Hope: Laying the Foundation

PASSAGE FOR THE DAY:

28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. 29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 30 And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.

31 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written:

“For your sake we face death all day long;

    we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”

37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:28-39, NIV)

REFLECTIONS:

As we mentioned at yesterday's worship gathering, we have entered the season of Advent—a 24-day period in which the church anticipates and celebrates the coming of Jesus at Christmas. Advent simply means "coming" or "arrival." It is a season of expectation and longing. A season to pause and remember. A season to meditate and sing. It is a season to consider all the promises of God fulfilled in the life and ministry of Jesus Christ and to anticipate his return.

Over the next few weeks, we will focus on a number of themes traditionally highlighted during Advent: hope, peace, joy, and love. This week we will center our thoughts on the concept of biblical hope. We'll seek to understand how the birth of Jesus brought hope to the Jewish people of his day, and we'll seek to understand how the promise of his future coming can bring hope to our world today.

So, to begin, we ask the question: What is hope? We use the word all the time. “I hope I don’t get sick.” “I hope my boss is nice to me.” “I hope my favorite sports team is good this year.”

When we use “hope” this way, we really mean something more like wish—a desire for something we want to have happen regardless of feasibility. Biblical hope, on the other hand, is “the confidence that what God has done for us in the past guarantees our participation in what God will do in the future.” The word “guarantees” demonstrates the vast difference between the fleeting wishes of casual hope and strong promise of biblical hope.

Hope is a future-oriented term, but it is grounded in past events. In the Old Testament, the source of hope for God’s people was God’s proven character and his mighty deeds in history. The Psalmist says, “Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, who keeps faith forever, who executes justice for the oppressed, who gives food to the hungry” (Psalm 146:5-7). His hope is founded in who God is and what he has done.

When God called Moses to deliver his people from slavery in Egypt, Moses had a list of excuses and doubts. God responded not by building up the person of Moses or even directly answering Moses’ doubts; rather, God redirected Moses’ hope to himself. He appeals to the foundation of his promise and his ability to perform great deeds on earth (Exodus 6:1-8). After Moses, the Exodus event formed the basis of hope for the people of God. They told the story over and over again. This is why their concept of Messiah was closely linked with terms like “Deliverer.”

Throughout the Bible, true hope is not tested against our ability to hope, but rather against the foundation of God’s ability to deliver. It is a deep longing for God to show himself for who he is again. Jean-Paul Sartre, a famous philosopher and atheist, said a month before he died that he so strongly resisted feelings of despair that he would say to himself, “I know I shall die in hope.” Then in profound sadness, he would add, “But hope needs a foundation.” Without a foundation, we have only wishful think­ing or personal ability.

Advent is a season of hope because we look back to the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, for “no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 3:11). We also look forward to the day when Jesus will return, and fulfill our deepest longing to see him face to face.

Come, Lord Jesus, Come!

POINT TO PONDER AND PRAYER:

Advent awakens us to this question: “What do I long for now?” If we are weak in hope, perhaps we have vested our hope in weak things: wealth, possessions, reputation, relationships. Perhaps these are the things we long for now. The more we walk around with that question and let it penetrate through the layers of distraction and self-protection, the more powerfully we will experience Advent. “Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!” (Psalm 139:23-24)