Our Hope in God Pt 2
Love Brings Hope
Welcome- Beautiful Resurrection Morning!
Thank City of Indialantic, Team COTR, etc.
I want to thank God- not just for this beautiful day, but for His Son-Jesus Christ-who was raised from-dead three days after his death on the cross.
Jesus Christ- through His death, burial, resurrection-paid the price for our sin, providing for all who believe in him-eternal life.
1 Pet 1:3 God caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, NASU
It is a living hope because Jesus was resurrected and is NOW (present tense) alive in heavenly places.
His indestructible life could not be contained in- tomb.
As a result you/I have the hope of resurrection life.
Rev 1:17-18 … "Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, 18 and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades. NASU
Jesus Christ holds-key to our HOPE of life after death.
It is only through Jesus Christ- His death/resurrection- that you/I can share in the HOPE of eternal life.
David- in a time of distress in his own life
Psa 42:5 Why are you in despair, O my soul?
And why have you become disturbed within me?
Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him For the help of His presence. NASU (Psa 42:11; 43:5)
Regardless of- difficulties- we always have-hope of God’s presence with us NOW, and our presence w/Him FOREVER
because of His resurrection.
Christ’s resurrection brings HOPE to mankind
This resurrection morning- as we look back in history-
we find an empty tombwhere Jesus had been buried.
This empty tomb brings HOPE - to our lives in the darkest of times,
both NOW (present) and for all ETERNITY.
Jesus did- amazing things during His time on earth.
He - called lame men to get up and walk,
commanded blind eyes to see,spoke to dead men and called them to live, turned water into wine, cast out demons, and
healed all that came to Him.
But as startling as His Words were and as amazing as His miracles were - they ALL pointed to God’s love for you and me.
Today, as we celebrate His resurrection, we see a picture of God’s LOVE- gives us an eternal HOPE
Jesus gives us HOPE in our times of trouble
Consider Jesus final words/actions as He hung on a wooden cross,
bleeding- beaten beyond recognition, hands/feet pierced with nails to the -
Roman soldiers- nailed, beat Him (Lk 23:34)
“Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.”
Thief- lived a life of deception (Lk 23:43)
“Today, you will be with me in paradise.”
His mother- suffered anguish/distress …
“Woman, here is your son ”
(John- care for you when I am gone )
Today- celebrate- the HOPE we see in Christ’s LOVE-
He forgives those who hurt/reject Him (Roman),
He accepts those caught in a life of sin (thief),
He supports those who are in distress (mother).
How can we demonstrate Christ’s Love to Others?
During the next 60 minutes
64 people will die from cancer
10 people will die from alcohol abuse
2 people will die from illicit drug use
3 people will die from suicide
5 people will die from traffic accidents
over 6000 people will die in the world.
Jesus died to help these people as well.
2 Cor 5:20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. NASU
People all around us need to see the compassion of men/women who can offer them HOPE in Christ.
Our churches should be Communities of HOPE- places where people can receive Christ’s
Forgiveness (Roman soldiers),
Acceptance (thief on the cross), and
Support (Jesus mother).
Christ’s LOVE challenges the way we live today
As Jesus hung on the cross He offered a message of hope even though He Himself was suffering greatly
W/Christ power living in us, we can- offer same hope.
Resurrection Morning shows us that even death/grave are powerless in the face of God’s love.
As we understand God’s love for us, it will produce a gratitude in our hearts that will empower us to love others as we have been loved.
In Hebrews it talks about Jesus Christ having the power of an indestructible life. (Heb 7:16)
It goes on and says that in Christ we have a
Heb 7:19 … better HOPE, through which we draw near to God. NASU
Jesus Christ is our better HOPE.
He overcame death and He is that indestructible life that now lives in us.
Like the thief on the cross- He loved/forgave us when we were unlovable and deep in our own sin.
Through His love He made eternal provision for us.
Conclusion
Today, Jesus is offering to us His …
FORGIVENESS for our sins,
ACCEPTANCE even when we are unlovable,
SUPPORT in our hour of need.
As Jesus hung on-cross-dying-He was thinking about-
Roman soldiers, thief on the cross, His mother.
All this so we can say … He did it for me as well!
We are the beneficiaries of His love/forgiveness.
If we have accepted Christ as our Lord/Savior we are now equipped to STARTLE others w/God’s love.
What about those around us? Could they benefit from-
God’s FORGIVENESS-expressed through you/I
God’s ACCEPTANCE expressed through you/I
God’s SUPPORT expressed through you/I
Today, through Christ resurrection, we celebrate-
the HOPE that we see in God’s LOVE for us,
and we can bring that HOPE to others.
Our hope-eternal life-began w/Jesus victory over death
We celebrate Easter once a year -- but we should live our life remembering these events every day.
May God bless you this beautiful Resurrection Day.
