A Right Hope

Hope. It keeps us going. It energizes us with dreams for the future, and sustains us like a strong anchor in the midst of the tumultuous storm waves of our current troubles.

We were created to be creatures of hope, or if I could poetically use a phrase from the prophet Zechariah, "prisoners of hope" in the middle of a world that is often as bleak as a high security prison (Zechariah 9:12). In this respect we pilgrims are like prisoners with hope. But we are also prisoners of hope in that we are chained to the hope that we have set our minds upon. We can't help but be prisoners of hope. Our hope may be completely misplaced or utterly vain, but hope we must. The alternative is hopelessness, and no human spirit can survive long in this state.

Many put their hope in a sudden turn in the economy. Good luck with this one. Others put all their eggs in the single basket of the hope for a slimmer body; other romantics encourage themselves with the thought of "the one" that has still yet to be found that will finally fulfill their longing for contented love. Maybe you hope for the dream job that always seems to elude your grasp, and maybe you hope for these things at a level that you are not even aware of.

Faith, hope, and love, says the Apostle Paul, are the very highest possessions a Christian can obtain, and love is the highest. Faith - well, we know that faith saves us, and by our faith we go forward and make progress in the Christian life. And love, we know, is the essence of all the commandments, and the best motivation for every act of service. It is God's love that most attracts us, and it is by our love for one another that we attract the world to this noble life. But what is hope?

Hope is our conscious or subconscious vision for the future. It is the "anchor of the soul" (Hebrews 6:19) to which our emotions, imaginations, and will is firmly secured to. It is the focus of your fantasy about the future. It is the place, person, or thing that we go to in our minds when we are bored or are in pain.

I want to suggest that we will only be Christians of stability and endurance if our hope is rightly placed. Our hope, our inner vision for the future, must be tied to Jesus Christ, His Word, and the place that He has prepared for us - the New Jerusalem.

We can remain rooted and grounded in God in any trial if our hope is aimed at the right target. 1 John 3:3 says that "everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure." A true hope "in Him" cleanses us and purifies our own soul. To place the brunt of our hope in a future spouse, more money, or even a successful ministry will ultimately defile our souls. These hopes disappoint, and disappointment can breed a host of ugly things inside of us if left unchecked for too long.

Romans 5 reads, "Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character, and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us." (v. 1-5)

Every living being hopes for something, whether they realize it or not, but only this kind of hope can truly fill and not leave us without disappointment. As I am realizing more and more, true Hope in Jesus alone is usually found in its most pure form on the other side of hardship. We often must crash upon the rocks of life's failures and heartaches to wake us up to the fact that our hope needs more honing. In these times we must preach to ourselves like the psalmist and say, "Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him, for the help of His countenance" (Psalm 42:5). For a hope that is rightly placed in the glory of God is a wonderful thing, and it cannot be taken away from us.