Tag: Christian hope

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Hope: A Word for the New Year

I hope the war in Ukraine ends soon. I hope my friend recovers from cancer. I hope my flight isn’t cancelled. I hope the economy does not lapse into a recession. I hope the Bengals do well in the playoffs. All these are expressions of the way we use the word “hope.” They imply wishes for positive outcomes. But in our uncertain world those outcomes are not guaranteed.

The New Testament uses the word “hope” in a more confident way. The word is used repeatedly of expectations that are grounded in the certainties of God’s promises. In the words of W.E. Vine, “Hope describes the happy anticipation of good . . .” because of “the object upon which the hope is fixed.” He cites 1 Timothy 1:1 which refers to “Christ Jesus our hope.”

So when Christians speak of the hope of the resurrection they are speaking of the confident expectation of the resurrection. This confidence is rooted in the word of Christ himself. When they refer to gospel hope, it is the assurance that the Lord will fulfill his word to us in all the promises presented in the gospel (such as forgiveness, acceptance, eternal life).

On this threshold of a new year, I ask the question: “What is the Christian hope?” The answer given in the catechism is succinct and accurate: “The Christian hope is to live with confidence in newness and fulness of life, and to await the coming of Christ in glory, and the completion of God’s purpose for the world.”

Amen. The catechism further explains, “By the coming of Christ in glory, we mean that Christ will come, not in weakness, but in power, and will make all things new.” When I use the word “hope” in connection with this, it means that I am expecting the return of Christ and looking forward to it. The new Testament calls this a “blessed hope” (Titus 2:13).

Maybe the Lord’s coming will be in the year ahead. The New Testament teaches us to live with the expectation that his coming could be at any time. Read and think deeply about the following examples.

1 Corinthians 1:7 — “. . . as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed.”

1 Corinthians 16:22 — “Come, Lord!”

Philippians 3:20 — “Our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ.”

Philippians 4:5 — “The Lord is near.”

1 Thessalonians 1:10 — “. . . and to wait for his Son from heaven”

Titus 2:13 — “. . . while we wait for the blessed hope — the appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ”

Hebrews 9:28 — “So Christ . . . will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.”

James 5:7-9 — “Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming . . .  The Lord’s coming is near. . . . The Judge is standing at the door.”

1 Peter 1:13 — “Set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming.”

1 John 3:2-3 — “. . . when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.”

Jude 1:21 — “. . . as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.”

Revelation 3:11 — “I am coming soon.” (Also Revelation 22:7, 12, 20)

As I read these verses from God’s Word, I am motivated to meditate on the imminent return of Christ and to pray for it. I remind you that every time you pray the Lord’s prayer you say, “Thy kingdom come.” What is that but a prayer for Christ to come and fulfill his promise to bring his peace and justice to our suffering world?

The Christian hope of Christ’s literal return is not wishful thinking or an idle dream. It is a confident expectation based upon his promises. It is hope in the best sense of the word. Let that hope carry you through 2023 as you pray the prayer found on the last page of your Bible: “Come, Lord Jesus.”

Pastor Randy Faulkner

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Try the Uplook!

D. B. Eastep was the godly pastor of Calvary Baptist Church of Covington, Kentucky, from 1927 until his death in 1962. Through the difficult years of the Great Depression and the Second World War, he led and fed the people by teaching the Bible. He was known for his emphasis on the second coming of Jesus Christ. His ministry of the Word brought comfort and hope to many in distressing times.

He published a little magazine called “The Uplook,” which had a wide circulation. (“When the outlook is bleak, try the uplook!”)

I was honored to be one of his successors as pastor at Calvary Baptist from 1980 to 1989. It was my privilege to know many in the church who had trusted In Christ and had grown in their faith under Dr. Eastep’s ministry.

The return of Christ is called a “blessed hope” because it brings blessing and certainty in uncertain times. The letter from James is a reminder of this fact. “Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the  autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near” (James 5:7-8).

(“Near” does not necessarily mean “soon.” It means “imminent.” The Lord’s coming could be at any time, and it is wise to be ready.) James is telling us that no matter the outlook, we need to maintain our uplook! He is telling us how to do it.

With patience 

James uses two different Greek words to help us as we wait for the coming of the Lord. The first means “endurance” or “staying power.” The people to whom James was writing had been going through some hard times at the hands of unjust, selfish, rich oppressors (vv. 1-6). Their expectation of the Lord’s return would contribute to their mature perseverance under trials.

The second word tells us not to try to get even or to retaliate. As humans we are tempted to over-react. James says to hold passion in check for the sake of your Christian witness. I read about a young private in the army who was a Christian believer. His fellow soldiers, including his sergeant, mocked his faith and did all they could to make his existence miserable.

One night, as he was praying before he slipped into his bunk, someone threw a boot and hit him in the head. He did not retaliate. The next morning his tormenter found his boots beautifully polished and neatly stowed beside his bed. That was the Christian private’s reply to persecution. His fellow soldier said later that that unselfish act broke his heart and led him to take steps of faith which resulted in his becoming a Christian.

That young soldier took a long view of his circumstances. He was looking beyond his present hardship and living for his coming Lord, with patient endurance.

With hope

James makes use of the illustration of a farmer who waits with anticipation for the seasonal rains and for the harvest. Our anticipation of the Lord’s coming should be like that. Biblical hope is not wishful thinking. It is confident expectation.

That expectation is justified. There are perhaps fifteen concrete Old Testament prophesies which predict in detail different aspects of the first coming of Jesus. The prophets of Israel foretold his coming for hundreds of years.

In the same way there are even more explicit prophesies about the coming of Jesus Christ which have not yet been fulfilled. At his second coming they will be fulfilled in exact detail just as the prophesies of his first coming were fulfilled. No one knows when that will be. “The secret things belong to the Lord our God” (Deuteronomy 29:29). So until he comes, we wait with expectation, maintaining an uplook!

With conviction

James said to “stand firm.” This means to hold firmly to your beliefs with unshakable conviction. Many churches are getting away from teaching healthy doctrine. Charles Ryrie wrote that this is tragic because practical teaching of the Bible must be based on  correct doctrine and all Bible doctrine should result in proper practice. We must not have one without the other.

That is why the teaching of the second coming of our Lord is important. It teaches us to live holy lives in anticipation of his imminent appearing. It teaches us to take a proper assessment of this present world in which we live. It is an incentive to evangelism and Christian mission. It regulates Christian worship. Every time we observe communion we are reminded that Jesus has promised to return.

Robert Murray McCheyne, the famous Scottish preacher, once asked some friends, “Do you think Christ will come tonight?” One after another they replied, “I think not.” When all had given their answers, he solemnly repeated Jesus’ words, “The Son of Man cometh at an hour when ye think not.” Or as it reads in the New International Version, “The Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him” (Matthew 24:44).

When the outlook is bleak, try the uplook. Jesus could come at any time. We can be as certain of his second coming as we are of his first coming. Are you ready to meet him? “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31).

Pastor Randy Faulkner

 

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Reckless Faith and Gospel Hope

Peter the apostle wrote to people who had experienced an inner transformation. Jesus had invaded their lives as they had heard the gospel and had believed in him. They had been given “a new birth into a living hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3).  He went on to say that they had a secure inheritance in Christ and that their lives were now “shielded by God’s power.” These people had hope. That same hope is offered to us on the same terms: reckless faith in the promises of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

This came home to me in a conversation I had with a friend I will call Todd who had recently become a Christian. “I know Jesus is alive because of what he has done for me.” He had lost all hope of recovery from addiction to drugs and alcohol. His marriage was unhappy and his performance at work was declining.

He tried to change but he was powerless to overcome his addictions. In spite of the difficulties in their marriage, his wife was patiently praying for him. His neighbor was a friend he had known for years. He seemed to understand what Todd was going through.

His friend invited him to get together so they went jogging. As they ran, his friend said, “I want to tell you what has been happening in my life.” They met every evening after work to run together, and his friend would tell him how Jesus had forgiven him of his sins and had changed his life. He explained how Todd too could have a new life through faith in Jesus Christ.

Todd told me that he came home after one of these conversations, aching with guilt and tired of the struggle. He went to his bedroom, closed the door, and called out to the Lord, “God if you’re real; Jesus, if you’re really who they say you are, please save me. Take control of my life. I need you.”

“That was the best night of my life,” Todd told me. There is much more to the story, but he said, “God healed me of the desire for drink and drugs. He brought my family back together. I know Jesus is alive because of what he did for me!”

Peter’s letter is all about this kind of transformation. It was effective in Todd’s life and it is available for you, too. In the words of Warren Wiersbe, “We have a living hope because we have a living savior.” Carl F.H. Henry said that Jesus “planted the only durable rumor of hope amid the widespread despair of a hopeless world.”

Believe this. Peter, the apostle of the Lord, said that when you put your faith in Jesus, “you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls” (1 Peter 1:9). Receive it the way Todd did, with bold, reckless, helpless faith. The living Christ is ready to transform your life and give you eternal hope, based on his gospel.

    –  Pastor Randy Faulkner