Today in small group worship time we were reviewing the Hope column of the Universal Disciple as taught by Thom Wolf. I was assigned this task after I went to bed on Friday night by a note slid under our door. We were in class all day Saturday, therefore I was unable to do much work on the assignment until Sunday morning.
I didn’t have too many notes from class, he was very fast and I am very slow. So I started out with establishing what Hope as used in the Bible was; Heb. 11:1 “ the things we hope for” means expect/trust. Not merely to wish for but to expect to get, to know what is coming next.
Then we headed toward Tit. 3:6-7 (see verses at bottom of page) where we find one of the things we hope for is eternal life. And then we went to Rom. 8:35-39 where we find our hope is in never being separated from the love of Jesus Christ our Lord and having victory. After that we went to Eph. 4:29-30 where we see we are owned by God and have hope in the guarantee of being set free. And then in 1Peter 1:13 our hope is in the blessing when Jesus Christ is revealed. But I wanted everyone to take note that in each of these verses Hope was an action:
Titus- “giving their time to doing good deeds”
Romans- “we can have complete victory”
Ephesians- “do good”
1 Peter- “ready for action”
Then I went to today’s applications, what better actions then to pray that someone would be found in Jesus Christ. That is what happened this week while I was talking to my brother Victor for the last time. We prayed that his children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren as well as my children would commit themselves to Jesus. He had already told Teresa that he knew that his time was short and he was in a great deal of pain, yet we prayed that our children would follow Jesus. Knowing that the only way that he could continue to see them all was if they followed Jesus.
Teresa and I are going to tell others about Jesus, Victor was praying that others would come to know and trust Jesus as he did. There can be no greater action then the action taken to lead others to Christ. If you are a child of God it is you job, no matter how you go about it. Victor facing death, was praying for someone else.
Verses:
Heb 11:1 To have faith is to be sure of the things we hope for, to be certain of the things we cannot see.
Tit 3:6 God poured out the Holy Spirit abundantly on us through Jesus Christ our Savior,
Tit 3:7 so that by his grace we might be put right with God and come into possession of the eternal life we hope for.
Tit 3:8 This is a true saying. I want you to give special emphasis to these matters, so that those who believe in God may be concerned with giving their time to doing good deeds, which are good and useful for everyone.
Rom 8:35 Who, then, can separate us from the love of Christ? Can trouble do it, or hardship or persecution or hunger or poverty or danger or death?
Rom 8:36 As the scripture says, "For your sake we are in danger of death at all times; we are treated like sheep that are going to be slaughtered."
Rom 8:37 No, in all these things we have complete victory through him who loved us!
Rom 8:38 For I am certain that nothing can separate us from his love: neither death nor life, neither angels nor other heavenly rulers or powers, neither the present nor the future,
Rom 8:39 neither the world above nor the world below---there is nothing in all creation that will ever be able to separate us from the love of God which is ours through Christ Jesus our Lord
Eph 4:29 Do not use harmful words, but only helpful words, the kind that build up and provide what is needed, so that what you say will do good to those who hear you.
Eph 4:30 And do not make God's Holy Spirit sad; for the Spirit is God's mark of ownership on you, a guarantee that the Day will come when God will set you free.
1Pe 1:13 So then, have your minds ready for action. Keep alert and set your hope completely on the blessing which will be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed
