The Christian's Mission: To Share Hope

The Christian’s Mission: To Share Hope

Luke 1:41, "And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of

What had been spoken to her by the Lord."

Introduction: As we read and think about great Christmas passages of the Bible, one of the things we need to do is to resist the influence of our culture to trivialize Christmas and its powerful meaning for our lives. The true message of Christmas is about hope. Hope is one of the greatest needs of the human heart and one of the greatest messages of the Christmas story. Sometimes in English the word “hope” describes a wish. In the Bible hope is a kind of confidence. Let’s look together at the hope that Christmas brings:

1. Hope Is Confident Expectation That God Will Fulfill His Promises (1:45). When Mary the mother of Jesus meets her cousin Elizabeth, she says: “Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!” (Luke 1:45). That’s the language of hope. Hope is believing that what the Lord has said to you will be accomplished. We need the confident expectation that God can be relied on to fulfill the hopes He has awakened in our hearts through the promises of His Word.

2. Hope Trusts in God in Spite of Problems (2:25). The whole Christmas story takes place against the backdrop of all kinds of serious problems. Yet its entire message is filled, not only with deep happiness in the midst of great darkness, but also profound hope in the face of perplexing problems. For example, “Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him” (Luke 2:25). Simeon was waiting and believing. That’s hope. Simeon’s hope was not based on a denial of the problems of the day but rather on a decision to trust in God despite the problems of the day.

3. Hope Trusts God to Transcend Understanding and Expectations (Luke 1–2). Mary, Joseph, Simeon, the shepherds, and all the others in the Christmas story are not given full explanations that describe in detail how God will fulfill His promises. Mary and Joseph don’t understand the spiritual and biological details of the miracle of the virgin birth. Simeon doesn’t know precisely how this little baby will be a light of revelation to the Gentiles and the glory of his people Israel. But Mary, Joseph, and Simeon do not allow the limitations of human understanding to determine the height of their hope in God. Hope trusts God to fulfill His promises in ways that transcend our understanding and expectations.

4. Hope Waits for God to Accomplish His Will His Way (2:28–30). One of the most revealing things about this man, Simeon is the way he describes his own relationship to God: “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace” (v. 29). The word “Lord” here is the word from which we get the English word despot. It is not the common word for Lord that is found throughout the Bible. It’s the word for an absolute master who has complete rule over the lives of those under him. To hope in God for Simeon is not to come to God with his agenda and ask God to bless it and “hope” that He will do it. In every life something rules as sovereign. What is it that rules as sovereign in your life as you prepare for Christmas?

5. Hope Does Not Disappoint (1:45–47). The exchange between Elizabeth and Mary shows how hope does not lead to disappointment, but sees the fulfillment of God’s promises for our greater good and His greater glory: “Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!” And Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior” (vv. 45–47). Mary trusted the promises for good reason. They were all fulfilled in Christ as He was born that first Christmas in a manger with heavenly signs and hosts, with shepherds and wise men bowing at His feet, with kingly gifts, and so much more than Mary could have expected; not to mention His ultimate role as Savior.

Conclusion: God’s Spirit speaks to us in the stories of Christmas, strengthening our hearts with great hope in Him. He will certainly fulfill the promises of grace He has given to us. As He has given us Hope let us fulfill our purpose in sharing that Hope with those who will receive it.