Sunday Sermons
Hope - Part 1
Our Hope
The Bible describes the hope of the Christian as an anchor of the soul (Hebrews 6:19), the purpose of this anchor is to prevent spiritual drifting (Hebrews 2:1) and a life of shipwreck (1 Timothy 1:19). The hope of eternal life is a great stabilizer for the Christian, because it provides incentive to:
· Stay pure and avoid the dangerous rocks of temptation.
· Remain faithful while undergoing trial (Romans 8:18).
· Keep us fixed in purpose, unwilling to sacrifice the truth for a fad (Ephesians 4:14).
“Hope is so important to a man’s soul---it is the antithesis of the despair that can grip a man and cause him to give up. Hope accomplishes for the soul the same thing that an anchor does for a ship. The Christian’s mind is calm as long as his hope of heaven is firm” (Reese p. 101). Hebrews 6:19 speaks of “a hope both sure and steadfast”: This anchor is strong enough that it will not bend or break. This hope is true, reliable, secure, and certain. “It cannot slip and it cannot break” (Amp). “In contrast to those hopes torn away, unfailing and firmly fixed, it will not betray the confidence reposed in it but will hold firm” (Gr. Ex. N.T. p. 304). As long as our mind is on heaven, Satan cannot break this anchor. True hope can endure any trial and resist any temptation to stray.
Paul prayed that Christians would understand, “What is the hope of His calling” (Ephesians 1:18). So what really is our hope? The Bible describes it as “eternal life” (Titus 1:1-2; 3:7; Colossians 1:5 “Because of the hope laid up for you in heaven”). Yet clearly more is involved that eternal existence, because merely existing forever could be intolerable.
Our Hope: Being with Christ
“Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we shall be. We know that, when He appears, we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him just as He is. And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure” (1 John 3:2-3).
Paul said that being with Christ will be very much better (Philippians 1:23) than this life, and the reason for this, is that he would be with the Savior who loved him (Galatians 2:20). When Jesus taught us to love God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength (Mark 12:30), we must remember that God loves us with all His heart, mind, soul and strength. And God does not merely love us “in general” or as a group (John 3:16), He loves us as individuals, “Jesus felt a love for him” (Mark 10:21); “Who loved me, and delivered Himself up for me” (Galatians 2:20). Thus, Jesus did specifically die for me, He wants me to be with Him in heaven, and He doesn’t want to see me lost (2 Peter 3:9).
· Heaven is a place where one is eternally loved, and cherished forever.
· Heaven involves an eternity with a loving Father and the best friend one could ever imagine. The very fact that Jesus offered “friendship” to His disciples (John 15:14), indicates that God desires friendship. If Jesus wanted to spend time with believers while on this earth, then clearly He wants to spend time with us in heaven.
· In addition, seeing that God is omnipresent, having the ability to be everywhere at once (Psalms 139), He certainly has the ability to be with each believer in heaven. That is, heaven is not a place where I only get one minute a month with God because I must share Him with everyone else. Just as God hears my prayers and sees me presently, God and I can talk and be truly together in heaven.
· What would it be like having an eternal friendship with God? A relationship where every conversation was meaningful, encouraging, edifying, and stimulating?
· Is there any desire in our heart to go to a place where God says to you, “Guess what I have planned for us today”?
Our Hope: Meaningful Activity
When the Book of Revelation says that we shall serve God in eternity (Revelation 22:3), this obviously does not mean that we are waiting upon God, for God does not need anything (Acts 17:25 “Neither is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything”). The same is true in this life. As Christians we “serve” God, but serving God most often means serving others and working with Him in spreading His message and saving souls, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth” (1 Corinthians 3:6). Paul described Christians as “God’s fellow workers” (3:9). Jesus spoke of believers as being “with Him” and gathering “with Him” (Matthew 12:30). Thus our hope involves an eternity of working together with God, side by side with Him in a fulfilling, meaningful and grand purpose.
Our Hope: The Redemption of Our Body
Paul often tied hope with the “resurrection from the dead” (Acts 23:6; 24:15 “Having hope in God, which these men cherish themselves, that there shall certainly be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked”; 24:21). Not only shall we see God in all His splendor, but we shall be glorified as well. Paul said that every Christian shall receive the same type of glorious body that Jesus inhabits (Philippians 3:21). Further, this body is described as being “imperishable” (1 Corinthians 15:42); “glorious” (15:43); “powerful” (15:43); and is the image of the heavenly (15:49). This means:
· We will not exist for eternity as disembodied spirits.
· We will be given a body perfectly fitted for heaven, so we can enjoy all the pleasures, sights, and experiences of eternal life.
· We will have a body capable of performing far more than we can in this life.
· A body immune from pain, disease, death, aging, fatigue, depression, and all other problems associated with this earthly body.
· A body that will continue to give us a unique and distinct existence. That is, I will continue to be a distinct person, I will not become someone else or be blended into something else. Just like Moses is still Moses and Abraham is still Abraham, I will eternally remain myself.
· As far as I can tell, the resurrected body that the righteous will receive will transcend the beauty of everything that we have seen in this life, from what we see in the animal kingdom or in the cosmos (1 Corinthians 15:39-41).
· Paul further describes this body as “spiritual” (1 Corinthians 15:44). This means that this body is perfectly fitted for existence on a spiritual plane, and that this body is perfectly fitted for spiritual thoughts, goals, and pursuits. It is a body that is a perfect match for the soul, and a body that will never get in the way of the dreams and goals of the soul.
Our Hope: Being with other Believers
“For who is our hope or joy or crown of exultation? It is not even you, in the presence of our Lord Jesus at His coming?” (1 Thessalonians 2:19)
· Clearly, such a verse demands that we will indeed recognize each other in heaven. Among all the people present at the judgment day, Paul would recognize the Thessalonians he had taught.
· Of course the question always naturally arises concerning, “How can I enjoy heaven if I have loved ones who did not make it?” There are a number of answers to this question:
First, any loved one who does not make it to heaven does not want us joining them in their misery (Luke 16:28), in fact, if we are not presently faithful as we should be, their desire is that we be warned. Secondly, the Bible is clear that all tears, sorrow and suffering are absent in heaven (Revelation 21:4). Third, we will end up loving God far more than any earthly relationship. All earthly relationships will pale when compared to the relationship we can have with Him. Finally, I view things like Abraham did on this point. When Abraham was faced with a fact that did not seem to square with other facts, he believed that God could do something that would rectify the entire situation (Hebrews 11:19). So on the one hand the Bible says that all tears will be wiped away in heaven (Revelation 21:4), yet on the other hand I do not presently understand how I could not miss or grieve over a parent, child, relative, or good friend who chose otherwise. When confronted with a situation like this, Abraham believed that God could fix such a situation. Not that the lost finally end up saved (Matthew 25:46), but rather, that the saved eternally rejoice.
Our Hope: Absolute Splendor
The Bible also describes our hope with the term “glory” (Romans 5:2). Certainly part of this is actually seeing the full glory, splendor and absolute beauty of God Himself and the wonders of the heavenly city. In fact, the apostle John wrote, “We shall see Him just as He is” (1 John 3:2). Admittedly, it is at times hard to comprehend a beauty that transcends the beauty we see here. It is difficult to think of a body that is more beautiful than the human body, or a place more beautiful than the beach, or the mountains. The same is true with smells, tastes and earthly experiences. Yet the Bible does lay down the principle that “earthly things” are not the ultimate reality. In fact, many earthly things are nothing more than faint shadows of a far greater reality (Hebrews 8:5). So the next time you are doing something you love to do, just think, “There is something in heaven far greater than even this”.
Mark Dunagan/Beaverton Church of Christ/503-644-9017
www.beavertonchurchofchrist.net/mdunagan@easystreet.com
