The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe…
(Thanks to Larry and his dad for inspiration on this one)
"Hope"
"My expectation is from Him" (Psalm 62:5).
Hope, as defined by Scripture, is the willed choice to view the future in terms of God and His Biblically declared truth.
"Thou art my hope, O Lord God" (Psalm 71:5).
"I hope in Thy Word" (Psalm 119:81).
A dear friend once asked his pastor father, "What is the world coming to, Dad?" The father replied, "Son, that is not the question. No, Who came to the world? That is the question." Yes, from Genesis to Revelation, the promise of the Lord Jesus Christ's coming, and the fulfillment of such assurance graces every book, chapter, verse, sentence, word, and letter. The Lord Jesus came as the kept promise of God to Israel. He came as the kept promise of God to live, die and rise again for sinners in need of a Savior. He came as the kept promise of God to dwell within the hearts of those who trust Him through the Holy Spirit. He will come again as the kept promise of God to the church and to Israel. This is hope, an historical assurance that profoundly impacts the realities of our personal existence.
A number of questions for which we find answers in God's heart and in His Word may help us to remember and affirm our expectation.
Will God be in this day what He promises in His Word? (I Corinthians 1:20).
Will He do what He promises as He works in the world at large? And in our personal world? (Ephesians 1:11; II Corinthians 9:8).
Will He personally work not from afar, but from within our hearts, and in the epicenter of every venue in our lives? (Galatians 4:6; Matthew 28:20; Hebrews 13:5)
Will we find Him true to His Word? If so, how true? (Proverbs 30:5).
Will He work all things together for the good of His trusting sons and daughters in Christ? (Roman 8:28; Ephesians 1:11).
Will His way in our lives fulfill the standard of perfection His Word assures? (II Samuel 22:31).
Will His love so devote itself to our hearts than He maintains the numbering of the very hairs of our head? (Matthew 10:30).
Will He be with us as the blessing of every blessing, and as our "very present help in trouble?" (Philippians 4:19; Psalm 46:1).
Will the prints of nails still mar the risen body of the Lord Jesus as the undying testimony of how personally dear we are to God? (Luke 24:39).
Is the tomb of the Lord Jesus still empty? Does His Heavenly throne remain occupied? Does He abide as Lord,both now and forevermore?" (Matthew 28;6; Ephesians 1:20; Philippians 2:11).
These and countless other questions answered in the light of God and His Word will fill our being with the hope of which we will never be ashamed or disappointed. Because no one has ever trusted in the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ and been disappointed for doing so. And no one ever will. This is hope, His hoped promised and provided, our hope believed and confessed, and the only hope that exists for every human heart. Yes, the Lord Jesus came to this world, and to our hearts when we believed. He will come again, as promised, and the first moment in His direct presence will reveal that our hope was not misplaced.
"I hoped… I hope… I will hope."
(Psalm 119:47; 38:15; 71:14)
"Hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit which is given unto us."
(Romans 5:5)
Weekly Memory Verse
As many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name.
(John 1:12)
7087
No comments:
Post a Comment