably with us.

David said in Psalm 27:10 “When my father and mother forsake me, then the Lord will take me up.” We are also told in Hebrews 13:5 “He hath said I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” Not only so, Paul having said “If we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it, knowing the dependability of God.” But he goes on to say: “Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.”

Here come to a very remarkable fact, the association of the Spirit with us. The Spirit is inseparable, so that what the Spirit knows the Father knows and the Son knows, and the Spirit knows us better than we know ourselves. We are told that because of our infirmities, and because we are in this life still blinded by sin, by the alienation of this world from God, we don’t always know what we should pray for as we ought. But the Spirit is inseparable from us, and the Spirit maketh intercession for us with groaning’s which cannot be uttered.

Now, that which is the direction of our lives, that which we are not yet today but we are going to be tomorrow because that is the direction of our life in Jesus Christ, so that we don’t know how to pray, we don’t see tomorrow or next year, but God is working in us that we might grow towards that, and so the Spirit prays within us wordlessly, because the Spirit knows what we are going to be tomorrow, and He works in us, and gives us that hope, that direction, that growth, and moves us to seek those associations, those things that will make us grow in the direction that God the Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit have eternally decreed we should grow in terms of.

In Jeremiah 17 we are told in verse 10: “I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins.” So that, God is working in us at all times, knowing where our weaknesses are, knowing where we need work done on us, so that God puts us through a number of trials and grief’s and problems to bring about growth, to test us; and testing has as its purpose strength, to strengthen us.

And in all this, the Spirit works. The Spirit makes intercession for us with groaning’s which cannot be uttered, with an expectancy, so that He is involved in us more than we are in ourselves, feeling with all the power of divinity the eagerness to bring to fulfillment that which God has ordained for us.

We are told in Genesis 1:2 that the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters to bring forth the creation, and now we are told that the Holy Spirit is working in our being to bring forth the fullness of our new creation, to bring us to that appointed place in terms of Gods glorious and holy purpose.

In other words, the Spirit wants our growth. The Spirit as well as the Son is moreover our intercessor, so that not only is the Son our intercessor at the right hand of God the Father, but the Holy Spirit in us, and also in all eternity, is our intercessor.

Moreover there is a remarkable fact about this intercession. As E.H. Gifford noted and I quote: “His intercession is first in accordance with Gods own will and purpose, for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea even the deep things of God; and second, His intercession is for saints, and saints as such are the special object of the divine purpose, in accordance with which the Spirit intercedes.”

Thus we have the Holy Spirit as our intercessor, working in us to bring us to our appointed place, and second interceding always with God the Father, praying for us the prayers that we are not yet ourselves ready to pray, because we haven’t grown that far.

So that, because that power is in us, we move in terms of an appointed path, and when we get there, there is still more growth ahead, that God the Spirit has for us. What is unformulated in us, the Spirit knows and expresses, and works that we might realize.

In other words, the great reality in our lives is the triune God working in us. “And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.”

The Trinity is united in this, and therefore we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, “to them who are the called according to his purpose.” The great verse that tells us we cannot lose; that God takes everything including our sins, our fumbling’s, our mistakes, and he makes them work together for good, to a perfect good, so that in time and eternity we cannot be the losers. What seems lost from the perspective of the world is gain, because God so orders it.

And all things work together for good because the Triune God is at work. God the Father with His eternal predestined plan which encompasses the very hairs of our head, the sparrow, the grass in the field; God the Son, who is our intercessor at the right hand of the Father, and God the Spirit who is in us to be our intercessor and to work with us, so that we move in terms of Gods perfect plan. This is providential government, there can be no possible triumph for evil.

Luther said concerning Romans 8:28 that it spoke of predestination, and that it was a sentence, and I quote: “To strangle the prudence of the flesh.” It overrules our wisdom. This means we must hope, and we must act in terms of the Lord and His word, not ourselves. Modern man sees himself as his own, best foundation; and so modern man whatever he does, builds on himself or on some human agency. For a very realistic example of that, look at the money in your pocket. It is fiat money, man made money, in which man plays God, and just as God on the day of creation said in the Latin vulgate: ‘Fiat Lux’ “Let there be light,” so modern man says: “Let there be money” and with his own fiat he creates money, and he creates laws; he creates in every area as his own God, so that he makes everything a creature of the state.

The premise of modern economics is that the humanistic state makes all things work together for good to them that trust in the state, and this is the premise of law. The state says: “Let us make the laws, and trust us; we will give you social security from cradle to grave, because we can make all things work together for good. Well, is Social Security bankrupt today? Don’t worry about it, just trust us; we will make it all work together for good.” And that is why we are facing the disasters we are.

“If only God would butt out of the picture and let man take over, and if only these foolish people who claim to a belief in God would relax and let the state take over, and stop creating problems.” And so people say: ‘Well, I am not worried; the government will do something about it.” or: “I’m not worried, I will do something about it.” or: “Something will be done.” That is, by man or some humanistic agency. This is asserting a humanistic version of Romans 8:28, that this absolute and perfect providence is something that man can create, man playing God.

And of course, this is what men in sin prefer. Faith in man, hence, socialism; because socialism is nothing other than a belief in predestination by man; that Gods plan is no good, man and the state must take over and have a perfect plan. And when you believe no longer in the sovereign God and His eternal predestination, His eternal plan, you are going to have the world moving to believe in the socialist, communist plan; planning by man.

Not surprisingly then, we are seeing what Joseph (Sobran?) the columnist, and Howard Phillips of the Conservative Caucus have spoke of as: “The growing serfdom of American peoples at the hands of the IRS.” We are increasingly the serfs of the IRS. Now here are two very calm and reasonable men making this flat statement, on good evidence. It is very simple, if we believe in man, we will be ruled by man. If man is our God, then man is going to rule us in some form or another; and we have either anarchistic man running riot in the streets or statist man controlling us from cradle to grave. If we believe in man we will be ruled by man.

But if we believe in God, we will be ruled by God, and is the key to the future is what kind of faith will the people of this country and of other countries have? Will it be in man or in God? Then you will know whether we will have freedom under God or tyranny under man. Who rules us reveals our faith, the Holy Spirit gives us a true hope, not the vague humanistic longings.

Remember, the word hope in the Bible means the expectation of Gods assured promises. It is the kind of thing that if I have something coming from someone without fail because they have never let me down, then I can reasonably hope that it will continue that way. If you have a good employer who pays you without fail on the first of every month, then you can hope that he will continue to do so. That, in the Biblical sense, very mildly conveys the meaning of the word hope in the Bible, except that in the Bible it is the assured and absolute promises of God who is the creator of heaven and earth, who is omnipotent, who is sovereign, who says you can have hope if you have faith. The two go together, faith, hope and love; because faith is a title to things unseen. By faith we hold title to a place in all eternity, and to the government of God and His protection here. By hope we recognize that we can trust in God’s word, that we have these things, and it is just a question of time; that God is working in all things, to make all things work together for good.

We know by our hope that we walk in the Spirit, and we live in a world ruled by God; in this world all things serve God, the weather, the ground beneath our feet, the sun, the moon, the stars, all people; they fulfill His purpose, even in their rebellion and their evil. We live and move and have our being in such a God. This means the state cannot be our God.

Now if the universe is the product of chance as humanistic man believes, then the only tenable government is by man or by the state, there has to be an order; if God hasn’t created a given order and provides it, then man has to provide it. Romans 8:28 gives us a Christian security, we know that this is true. God makes all things work together for good for them that love Him, to them who are the called according to His purpose. So we move in terms of that security. But if we don’t believe in God, where are we going to get our security in a world of chance? In a world of chance man has no security except through man-made alternatives, and the result is statism. Without faith in God, men hunger for security such as the welfare state or the socialist state provides; and they feel lost without it.

Godly hope is then replaced by humanistic hope, the belief: “It should be so, therefore it is.” Today candidates for political office usually offer hope of change, hope of this, hope of something, on statist grounds; not because they believe in God, in His order, and not regeneration, but some kind of humanistic change and a humanistic security is their hope.

Humanism has led to the rise of statism, and a lust for humanistic security. Only the sons of God, living in terms of the glorious liberty which is theirs, and in terms of their security and hope, can create a culture of faith and freedom. Let us pray.

Almighty God our heavenly Father, we thank Thee that Thou hast given us so great a hope and security. We thank Thee that we are not alone, that even when we sleep the Holy Spirit works in us, intercedes for us, and prays for us. Give us grace therefore to say with David that I will both lay me down in peace and sleep, for Thou Lord only makest me to dwell in safety. Thy hand, oh Lord, has been upon us for good all the days of our life; and we know that a greater good and an eternal blessing awaits us. Give us grace therefore to hope, to be patient, to grow in grace, and to work unceasingly for Thy kingdom; in Jesus name, amen.

Are there any questions about our lesson?

[Audience Member] The fundamentalists believe that the working of the Holy Spirit provides for the adherence to the law, and that is why they don’t have to worry about it. Now, from your lesson today it would sound like that was what… they would like what you were saying. So how would you… do you see what I am saying? In other words, they feel that: “Don’t worry about the law, because the Holy Spirit is now in me, and it’s going to take care of everything, and I am going to abide by what God wants me to do, and we don’t have to worry about these things.”

[Rushdoony] We are also told: “grieve not the Spirit of God” and by abandoning the word, the law word, they are sinning; because the word and the Spirit must work together, and we cannot have the Spirit apart from the word. Yes?

[Audience Member] In other words you are talking about the responsibility in the individual, and also wouldn’t you say, the one thing I never hear them say is that love is the fulfillment of the law. Why don’t they do that?

[Rushdoony] Because they are really rebelling against the law. They want an easy religion, they want…

[Audience Member] But the Holy Spirit is working in them, how do we get back to that again?

[Rushdoony] The Holy Spirit is being grieved; we are told that you can grieve the Holy Spirit, because they are refusing to listen, they are refusing to grow. Paul tells the people of his day that they are babes in Christ when they should be adults, and you see if we make our goal merely salvation we are saying: “I want to have a whole skin, I don’t want to hell, but I am not interested in Gods kingdom, I am not interested in serving God.”

[Audience Member] …?...

[Rushdoony] Very often they wind up serving the devil that way.

[Audience Member] In other words their secondary free will is still operating with the work of the Holy Spirit within them, and that is the area that can reject or accept?

[Rushdoony] Yes. Any other questions?

[Audience Member] Well, I am a strong anti-Calvinist, but I thought I would come down and see what the Calvinists have to say, you sound like your almost authentic Christianity, from what I have heard, because I didn’t hear all of it. [laughter] I just ran into Allen about a month ago, and I thought that if I want to know what he is thinking maybe I can come here and figure it out a little bit.

[Rushdoony] Very good. Any other questions or comments?

Well, if not, let us bow our heads in prayer. All glory be to Thee oh God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost, who of Thy grace and mercy has made us Thy people, and has given us such great promises through Thy word and Thy son. Make us ever joyful in Thee, give us a holy boldness as we face the world, and make us more than conquerors through Him that loved us.

And now go in peace, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost, bless you and keep you, guide and protect you, this day and always, amen.