...our most certain hope...

Living in the final stages of life is a most sobering, surprising experience. More than anything else I find myself Hoping in Jesus Christ more than ever, and thanking Him for all of His favors and grace He has bestowed on me, thanking Him for His Love and Mercy! In the spiritual life hope in Jesus Christ is everything, for in who else can any of us hope, except in Jesus Christ?

Paul assures us of the certainty of our Christian hope in Jesus Christ, for our faith in Christ is born out of our certain hope in what we cannot see: “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” Hebrews 11:1. In fact Paul is so caught up in and profoundly moved by the certainty of our hope in Jesus Christ that he lifts up for us this profound prayer: “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” Romans 15:13. “May the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know Him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may perceive what is the hope to which He has called you, what are the riches of His glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of His power for us who believe, according to the working of His great power” Ephesians 1:17-19. Peter writes to assure us that our Trust in God is rooted in our hope, for it is “through God you have come to trust in God, who raised Jesus Christ from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your trust and hope are in God” 1 Peter 1:21. The life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ is who we hope in and trust, and that is as certain as God who raised Jesus from the dead! John echoes this reality, this truth of our certain hope when he says as well that “through Jesus Christ you have come to trust in God, who raised Jesus Christ from the dead and gave Jesus Christ glory, so that your trust and hope are in God” John 17:3.

And who among us can ever forget the joy of the Psalmist who encourages us in these melodic words of hope: “Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord their God” Psalm 146:5.

So my prayer for all of us is that we will believe in Jesus Christ, fully and forever, in whom we have our most certain hope!

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, have mercy on me a sinner.

So pray, and reflect on the Scriptures quoted!

And remember that the God in whom we hope is actually present in each of us!