Sons and heirs
We were saved in the hope of the resurrection, in the hope of the new creation, in the hope of Jesus finally getting all the glory he deserves.
For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.
Faith and hope combine to work patience in Christians as they wait for God’s good time to come. But faith often wavers, and hope tends all too easily to wane as the time gets long, particularly in suffering. Aware of this, the apostle will next introduce a second, and infinitely greater, defense against weariness. He returns to the central figure of this chapter, the Holy Spirit.