Hope in God

Posted on by korgrocker

“Show me the right path, O Lord; point out the road for me to follow. Lead me by your truth and teach me, for you are the God who saves me. All day long I put my hope in you.”
Psalm 25:4-5 NLT

A humble prayer from David, as he asks God to teach him, to lead him, and save him. He then finishes verse 5 with the statement “All day long I put my hope in you”. There is no better focus for our God, as I’m sure we agree, but human beings are notorious for hoping and trusting in other things and in other ways. But that hasn’t changed since the days of Adam. Psalm 20:7, “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God”. “Hope” and “trust” go hand in hand in life. We hope in God for our future, and we trust Him to lead us in His ways.

But before we get ahead of ourselves, we must think about how worldly people understand hope. They use it in contexts such as, “I hope I don’t get Covid”, or “I hope it doesn’t rain on my birthday”. There is an element of doubt in such a definition of hope. A response to the question, “will you go to Heaven when you die” is “I hope so”, again demonstrating that they have doubts, though not strong enough to make them do anything about it. 

The whole concept of “hope” comes about because we cannot see what will happen in the future. That introduces another word – “faith”. Hebrew’s 11:1, “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see”. What do we pilgrims hope for? There will be many things, depending on our stages in life. We hope for the right job, house, partner, and so on. But one thing we all will agree on is our hope in God for our eternal home. And we can see the extraordinary experiences believers have gone through because within them was the hope of a better life ahead. Biblical hope is different from the hope that the world understands. Biblical hope carries with it a surety that what is hoped for, aligned as it is to God’s Word, is definitely going to happen. We might not see it taking place, but we have faith that whatever it is will come about. Jeremiah wrote, “For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” (Jeremiah 29:11). That’s a great promise of God, and one we must believe for our lives and those of our loved ones. 

We pilgrims have a firm and unshakeable hope in the future, and we share it with those around us. 1 Peter 3:15, “But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect”. Do we have our answers ready? Are we a people who are living out God’s truth in our lives, so that others can see it? Are we beacons set on a hill, for all to be illuminated by, standing out from the crowd around us? On Easter Sunday this year I met a dog walker and the conversation came around to what she referred to as the terrible state of the world. She was scared about the wars and threats of war. Of the politicians and their messages of gloom. a poor woman with nowhere to turn to where she could find hope for her future and her family’s. But I shared about Jesus and his resurrection, that through Him we have hope for the future. She admitted that she was an atheist and hurried off, but hopefully I was able to plant a seed of hope. The Holy Spirit I’m sure will water and nurture the good seed of the Gospel planted in that lady’s life that day.

We pilgrims really need to understand the meaning of God’s “hope” and apply it to our lives. We mustn’t be like the house wife in Wales who prayed, when she went to bed, that the coal slag heap behind her house would be cast into the sea, hoping that God would answer her prayer with a much better view when she woke up. On opening her curtains the next morning, the slag heap was still there, her hopes dashed. Her comment was that she knew that her prayer wouldn’t work anyway. When we hope for something we must have faith that the God of hope will answer our prayer.

Paul wrote, “ … We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us. We were given this hope when we were saved. (If we already have something, we don’t need to hope for it. But if we look forward to something we don’t yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently.)” (Romans 8:23b-25). We hope and we wait in faith for our hope to be realised.

Father God, in difficult times it is easy to lose hope and faith in You. Father, we admit that we have lost sight of You. In this prayer for hope, Lord, we ask that Your Holy Spirit reignites within us the hope and faith in You. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

The Unbelieving

Posted on by korgrocker

“One of the twelve disciples, Thomas (nicknamed the Twin), was not with the others when Jesus came. They told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he replied, “I won’t believe it unless I see the nail wounds in his hands, put my fingers into them, and place my hand into the wound in his side.” Eight days later the disciples were together again, and this time Thomas was with them. The doors were locked; but suddenly, as before, Jesus was standing among them. “Peace be with you,” he said. Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and look at my hands. Put your hand into the wound in my side. Don’t be faithless any longer. Believe!” “My Lord and my God!” Thomas exclaimed. Then Jesus told him, “You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who believe without seeing me.””
John 20:24-29 NLT

Why wouldn’t Thomas believe what the other disciples had told him? He wasn’t with them when Jesus first appeared in the locked room – I wonder where he was? – and he totally rejected the disciples’ testimony. He knew these men. He had been with them for over three years at least. He had seen Jesus’ miracles and even the dead raised. And yet he was unable to accept the account of how Jesus had appeared in their midst. He wanted to see the risen Jesus at first hand, with his own eyes, although even that wasn’t enough for Thomas. He wanted to supplement the visual with other senses, by touching Jesus’ wounds. 

John’s account continues by fast-forwarding to another meeting, again behind locked doors. This time there was a full contingent of disciples including Thomas. Again, Jesus said “Peace be with you” and then He turned to Thomas, telling him to do what he had previously asked by fingering the wounds in Jesus’ hands and side. Incidentally, had these terrible after effects of crucifixion started to heal, or were they still red and raw, seeping blood as they had on that fateful Friday? Jesus had a new body that was able to pass through locked doors, but a body that still bore the scars. It was a resurrected body, recognisable by all who knew Him, but a body without human limitations.

Jesus’ response to Thomas has resonated with many believers over the years since. Thomas, faced with the evidence, could only utter “My Lord and my God”. But Jesus rebuked him for his lack of faith, telling him to “Believe”, and then said, “You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who believe without seeing me.” 

Thomas missed out on Jesus’ first post-resurrection encounter with the disciples because he wasn’t present with the rest of them. Isn’t it the case, when we look out of the window on a cold and wet Sunday morning and decide to have a duvet day, that we are in danger of missing out on an encounter with the risen Jesus. In the church I attend there was a wonderful presence of the Holy Spirit last Sunday. There was a time when the worship just seemed to attain new heights. There was a holy pause and a Presence joined with us. A time of silence where we almost had to hold our breaths in case we destroyed the moment. But after the service I looked around and there were several people absent. They had become like Thomas, missing out on a precious God-encounter.

Today there are no people, believers or otherwise, who have had a physical encounter with the risen Jesus. But we believe anyway, that Jesus died and rose from the dead on the third day. We believe and will never stop believing, until we see Him again, welcoming us through the gates of Heaven. 

Dear Lord Jesus. You graciously appeared to the disciples all those years ago, in a body resurrected from the grave. They believed and never stopped believing for the rest of their lives and neither shall we. We praise You today. Amen.

Lingering Doubts

Posted on by korgrocker

“Then he said, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but now I will go and wake him up.” The disciples said, “Lord, if he is sleeping, he will soon get better!” They thought Jesus meant Lazarus was simply sleeping, but Jesus meant Lazarus had died. So he told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead. And for your sakes, I’m glad I wasn’t there, for now you will really believe. Come, let’s go see him.””
John 11:11-15 NLT

Did Jesus have a sense of humour? I can just imagine Him chuckling to Himself with the thought of what He was about to do. But in the meantime He was perhaps teasing His disciples a little. They probably struggled a bit to keep up with all that their Master and Lord was doing, and they took what He said at face value. Quite correctly, they pointed out that if Lazarus was sleeping then he was on the mend and would soon be up and about. But Jesus then dropped a bombshell – Lazarus was dead and He, and His disciples, were going to go to Bethany to raise him from the dead. That was the only conclusion the disciples could draw. And Jesus added that if the disciples had any lingering doubts, then this was going to blow them away. Only God had the power to raise someone from the dead.

There were several occasions when the disciples displayed their doubts over their faith and Jesus’ power. There was that time when Peter jumped out of the boat and walked on the Sea of Galilee towards Jesus. We can read the account in Matthew 14, “Then Peter called to him, “Lord, if it’s really you, tell me to come to you, walking on the water.” “Yes, come,” Jesus said. So Peter went over the side of the boat and walked on the water toward Jesus. But when he saw the strong wind and the waves, he was terrified and began to sink. “Save me, Lord!” he shouted. Jesus immediately reached out and grabbed him. “You have so little faith,” Jesus said. “Why did you doubt me?”” (Matthew 14:28-31). Then there was the time when Thomas received the tag “Doubting”. John 20:24-28, “One of the twelve disciples, Thomas (nicknamed the Twin), was not with the others when Jesus came. They told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he replied, “I won’t believe it unless I see the nail wounds in his hands, put my fingers into them, and place my hand into the wound in his side.” Eight days later the disciples were together again, and this time Thomas was with them. The doors were locked; but suddenly, as before, Jesus was standing among them. “Peace be with you,” he said. Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and look at my hands. Put your hand into the wound in my side. Don’t be faithless any longer. Believe!””.

Do we pilgrims have any doubts over our faith? If we are honest with ourselves then the answer must be “Yes”. There are dark times when we gaze up into the heavens wondering why there is no answer to a prayer or an anguished cry for help. These are the times when all we have to rely on is our faith and the memories of previous times of wonder when God brought about a miracle in our own lives. I regularly think back with a grateful heart to such times as those. But sometimes we echo the cry of the father whose son was demon possessed. We read in Mark 9:23-24, ““What do you mean, ‘If I can’?” Jesus asked. “Anything is possible if a person believes.” The father instantly cried out, “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!””

Sometimes our minds find themselves wandering through corridors of human reason and logic, and can soon find themselves in a cul-de-sac of doubtful thoughts. But at such times as these, we pick up God’s Word, the Bible, and read it. “Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:7). In God’s presence all our doubts will disappear like the mist before the morning sun.

Dear God. Your peace is precious and we can receive it every time we feel doubts start to rise. We are so grateful. Amen.