The guy building my house just told me, “That’ll be done in three weeks. I guarantee it.” I hope he’s right.
I read about hope in Hebrews this morning. A lot of Hebrews 6 is about hope, including a passage (v7 and following) that says, “Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. God did this so that . . . we who . . . take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged. We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.” Later verses discuss how Jesus guarantees this new hope.
Here’s what hit me: the hope that anchors our souls is a sure thing because it comes with a God-given triple-warranty. First, the Father swore on his own name that his promises to us would be true, in the Old Testament. Second, Jesus sealed the truth of those promises with his blood. And third, Jesus, the great high priest, is working now to make our hope reality.
The Father guaranteed our hope with his covenant. Jesus guaranteed it with his death and resurrection. So this future we hope for, the promise of peace, the end to pain and sorrow, the glory of eternal, heavenly life, will happen. It. Will. Happen. It can’t not happen.
That’s how this hope is way different than me hoping my builder comes through - nothing can prevent it from being fulfilled. I can’t stop it, Satan can’t stop it, all the endless bickering and backbiting of a bitter, lost world can’t stop it. Every promise of God, especially his covenantal promise to take care of us and bring us home, is a sure thing. It’s already done.
Think about that when life gets too much.
I read about hope in Hebrews this morning. A lot of Hebrews 6 is about hope, including a passage (v7 and following) that says, “Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. God did this so that . . . we who . . . take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged. We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.” Later verses discuss how Jesus guarantees this new hope.
Here’s what hit me: the hope that anchors our souls is a sure thing because it comes with a God-given triple-warranty. First, the Father swore on his own name that his promises to us would be true, in the Old Testament. Second, Jesus sealed the truth of those promises with his blood. And third, Jesus, the great high priest, is working now to make our hope reality.
The Father guaranteed our hope with his covenant. Jesus guaranteed it with his death and resurrection. So this future we hope for, the promise of peace, the end to pain and sorrow, the glory of eternal, heavenly life, will happen. It. Will. Happen. It can’t not happen.
That’s how this hope is way different than me hoping my builder comes through - nothing can prevent it from being fulfilled. I can’t stop it, Satan can’t stop it, all the endless bickering and backbiting of a bitter, lost world can’t stop it. Every promise of God, especially his covenantal promise to take care of us and bring us home, is a sure thing. It’s already done.
Think about that when life gets too much.
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