1 Peter 1:3 (NIV)
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy
he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus
Christ from the dead,
Hope is
an essential component of life. When we lose hope, we fall into despair.
Hopelessness is one of the most devastating experiences that a person can have.
In are
living in a time when people are desperately looking for hope. Traditionally
people looked for hope from God or the gods. They looked to something or
someone more powerful and more transcendent than themselves. In the main,
Western culture has abandoned the idea of the transcendent. Instead, they have
tried to find other things in which to placed their hope.
Many
post-modern people have placed their hope in science. They believe that all of
life can be explained and rationalized through scientific exploration. But
science often raises more questions than it gives answers. It can explain how
things work, but not why they exist. There are major aspects of the human
experience that science cannot explain.
Many
people have placed their hope in progress. Progress is the idea that if we just
strive hard enough, we will expand our world and solve all of our problems.
Progress is based on the idea that what is ahead of us is always going to be
bigger and better. But progress has not delivered on its promises. In many
ways, the pursuit of progress has caused as many problems as it has solved. The
Western world has achieved a high standard of living, but often at the cost to
the non-Western world. The current hot button, climate change, is a direct
result of progress.
Currently,
many people are looking to politics to give them hope. They believe that if the
right political party is put in place that everything else will fall in line. But
as we know all too well in America, the ruling political party changes
routinely, dashing some people’s hope and enlivening others.
Another
place that people look for hope is through social action. They believe that
having the right social programs in place is the answer to our needs. Many of
these social programs have done great things to improve the lives of many
people. But again, they have fallen short of the goal. Unintentionally, some of
these social programs have only increased people’s dependency and decreased
their hope.
Science,
progress, politics, and social programs are all good things in their place, but
they are not sufficient to provide lasting hope to people. In the end, they all
disappoint us. There is only one place where we can find enduring hope. That is
in faith in Jesus Christ.
The hope
we have in Jesus is not wishful thinking or pie in the sky. It is a living hope
that builds the closer we get to Him. Our hope is based on what Jesus did for
us on the cross. He paid the penalty for our sins so that we could be set free
from sin and death. Our hope is based on the reality of the resurrection of
Jesus, which validated all that Jesus had taught and claimed. Our hope is based
on the promise of real justice, peace, and joy. Because Jesus transcends our
world, He is not limited by the constraints of this world. As the creator of
all that is, He has the right and the power to judge justly, to right every
wrong. He also has the authority to forgive and redeem.
One of
the greatest aspects of the hope we have in Jesus is the reality that this life
is not the entire story. When we see the world as a closed system, this life is
all we have. There is nothing to look forward to or to strive for. There is
really no purpose or direction in life. We just exist for our allotted time and
then vanish. That is not a very hopeful perspective. But Jesus gives us a very
different and more compelling story. This life is important, but it is only the
gateway to eternity. How we live this life shapes us for the next. If we place
our faith in the saving and redeeming work of Jesus, we can look forward to
living a redeemed and transformed life in eternity. This life will be a life of
experiencing pure love, joy, and peace in God’s welcoming presence. If we
choose to reject Jesus’ saving and redeeming work, we will face an eternity of
despair and hopelessness.
During a
time of despair and loss of hope Jesus gave hope. It took place at the death of
His close friend Lazarus. As Mary and Martha grieved, Jesus offered them a hope
that goes beyond the grave. Jesus said to her (Martha), "I am
the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he
dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe
this?" John 11:25-26 (NIV) Near the end of His earthly life, as Jesus
was preparing His disciples for His coming death on the cross, He parted the
curtain between time and eternity and gave them (and us) a glimpse of what is
ahead. "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in
me. In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told
you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a
place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be
where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going." John
14:1-4 (NIV)
You
might stop at this point and think, wait a minute, this seems to be too good to
be true. How is it possible for me to enter into this eternal hope? You are not
alone. One of the disciples asked the same question of Jesus. Jesus gave the
answer that is the key it a hope that can withstand any challenge. Thomas
said to him, "Lord, we don't know where you are going, so how can we know
the way?" Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life.
No one comes to the Father except through me. John 14:5-6 (NIV)
Whether
we acknowledge it or not, we are all placing our hope for the future in
something. It may be in politics, or success, or even our own abilities. But
all worldly hopes will disappoint us. They cannot deliver the lasting hope that
we are looking for. Only Jesus can give us a hope that is secure and will
endure.
Hebrews 4:14-16 (NIV)
Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the
heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For
we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses,
but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet was
without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that
we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
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