Anchored in Hope

Anchored in Hope: The Unshakable Promise

Good morning, children of God! Something has been stuck in my head since Pastor Paul’s teaching last week: the blood oath that God made with Abraham. I think the reason it stuck in my head is because it filled me with hope. Let’s look back at Genesis 15:12.

Genesis 15:12 NKJV

12 Now when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and behold, horror (emah) and great darkness fell upon him.

When we read this we see that Abraham was overtaken by “horror,” and a great darkness fell upon him. The word “horror,” or emah in the Greek, means an overwhelming feeling of fear and anxiety.

I said, “Oh my God!” Literally, “My God!” I know how Abraham felt! How many of us can admit today that we have experienced or experience overwhelming feelings of fear and anxiety or great darkness at times? Praise God, you are not alone! I will be the first to admit that I deal with unfounded fear, anxiety and darkness at times. I know those things are not of God, yet they resurface at times.

Here is what is mind-blowing! Here is where peace and hope collide.

God alone passed through the sacrifice; the covenant was sealed by God alone. Nothing depended on Abraham. NOTHING! Everything depended on God. The writer of Hebrews tells us in Hebrews 6:13

Hebrews 6:13 NLT

13 Since there was no one greater to swear by, God took an oath in His own name

In His covenant with you, nothing depends on you! God swore in His name to fulfill His promises to you and me. The Holy Spirit of God is speaking to our hearts this morning, and He is saying, “I’ve got you.” “I’VE GOT YOU!”

For the believer, Jesus is the embodiment of God’s covenant with His people. Jesus took on ALL elements of the covenant as Servant, Lord, Savior, and Shepherd. You are signed for, sealed, and delivered by His own blood! Jesus says, “I’ve got you.” Do you believe Him this morning? I sure do!

The first thing we have to do is realize that peace precedes hope. If we are not secure in our peace with God, we will not fully realize His hope. God is secure in His peace with us. We sometimes are not.

1. Peace Precedes Hope

Romans 5:1 NLT

1 Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us.

Everything we talk about today applies specifically to believers. Paul assumes that at this point, he is speaking to either new believers or maturing believers. We all need this reminder at times. We are not working toward peace with God, WE HAVE PEACE WITH GOD! Paul goes from making statements like “being declared righteous” to “have been made right.”

The word “being” refers to something that is presently happening. “I am being good.” “I am being honest.”

The words “have been” look back to a fact that has already happened. What happened? Jesus happened! When a person places their faith in Christ, they are declared righteous and receive the gift of eternal salvation. The case is closed. You are now made right in the eyes of the Father.

Sometimes, in our walk, we feel like we have to pay a bill that is no longer due. “I have to do something to get on God’s good side.” “God is punishing me.” ”I am not good enough.” “I have to do more to earn His love.” ALL LIES!

You can keep trying to pay that bill, but Jesus is going to look you in the eye and say, "I paid that bill in full.” We have peace with God through Christ. God will not change His mind or His judgment. A blood oath was made for you.

As humans, we try to find peace in our circumstances, this world, our bank accounts, and a bunch of other things. If we are looking for peace in the things of this world or other people, we are giving control of our peace to others. At times, we will take our peace out of God’s hands and try to put it under the control of someone or something else.

Having experienced the peace of God, how can we expect anybody or anything to measure up? Nobody can measure up to God! God is our ultimate source of peace. It is impossible to experience Godly hope without knowing His peace. The Apostle Paul goes on to say:

Romans 5:2 NIV

2 through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God.

“Hope of the Glory of God.” If you do a word study on “hope,” you will find the noun “hope” is not found in the Gospels; Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John. The verb, which makes it an action, “TO HOPE” is found five times in the Gospels. When used in relation to God and Christ, “To Hope” means “To Trust.”

Let’s look at the difference between worldly hope and Godly Hope:

The Sermon Notebook: Old Testament Hope in the Midst of Your Battles (Psalm 27:1–6)

Worldly Hope - “to have a wish to get or do something or for something to happen or be true, especially something that seems possible or likely.

From the world’s perspective, hope is no more than wishful thinking. Hope, for the world, is wishing for something that may or may not happen.

Godly Hope - Confidence in God “Whose goodness and mercy are to be relied on and Whose promises cannot fail.” A living hope, a hope not frail or perishable but eternal.

This means that the hope you have as a believer is rooted in God’s faithfulness and promises. Not the faithfulness of friends, family, or this world.

Brothers and sisters, our hope is in a God who made a blood oath to himself through Christ. Our hope is in Him, not in our circumstances or wishful thinking.

If our hope is not in the promises of God through Christ, we will be lost in this life. Hope is what gives us a sense of direction and purpose when we face life's challenges and uncertainty. The unwavering promises of God are what carry us moment by moment at times. As we persevere in Christ, that perseverance produces hope.

2. Perseverance Produces Hope

Romans 5:3–5 NLT

3 We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. 4 And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. 5 And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.

Let’s put Romans 5:3 back up on the screen.

Romans 5:3 NLT

3 We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance.

Let me say the quiet part out loud. I do not like what this verse says. I would much rather it say “You will no longer face problems or trials, life is going to be perfect,” but it doesn’t.

Endurance or perseverance cannot be taught; it must be learned. The idea of endurance points to our weaknesses and to the power of God in our weaknesses.

It is impossible to develop endurance or perseverance without suffering. Without suffering, what is there to endure? Our dependence on God in those times magnifies His power in our lives!

There are a lot of people going through what seem like insurmountable odds right now. IN THEIR WEAKNESS, THEY ARE DEPENDING ON AND TRUSTING IN THE POWER OF GOD.

I also believe that every person here and online today can point to times that God has brought them through the fire. You have a testimony, you have a witness unto the Lord that you would not have without having suffered. You have the opportunity to witness to others about the power of Christ that for other believers would fall on deaf ears.

Romans 5:4 NLT

4 And endurance develops strength of character, and character (dokimē) strengthens our confident hope of salvation.

When Paul speaks of character, the Greek word dokimē is used. It means to be proven or purified. A character that has sustained the test. Paul was probably referencing Zechariah 13:9

Zechariah 13:9 NLT

9 I will bring that group through the fire and make them pure. I will refine them like silver and purify them like gold. They will call on my name, and I will answer them. I will say, ‘These are my people,’ and they will say, ‘The Lord is our God.’ ”

Notice that God is not the cause of the problem; God brings us through the fire. Silver and gold have a natural tendency to pick up impurities when exposed to our natural environment.

We pick up impurities as we walk through this world. It is during the trials that we call upon the LORD our God, and He purifies us through the Holy Spirit.

We need to remember those times! For some of us, there have been countless times we have been through the fire and the LORD strengthened us through the Spirit. When we face trials in this life, we draw from our experience with God. We pull from His strength, a strength not our own. Our trust, our hope in Him is what sustains us.

One form of counseling I do in and out of the school is called “strength based counseling.” We focus on what people have done in the past to overcome difficult situations. What I hear many times is “I prayed,” “I got into fellowship,” and “I brought it to God.” We know there is hope because we can trust God. We can fully rely on God.

Romans 5:5 NLT

5 And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.

I can’t speak for you, but God has never disappointed me. The chain reaction of this life ends the same for all who believe: Salvation in the presence of the Father. We can work backward from there and say, “God, remember that time you brought me through the fire?” “Yeah, and that time too?” “Oh, and there was that other time.” “And I know you are going to do it this time, too.” That is the hope we have. That is the truth we speak.

We have witnessed the works of Christ through the Holy Spirit time and again. He has filled us with His grace, mercy, peace, and strength. Holy Spirit has walked many of us through the fire many times.

Those trials and tribulations strengthen or purify us, giving us a confident expectation of victory and eternal glory.

Some believers think that God rations out His love. God does not ration His love out drop by drop (here is a little for you and a little for you); Let me tell you something; God pours His love out into our hearts and minds through the Holy Spirit. It is not hit or miss with Holy Spirit. He doesn’t say “Oh well, maybe I’ll catch you next time.” He is ever present and ever working, making a way and lighting the path. Those promises are what anchor our soul

3. Promises Anchor Our Soul

Hebrews 6:17–19 NLT

17 God also bound himself with an oath, so that those who received the promise could be perfectly sure that he would never change his mind. 18 So God has given both his promise and his oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie. Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us. 19 This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain into God’s inner sanctuary.

How many of us have had a person break a promise to us? Has anybody ever broken a promise to you? Have you ever broken a promise to someone else? That is because humans are not 100% reliable. Now, has God ever broken a promise to you? He won’t. He bound himself with an oath. God does not lie which makes his oath and promises unchangeable.

You and I are promised eternal life in the Kingdom of glory. The anchor of hope for your soul is in His unshakeable promises.

Contrary to what some people teach and believe, Hebrews 13:8 tells us:

Hebrews 13:8 NLT

8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Jesus told us things were going to get rough at times in this life. Who can testify to that! I will say AMEN because it is truth he shared with us.

Jesus also told us these truth’s that I will testify to with my dying breath:

God is a refuge from the storms of this life and the enemy.

God is the anchor for our souls to keep us from drifting aimlessly.

Faith, Hope, and Trust in Christ carries us through the veil and into the presence of the Father.

AMEN and AMEN! Have you ever experienced a power outage? Guess what, there are no power outages with God. Jesus provides us with uninterrupted access to the Father. We will never have an outage of divine power. The same thing Moses spoke to the Israelites in Numbers 23:19 holds true for every believer today;

Numbers 23:19 NLT

19 God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through?

As believers, we need to rest in the certainty that what God promises, He will fulfill. A true and living hope is anchored in the character and promises of God, not in people or in our circumstances. HIS TRUTH empowers us to face life's storms with hope, confidence, and peace.

Worship/Alter Call

Let’s quiet our minds this morning. We are in the presence of the Father, the Great I AM. Holy Spirit is in this place. Jesus tore the veil so that we could enter boldly into the presence of God. He loves you and wants you to bring your heart to him. Anchor yourself in Him, in His unshakeable promises.

If you are hurting, if you are discouraged, if you are not sure about your next move, bring your sorrows before the throne of God. Let us pray for you.

Likewise, praise His Holy name for carrying you through those times you did not think you would make it. Let’s lift hearts full of gratitude and thanksgiving to the Lord God Almighty.

If you do not know Jesus Christ as your LORD and Savior, let today be the day. Do not wait another day.