Relentless Love (Hosea) - Week 3
Relentless Love • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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- There’s a story told by the Jewish rabbi Hugo Gryn, who was imprisoned in the Auschwitz concentration camp as a boy.
- Food supplies were meager, and the inmates took care to preserve every scrap that came their way.
- And Hugo tells the story that when the time for Hanukkah arrived, his father took a lump of margarine and used it as fuel for the light to be lit in celebration of the ancient Jewish festival.
- And Hugo was horrified, understandably so, when any bit of food was so precious and so needed.
- And he asks his father why he would do such a thing, his father replied by saying “We know that it is possible to live for three weeks without food, but without hope it is impossible to live properly for three minutes.”
- Because to celebrate Hanukkah, to remember this tradition and act of faith, gave hope to them – hope that they needed even more than they needed food to eat.
- And so we’re in week 3 of our series “Relentless Love”, looking at what we can learn from the ancient Jewish prophet Hosea.
- And this morning is going to be all about hope.
- Because without hope, it is impossible to live properly. Not even for three minutes.
- We were made to have hope.
- We need to have hope.
- Chances are that we’ve all faced times in our lives when hope was lacking (maybe some of us are in those times right now)
- And, as we’ve already seen earlier in this series, Hosea was a prophet who lived and ministered during a time when hope was rare (to non-existent).
- Hosea lived and spoke for God at a time when the northern kingdom of Israel was heading downhill fast – entering into subjugation from Assyria, and then completely conquered, overthrown, and exiled by Assyria.
- And, as you might expect if you’ve spent time in the Old Testament before, Hosea (just like many other ancient Jewish prophets) contains many warnings and accusations.
- Many messages of “Stop doing the wrong things, turn back to God and allow Him to help you out of the mess you’ve gotten yourself in!”
- Many messages of “If you don’t knock it off, then bad things are coming your way.”
- Yet, throughout all these collections of writings, prophecies, poems, and even bits of Hosea’s own story of his relationship with his unfaithful wife Gomer,
- Throughout it all, there is a message of hope.
- Throughout Hosea, promises of consequences and justice for sin are present, but they are consistently followed by promises of mercy and salvation.
- Consider just this first example:
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- Hosea 3:4-5
o So the people of Israel will live for a long time without a king or prince. They won’t have sacrifices or sacred stones. They won’t have sacred linen aprons or statues of family gods. After that, the people of Israel will return to the Lord their God.
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o They will look to him and to a king from the family line of David. In the last days, they will tremble with fear as they come to the Lord. And they will receive his full blessing.
- As we’ve talked about in the introduction to this series, when Hosea comes onto the scene, Israel was at a time in their history, where they were materially prospering (and then watching that prosperity disappear into complete poverty and despair), and spiritually decaying.
- They had been serving God, not as their one true Love (their one true Husband), but rather they’d been serving Him as though He was just one of many Baal’s (one of many gods, one of many lords/rulers/masters).
- And the message is clear.
- The consequences of their idolatry/adultery is imminent defeat.
- And yet, there is a promise of future restoration.
- There is a promise of hope.
- This one here is particularly significant, because they are told that they will live for a “long time without a king or prince” (their kingdom will be destroyed, they will be conquered and exiled, there will never again be another “king of the northern kingdom of Israel”).
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- And yet, one day “the people of Israel will return to the Lord their God. They will look to him and to a king from the family line of David”
- The northern tribes of Israel will never have a “king” again (because the northern tribes were hopelessly scattered and intermingled in their exile), but a better king is coming.
- A king from the family line of David.
- This is significant because when the nation of Israel was split into two kingdoms (the northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah), it was Judah who chose to follow the family line of David (the same King David who threw a rock at the giant Goliath).
- It was Judah who put King David’s grandson on the throne, and northern Israel rejected him and went their own way with their own king from a different family.
- So Israel has been separated from the kings coming from the family line of David for a long time.
- So Hosea prophesies that this day is coming, one day they will have a king from the family line of David.
- This is a Messianic promise.
- This is a prophecy that points to the coming Messiah (the coming Saviour, the coming King).
- This is about Jesus.
- Hosea is all about the powerful love and justice of God – which is ultimately shown in Jesus.
- This is where God’s love and justice collide.
- In the perfect King, the promised Saviour, who takes the punishment for our rebellion upon Himself.
- And so this morning I want us to just explore this message of hope, as found all throughout the poems and prophecies of Hosea.
- So I want us to look at the major shifts that Hosea contains.
- Because even though there is some strong (and shocking) language used in reference to judgment and sin, in Hosea it is always followed by language of hope and a future.
- And every section of warning, accusation, and judgement, is followed by a picture of hope, reconciliation, and a better future.
- So let’s go through these shifts that take place over the course of 14 chapters.
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- Hosea 2:12-13
o I will destroy her vines and her fig trees.
o She said they were her pay from her lovers.
o I’ll make them like clumps of bushes and weeds.
o Wild animals will eat them up.
o Israel burned incense to the gods
o that were named Baal.
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o I will punish her
o for all the times she did that.
o She decorated herself with rings and jewelry.
o Then she went after her lovers.
o But she forgot all about me,”
o declares the Lord.
- And then, here’s the shift.
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- Hosea 2:14-20
o “So now I am going to draw her back to me.
o I will lead her into the desert.
o There I will speak tenderly to her.
o I will give her back her vineyards.
o I will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope for her.
o Then she will love me, as she did when she was young.
o She will love me just as she did
o when she came up out of Egypt.
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o “A new day is coming,” announces the Lord.
o “Israel will call me ‘my husband.’
o She will no longer call me ‘my master.’
o She will no longer speak about the gods
o that are named Baal.
o She will not pray to them for help anymore.
o At that time I will make a covenant
o for the good of my people.
o I will make it with the wild animals
o and the birds in the sky.
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o It will also be made with the creatures
o that move along the ground.
o I will remove bows and swords
o and other weapons of war from the land.
o Then my people can lie down in safety.
o I will make Israel my own.
o She will belong to me forever.
o I will do to her what is right and fair.
o I will love her tenderly.
o I will be faithful to her.
o And she will recognize me as the Lord.
- Now, in all of these texts that we’re going to look at this morning, there is a lot going on, and we do not have time to go through each one at length.
- But, I’ll post all of these shifts from judgement to hope, from justice to love on the “Now What” website, so if you want to study them in full for yourselves you will be able to.
- But, for each of these I just want to take a few minutes for each, to consider what they teach us about how the love and justice of God collide, and how it points us to a hope that cannot be found in any other belief or worldview.
- And so, for this one, let’s once again realize how much Hosea (writing about the judgment of God coming to the northern kingdom of Israel as they head towards their impending exile),
- In the midst of that difficult Old Testament message, a message that makes so many people wonder how in the world the God of the Old Testament could be the same as the God revealed in Jesus,
- Right here, at the heart of the message, we see these beautiful pictures of hope, and these beautiful allusions to Jesus.
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- God speaks through Hosea here, and we are told about a “new day” that is coming.
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- And, in that “new day”, God will make a “new covenant”.
- (if you were translating that into Latin you might say that in that “new day”, God will make a “new testament”)
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- When that new covenant is made, then God’s people will belong to God “forever”.
- God will show Himself as faithful, and His people will recognize Him as their one true God.
- Hosea is speaking into the darkness of his culture, the troubles and sins and issues and struggles and everything else,
- Hosea is speaking during a difficult time, and he is saying “there is still hope for a better future.”
- “There is still hope found in a God who is making everything new.”
- “No matter how bad today looks, there is still hope for tomorrow.”
- This is so important, please don’t miss this. If you don’t need to hear this personally today, then please go this afternoon, or this week, or whenever, and bring this message to someone who needs to hear it.
- “No matter what your today looks like, no matter how bad things look right now… God has a plan for your tomorrow, and that plan is filled with life and meaning and purpose and hope.”
- Let’s take a look at the next shift in Hosea, the next place we see the justice and love of God collide.
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- Hosea 5:13-14
o “The people of Ephraim saw how sick they were.
o The people of Judah saw that they were wounded.
o Then Ephraim turned to Assyria for help.
o They sent gifts to the great King Tiglath-Pileser.
o But he is not able to make you well.
o He can’t heal your wounds.
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o I will be like a lion to Ephraim.
o I will attack Judah like a powerful lion.
o I will tear them to pieces.
o I will drag them off.
o Then I will leave them.
o No one will be able to save them.
- Then here’s the shift.
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- Hosea 5:15-6:3
o I will go back to my lion’s den.
o I will stay there until they pay the price for their sin.
o Then they will turn to me.
o They will suffer so much
o that they will really want me to help them.”
o The people say, “Come.
o Let us return to the Lord.
o He has torn us to pieces.
o But he will heal us.
o He has wounded us.
o But he’ll bandage our wounds.
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o After two days he will give us new life.
o On the third day he’ll make us like new again.
o Then we will enjoy his blessing.
o Let’s recognize him as the Lord.
o Let’s keep trying to know him.
o You can be sure the sun will rise.
o And you can be just as sure the Lord will appear.
o He will come to renew us like the winter rains.
o He will be like the spring rains that water the earth.”
- Now this is a bit heavier of a picture, but here we read about God using, allowing (even causing) our struggles and trials to turn us towards Him.
- There’s almost this picture of us walking down a path, and then God shows up and pushes us over.
- And we get off, we dust ourselves off, we glare at Him, and then we continue walking.
- And then He knocks us down again.
- And we goes “What is going on here God? Why do you keep doing this to me?”
- And God says “You’re on the wrong path! You’re headed in the wrong direction! I’m trying to get you to stop heading down this path and go another way!”
- And so here we see how God is speaking through Hosea and saying that our suffering may just be what it takes for us to turn to God for help.
- There’s this picture of God as a lion, which points ahead to this imagery that Jesus’ disciple John would write about hundreds of years later as He saw a vision of the future (Revelation 5:5).
- So Hosea references God as a lion.
- And this lion wounds, but also bandages and heals.
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- And then, don’t miss this, this lion will – on the third day – make us like new again.
- The language used here is about receiving a new life.
- This is resurrection language that Hosea is referring to.
- A resurrection that will happen on the third day.
- Hosea writes and says you can be sure that this is going to happen, just as sure as you are that the sun is going to rise.
- This is hope.
- In the midst of pain.
- In the midst of judgment.
- In the midst of even necessary consequences for sin and idolatry and unfaithfulness.
- In the midst of it all, there is a God whose ultimate plan is to make everything new.
- He is making every bad thing become untrue.
- As CS Lewis wrote in the Chronicles of Narnia, this lion is not safe (following Him will cost you everything, and it will even hurt at times), but He is good, and He’s the King.
- Let’s check out the next shift where Hosea shows the justice and love of God colliding.
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- Hosea 11:1-5
o The Lord continues,
o “When Israel was a young nation, I loved them.
o I chose to bring my son out of Egypt.
o But the more I called out to Israel,
o the more they went away from me.
o They brought sacrifices to the statues of the gods
o that were named Baal.
o And they burned incense to them.
o I taught Ephraim to walk.
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o I took them up in my arms.
o But they did not realize
o I was the one who took care of them.
o I led them with kindness and love.
o I was to them like a person who lifts
o a little child to their cheek.
o I bent down and fed them.
o “But they refuse to turn away from their sins.
o So they will return to Egypt.
o And Assyria will rule over them.
- And here’s the shift:
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- Hosea 11:8-11
o The Lord continues,
o “People of Ephraim, how can I give you up?
o Israel, how can I hand you over to your enemies?
o Can I destroy you as I did the town of Admah?
o Can I treat you like Zeboyim?
o My heart is stirred inside me.
o It is filled with pity for you.
o I will not be so angry with you anymore.
o I will not completely destroy you again.
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o After all, I am God.
o I am not a mere man.
o I am the Holy One among you.
o I will not direct my anger against their cities.
o I will roar like a lion against my enemies.
o Then the Lord’s people will follow him.
o When he roars, his children will come home trembling with fear.
o They will return from the west.
- And so here there’s this calling back to Israel’s time in Egypt, where they went to escape a famine but ended up in slavery.
- But, if you know anything about how that story goes, the more God tried to lead them, the more they tried to go in the wrong directions.
- So now, through Hosea, God declares: “So they will return to Egypt. And Assyria will rule over them.”
- They will be conquered, exiled, and scattered.
- But then, there’s this shift, where God says that one day, they will return to Him.
- God says “I will bring you home”.
- And this future day is not just talking about restoring the power of the northern kingdom of Israel (because after they were exiled and scattered, they never came back together again).
- But this is talking about something more, something bigger, something deeper.
- This is calling to a future hope that is far greater than just returning to a nation, or an earthly kingdom.
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- Matthew 2:13-16
o When the Wise Men had left, Joseph had a dream. In the dream an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph. “Get up!” the angel said. “Take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you to come back. Herod is going to search for the child. He wants to kill him.”
o So Joseph got up.
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o During the night, he left for Egypt with the child and his mother Mary. They stayed there until King Herod died. So the words the Lord had spoken through the prophet came true. He had said, “I brought my son out of Egypt.”
o Herod realized that the Wise Men had tricked him. So he became very angry.
- Now, Matthew was a Jewish tax collector, who wrote his Gospel (his record documenting the life of Jesus) for a Jewish audience.
- So Matthew takes a particular emphasis to show “When this happened, that fulfilled what was predicted about Jesus long ago in the Jewish Scriptures.”
- Even though this whole picture (both in Exodus and in Hosea) doesn’t really seem to have too much to do with Jesus, Matthew writes “now that we see the bigger picture, we can see that even this back-and-forth relationship with Egypt was meant to point us towards Jesus.”
- So, for Hosea, in the face of deteriorating conditions in Israel.
- In the midst of their political, material power decaying, and their spiritual health going from bad to worse, in the midst of this picture, we see a glimmer of hope – a glimmer of Jesus.
- Hosea references the relentless love of God as seen during the Jewish exodus from Egypt (Moses says to Pharaoh “Let my people go!”), and Hosea applies that kind of relentless love to his own day and time, saying that now – in the face of exile – that same God is still with them, and still willing to bring them home (just like Moses did in Egypt).
- Hosea points to Moses, but Matthew takes Hosea and uses it to point to Jesus.
- Because God is not going to bring the northern kingdom of Israel “home” in the sense that they get to come back and be their own nation again.
- But, God is working towards His ultimate plan, of making a way for all people (not just the Jewish people, but all people) to come “home” to Him (not a physical place, not an earthly nation, but rather to the new heaven and the new earth).
- He is calling all of us home, home to Him.
- Alright, let’s look at the next shift here, where we see the justice and love of God colliding in Hosea.
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- Hosea 13:9-14
o “Israel, you will be destroyed.
o I helped you. But you turned against me.
o Where is your king?
o Wasn’t he supposed to save you?
o Where are the rulers in all your towns?
o You said, ‘Give us a king and princes.’
o So I became angry and gave you a king.
o Then I took him away from you.
o Ephraim’s guilt is piling up.
o I am keeping a record of all their sins.
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o They will suffer pain like a woman having a baby.
o They are like foolish children.
o It is time for them to be born.
o But they don’t have the sense to come out of their mother’s body.
o “I will set these people free from the power of the grave.
o I will save them from death.
o Death, where are your plagues?
o Grave, where is your power to destroy?
- And then here’s the shift:
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- Hosea 14:1-3a
o Israel, return to the Lord your God.
o Your sins have destroyed you!
o Tell the Lord you are turning away from your sins.
o Return to him.
o Say to him,
o “Forgive us for all our sins.
o Please be kind to us.
o Welcome us back to you.
o Then our lips will offer you our praise.
o Assyria can’t save us.
o We won’t trust in our war horses.
- Now this is significant, because Hosea’s words here would be taken, interpreted, and used by the Apostle Paul, hundreds of years later.
- And they would be used in one of the most hope-filled sections in the Christian Scriptures.
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- 1 Corinthians 15:50-57
o Brothers and sisters, here is what I’m telling you. Bodies made of flesh and blood can’t share in the kingdom of God. And what dies can’t share in what never dies. Listen! I am telling you a mystery. We will not all die. But we will all be changed. That will happen in a flash, as quickly as you can wink an eye.
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o It will happen at the blast of the last trumpet. Then the dead will be raised to live forever. And we will be changed. Our natural bodies don’t last forever. They must be dressed with what does last forever. What dies must be dressed with what does not die. In fact, that is going to happen.
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o What does not last will be dressed with what lasts forever. What dies will be dressed with what does not die. Then what is written will come true. It says, “Death has been swallowed up. It has lost the battle.”
o “Death, where is the victory you thought you had?
o Death, where is your sting?”
o The sting of death is sin.
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o And the power of sin is the law. But let us give thanks to God! He gives us the victory because of what our Lord Jesus Christ has done.
- So, in the midst of the “warning and accusation” part of Hosea’s prophecies, in the midst of a very dark picture (I actually left out some of the most shocking language, some of the kind of stuff that if you read it you might decide you need a break from reading the Bible).
- But yet, in the midst of this dark time in Israel’s history, God was still guiding His people to the Light of Jesus.
- Because, hundreds of years later, Paul would take these words – Paul was a good Jewish man, he was a religious leader, an expert in the Jewish Scriptures.
- And Paul certainly came to texts like Hosea with a certain amount of emotion and reverence.
- Because looking back to the time of Hosea would remind Paul of dark days for his people.
- And yet, Paul took these words from a very difficult time, and applied them to an everlasting hope.
- That the darkness will end.
- The darkness will not win.
- Death, where is your victory?
- Grave, where is your sting?
- Because of Jesus, it’s gone!
- As we talked about a few weeks ago in our last series, that if Jesus takes death out of the picture, then what do we have to be afraid of?
- Death has lost the battle, so to live is Christ and to die is gain.
- This is the incredible picture of hope, the incredible image of a God who loves us with reckless, wasteful, prodigal extravagance.
- He pursues us relentlessly.
- So that, through a relationship with Him, we will be dressed in what will never die – living forever in a perfect relationship with Him and with one another.
- So these are the shifts we see all throughout Hosea.
- Promises of judgment, always followed by promises of mercy and salvation.
- Prophecies and poems of accusations and warnings, always followed by prophecies and poems of forgiveness and hope.
- But, we actually missed one.
- The first one.
- The first shift in Hosea, where we see God’s justice and love colliding.
- So let’s jump back, and read that before we end our time together.
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- Hosea 1:1-9
o A message from the Lord came to Hosea, the son of Beeri. The message came while Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah were kings of Judah. It also came while Jeroboam was king of Israel. He was the son of Jehoash. Here is what the Lord said to him.
o The Lord began to speak through Hosea. He said to him,
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o “Go. Marry a woman who has sex with anyone she wants. Have children with her. Do this because the people of the land are like that kind of wife. They have not been faithful to me.” So Hosea married Gomer. She was the daughter of Diblaim. Gomer became pregnant and had a son by Hosea.
o Then the Lord said to Hosea, “Name him Jezreel.
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o That’s because I will soon punish Jehu’s royal family. He killed many people at the city of Jezreel. So I will put an end to the kingdom of Israel. At that time I will break their military power. It will happen in the Valley of Jezreel.”
o Gomer became pregnant again. She had a daughter. Then the Lord said to Hosea,
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o “Name her Lo-Ruhamah.” Lo-Ruhamah means Not Loved. “That’s because I will no longer show love to the people of Israel. I will not forgive them anymore. But I will show love to the people of Judah. And I will save them. I will not use bows or swords or other weapons of war to do it. I will not save them by using horses and horsemen either.
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o Instead, I will use my own power to save them. I am the Lord their God. And I will save them.”
o Later, Gomer stopped nursing Lo-Ruhamah. After that, she had another son. Then the Lord said, “Name him Lo-Ammi.” Lo-Ammi means Not My People. “That’s because Israel is no longer my people. And I am no longer their God.
- And then here’s the shift (not skipping any words here, just reading the very next words):
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- Hosea 1:10-2:1
o “But the time will come when the people of Israel will be like the sand on the seashore. It can’t be measured or counted. Now it is said about them, ‘You are not my people.’ But at that time they will be called ‘children of the living God.’
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o The people of Judah and Israel will come together again. They will appoint one leader and come up out of the land. And Jezreel’s day will be great.
o “People of Israel, call your brothers ‘My people.’ And call your sisters ‘My loved ones.’
- In my studying of Hosea to prepare for this series, I found commentators saying that the Hebrew language used here is an absolutely jarring, abrupt shift.
- It has even been suggested by some that there must have been two authors here, because how could one person write this, just back to back like this, with no transition or anything.
- But, it is widely held that it wasn’t two authors, but rather this dramatic shift was done intentionally.
- The way, in just a verse, the language shifts from judgement to hope is meant to be dramatic, in order to show the dramatic ability of God’s sovereign power to reverse darkness to light.
- To reverse death to life.
- This kind of extreme and dramatic hope runs all throughout the Jewish and Christian Scriptures (1 Peter 2:9-10, Deuteronomy 30:1-10, Jeremiah 29:11-14, Jeremiah 31:31-40, Ezekiel 11:16-21, Romans 11:25-32).
- But, before we wrap up, this dramatic shift, this powerful ability to reverse death to life, as spoken of by Hosea (right in the midst of his own dark situation), is once again quoted by the Apostle Paul.
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- Romans 9:24-26
o He has chosen us. We do not come only from the Jewish race. Many of us are not Jews. God says in Hosea,
o “I will call those who are not my people ‘my people.’
o I will call the one who is not my loved one ‘my loved one.’ ”
o He also says,
o “Once it was said to them,
o ‘You are not my people.’
o In that very place they will be called ‘children of the living God.’ ”
- Paul is specifically using Hosea (twice) to show that God offers salvation to the Gentiles.
- In other words, Paul is writing about God’s ability to save “everyone”.
- Not just the “chosen people” who thought they were good enough or deserved it.
- Everyone.
- We need to understand this as we wrap things up today.
- This whole idea of being called to come home by a loving God,
- This whole idea of being able to live victoriously in the face of death and grave,
- This whole idea of hope,
- It’s not just for the faithful Hosea’s. This is for the unfaithful Gomer’s.
- The point of this shift in Hosea, the first one that takes place in the ancient Jewish collection of his prophetic writings, and how it was ultimately fulfilled hundreds of years later, is all about God bringing all people back together.
- God is reconciling all people with Himself.
- And He is reconciling us with one another.
- This is the hope of Hosea, this is the hope of Jesus, and this is the hope that we need today.
- That although sin and judgment are rampant.
- Although there are times when everything seems to be decaying and going downhill faster than ever.
- There is still a strand of hope, love, and restoration that is running all throughout it all.
- Because, in the midst of sin and death, God is merciful, and He will restore those who get out of their own way and let Him.
- He will reverse our darkness into light.
- He will reverse our death into life.
- And He will bring us home to Him forever.
- There is no greater hope than what is found in Jesus.
- And that is important for everyone to know about, regardless of whether they want to follow Jesus or not.
- But we need to at least understand about the hope that He brings.
- Because we can live without a lot of things.
- But we can’t live without hope – not even for three minutes.
- And so, as we close, I want to invite everyone who is a follower of Jesus to join together in taking communion.
- Even if we’ve got some pretty big and strong sins in our past week (or maybe even this morning), this is for all of us who are holding on to the hope that God’s love and mercy are bigger and stronger.
- And even if that is something you want to decide to put your hope in today, then this cup represents the body and blood of Jesus.
- This represents the beating and death that He went through, in our place.
- To pay the price for our sins.
- To make us right with God.
- We didn’t deserve it back when He offered it to us.
- We still don’t deserve it.
- We never will.
- But Jesus allowed His body to be broken, He allowed His blood to be shed, and then – on the third day – that lion walked out of that tomb so that we could have new, resurrected life with Him (life that starts now, and lasts forever).
- So that, even if we’ve had a terrible week, even if we feel broken and defeated and like a failure,
- Even then, we might be able to declare.
- Death, where is your victory.
- Grave, where is your sting?
- ***Take communion
- Close in prayer
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- Now What Website
- Benediction: “God loves you. God is on your side. He is coming after you. He is relentless.”
Scripture:
- Compare judgement/hope passages.
- The abrupt shift in 1:1-9 compared with 1:10-2:1, compare with 1 Peter 2:9-10, Deuteronomy 30:1-10, Jeremiah 29:11-14, Jeremiah 31:31-40, Ezekiel 11:16-21, Romans 11:25-32
Pray:
- Pray that God would make your heart sensitive and receptive to the hope that He alone can give. Pray that you would have a fresh sense of His hope each and every day.
- Pray for those around you who are living without the hope of Jesus. Pray that God would give you the opportunity to speak His hope into their lives.
Discussion:
- What comes to mind when you hear the word “hope”? How would you define what it means to have “hope” in something (or, on the flip side, how would you define what it means to lack hope?)
- Where are some of the places people turn to find hope? What do you think of these sources of hope? Are some better than others?
- How does Jesus bring us hope? How have you experienced the hope of Jesus?
- Is there any difference between the hope that Jesus brings and the other sources of hope that we have?
Next Step:
- Every single person could benefit from a little more hope in their lives.
- This week, be intentional about encouraging some of the people around you.
- Compliment someone, say a kind word, write a letter, give a phone call, buy someone lunch, etc.
- Maybe there is someone you know who is in a low place and could use some extra love and care, or maybe not, but be mindful about how you can speak more hope, encouragement, and kindness into someone’s day (whether at work, school, the grocery store, out for coffee, walking around your block, etc).
