To Give Hope

Introduction: One of my favorite quotes by any president in one that was given to us by Ronald Reagan. He said, “The United States remains the last best hope for a mankind plagued by tyranny and deprivation. America is no stronger than its people—and that means you and me. Well, I believe in you, and I believe that if we work together, then one day we will say, ‘We fought the good fight. We finished the race. We kept the faith.’ And to our children and our children’s children, we can say, ‘We did what could be done in the brief time that was given us here on earth.’”

As Reagan believed about this country, I believe the Church is man’s last and best hope. I’m not saying that the people who make up the church are the last and best hope, I’m talking about the message we carry. I’m talking about the Gospel of Jesus! The last couple of weeks we have tried to answer the question, “Why Church?”. We have talked about Giving Glory to God and to Meet Needs. This morning we give another answer to this question, that answer is to Give Hope.

Pray

Read: Acts 4:32-35

What is hope? If I could sum up hope it wouldn’t be a Webster’s Dictionary answer, hope is the resurrection of Jesus Christ! When you ask most people in the church what the focal point of Christianity is, many would say it’s the cross. Did you know that the cross wasn’t the symbol of the early church? It wasn’t their prime means of motivation. It was the resurrection of Jesus that drove them! They got in trouble with the Pharisees and Sadducees constantly not because they were preaching the good news that God is dead, but because the Good news, the hope was in a God that was very much Alive!

The disciples watched as Jesus was crucified. They sat in despair and hopelessness as Jesus died and was buried in the tomb. In fact, they basically go into hiding. It wasn’t until after the tomb was empty and Jesus was resurrected that celebration took place. You see, the resurrection gave them hope! It’s the same hope that we have today! What does this hope look like?

Application:

Hope of Forgiveness

Acts 13:32-39

Acts 13:32–39 ESV

And we bring you the good news that what God promised to the fathers, this he has fulfilled to us their children by raising Jesus, as also it is written in the second Psalm, “ ‘You are my Son, today I have begotten you.’ And as for the fact that he raised him from the dead, no more to return to corruption, he has spoken in this way, “ ‘I will give you the holy and sure blessings of David.’ Therefore he says also in another psalm, “ ‘You will not let your Holy One see corruption.’ For David, after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation, fell asleep and was laid with his fathers and saw corruption, but he whom God raised up did not see corruption. Let it be known to you therefore, brothers, that through this man forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, and by him everyone who believes is freed from everything from which you could not be freed by the law of Moses.

Without the resurrection, there would be no hope! We would be like the Jews constantly trying to atone for our own sin. Jesus has accomplished that through his death, burial, and resurrection! The Resurrection was a fulfillment of prophecy in the OT. Psalm 16:10

Psalm 16:10 ESV

For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol, or let your holy one see corruption.

Because of the resurrection we can have forgiveness of sin. What good would it have been if Jesus died for our sins and never conquered them through conquering death? It would have made Jesus a liar! It would have given false hope to the disciples and we would not have Christianity today.

But because of forgiveness that was made possible by the resurrection of Jesus, here we are thousands of years later still growing, still impacting lives for Him. Why? Because we serve a living God not a dead one!

Hope of Eternal Life

It has been said that there are two things in life that you cannot escape, taxes and death. Death is inevitable. Where will you spend eternity?

There are only two choices in that matter as well, heaven or hell. Can’t make that choice when you leave this world. It has to be made now! The resurrection gives hope of eternity with Jesus. We worship a living God who promises life eternal with Him for those who put their faith and hope in Him.

Those who give or have given their lives to Jesus have a hope of being made alive with Him. Romans 6:8-10 says,

Romans 6:8–10 ESV

Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God.

For those who are not in Christ this morning, this is good news! This is great news! For those of us who are believers, this should bring you excitement, joy, and a sense of urgency to get this message out!

1 Peter 1:3-4 says,

1 Peter 1:3–4 ESV

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, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you,

Can I get an Amen!?

Conclusion: “The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the central focus of Christianity. Without the resurrection, your faith is pointless. Without the resurrection, your life is hopeless. So, it is the resurrection of Jesus Christ that we must present to the lost. The hope of a living God!”

This is the hope we carry Church! the hope of forgiveness and eternal life through the resurrection of Jesus! Why Church? To Give Hope. We, the church, Christ’s church, are the last great hope on earth. We carry the most important message in the world. When we make it a priority to meet together as one in heart and mind we grow in this hope together and become excited about the hope that we have. When we become excited we begin to live the eternal life now and it affects those around us! I challenge you to live life with hope and excitement! We serve a living God so let’s go and share that hope!