Grace for Anxiety (Pt 5)

Sunday we will conclude our series on anxiety by focusing on what’s at the root of our value system as believers. As King David says, we were born in sin, which means that by nature we develop a value system that reflects our sinful nature. Our values are what we attach meaning to and build our identities around. When these values are threatened, we feel immediate autonomic anxiety. 

In the book of Romans, Paul addresses a Jewish audience who had built their lives around the law of Moses and their patriarch Abraham. This created division within the church, because the Gentile believers were doing things that threatened the values and identity of the Jewish believers. This comes out clearly in Romans 14. Paul insists that the gospel is for all sinners, Jew and Gentile. Jew and Gentile make God the object of their hope by faith.

Our text is Romans 15:13, where Paul says, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” Notice what God gives when he becomes the object of our hope: joy and peace. These gifts are for us regardless of our circumstances. Notice too that the Holy Spirit helps us abound in hope. What do we immediately look for in times of uncertainty? Hope! The reason we move down the path of worry is that we’re looking for hope by protecting our valuables. What if our hope was in God? 

Join us Sunday as we consider this passage.