Kingdom Ready

I think the title says it all. The world as we know it is battling with hopelessness. Everything in our society these days has become uncertain. Nothing is guaranteed. Hence many are living in fear and misery. All they see is a pitiful life with no end in sight. Sometimes they wish death would take them and be rid of this little existence. How about when this begins to creep into the church? Today, I want to speak on the subject of hope and its importance in our life. Hope is an integral part of Christianity and each of us must learn about it and live it out.

 

Before we can proceed, let’s try to define hope.

 

Hebrews 11:1

To the writer, hope has its roots in faith. He says that faith is the assurance of things hoped for. That word assurance means, “a setting or placing under; the substance or essence.” In paraphrasing, faith is the essential ingredient that produces hope. Faith is about believing things not seen (2 Cor 5:7) and because of that, hope is being produced. Hope is the earnest expectation of one day seeing those very things that have not been seen.

 

“if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverence we wait eagerly for it.” – Rom 8:25

 

In other words, great faith results in great hope; little faith equals little hope and obviously no faith equals no hope. This is where hope stems from. Unfortunately, there are many people with no hope in this world or in their outlook on life.

 

Ephesians 2:12

Paul spares no expense here in describing our former lifestyle as heathen sinners and sadly the common condition of most people in the world today. These are people who do not have God and Christ in their life, who are shut out from being citizens of the kingdom of God and are foreigners to God’s covenants and promises. These people have no hope – because they refuse to believe. They are as athiests.

 

1 Thessalonians 4:13

Paul describes another aspect of the hopelessness of the heathen world – the subject concerning the reality of death. To many people, death is viewed as final, they consider their deceased as permanently gone, never to return; and this produces much grief and sorrow. Is there any hope in this attitude? None whatsover.

 

Folks, there is much hopelessness in the world today and sadly it’s creeping into the church. There is so much unbelief, so much misery and depression, so much sorrow and sadness, that it has become intoxicating. Many are so drowning in it that it’s robbed them of all faith and hope. Does this sound like you? Then you are in need of hope!

 

Colossians 1:23

Hope begins with the gospel. Without the primary message, there is no opportunity in getting hope. How can it be done?

1) It begins by hearing the message

2) It is then proceeded by faith

3) In this faith, we must be firm and unwavering

 

If one does all 3, then he/she will not be moved away from hoping in the gospel message!

Q: What is it about the gospel message that births and produces such hope?

 

Titus 1:1 – 3

The gospel that was entrusted to Paul to preach outlined God’s promise of immortality (eternal life) for those who obeyed its message (v2). This is the Christian hope – to one day inherit life everlasting (absence of decay & death, of which causes much hopelessness). According to Paul, since God promised it and cannot lie, He is under oath to fulfil it (v2) and He will! Therefore, hope can be further defined as…

 

“An earnest looking forward with an expectation of receiving those things that have been promised to us”

 

1 Thessalonians 5:8

The promise of eternal life (immortality) is our salvation. Our hope is to one day be saved from the curse of this world, from all of its sickness, decay and death and finally from the impending judgment of God’s wrath upon an evil world (Rom 5:9). How fitting that Paul illustrated the hope of salvation (Eph 6:17) as a helmet (which protects the head/mind)? The battle to keep focus on the hope of our salvation in the midst of a crooked, perverse and difficult world takes place in the mind!

 

Salvation and immortality will be realized through the monumental event of the resurrection of the dead!

 

Acts 23:6; 24:14 – 15; 26:6 – 8

Paul’s hope was exclusively tied towards this glorious event. Like Paul, we know as does the world, that we’re all dying – and will one day die. Yet, whilst many sorrow over death because they have no hope, we on the other hand do have hope – that God will one day bring us back to life again, at the appointed day/hour. He has promised!

 

“I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in me shall live even if he dies…” – Joh 11:25

 

1 Timothy 1:1

To Paul, Jesus Christ was his hope. What did he mean here? All of the details of the gospel message are centered around God’s human messiah. The promise of the coming kingdom, salvation, immortality can only be effectuated through Jesus Christ. In other words, unless Jesus comes back, none of these things are bound to happen. This is why Paul called him our hope. Without his return, there will be no resurrection, no salvation, no immortality for the rest of us.

 

This is why the last chapter of the book of Revelation cries, “Come, Lord Jesus” – Rev 22:20

The 2nd coming of Jesus Christ, this awesome event, ought to be our hope that our hope is fixed on. Peter said…

 

“fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ…” – 1 Pet 1:13

 

God’s timetable is racing forward towards this date. Is our faith in the gospel producing the hope that is fully rested in this glorious event? Have we lost sight of the nearness of Christ’s coming? Have we come to doubt it?

 

This is tragedy of some Christian folk.

Perhaps some are losing hope because they are wavering in their faith. Perhaps others really don’t believe in the message of the gospel. Perhaps some just haven’t really heard the gospel! Either way, without the 3 pronged strategy that Paul outlined in Colossians 1:23, one cannot effectively possess and express hope in their life.

 

Hebrews 10:23

The writer of Hebrews admonishes us to be unwavering (Gr. aklinh) in our hope. The command to be steadfast is due God’s faithful character. He promised, didn’t he? Will he not carry it out? Because of this, we are encouraged to hold fast to our hope. How fascinating that he calls it the confession of our hope? How often to do we acknowledge in our speech the hope of our destiny? How often do you find Christians speaking about the 2nd coming, the resurrection, salvation, immortality and their involvement in these powerful events? How often do we tell others that these things to come cause us to live victoriously in this present evil age, because we are future looking, not present looking?

 

Listen to the desire of the writer concerning hope…

 

Hebrews 6:11 – 12

I second his desire. Are each of us showing the same commitment in hearing the words of the gospel? Are we letting these words produce an assurance of our place in God’s program? If we believe it, are we hopeful of it? Is our hope carrying us through to the end?

The writer warns: do not become lazy (v12). Faith in of itself is a work (faith comes by hearing and that of the word of God). If we get lazy, we shrink back in faith, and hence our hope diminishes. Lack of/no hope is disastrous. It causes us to become entangled in the cares of the world and our hearts become weighed down.

Rather, we’re exhorted to mimic others (see Heb 11) of faith. Though they also endured similar trials that we experience, they learnt patience, character and hope – all the while eagerly waiting for their inheritance that God promised.

 

“Tribulation brings about perserverance, and perserverance, proven character; and proven character, hope;” – Rom 5:4

 

Conclusion

Hope is an important aspect of the Christian life – for it causes us to look forward, not back, as Israel, though delivered out of Egypt, kept looking back and not forward to their destiny of the promised land. Let not our hardships blur our vision for the future: the gospel of the coming kingdom will come to pass. Jesus Christ will return and the messianic age will be ushered in – and we will receive our reward. Yet, there can be no hope without the essential ingredient of faith. Do we believe? No faith, no hope. Ye are in need of hope; so get faith!

To hear this sermon, please visit www.redwordschurch.com