Romans 8 kept coming to mind. I began to meditate on the true nature of hope, how to distinguish from the false hope presented to us by the world, and how to fix my sights on this hope.
For creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. (Rom. 8:20-21)This morning joy filled my heart because though creation (i.e. my big toe) was subjected to frailty against my will by God, He did it in hope that we would be set free from our slavery to corruption. In other words, although sickness and death are a perversion of the original glory of God's creation, He subjected us to them! The good news is that hope filled God's heart for humanity as He did it. (don't worry, healing is not discounted. It is talked about below...)
...we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body. (Rom. 8:23)In all of this there is a groan within us that longs for the redemption of our body. Things are not ok as they are right now, and my big toe bears witness. Yes, our bodies are dying. Yes, sickness and oppression are prevailing on the planet...but not forever. This groan inside of us is the fruit of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is given as a first fruit, 'down-payment', or a 'pledge' (Rom. 8:23, II Cor. 5:5) of the resurrection. We have a promise from God that the resurrection will indeed come; the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit keeps us from stumbling to present us faultless before the throne on the Day of the Lord. He does this by giving us revelation that we are called to be sons of the Living God, and by encouraging and strengthening us to walk worthy of the resurrection. He leads us to put to death the deeds of the flesh so that we might live in the resurrection.
...but if by the Spirit you are putting the death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are the sons of God. (Rom. 8:13-14)We were both subjected to futility and saved (i.e. given a 'promise' of our future salvation - the redemption of our bodies and the restoration of creation) in hope. This is the true nature of hope. We hope for what God hopes for. Though we do not see it now, if we hope for what we do not see then we will have perseverance to wait eagerly for it.
In other words, if we place our hope in the day when all things are restored, then we receive endurance and perseverance by the Holy Spirit.
For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it. (Rom. 8:24-25)The opposite is also true. If our hope is in something seen then we will not have perseverance by the Holy Spirit to wait for it. Why? Because He is not interested in testifying about anything else but the glory of Jesus. Though I may decide to endure some hardships so that I can have a new boat or a big ministry, the Holy Spirit is still testifying about the day when all things are new and working to build up our faith in that day rather than this present evil age (Gal. 1:4).
The biblical nature of hope is in the Day of the Lord. Choosing to set our hope in this day is what keeps us with a pilgrim identity like Abraham. Although he visited the promised land, he only stayed in a tent because he was looking for the city whose builder and maker was God. (Heb. 11:8-10) In other words, even when he saw the pledge of the resurrection (the Messiah reigning from Jerusalem) his hope was not settled because he was still looking for the Day of the Lord and the resurrection.
In the same way, the Holy Spirit testifies to us about the resurrection. The 'powers of the age to come' (Heb. 6:5) are manifest to us now in the form of physical healing, raising the dead, etc... because they are a down payment of what is to be seen in fullness in the age to come. As we rejoice in seeing the power of God manifest in this way, we don't allow our eyes to be moved from our true hope. Like Abraham, we continually set our hope in the Day of the Lord when all things are made right.
However, we also can't despise miracles. They are given by the Holy Spirit as a 'taste' of the powers of the age to come because we need them! Without a regular witness of signs and wonders in our lives it is nearly impossible to keep our hearts anchored in the hope that Abraham had. We must see the powers of that age be demonstrated (in measure) regularly in this age or we will grow faint and place our hope in lesser things.
Like Abraham and the Hebrew believers in the first century, those who have their hope in the promise of the restoration of all things (Acts 3:19-21) are evidenced by their ability to suffer now while not losing hope. If we are shaken from hope because of suffering, then what we need is not another pep talk on Sunday morning. What we need is to have our hope re-aligned by the Holy Spirit in that which is to come. If we do then we can expect to have even the sufferings of this age to bring great joy, because they promise something to come.
But remember the former days, when after being enlightened, you endured a great conflict of sufferings, partly by being made a public spectacle through reproaches and tribulations, and partly by becoming sharers with those who were so treated. For you showed sympathy to prisoners and accepted joyfully the seizure of your property, knowing that you have for yourselves a better possession and a lasting one. (Heb. 10:32-34)
i don't always think of hope this way, but it is good to hear it. i usually think of hope in the fact that He is coming back - like that He is our hope. i think of Him and that i can endure for my relationship with Him, but don't think as often about enduring for the restoration of creation. my favorite verses on hope are from lamentations 3:
ReplyDeleteremember my affliction and my wandering, the wormwood and bitterness.
surely my soul remembers
and is bowed down within me.
this i recall to my mind,
therefore i have hope.
the Lord’s lovingkindnesses indeed never cease,
for His compassions never fail.
they are new every morning;
great is Your faithfulness.
"the Lord is my portion," says my soul,
"therefore I have hope in Him."
the Lord is good to those who wait for Him,
to the person who seeks Him.
it is good that he waits silently
for the salvation of the Lord.
it is good for a man that he should bear
the yoke in his youth.
let him sit alone and be silent
since He has laid it on him.
let him put his mouth in the dust,
perhaps there is hope.
let him give his cheek to the smiter,
let him be filled with reproach.
for the Lord will not reject forever,
for if He causes grief,
then He will have compassion
according to His abundant lovingkindness.
for He does not afflict willingly
or grieve the sons of men.
Charis - That is a good point. For sure, my point of the hope in the resurrection would be vain without this being the context of that hope. Being joined with Him is THE great hope of all of creation.
ReplyDeleteWhen I think back to the garden, clearly this is the dynamic that is most striking - Adam's perfect fellowship with God. His un-fallen nature and immortal body were the means to the unhindered fellowship. That is the only reason I think Paul emphasized having hope in the restoration of our bodies. It is the only way that we will walk in the fulness of our inheritance...Him.
well put, and great verse to meditate on.
This post provided a good opportunity for examination and re-alignment of my perspective about the nature of hope! It was good to be reminded of our need for the basis of our hope to come from the Day of Lord. When thinking back on times in life when I have grown weary or faint of heart, I realized it was often because my sight had(for one reason or another) been shifted away from the promise the age to come.
ReplyDeleteI hear you on that one! I heard someone say one time that the way you define success tells you what you life vision is. In the same way, I think it tells where our hope is. I don't see it as a burden anymore, but it is the voice of wisdom calling to anyone who has ears. I like the way Peter voiced it:
ReplyDelete13...fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. (I Pet. 1:13)
There is no question that it is challenging to accept this. Much more to walk it out for a few decades! However, this really is the place of safety and security during a storm. Especially the last great storm that's coming.