<html><head></head><body><div><div><div><div><br></div>Romans 4;18-21<div><br></div><div><b>18.In hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations; as he had been told, “So shall your descendants be.”</b></div><div><b><br></b></div><div>Hope, can be ‘rational’ and hope can be irrational.</div><div><br></div><div>If I dig a garden, plant seeds, water and weed it, I rationally hope for tomatoes and sweet corn.</div><div><br></div><div>If I dig in solid rock, break my shovel, and&nbsp;scatter seed on the solid rock, there will be nothing to water or weed. &nbsp; To look for a harvest in such a ‘garden’<span>&nbsp;is an irrational hope.</span></div><div><br></div><div>This is what <i>“in hope he believed against hope”&nbsp;</i><span>means. &nbsp;Abram’s hope, the hope God gave him&nbsp;was ‘</span><span>irrational hope.</span><span>’ &nbsp;Sari was a barren rock, after 90 years of trying,&nbsp;</span><span>no seed sowed in her&nbsp;</span><span>had ever produced new life. &nbsp; </span><span>&nbsp;T</span><span>hey say, ‘</span><span>&nbsp;T</span><span>he definition of insanity&nbsp;</span><span>is, d</span><span>oing the same exact thing over and over, and hoping for different results.’ &nbsp;(Such is Aristotelian</span><span> logic.)</span></div><div>Aristotle and all of western civilization rejects irrational hope. &nbsp;‘Only the rational and the reasonable should ever be trusted’…this is what secular education is founded upon.</div><div><br></div><div>This is why both Sari and Abram first tried to ‘help’ God through reliance upon&nbsp;a rational hope, Hagar. &nbsp;Hagar was not ‘<span>the Promise’ God had planned,&nbsp; God calls us into His&nbsp;wonderful, miraculous, supernatural world of irrational hope. &nbsp;</span><span></span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>After God rejected Ishmael, saying, <i>“not this one” &nbsp;</i>God showed Abram all the stars and said, <i>“Count them if you can, so shall be your descendants be, through Sari!</i><i>” &nbsp;</i>(Genesis 15-17, paraphrased and condensed).<i></i></span></div><div><span>This is God’s way, He desires for us to believe against our own rational understanding.</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>This is what faith in Jesus is. &nbsp;Hope (faith)&nbsp;in a supernatural&nbsp;righteousness, reckoned to us, making us irrationally, supernaturally&nbsp;fruitful. &nbsp;Every time we proclaim the Gospel and another soul believes, another child of God is born, nations of spiritual Isaacs.</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>Prayer: &nbsp;Merciful Father, we praise You that You have&nbsp;restored us to being Your children, able to embrace and hold fast the blessed irrational&nbsp;hope of everlasting life, the very end of death! &nbsp;In Jesus we pray, Amen.</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>Love,</span></div><div><span>Dad/Baba/Eric</span></div><div><span>Grandpa Pickle Pastor</span></div><div><span>“A chapter a day, every day, progressively, be transformed, ‘soak’ in the living Word. &nbsp;God’sWord is our habitation, and we are His.”</span></div><div><br><br><div><a href="https://mail.onelink.me/107872968?pid=nativeplacement&amp;c=Global_Acquisition_YMktg_315_Internal_EmailSignature&amp;af_sub1=Acquisition&amp;af_sub2=Global_YMktg&amp;af_sub3=&amp;af_sub4=100000604&amp;af_sub5=EmailSignature__Static_" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"></a><br></div></div></div></div></div></body></html>


Romans 4;18-21
18.In hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations; as he had been told, “So shall your descendants be.”
Hope, can be ‘rational’ and hope can be irrational.
If I dig a garden, plant seeds, water and weed it, I rationally hope for tomatoes and sweet corn.
If I dig in solid rock, break my shovel, and scatter seed on the solid rock, there will be nothing to water or weed.   To look for a harvest in such a ‘garden’ is an irrational hope.
This is what “in hope he believed against hope” means.  Abram’s hope, the hope God gave him was ‘irrational hope.’  Sari was a barren rock, after 90 years of trying, no seed sowed in her had ever produced new life.    They say, ‘ The definition of insanity is, doing the same exact thing over and over, and hoping for different results.’  (Such is Aristotelian logic.)Aristotle and all of western civilization rejects irrational hope.  ‘Only the rational and the reasonable should ever be trusted’…this is what secular education is founded upon.
This is why both Sari and Abram first tried to ‘help’ God through reliance upon a rational hope, Hagar.  Hagar was not ‘the Promise’ God had planned,  God calls us into His wonderful, miraculous, supernatural world of irrational hope.  
After God rejected Ishmael, saying, “not this one”  God showed Abram all the stars and said, “Count them if you can, so shall be your descendants be, through Sari!”  (Genesis 15-17, paraphrased and condensed).This is God’s way, He desires for us to believe against our own rational understanding.
This is what faith in Jesus is.  Hope (faith) in a supernatural righteousness, reckoned to us, making us irrationally, supernaturally fruitful.  Every time we proclaim the Gospel and another soul believes, another child of God is born, nations of spiritual Isaacs.
Prayer:  Merciful Father, we praise You that You have restored us to being Your children, able to embrace and hold fast the blessed irrational hope of everlasting life, the very end of death!  In Jesus we pray, Amen.
Love,Dad/Baba/EricGrandpa Pickle Pastor“A chapter a day, every day, progressively, be transformed, ‘soak’ in the living Word.  God’sWord is our habitation, and we are His.”

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