HOPE: AN ANCHOR FOR LIFE

Romans 15:13 is a wonderful prayer that Paul wants every believer to experience: “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.”

So far I haven’t come across anyone saying, “I’m not concerned about having joy and peace and I don’t want to abound in hope.” In fact, we all want and need these qualities, and yet among us very few can reasonably claim to be filled with joy, peace and hope.

Here I would like to limit this article only to the vitality and need of hope leaving joy and peace for a separate thought.

While many see faith and hope as synonyms but it is not. Faith is something that is built upon what one has seen or heard (faith comes by hearing) in the past but hope is an expectation of future realities. Without faith, there is no hope, and without hope there is no true faith.

A Poem on Hope

Amidst unceasing prayer hope unveiling answer
Amidst vagrancy, hope eternal nest
Amidst earthly glory, hope unending wonder
Amidst earthly misery, hope heavenly rest
Amidst poverty, hope unfading asset
Amidst earthly achievements, hope upcoming Best
Amidst widened arms of darkness, hope divine breast
Amidst fiery darts, hope Lord’s final behest
Amidst failing endeavours, hope Christ abreast
Amidst fellow charlatans, hope eternal test


Only then our “hope” in Return of Christ has any value for its quest

You can notice hope is used in verb form in every place. So hope not only for the return for Christ in the future but also for every facet of your life now, here, on the earth. Hope for everything else, basically, emerges from the hope in Christ's Return. And due to the absence of this hope many seems to live a lukewarm dispirited Christians life (nominals). This hope gives us purpose to strive for the purity and assurance of future life. A Christian can still profess him/herself and be called Christian while having no hope for anything similar to non-believers. Our eternal life will not start in the future but has already began with new birth in Christ.

Every mankind has hope of some sort. However, hope in human agency is the product of human mind but the hope in divine is product of divine enablement (through Holy Spirit). That’s why people who lack Holy Spirit also lack this hope. While they may have the ultimate hope of Christ’s coming (everyone has that) but may lose hoping for everything else, significantly, things pertinent for present life.

“…so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Such hope doesn’t come from nowhere but is given by the power of the Holy Spirit. So yielding to Holy Spirit is the key for receiving/growing in the hope.

THUS HOPE IS AN ANCHOR FOR OUR LIFE IN CHRIST AS WE LIVE ON THIS EARTH WITH HUMAN WEAKNESSES. 

◄ 1 John 3:3 ►And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.◄ Romans 8:24 ►For in this hope we were saved; but hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he can already see? 

Outcomes of Hope

(1) It gives us joy and peace.

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

Romans 5:2 through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God.

(2) It gives us protection.

Psalm 33:18 Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear Him, On those who hope for His lovingkindness.

(3) It gives us strength, courage, boldness.

Psalm 31:24 Be strong, and let your heart take courage, All you who hope in the LORD.

(4) It gives us endurance, comfort, confidence in the face of death.

1 Thessalonians 4:13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve, as do the rest who have no hope.

(5) It gives us confidence in ministry.

1 Timothy 4:10 For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers.

Image Source: http://circleofdocs.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/hope-hero.jpg

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GO-WAIT-BE

Sometimes we think that we have arrived. 

We all are a part of the great commission. Though you be an entrepreneur, engineer, doctor or a mere believer, everyone one of us is a disciple of Christ. First of all Jesus before ascending above commissioned disciples with great commission but then again in Book of Acts first chapter told them to wait and then finally to be in the same chapter. So there are three commissions not one. Let's analyse these three in their appropriate paradigm.

1. Great commission-Go

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of father, the son and ye Holy Spirit and teach them everything I have taught you. Before we make disciples we have to become a disciple. Now someone may ask how can Jesus say first to go and then wait? Because in this busy world you have to go in a place where you can find time and a place to wait. Going is more of a decision making than actually physically going somewhere for ministers. When Jesus called disciples to follow Him, He first called them to go and from the part of disciples they first chose to follow Jesus then started act of following. So we have to take decision to go and then comes a time to wait for something fascinating. This for no doubt is the great commission. 

2. Greater commission-Wait 

Acts 1:4, here we find second communion by our Lord that not to depart from Jerusalem but wait for the promise. The Promise of the father is the Spirit, the Spirit of truth. John 14 and 15 talks about this promised Spirit. Because unless you have the Spirit of truth you can't share the truth, which gospel of Jesus Christ. A lot of people think that they can accomplish what God wants through their life just by their own might. But biblical principal says that everything God does is through his Spirit whether in OT or NT. And Jesus said to His disciples to wait for the Spirit of God to fill them with power. And we see disciples of Jesus waited for this. So we need to realise our weakness of human state and the power that God gives through His spirit to prefect us in our weakness. This is the greater commission. 

3. Greatest commission-Be

Acts 1:8 "to be" you can't go unless you are like Christ. Now the disciples were with Jesus for almost 24/7 for three and half years. But still many of those guys could not be what Jesus expected them to be. This might be because of the absence of the power of the Holy Spirit. So we are not just called to do alone but to be. A lot of ministers think that they just have to do the gospelization, preachings, teachings and prayers, however, for what God has called us involves something more intriguing that is to be. This be has to do with becoming. Because be incorporates a process of becoming something. That is to be like Christlike. Then to be witness. 

Here I remember the quote that Francis of Assisi said, "preach the gospel and if needed use words"

So our life matters more than our preachings and teachings. Unless we have become we can't make someone. Philippians, in chapter 2, says let that mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus. 2 Corinthians 3:2-3 says that we are the living epistles of Jesus Christ. Let's make all attempts to be what God's wants us to be and fulfil greatest and final commandment. 

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