As believers in the Lord Jesus Christ we have a wonderful hope, don’t we? But what do we mean by the word “hope”? The world uses the word “hope” in the sense of wish for something that has little or no chance of occurring. When a person says, ‘I hope I win Lotto’, he or she is saying, ‘I wish I could win’. When we say ‘I hope so, and so and so comes over today’ we are wishing that something distant may come to pass. Be assured that this kind of ‘wish upon a star’ hope is not the Christian hope.
When we say that we have hope the Christian means that he has a certain future that will come to pass. Nothing or no one can take away that future and nothing or no one can make void the promise of God. No one can undo what the Lord has done. The picture painted in chapter four is one of peace and blessing. It’s a picture of tranquillity. It is a painting of victory and God’s sovereignty. Nothing can undo that which God has said He will do.
Christian hope goes even further. Since Jesus has died on the cross for our sins and since He has been raised to eternal life we know that nothing can take away our salvation. Read Romans 8:38-39. Nothing can snatch away the love of Christ that has been lavished upon us. Nothing can undo the merits of the death of Christ that have been reckoned to our account. Nothing can make God undo His ‘Not Guilty’ verdict delivered when Christ wore our sentence and punishment. You are eternally loved by God. That is the Christian hope.
The Christian hope that you and I have affects our day to day living, much like a billion dollar bank account would affect our day to day living. Are you spending your faith? Are you stepping out in faith and living out that hope you have in Christ? Are you shining that hope you have to the world around you? The world actually wants to hear about Jesus during Christmas. They want to know the meaning behind the nativity scenes. You can bring hope to people this Christmas. You can fill the void in their life by loving them with the love of Christ, by serving them and speaking Jesus in to their lives. You can generously give to them out of the billion dollar faith account that Christ has set up for you.
Christmas time is so much more than a fat man in a ridiculously red suit climbing down non existent chimneys. Christmas is about hope because the one who will bring in the brave new world of hope has come into our world. The one who would open the gates to splendour has been born. No wonder the angels cried out, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom His favour rests."
Prayer:-
- Pray for opportunities to share your hope with the world today. Pray that doors will open up for service, for loving acts and for speaking the gospel into people’s lives. Pray that you might lead people into the Kingdom today to the praise and glory of Him who called us.
- Pray for the trainee ministers in Myanmar as they too prepare for Christmas. In a largely Buddhist nation, pray that these men and women have opportunity to share Christ, to make disciples and to be used by God to bring repentance and faith to many. Pray that the message of Christ will draw many to God.
No comments:
Post a Comment