Hope

1 Timothy 4:10 (ESV): For to this end we toil and strive, because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe.

· Hope is a possession. You either have it or you don’t.

· Where did hope go?

· Where do we find our hope?

· Hope is a possession you have hope or you don’t.

-My past life included a hopeless situation. Expand on hopelessness

I wanted to die.

I was going to die an addict.

-Much like Paul and the persecution he suffered in Asia, “ For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. 2ndCorinthians 8-9

It should sound very familiar…

I wanted to die.For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself.

I was going to die an addict. we felt that we had received the sentence of death

I would like to use a scientific experiment to prove a point here.

“Even though the rat brain is smaller and less complex than the human brain, research has shown that the two are remarkably similar in structure and function.”

- Curt Richter, a scientist, placed rats into a bucket full of water and watched them.

-Test 1: Rats, who are apparently known for their strong swimming skills, lasted an average of 15 minutes before drowning.

-Test 2: Again, he introduced them into buckets and observed them as they progressed towards drowning. This time though, he noted the moment at which they gave up then, just before they died, he rescued them. He saved them, held them for a while and helped them recover. He then placed them back into the buckets and started the experiments all over again. The rescued rats swam longer than 15 minutes. In fact, they swam for nearly 60 hours.

-The only thing that had changed was that they had been saved before, so they had hope this time.

There are no hopeless situations; there are only men who have grown hopeless about them.

- Clare Boothe Luce

· Where did hope go?

1. a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen.

"he looked through her belongings in the hope of coming across some information"

2.

ARCHAIC

a feeling of trust.

"our private friendship, upon hope and affiance whereof, I presume to be your petitioner"

It is rather funny to me that both of these things can be applied to God but not to the things of this world. And yet, we wish to put our hope in things of this world.

Where did hope go?

-God never went anywhere. It is us who have wandered from him.

We should realize that hope has present and future implications.

Paul said, “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” Philippians 1:21

Besides, it was no sooner than we see the sin and curse of those involved in the garden (Adam, Eve and the serpent) that there is evidence of present and future hope.

Present- They did not remain in the garden to eat from the Tree of Life after having eaten from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Imagine an eternity such as this, where we live forever in a fallen state.

Future hope- It is in the curse to the serpent

“And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring[a] and hers; he will crush[b] your head, and you will strike his heel.”

· Where do we find our hope?

How many of us have hope?

How many of us have hope in__________ fill in the blank…UK winning Successes etc.

How many of us have hope in the living God.

I am sure we have all heard that hope is confident expectation.

Who or what do we have confidence in?

Who or what can we set expectations of?

The real question is what hope is in us? 1 Peter 3:13-17

Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good? 14 But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, 15 but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, 16 having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. 17 For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God's will, than for doing evil.

The problem lies in the fact that we place hope in things that do not last! The only one who deserves our hope stands outside of creation.

Look back to Paul in 2nd Corinthians 8-9

“ For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead.

Again, we see that hope is something of and in God. The things I experienced were to help me come to saving knowledge of Christ. I had come to realize that a life without hope is a life without Christ. So, if you’ve lost hope… let's treat it like our car keys. I can always find them in the last place I put them.