Hope (Part 4): Return to Hope
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
As we close out this series, it’s important to remember that we are created by God on purpose and for purpose.
That purpose is to know Him, to be in relationship with Him, to love Him, to be loved by Him, and to worship Him.
This is why God is our only hope.
This is why we must turn only to Him for forgiveness, fulfillment, and the future that we were made for.
The glorious promise of God is that in Him we have HOPE!
11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. 13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.
1) God will be Found!
1) God will be Found!
“I will be found by you…”
Have you ever had moments where you looked around and just wondered, “Where is God?”
Have you ever had those moments in your life, where you felt like God was nowhere to be found?
We need to know that Psalm 46:1 (“1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”) reassures us that God is ever-present.
Sometimes, our biggest problem is that we are looking for God in all the wrong ways.
We see God as “nowhere” when in reality God is NowHere.
When we thing God is absent, we need a shift in our perspective.
We can spend too much time trying to see God from a worldly perspective and we completely miss that God is right in front of us.
OR too often, we are trying to get God to reveal Himself to us in a flashy billboard or a flashy scene like that of a move with Morgan Freeman’s or James Earl Jones’ voice.
Remember what vs. 12-13 reminds us: We can call upon Him, come and pray to Him, and He hears us.
We will find Him, see Him revealed, when we seek Him with all of our heart.
When we have a heart that is all for Him, we will be able to see clearly His presence.
If we wil quiet our hearts and abandon our unrealistic demands of how God should reveal Himself to us, He will be found.
When we finally realize that He is the God of the universe, the God of all creation, the God of me and I am none of those things, we will find God.
When we find Him, we will discover that He has been with us the entire time.
One of the things we must realize as we seek to return to hope is that hope has always been available. God is ever-present and we find Him, when we genuinely seek Him for who He is.
2) God will Restore!
2) God will Restore!
If we are not careful here, our minds will immediately go back to a worldly perspective and we can think that God is talking about material things.
The blessings of God are never based in material things. They are based upon His goodness.
Psalm 73:28 “28 But for me it is good to be near God; I have made the Lord God my refuge…”
The “fortunes” or blessings restored is not that of riches that are material, but a richness of favor and stature.
That is, a restored status of righteousness to our lives.
If you are a Christ-follower, you can still experience hopelessness at times, but it is not because your salvation has been revoked or that God has disowned you.
If you are truly a Jesus-follower, you cannot be disowned. You cannot lose your salvation, but your fellowship with God can be hindered.
When our fellowship is hindered, it can feel pretty hopeless, but God is promising you, that He will restore the blessing of fellowship so that you may enjoy the riches of your sonship or daughtership that He has given you.
Remember what David prays in Psalm 51:12 “12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit.”
I was listening to John Piper talk about this passage several weeks back and he points out that in this Psalm, David never talks directly about the sins that you and I would think should be there in a prayer of confession and forgiveness.
He doesn’t talk about lust, or betrayal, or conspiracy of murder, or deceit….
What he does recognize is that he sinned when allowed something else to be a source of joy for him rather than giving the Lord’s righteousness the exclusivity in his life for joy, contentment, and fulfillment.
Piper suggests, that a restoration of the joy of salvation is plea for correct understanding, posture, reconciliation, and relationship with God.
When we feel as though hope is lost, we can turn to God, find Him, and as a loving Father, He will restore His favor and fortune.
3) God will Bring Us Back!
3) God will Bring Us Back!
Remember, you were made in the image of God for the purpose of fellowship and relationship with God.
When God created Adam and Eve, He was with them in the garden. He was close to them in proximity and relationally.
Sin is so devastating to us, because it drives us away from that original purpose and intent.
God declares that when we call upon Him, He will hear us.
When we seek Him will all of our hearts, you will find Him.
When you find Him, He will restore your fortunes and bring you back to where you belong!
You and I were made by God.
We belong to God.
Remember the movie, “Toy Story.” It was big deal when Andy’s name was put on the bottom of the toys’ feet.
That which belonged to Andy, bore His name.
When you God’s, you will bear the name of Jesus on your life!
You were made by God and even though we rejected Him, He still seeks to redeem you.
Even when you’ve been redeemed, if you find that you’ve distanced yourself, God says He will bring you back to the place you belong…with Him!
Think of a child in a public place.
Have you ever lost a kid in a store or public place?
Have you ever been in that place where your child is not where they are supposed to be?
When you heard them cry out, didn’t you rush to where they are, scoop them up, and bring them back to where they belong!
God promises that He will bring us back to Him.
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 18 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. 20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
Closing
Closing
Some people may have been feeling lost and hopeless for quite some time.
Some may be living with a gut wrenching insecurity of realizing that they are feeling lost, hopeless, and scared.
No matter how lost or hopeless we feel, we have this amazing promise that we can call out to God from right where we are.
When we call out to Him with sincerity of heart, we have this full assurance that He hears us, we will find Him, and He will restore us to where we belong…to be where we were made to be!
