Three Reasons Why Hopeful Resisted Conviction

In Chapter 15 of The Pilgrim’s Progress, Christian wants to know Hopeful’s testimony.

Christian Asked:

How did you first decide to begin this pilgrimage? 

Hopeful Replied:

“Do you mean, how did I first come to care about my soul’s welfare?”

Christian Replied:

“Yes, that is what I mean.”

Hopeful answered honestly:

"For a long time, I continued to delight in those things seen at Vanity Fair. I now believe that place would have drawn me into Hell and destruction if I had continued."

Christian Asked:

 What were those things?

Hopeful explained:

"All the treasures and riches of the world. Oh, I also found great pleasure in riotous behaviour, wild parties, drinking, swearing, lying, immorality, Sabbath-breaking, and other things that contribute to the soul's destruction.

Hopeful also added it was during that same time that his heart was stirred by the preaching of Christian and Faithful.

Christian Asked:

“And did you at once fall under the power of this conviction?"

Hopeful Replied:

"No, I wasn't immediately willing to admit the evil of sin or to acknowledge the damnation resulting from it. At first, when my mind began to be shaken by the Word, I tried to shut my eyes to its light."

Christian Asked:

“But what was the cause of your continuing to hold on to sin when God’s blessed Spirit was first beginning to work on you?”

Hopeful Replied:

• First, I was ignorant of the fact that God was acting upon me.

  
  

• Second, sin was still very desirable to my flesh, and I didn't want to part with it.

  
  

• Third, I didn't know how to break off relationships with my old friends; their companionship and the things we enjoyed together were very important to me.

Let us unpack the three issues of Hopeful.

1.   It is not that He did not know God was working on Him, but rather he refused to believe the time to respond was now. For this reason, he attempted to silence his conviction by imagining that it was a momentary feeling that would soon pass away, but it did not. A friend once told me, when God begins to speak, He keeps speaking until we yield, if I may add, he does not give you rest until you obey, such as it was in the case of Jeremiah 20:9 -10. 

2.    Ah, here we see the reason why he was ignorant, sin was too good to leave behind. If you do not follow up on your conviction you never will know what David meant when he said, “O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.” Psalm 34:8

3.   Connected to Hopeful’s ignorance He had friends He did not know how to cut off and replace.

Christian Asked:

“Well, what did you do then?”

Hopeful Replied,

“I thought I must make every effort to change my ways or else I would surely be damned?”

Christian Asked:

“And, did you try to change?”

Hopeful Replied:

"Yes, and I fled not only from my sins but from my sinful friends as well. I began to perform religious duties such as praying, reading, weeping for sin, and telling my neighbours the truth.”

The emphasis here is that Hopeful Fled, but that was not all He did. After fleeing he began to share the Word with his neighbours.

I have noticed that after you flee from something, if you do not keep yourself busy with something else, it will not be long until your old life catches up to you and drags you back.

I once gave a friend three tips to finding God

1.        Acknowledge the condition of your true state - you are lost.

2.        Remove yourself from whatever is separating you from Him. 

3.        Admit that you can do nothing to save yourself without the help of Jesus.

Lastly, to delay is to wait upon the devil’s timing. 

Move like Hopeful and give the enemy no time to react.