"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope." Romans 15:13 ESV
Hope! What a great manifestation of God's love for us. The Bible is filled with messages of hope amid hopeless times. In the Old Testament, there is freedom of Israel from Egypt led by Moses, the deliverance of Israel from their enemies under King David, and the return of Israel from exile. In the New Testament, God gave us the hope of eternal life through Jesus.
It is easy to feel that things are hopeless. Amongst the constant bombardment of media, it is battle to not become overwhelmed. But as Christians, we are given hope. This scripture is a timeless reminder that In our belief in God, He fills us with the joy and peace of the Holy Spirit which gives us hope. When things become overwhelming, when we start to feel hopeless, we only need to remember that we have a God that loves us. All the bad things that happen around us are just events, God has the plan, and that plan includes hope.
There are some great songs of hope in our United Methodist hymnal, but the one that echoes the message for today is the 1834 hymn by Edward Mote, My Hope is Built.
My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
but wholly lean on Jesus’ name.
On Christ the solid rock I stand,
All other ground is sinking sand;
All other ground is sinking sand.
When darkness veils his lovely face,
I rest on His unchanging grace.
In every high and stormy gale,
My anchor holds within the veil.
On Christ the solid rock I stand,
All other ground is sinking sand;
All other ground is sinking sand.
God, we acknowledge that You are our solid rock, everything else is sinking sand. We give you thanks today for your love for us and for the joy and peace we find in a relationship with you. We also give thanks for the hope you give us through the Holy Spirit. Let us remember that it is through Jesus’ blood and righteousness that we have hope. In the name of your son, our savior Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen.
Blessings!
Pastor Tim
