Where is your Hope Anchored?

We all have hopes. Most often, they are the hopes of uncertainty, e.g., “I hope the weather is good tomorrow.” “I hope I get a car for my birthday.” “I hope my team wins the game.” Living in constant uncertainty can cause us to live on an emotional rollercoaster of fear, worry, and insecurity. And without a doubt, the world today is full of uncertainty. What is right is now called wrong and what is wrong is now called right by those who make the rules!

But there is another kind of hope, the hope of confident expectation. This kind of hope can only be found in the person of Jesus Christ. We can confidently expect all the promises of God (as found in the Bible) to be fulfilled. We can live securely knowing that our eternal destination is not dependent on our efforts or the world around us, but on what Jesus has already done for us.

The Bad News

According to God’s Word (the Bible), all mankind are sinners. Sin can be defined as disobedience to God’s laws, e.g., do not steal, do not lie, love one another, etc.  Also according to God’s Word, the penalty for this sin is death, both physical and spiritual death.

The Good News

Because of His great love for us, God provided the payment for our sin. God, in the person of Jesus, gave His life for all mankind. You have likely heard the account of Jesus dying on a cross. Well, it was this death that provided for the forgiveness of all sin, past, present, and future. All we must do is, by faith, receive this free gift of salvation. We acknowledge our sinfulness and believe (have faith) that Jesus died on a cross to pay our sin debt. Contrary to what many (probably most) people believe, we cannot earn this gift. Our good or bad behavior does not play any part in our salvation. Aren’t you glad?

More Good News

The death of Jesus provided for the forgiveness of sin, but He did not stay in the grave. He was resurrected on the third day, thus He defeated death! So when by faith we receive Jesus, we also receive His life, which is eternal, therefore we are united with Jesus for all eternity. His life becomes our life forever! Jesus has promised that He would never leave us.

We also receive the free gift of the Holy Spirit who, among many other things, comforts us and guides us in all truth.

 Too Simple?

This may sound way too simple. Probably because it is not likely that many of us would give our life for another, but it really is that simple. Some would try to make it complicated – don’t listen to them.

Consider these verses of Scripture –

²⁰  Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness; Who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter! Isaiah 5:20

⁵  I wait for the LORD, my soul does wait, And in His word do I hope. Psalm 130:5

⁷  Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is. Jeremiah

⁵  and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us. Romans 5:5

¹³  Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13

⁸  For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; ⁹  not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. Ephesians 2:8-9

¹²  Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned— Romans 5:12

⁸  But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8

⁶  “Be strong and courageous, do not be afraid or tremble at them, for the LORD your God is the one who goes with you. He will not fail you or forsake you.” Deuteronomy 31:6

³  For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, ⁴  and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 1 Corinthians 15:3-4

⁸  But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8

²³  For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23