Got Hope

This message delivered to my church on Sunday, May 3, 2009

How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. 1 John 3:1-2

Got Hope?

I chose to talk to you today from the second lesson from I John. Yes today is Good Shepherd Sunday but this passage really impacted me and I felt obliged to speak on it.

In that passage John touches upon one of the great themes of the Bible—the subject of hope. The word occurs over 50 times in the New Testament. Our strength to live healthy, godly, productive lives depends greatly on this element of hope in our hearts.

Without hope there is really no reason to expend effort. A state of hopelessness is closely akin to a state of death. Hope is as essential to the human soul as water or food is to our physical bodies.

A life without hope is a living hell. In fact, one thing that will make hell so unbearable is the absolute absence of hope.

The Devil was having a yard sale, and all of his tools were marked with different prices.

They were tools like hatred, lust, jealously, deceit, lying, and pride—all carrying a high price tag. But over to one side of the yard on display was a tool more worn than any other tool. It was also the most costly. The tool was labeled Discouragement.

When asked why this tool was priced so high, the Devil answered, “It’s more useful to me than any other tool. When I can’t bring my victims down with any of these other tools, I use discouragement, because most of them don’t even realize it belongs to me.” Have you ever had that tool used on you?

Have you ever lost your joy because you lost your hope?

Have you ever lost your will to go on because you lost your hope?

Facing divorce, possible foreclosure and bankruptcy, and a struggling new business I had lost my hope. The apple cart had been completely upset. In fact I am not sure the apple cart was still intact. But the Devil also knows that godly hope is a powerful thing. That’s why he will do everything he can to rob us of our confident expectation in God.

For months I was mired in the feeling of loss. My whole life as I had known it had been obliterated. In a few short years I had gone from being on top of the world to having lost all hope.

My life was good. I was in a good marriage, my family was strong and happy, my work was providing a better than average income and lifestyle. I thought I had it all. Then boom in a matter of a few months of time it all went away.

What happened? If you remember, I spoke of God’s call in a message I gave here about two years ago. I knew then that following what I believed was his calling for me might cost me everything. And for the most part it has. Worst of all I had lost hope.

Many have told me the process I am going through is much like mourning a death. The grief process initially robs us of so much. We are hurt, angry, scared and feel very much alone. For me I had withdrawn from many of the things in which I found fulfillment and purpose.

I felt alone and angry. Why had God called me here and then abandoned me. Why was I willing to give up so much to follow what I believed was his plan? In so many ways I had lost hope.

My life is very different today than it was even ten months ago. I am living alone and working from my home. I see my kids much less often and feel I have less impact in their lives. Financially I struggle more than maybe anytime in my life. There are days when I simply sit and cry having my own personal “pity parties”. I believed there was no hope.

In recent weeks I have begun to see the light. Opportunities have begun to present themselves where I would have never thought before.

What I have gained far exceeds what I lost. I have a much better perspective of who I am. Daily I write about what is going on in my life. This process of journaling has brought me new understanding of my purpose. Bravely I have posted much of my writing on a blog I have created.

My desire is others will read and be inspired by the struggles and how I have overcome them. By the successes and rewards I experience, by the activity of God in my everyday life. He has not left me. There is hope.

In the New Testament the word hope translated means confident expectation.

In our society hope often carries the weak idea of wishful thinking. We say, “I hope so” and often mean “I doubt so.” But when you read that word in the New Testament understand that we are talking about a firm expectation. That kind of hope has a profound influence on the way we live. It is this hope that has moved me forward.

In May I will be leaving for an eight week speaking tour throughout much of the northwestern part of the country. This is an opportunity which I could have never been able to follow before. In fact this is just the first of more than sixty cities I will be presenting programs in through the middle of 2010.

In this opportunity there is hope. This is very much God looking after one of his children, allowing me to share my faith through my work and with those with whom I come in contact.

I have come to understand I am not a child of God because I am better than any sinner out there. I am only a child of God because I receive the gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ.

But if we are to succeed in our journey of faith, we must know who we are. “Now, we are-- the children of God...” This is not just something that will happen someday in the great beyond. This is a present reality. Now I am a child of God. This is something we can know in the here and now—in this life. It is this reality which has allowed me to emerge from the despair and fear I have felt. And it is true for you as well.

Someone might say, “How can I know.” You can know because the Holy Spirit will witness that reality to your spirit.

In Romans 8:16 we read, “The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.” In the reading from today John gives us a number of ways to confirm our relationship with God. This is something we can know in the here and now—in this life.

We know we are children of God by our love toward other believers. That does not mean that we never have a disagreement or never have to deal with our attitude toward another believer. But deep inside of us there is a union with them and we are convicted when our attitude is not right and we are prompted by the Holy Spirit to walk in love.

“Now, we are the children of God...”

What does it mean to be a child of God? It means you are already acceptable with God. You don’t have to earn His favor. You don’t have to be good enough for God to like you or bless you. You are as Ephesians puts it “...blessed with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ...” and you are already “...accepted in the Beloved...”

You are—approved by God because of the sacrifice of Christ in your behalf—and worthy because by the grace of God He has made you worthy.

The practical significance of that is you can come to God for help whatever the need may be—even when you have failed and come short of His glory, you don’t have to draw back from God but are invited to His throne of grace. Do you need forgiveness? Ask and you shall receive. “The blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin.” It is important to know who you are in Christ right now because Satan, will jump on every failure, every shortcoming and try to use it to steal your hope in God.

“Now we are the children of God...” Sometimes we don’t act like it. Sometimes we misbehave and our Father has to deal with that. But what we are is what we are or as the cartoon character, Popeye, would say, “I ams what I ams.”

“Now we are the children of God...” That statement is a call to act like it. It is also a basis of hope and confidence to strengthen our resolve to act like it.

In I John 3:1 John tells us to consider the love God has lavished upon us that we who were once enemies of God and children of the Devil, doomed for destruction would now be called the children of God. A revelation of that great love (that sent Jesus to the cross in our behalf) will also stir us to gratitude and obedience. “We love Him because He first loved us.”

The subject of our hope does not end in this life, for John also talks about “What we will be...” Here is a great encouragement of faith: “What we will be...” What we will be “has not yet been made known”.

We are limited in our revelation of God’s plans for us. The world certainly doesn’t see us as anything special at all. The manifestation of the sons of God has not yet happened.We have this treasure in earthen vessels. And what people mostly see is the earthen vessel not the treasure of God’s life in us. “Christ in you, the hope of glory”

There is much about heaven we don’t know. “Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.” 1 Cor. 13:12

In the town of Port Hope, Canada there is a monument erected, not for some leading citizen, but for a poor, unselfish working man who gave most of his life and energy helping people who could not repay him.

Joseph Scriven was born in Dublin in 1820. As a young man he was full of high ideals and aspirations. He was engaged to a pretty young woman who promised to share his dreams with him. But on the eve of their wedding her body was pulled from a pond where she had accidentally fallen and drowned.

Joseph Scriven never overcame the shock of that tragedy. Although a college graduate with the potential of a brilliant career, he began to wander to try to forget his sorrow. His wanderings took him to Canada where he spent the last 41 years of his life. He became a very devout Christian. His beliefs led him to labor tirelessly for poor widows and sick people. He often served for no wages.

No one knew that Joseph had poetic gifts until shortly before his death at 60 years old. A friend, who was sitting with him while he was ill, discovered a poem he had written to his mother during a time of sorrow. Joseph never intended for anyone else to see it. His poem was later set to music and has become a much loved gospel song. It is said to be the first song that many missionaries teach their converts. In polls taken to determine the popularity of Gospel songs, his is always near the top. What was his poem?

“What a friend we have in Jesus. All our sins and griefs to bear.What a privilege to carry, everything to God in prayer.Oh, what peace we often forfeit, Oh what needless pain we bear; All because we do not carry, Everything to God in prayer.”I

n this lifetime Joseph Scriven had no idea how God would ultimately use his life.You may not understand what God is doing in your life. But if God has told you to do something He has His reasons. And one day, you may be pleasantly surprised to discover that God has done abundantly more than you ever imagined.Nurture hope. For if you do, hope will nurture you.

Amen.

Portions of this text come from: Richard Tow, Grace Chapel Foursquare Church, Springfield, MO