What do you place your hope in today? Do you place it in the government? Do you place it in a political party? Do you place it in yourself? How is it working for you when you place your hope in something? Have you ever thought of placing your hope in The Gospel? I have and I do. Let me share with you what I have learned about hope.
To make it clear the Gospel I am talking about is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It is the true story of God’s perfect plan of redemption through the death, burial and resurrection of His Son Jesus Christ. It is by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone that God redeems us from our sins and brings us into fellow ship. “For the believer there is hope beyond the grave, because Jesus Christ has opened the door to heaven for us by His death and resurrection.” -Billy Graham, I have found this to be my greatest hope. No matter what I am going through right now I know that my future is with Jesus in heaven.
But it is not only my future that the Gospel brings me hope but it is in the present as well. The Apostle Paul says in 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 the following, “So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.” (ESV) As I see this, I understand that my struggles today are just merely temporary and they are of no comparison to what is in store for me. Right now, I am in a cast after having foot surgery. It is a pain because it is more difficult to do what I want to do. I need my crutches or my knee scooter to get around. There has also been minimal physical pain but in the long run I will be better. My momentary affliction will end soon.
I also know that the God is my source of hope. As the Apostle Paul says in Romans 15:13 “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.” (ESV) It is through God and His Holy Spirit that I not only have hope but I abound in hope. All this is possible for all who believe in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ for the propitiation of our sins. If you have not already done so, please accept God’s grace for you. This reminds me of the hymn by Edward Mote, My Hope is built on Nothing Less.
To reiterate the fact that the Gospel is the only way to salvation and all that is needed John Wycliffe said, “The Gospel alone is sufficient to rule the lives of Christians everywhere; any additional rules made to govern men’s conduct add nothing to the perfection already found in the Gospel of Jesus Christ”
I pray you will join me in seeking your hope from the Gospel. It is the only source of true long-term hope because it is from the God who never changes, who will never be unfaithful to us, who always keeps His promises, whose steadfast love endures forever, and who loves us so much He sent His Son Jesus Christ to restore relationship with Him. Finally know that God has something new every morning for us. It is these things that give you hope. Remember from past blogs that it is by knowing God that we have hope. The relationship with God through Jesus brings us hope in the present and the future. I would also encourage you to seek Jesus for He is the only opportunity there is to have eternal life. This is to me the greatest source of hope. In doing so, I believe we will have hope and joy during our everyday lives. Understanding that Jesus Christ allows us to access eternal life, “And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” John 17:3 (ESV) This will allow us to have hope. At the same time understanding you will live eternally knowing the only true God and Jesus Christ and this will bring you the greatest hope. Because of the death of Jesus Christ on the cross satisfied the penalty for sins. His payment satisfies all my sins from the past, the present and in the future. My penalty and yours was satisfied on the cross by the death of Jesus, God’s greatest act of love and wrath, who became sin for me and you. It was also God’s greatest act of faithfulness because “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8 (ESV) Because holiness shows us, we need to believe in Jesus. I hope that you join me in helping others to choose Jesus.
If you have not read my previous blogs, you can find them here.
You can watch book trailer about my book.
You can find my book, Hope Amid Hopelessness: Our Abba Father Provides a Way Through Mental Illness here.
eBook or Audiobook versions can be found at Westbow Press or Christianbook.com at Amazon or Google.
