A False Hope | AdventAI

Publishing Committee · Battle Creek, Mich. · Oct 15, 1857

A False Hope.

The heart repels the thought of being without hope. It will cling to an unreal, imaginary thing, rather than give up in despair. From this tenacity to cling to some ground of confidence, no doubt many persons satisfy themselves with a false hope. They may have professed religion, and enjoyed some marked experiences, but now are destitute of any valid evidence that they are the children of God: yet they cling to their old hope, not from any rational conviction that it is of any value, but from sheer recoil from the thought of being without hope. They fear to examine their cases carefully, thoroughly, for they have an indefinable conviction that such an examination would drive them to despair, and they choose rather to rest upon a false, a treacherous foundation, than face the danger, grapple with its worst form, and effect a remedy. Then pride often comes in to aid this reluctance, for having professed religion, their reputation for discretion, sincerity, intelligence is at stake, and they are unwilling to endure the humiliation of confessing that they were deceived, or that they have departed from God. So they hang on to a spurious hope, lull themselves to sleep, dreaming of security, when nought but ruin and desolation is before them. Their danger is all the more imminent, because they instinctively shy off from the truth, refuse to gauge their lives, motives, daily experience by it, and hence it does them little good. They are bound to a false hope by a three-fold cord that is not easily

broken, and it is more than probable never will be broken at all.

After persons get into the habit of treating danger with indifference, they become more and more heedless, and are more certain to fall into the danger which vigilance might have avoided. Habit is a powerful tyrant to bind by the cords of sin. And woe to the man who imbibes the habit of treating the question of the validity of his hope for eternity with neglect. His damnation is even then nearly as certain, as if he were already in the caverns of despair.

How awful is the peril of professors who are cherishing a false hope! Better far that they were now in despair, then they might hear the voice of mercy. But these things are hidden from their eyes. Every Christian should often examine his hope, compare it with the truth, see if it will stand the test of the Judgment. It is better to be often in trouble about our hope, though it is a good one, than to be content with one that is good for nothing. Moreover, we want present evidence that our hope is good. Because we concluded years ago that we were Christians, it by no means follows that we are now such. If we are now unwilling to obey God, if we neglect duty, find the service of Christ irksome, and the world more inviting, we should be alarmed. It is more likely that our hope is on the sand, if such symptoms are manifested. God grant that we may all be honest, examine our hopes, and have a true one at the last.—Sel.