The Gift of Hope
Nov 30 / Dec 1; 2002
Intro:
A number of years ago researchers performed an experiment to see the effect hope has on those undergoing hardship. Two sets of laboratory rats were placed in separate tubs of water. The researchers left one set in the water and found that within an hour they had all drowned. The other rats were periodically lifted out of the water and then returned. When that happened, the second set of rats swam for over 24 hours. Why? Not because they were given a rest, but because they suddenly had hope!
Hope is a powerful force. As we begin the season of Advent, preparing to celebrate the birth of our Lord Jesus, I want to reflect together on the gift we have of hope in Christ.
Context:
And to do that, I want to look again at a familiar passage, often read during the Advent season. It is Isaiah 9:1-7. Christians throughout the ages have read this passage as looking ahead to the coming of Jesus, the Messiah, as a prophecy of His birth. I invite you to read along.
A Brief History Lesson:
We can¡¦t help but read those verses in the light and knowledge of Jesus¡¦ birth ¡V we have seen the fulfillment of the prophecies recorded here by Isaiah. But I want to invite you to try to take a mental step back to Isaiah¡¦s time, and try to hear these prophecies from their place of desperation and difficulty. Because the hope offered through Isaiah is offered still.
Isaiah spoke during a time of great political turmoil. The people around him lived in constant fear, new political alliances jumping up all over the place, various different foreign powers threatening to over run the people of Judah and carry them all off into slavery. One moment they were being pressured into an alliance with one group, the next that same group was turning on them and threatening at their borders. It was a time of great, great uncertainty. Isaiah spoke into that uncertainty, providing guidance to the king of Judah regarding all these political and military dilemmas. But, as so often happens, the king relied on his own judgment instead of the wisdom from God, and so the trouble increased.
The bottom line for the people of Isaiah¡¦s day was that same as it is for us today ¡V we have a choice, to follow God¡¦s way or to follow our own way. Listen to Isaiah¡¦s prophecy in the previous chapter: 8:6-8 "Because this people has rejected the gently flowing waters of Shiloah
and rejoices over Rezin and the son of Remaliah, therefore the Lord is about to bring against them the mighty floodwaters of the River - the king of Assyria with all his pomp. It will overflow all its channels, run over all its banks and sweep on into Judah, swirling over it, passing through it and reaching up to the neck. Its outspread wings will cover the breadth of your land.¡¨ It is a prophecy of destruction, of being overrun by the King of Assyria, as a result of rejecting God¡¦s way and choosing instead to trust in some military alliances.
Chapter 8 ends with this description (21-22): ¡§Distressed and hungry, they will roam through the land; when they are famished, they will become enraged and, looking upward, will curse their king and their God. Then they will look toward the earth and see only distress and darkness and fearful gloom, and they will be thrust into utter darkness.¡¨
I read those two passages so that, as we look at the beginning of chapter 9, we might have an appreciation for the desperation of the people of Judah. They are at a point of seeing only ¡§distress and darkness and fearful gloom.¡¨ ¡§Utter darkness.¡¨ I want to pause there and ask ¡V have you ever been at such a place? Feeling like there is nothing but despair ¡V feeling enraged when you have the energy, but often just slumping into bed, crying yourself to sleep, looking around and seeing nothing but darkness. Have you ever felt like that? Do you feel like that now? There is something more¡K
Isaiah Offers Hope
Chapter 9 begins with the words, ¡§Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom¡K¡¨ He continues that theme throughout the first few verses of the section I read, noting that the people who were ¡§walking in darkness,¡¨ who were living ¡§in the land of the shadow of death,¡¨, who were in vs. 4 burdened with a ¡§yoke that burdens them, a bar across their shoulder, a rod of their oppressor,¡¨ who faced all of these places of hopelessness and despair ¡V to those people, in that situation, Isaiah offers hope.
those in darkness „³ see a great light
living in the land of the shadow of death „³ a light has dawned
to those facing the yoke of their enemy „³ God will shatter that oppression.
What is the source of hope? If you can relate to those feelings of despair, you want to know the answer. In the face of ¡§utter darkness¡¨, what hope do we have?
It almost seems ridiculous to read vs. 6 after getting a glimpse of the hopelessness Isaiah has just finished describing, but Isaiah pins the hope of victory, of a complete turn-around of circumstances, of total rescue from a place of despair and utter darkness ¡V on the simple birth of a child. ¡§For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders.¡¨ The government on the shoulders of a child? How can the birth of a single little boy bring hope to despair, bring about a complete change in the political climate of a nation in turmoil?
Perhaps more to the point today, how can the birth of a single little boy bring hope to the despair in your life? What difference does that make tonight when your head hits your pillow and the tears start to flow because as you look around all you see is ¡§utter darkness¡¨? What difference can that make to a world on the brink of war once again, of religious tension and terrorism and uncertainty? What difference can the birth of that child make as you face the harsh reality of life where you sometimes feel unappreciated, unloved, and unimportant?
The difference is one of hope. And not hope in the sense of, ¡§I hope it doesn¡¦t snow until January,¡¨ ¡V where hope is a synonym for ¡§wish¡¨ and where the chances of the thing hoped for becoming reality are slim to none ¡V but instead hope in the true sense of the word ¡V hope in the sense of knowing that though things are difficult today, they will be different tomorrow.
The difference is one of hope. And the reason that this hope is a certainty is because of the identity of the child that Isaiah prophecies. We recognize this child as Jesus ¡V as God Himself become human. We know that things can and will change because this is no ordinary child ¡V this child is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. He is the creator and sustainer of the universe. And His decision to enter our world and become human changes everything.
The difference is one of hope. Hope because we now know that in all the things we face ¡V all the struggles and pains and rejections and heartbreaks of life ¡V we do not face them alone. Two chapters earlier Isaiah also prophecies ahead to the birth of Jesus and there gives us a name. You remember the verse ¡V Is. 7:14 ¡§Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.¡¨ The name Immanuel means, ¡§God with us.¡¨ So you see the birth of this one simple boy changes everything because it contains for us the promise of God¡¦s presence ¡V the promise that everything we face in life we can face with ¡§Immanuel¡¨ ¡V we face it with God.
Sometimes in my role as a pastor I have the difficult privilege of sitting with people through very hard times ¡V times of great pain and anguish. My tendency is to want to help fix things ¡V to offer counsel or support and certainly prayer that will somehow make a difference in easing the pain. But I am learning that the most important thing to offer at those times is the reminder of the presence of God through the difficult part of life ¡V to try to point out where God is working and helping and walking alongside. And to allow God to offer hope through His presence with us in those times.
And that really does change things. As people we have been created with a need to face life together ¡V to come alongside each other to support and encourage and offer help through times of despair. In Christ, we have someone beside us who knows us completely, who loves us more than we can possibly imagine, who has sacrificed everything for our eternal good, and who longs to meet us and walk with us through all the circumstances of life. Some of those circumstances He even chooses, by His power, to change ¡V sometimes He heals, He restores, He takes a person like Job who has lost absolutely everything except his life, and in the end gives him back twice as much as he had before the trial. And sometimes, He takes us by the hand and walks us or people we love through death. The constant thing, through every part, is the presence of God with us. Immanuel.
That is where the hope comes from. That is the first gift of Christmas ¡V the gift of hope. How can we know that hope, how can we experience the reality of God with us as we face the difficult circumstances of life?
Let me tell you a story.
Years ago, there was a very wealthy man who, with his devoted young son, shared a passion for art collecting. Together they traveled around the world, adding only the finest art treasures to their collection. Priceless works by Picasso, Van Gogh, Monet and many others adorned the walls of the family estate. The widowed father looked on with satisfaction as his only child became an experienced art collector. But the day came when war engulfed the nation, and the young man left to serve his country. After only a few short weeks, his father received a telegram that his beloved son had been killed while carrying a fellow soldier to a medic.
On Christmas morning a knock came at the door of the old man¡¦s home, and as he opened the door, he was greeted by a soldier with a large package in his hand. He introduced himself to the man by saying, ¡§I was a friend of your son. I was the one he was rescuing when he died. May I come in for a few moments? I have something to show you.¡¨ ¡§I¡¦m an artist,¡¨ said the soldier, ¡§and I want to give you this.¡¨ As the old man unwrapped the package, the paper gave way to reveal a portrait of his son. Though the art critics would never consider the work a piece of genius, the painting did feature the young man¡¦s face in striking detail, and seemed to capture his personality.
The following spring, the old man became ill and passed away. The art world was in anticipation! According to the will of the old man, all of the art works would be auctioned. The day soon arrived, and art collectors from around the world gathered to bid on some of the world¡¦s most spectacular paintings. The auction began with a painting that was not on any museum¡¦s list. It was the painting of the man¡¦s son. The auctioneer asked for an opening bid. The room was silent. ¡§Who will open the bidding with $100?¡¨ he asked. Minutes passed with not a sound from those who came to buy. From the back of the room someone callously called out, ¡§Who cares about that painting? It¡¦s just a picture of his son. Let¡¦s forget it and go on to the important paintings.¡¨ There were other voices which echoed in agreement. But the auctioneer replied, ¡§No, we have to sell this one first. Now, who will take the son?¡¨ Finally, a friend of the old man spoke. ¡§I knew the boy, so I¡¦d like to have it. I will bid the $100.¡¨ ¡§I have a bid for $100,¡¨ called the auctioneer. ¡§Will anyone go higher?¡¨ After a long silence, the auctioneer said, ¡§Going once. Going twice. Gone.¡¨ The gavel fell. Cheers filled the room and someone was heard to say, ¡§Now we can get on with it!¡¨ But the auctioneer looked at the audience and announced the auction was over. Stunned disbelief quieted the room. Someone spoke up and asked, ¡§What do you mean it¡¦s over? We didn¡¦t come here for a picture of some old guy¡¦s son. What about all of these paintings? There are millions of dollars worth of art here! We demand that you explain what¡¦s going on!¡¨ The auctioneer replied, ¡§It¡¦s very simple. According to the will of the father, whoever takes the son... gets it all.¡¨
That is the message of Christmas. By accepting the Son, we receive it all. If you want to know the hope that I have been describing, you need to accept the Son. You need to surrender to Him, invite Him to come into your life and then choose daily to walk with Him. ¡§God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life¡¨ (1 John 5:11-12). We have hope for life ¡V eternal ¡V because of the Son.
Sharing the message of hope:
As I look around our world, I don¡¦t see a lot of reason for hope on our own. People continue to treat others in ways that are completely horrendous for reasons that are completely ridiculous. There are all kinds of inequalities, all kinds of pain, all kinds of suffering. But you and I, who have a hope in Christ ¡V who have the assurance of God¡¦s very presence with us through all the circumstances of life ¡V have the answer to the hopelessness and despair of our world. We have the promise of Immanuel ¡V of God with us ¡V and it is a promise to be shared. Whether others accept that promise is not up to us, but we are required to share that promise with people around us who are desperate, who either have no hope or have hope in things that cannot suffice in the face of the darkest moments of humanity.
Conclusion:
I want to close with two challenges. The first is this: if you personally need to know the hope of Immanuel, God with us, walking beside you through the challenges of life that you face, come and pray with someone. I know that sometimes we feel alone in facing those difficult times, but God does not want us to feel alone in them. Allow someone else to come alongside you and pray with you, that you would know God¡¦s comfort and hope.
The second is this: as you plan your Christmas celebration, how can you share the hope of Immanuel with those in your world? The ways are as unlimited as your creativity; I encourage you to set aside time to think and act on ways to pass that eternal gift, the gift of hope, on to those in your world who desperately need to know the hope that is within you.
