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In this series we're talking about the names and descriptive
phrases identifying Jesus. Thus far we've talked about
Jesus as God,
Lord,
Savior,
Christ,
Creator,
the Word,
the Son
of God, the life,
the Light,
the Lamb
of God, the Firstborn,
the head
of the church, our high
priest and King, (also see high
priest and King),
our Advocate
and mediator, an Author,
a Shepherd,
the bread
of God and bread of life, and the propitiation
for our sins, and .
In this article, we talk about Jesus as our hope.
What is hope?
"Hope" is used in different ways within God's word.
But for the purposes of this article, we're talking
about the hope we have of salvation.
"Hope" is in things not seen (Rom. 8:24-25). But because
of faith, our hope is accompanied by an earnest expectation
(Phil. 1:20).
Our hope confidently rests in God's promises, and
doesn't flounder in the uncertainties of mortal life.
Therefore we rejoice in hope because of our confident
expectation of eternal life (Rom. 12:12).
- ". . . hope of eternal life, which God,
who cannot lie, promised long ages ago" (Tit. 1:2).
- "looking for the blessed hope and the appearing
of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ
Jesus" (Tit. 2:13).
- "because of the hope laid up for you in heaven.
. . ." (Col. 1:5).
- "But since we are of the day, let us be sober,
having put on the breastplate of faith and love,
and as a helmet, the hope of salvation" (1
Th. 5:8).
Jesus is our hope!
In a manner of speaking, Jesus is our hope. Without
Jesus we're hopelessly lost. But with Him we're saved
(Eph. 1:3-12).
- "Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus according to
the commandment of God our Savior, and of Christ
Jesus, who is our hope" (1 Tim. 1:1).
Our hope is in the name of Jesus, meaning our hope
rests upon Christ's authority to give us eternal life,
according to God's grace.
- "And in His name the Gentiles will hope"
(Matt. 12:21).
- "And there is salvation in no one else;
for there is no other name under heaven that has
been given among men by which we must be saved"
(Acts 4:12).
- "Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in
the name of the Lord Jesus. . . ." (Col. 3:17).
Jesus sacrificed Himself to become our hope?
Jesus became our hope when He offered Himself to God
as the sacrifice for our sins. By dying on the cross:
- Jesus tasted death for us, and became the author
of our salvation (Heb. 2:9-10).
- Jesus rendered the devil powerless, freeing us
from the fear of death (Heb. 2:14-15).
- Jesus made propitiation for our sins (Heb. 2:17).
After Jesus died, He entered the holy place as our
high priest, and made atonement for our sins.
- "But when Christ appeared as a high priest
of the good things to come, He entered through
the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made
with hands, that is to say, not of this creation .
. . through His own blood, He entered the holy
place once for all, having obtained eternal
redemption" (Heb. 9:11-12).
As Christians, our hope is in Jesus, who serves upon
God's throne as our high priest.
- "Therefore, He had to be made like His brethren
in all things, so that He might become a merciful
and faithful high priest in things pertaining
to God. . . . For since He Himself was tempted
in that which He has suffered, He is able
to come to the aid of those who are tempted" (Heb.
2:17-18).
- "For we do not have a high priest who cannot
sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has
been tempted in all things as we are, yet without
sin. Therefore let us draw near with confidence
to the throne of grace, so that we may receive
mercy and find grace to help in time of need"
(Heb. 4:15-16).
- "This hope we have as an anchor of the soul,
a hope both sure and steadfast and one which
enters within the veil, where Jesus has entered
as a forerunner for us, having become a high priest
forever according to the order of Melchizedek"
(Heb. 6:19-20).
We must take hold of hope!
We must take hold of the hope set before us -- the hope
of eternal life.
- "so that by two unchangeable things in which it
is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken
refuge would have strong encouragement to take
hold of the hope set before us" (Heb. 6:18).
We're careful not to shrink back to destruction, and
come short of the grace of God (Heb. 10:39; 12:15).
Therefore, we hold fast the confession of our hope,
faithfully assembling with the saints to encourage one
another.
- "Let us hold fast the confession of our hope
without wavering, for He who promised is faithful;
and let us consider how to stimulate one another
to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own
assembling together, as is the habit of some, but
encouraging one another. . . ." (Heb 10:23-25).
How do we take hold of hope?
We take hold of hope by submitting to the gospel.
- "because of the hope laid up for you in heaven,
of which you previously heard in the word of truth,
the gospel" (Col. 1:5).
- "if indeed you continue in the faith firmly
established and steadfast, and not moved away
from the hope of the gospel that you have heard.
. . ." (Col. 1:23).
Therefore, we've been born again to a living hope,
as a result of obeying Christ's gospel.
- "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused
us to be born again to a living hope through the
resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead" (1 Pet.
1:3).
Conclusion
We have a confident expectation of eternal life, because
of the things Jesus did in the past, and everything
He's doing today as our high priest.
Since we are still upon the earth, our expectation
of eternal life is our hope. Not because we're uncertain
of our reward, but because we haven't received it yet.
To be continued.
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