By Josh Read on Mar 9, 2026
The word "hope" has become church wallpaper. It's on coffee mugs in the lobby, printed across banners above the baptistry, and threaded through every worship set since 2015. Your congregation has heard it so many times it slides off them like rain off a windshield.
Here's the tension: the biblical word for hope has almost nothing in common with the sentiment we've domesticated it into. The Hebrew word "tiqvah" literally means "cord" or "rope", something you cling to when the ground gives way. The Greek "elpis" in Paul's letters is never wishful thinking. It's confident expectation aimed at a future only God can deliver.
This sermon outline is built for the Sunday you peel the bumper sticker off and show your congregation what hope actually costs and why it's the most defiant act a believer can perform.
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By William Boekestein on Apr 26, 2021
based on 2 ratings
| 18,931 views
A number of years ago I was about to preach for the first time in a certain church. As I arranged my papers and books I noticed a sign near the top of the pulpit. It was a quotation from John 12:21: “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.”
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By Karl Vaters on Apr 25, 2024
based on 4 ratings
| 26,354 views
We can either whine about how the new generation chooses to worship, or we can worship and minister with them. But we can’t do both.
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By Ed Stetzer on Mar 13, 2023
based on 1 rating
| 5,831 views
Expository preaching is the best, but not a biblically mandated, preaching approach
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By Paul Caminiti on Jan 17, 2025
In North America, we have more Bibles than ever, but less and less real engagement. Why?
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