Heavy Duty Hope

Romans 5:1–5 ESV

1 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

Title:

Prayer

Held by Hope: Hebrews 6:19 “19 We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain,”

Hope for Today: 1 Peter 1:3 “3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,”

… Today

Enduring Hope… a hope that endures… but what i would like to call, a heavy duty hope.

Romans 5:2–3 “2 Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance,”

Story:

I have two boys. i love them they are the best - i love being sweet to my girls but i have loved being a boy dad… and now my boys are getting a bit older now. they are starting to grow taller, get smarter, Think for themselves a bit… stink a bit more than they used to! (insert old spice commercial)

ever since the boys were little - jill and have recognized that when it comes to them, they are boys, they dont care about what anything costs, or how difficult for us to procure in our lives. They will want to play with it and most likely without even trying sometimes BREAK IT.

With boys - you need everyting to be durable. Toys, Clothes, Bikes….SHOES! and the better the quality of the thing the most its likely to survive the beating that those boys will give it. (jack and the plant base)

THIS HOPE WE HAVE IS NOT A BRITTLE HOPE. THIS HOPE WE HAVE IS A HEAVY DUTY ONE.

It can withstand.

Application: In this life, a faint hope is not what you need, a distance hope is NOT what you need, a brittle is NOT what you need.

What you need is a hope that powers through the ebbs and flows of life. The ups and the downs, the weight of life it holds, the weather of life it sustains, the length of life it endures.

This is the HOPE that the bible talks about, that comes NOT in a religion, a system or a process - But it comes in as a result of a life changing relationship with the Lord Jesus. Its in a personal. And to the degree we know Jesus is the degree to which we will know this HOPE.

JESUS IS NOT AN ETRYWAY into AN EASY LIFE, BUT IT IS A HOPE-FILLED ONE.

When you hope in Jesus you stop hoping in yourself. When you depend no longer on you and only on GOD - you have a hope that doesnt come from this world, because Jesus is not from this world. Hes from HEAVEN> so the hope thats given is a heavenly, supernatural … eternal HOPE.

WORLDLY HOPE IS NOTHING TO HANG YOUR HAT ON

How does this contrast with the world? well - if you take some time to think and see it for what it is, the world is offering hope - but its a hope that always falls short:

WORLDLY HOPE? what is that all about - This is the

Weve established that without HOPE people struggle and wrestle…

The human heart cannot live without hope. The question is never whether we hope — only where we place our hope.”

Here are some of the main places culture puts its hope today. All of these are false hopes….

1. Hope in Progress

Many people believe the future will naturally improve through science, technology, and education.

Examples:

medical breakthroughs

AI and technology

economic development

social reform

The belief: “Human progress will solve our problems.”

The challenge: Progress fixes many problems but doesn’t fix the human heart (war, greed, pride, hatred).

You could say:

“We can upgrade our phones every year, but we still struggle with the same sins humans had thousands of years ago.”

2. Hope in Politics

A huge cultural hope today is political salvation.

People believe:

the right leader

the right policies

the right system

will fix society. and so they hope in that - They go after that hope aggressively and think that a new leader will fix the issues.

But every election eventually disappoints someone. Every government fails.

You could say:

“Politics promises a better world, but it can’t produce a new heart in people.”

3. Hope in Personal Success

Another cultural hope is achievement and self-fulfillment.

The message:

build your career

chase your dreams

become your best self

The belief: “If I can become who I want to be, I’ll finally feel satisfied.”

But many people reach success and still feel empty.

4. Hope in Relationships

Culture often puts hope in:

romance

family

friendship

The belief: the False hope ere is this oe…. “The right person will complete me.” The Right relationship will be my ticket to a better life. If i could just do well in that area then there is HOPE for me.

But relationships, while beautiful, while necessary…. can’t carry the weight of ultimate meaning.

Jesus is Lord, Saviour and Best friend.

(young people: hope in jesus not a person.. not even your PERSON. i love my wife, im glad we found each other and now we are one. But Jesus is still our hope. Not our spouse.

Relationships are important - but we (as believers) we dont hope in them.

5. Hope in Comfort & Escape

Many people aren’t hoping for transformation — they’re hoping for distraction.

Examples:

entertainment

scrolling

substances

travel

hobbies

Not solving despair — numbing it.

“Sometimes culture doesn’t try to answer hopelessness. It just tries to distract from it.”

…..

6. Hope in Self

One of the dominant modern beliefs is:

“Look within yourself.” find yourself.

Feel better about your self.

You’ll hear phrases like:

“Believe in yourself.”

“Trust your heart.”

“You are enough.”

But the problem is:

Jeremiah 17:9 ESV

9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?

The human heart is often the very thing we’re struggling with.

Christianity says hope comes not from looking inward, but upward.

Not within… but above

Quotes:

“Hope itself is like a star—not to be seen in the sunshine of prosperity, and only to be discovered in the night of adversity.”- Spurgeon (Beautiful imagery for suffering and perseverance.)

“Hope is the power that gives a person confidence to keep going when the future seems uncertain.” - Piper …Preaching angle: Hope fuels endurance.

What is this HEAVY DUTY FAITH that God wants us to understand and have today

Romans 5:2 ESV

2 Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

Romans 5:3 ESV

3 Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance,

Faith gives me spiritual sight, Hope gives me fresh power to endure

FAITH SEE’s…..Hope ENDURES, is resilient, is steadfast in nature.

Faith is seeing what isnt there - but believing in Faith that it is there.

paul here in romans is talking about a certain standing we now have with God in this part of romans…. a secure entry-way into the prsence of the king

No one has seen God, yet the faith in your see’s God in the spirit and knows He is there

Faith has sight.

Hope has power: Hope causes us to have a power to hope towards and hope in an eternal glory that causes a power to rise up in us to continue on despite the circumstances around or within us.

HOPE IS A POWERFUL FORCE IN THE LIFE OF A BELIEVER

A LACK OF HOPE IS DESTRUCTIVE IN THE LIFE ANY PERSON WHO LACKS HOPE

HOPE TRANSFORMS SUFFERING INTO ENDURANCE

Suffering doesnt affect my standing, it helps me see it even more clearly

Suffering doesnt mean ive lost my standing, it means i can see it even more clearly because suffering produces in me a righteousness

WRITE THIS DOWN: HOPE IN SUFFERING PRODUCES STRENGTH IN FAITH

Suffering Is Part of Following Him, its actually a gift when given to Jesus

Matthew 16:24 ESV

24 Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.

Jesus never promised comfort—He only promised a cross before a crown

connect the quotes with Romans 5:3–5:

“Suffering produces endurance, endurance produces character, and character produces hope.”

......:“Hope isn’t fragile in the Christian life. Hope is forged in endurance.”

A Heavy Duty Hope.

1.HOPE TRANSFORMS SUFFERING INTO ENDURANCE

Produces Perserverance

Transforms suffering.

Suffering Allows us to understand our need of God.

Job 42:1–6 ESV

1 Then Job answered the Lord and said: 2 “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.

As believers in the covenant of Jesus…. any Suffering allows us to identify with Christ suffering and its seen as a privilege not a curse. a glorious suffering.

2.HOPE BUILDS CHARACTER THROUGH GODS PRESENCE.

2 Corinthians 1:6–8 ESV

6 If we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; and if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which you experience when you patiently endure the same sufferings that we suffer. 7 Our hope for you is unshaken, for we know that as you share in our sufferings, you will also share in our comfort. 8 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.

3.HOPE ALWAYS LEADS US TOWARDS UNASHAMED GLORY AHEAD

Romans 5:5 “5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”

The HOPE IN what the WORLD hopes for? its always gonna let you down, eventually

But not the hope we have in JESUS….

This is a heavy duty hope.

We are triumphant people of Hope.

and this Hope does not put us to shame

1 Peter 1:3–5 ESV

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

1 Peter 1:6–7 ESV

6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

Peter says it like this

Your standing with him - even in the midst of persecution, trials, surrfering…. is just will all point FORWARD and UPWARD to the glory that is to be revealed in the light of eternity,

THIS IS THE HOPE WE HAVE IN CHRIST

Its a HEAVY DUTY HOPE.

lets

Verses

1 Timothy 4:9–11 ESV

9 The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance. 10 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. 11 Command and teach these things.

1 Thessalonians 4:13 ESV

13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.

Colossians 1:27 ESV

27 To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.