Sermon Tone Analysis

Tonight, as we continue our series No Strangers to God, we are going to talk about an amazing word that we come to know because of the relationship that we have we God.

I am thankful to know God tonight.

Not to know of God but to know Him personally.

Think of all that this truth entails.

How often do we find ourselves in conversations that involve names of people we know of.. but do not know personally?

We know of them through other people, we know of them through the work the do in the area, we know of them for their reputation, their good or bad deeds, or their level of activity in the community or workplace.

We know faces and we might even know of their likes and dislikes.

For those who work in front of a camera, we get an idea of personality, attitude, etc.

We know of these people but we do not know them… We do not have fellowship with them.

With God, we can know Him because of what Jesus has done for us!

We have access to His Word that tells us of His amazing attributes and character.

We read of His power, His authority, and His wisdom.

The Bible is a special revelation of God given to us that we might know of our heavenly Father.

But it also points us in the direction of knowing Him, personally!

Sin created a gap between God and His creation in the area of fellowship.

But the blood of Jesus was payment enough to close that gap for all who believe!

I stand here tonight, not to tell you of the God that I have heard of or read about in the Bible, I’m here to tell you about God, someone I know, someone I love, someone I serve, someone I live for, someone… I would die for, someone who has changed me, someone who has lifted me up, someone who has given me strength, and someone… who has given me… LIVING HOPE! HOPE THAT IS ALIVE!

What is hope?

It is a word we use all the time.

It is a feeling, it is a thought, and in Christ… it is something that takes on a completely new meaning.

In the world, hope is something I would equate to a wish, a desire, or a dream.

In fact, the dictionary has hope defined as a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen.

We hope for the end of the pandemic.

We hope for an end to the conflict in Ukraine.

We hope for things to go well at work.

We hope for family and friends to get along.

We hope for children to succeed in life.

And the list could go on and on.

But this is NOT the kind of hope we are talking about tonight.

Similar to our series on joy, the hope we are talking about this evening is far more than a feeling… its a promise.

Hope, in the Bible, is CONFIDENT EXPECTANCY.

This kind of hope does not arise from the individual’s desires or wishes… this kind of hope comes from God WHO IS HIMSELF THE BELIEVER’S HOPE.

This kind of hope is not wishful thinking but a FIRM assurance about things that are unseen and still in the future.

Because this hope comes from God… it is not a hope that can be experienced by an unbeliever.

This hope comes from knowing God… personally.

This hope distinguishes the Christian from the unbeliever… who’s hope is wishful and limited in the things of this world.

Truly, the unbeliever has no hope like we are speaking of.

Example passages that declare this truth are Ephesians 2:12, 1 Thessalonians 4:13.

Christian hope comes from God; from His calling, from His grace, from His Word, and from His Gospel.

Our hope is directed toward God and Christ as it comes from God and Christ.

Our hope IS NOT FOUND IN OR OF ANYTHING IN THIS WORLD.

Therefore, it is not a hope this world can take away!

If you are in Christ… then you have hope!

Not a wish or desire but a promise, an assurance, and a guarantee because of the power of the One you serve!

Tonight’s message is not titled hope… it’s titled LIVING HOPE.

Because our hope is founded in Christ, our hope is ALIVE as we serve a living and risen Savior!

And this hope is found in fellowship with God.

This hope CANNOT be found outside of knowing the Lord.

Jesus… is the source of our hope.

Jesus… is our ONLY hope.

And Jesus… wants you to find this hope in Him tonight!

So let’s take out our status meters for a moment… and let’s see how we are doing in the area of hope.

Your hope level is going to depend on the status of your relationship with God.

If your relationship with God is but a claim… then your hope is going to struggle.

In fact I would go so far to say that your hope… has died.

It will move from assurance to wish, from promise to possibility.

Your hope will be based on feeling… not faith.

Main Point: IF YOU DESIRE TO KNOW AND HAVE LIVING HOPE, YOU MUST KNOW AND HAVE FELLOWSHIP WITH THE LIVING GOD!

As God’s chosen people, believers are no strangers to God… and they are no strangers to the LIVING HOPE that is found in God alone!

Knowing and hiving this hope… changes everything!

And tonight I want you to see the kind of change that we can expect to come in the hope we have in God.

Living Hope Moves us to Praise.

We have every reason to praise the Lord tonight! he is worthy of our highest praise!

And the hope that w have in God is certainly something that should move us to rejoice!

With all that is going on around us today, it can be easy to slip into a mode of overwhelming worry and underwhelming praise.

It can be easy to slip into a mode of looking out for number one instead of giving praise to the One who is worthy.

BECAUSE our living hope is not based in the world but in God, we are able to give God praise NO MATTER WHAT.

our hope is not based off our current circumstance… it is based in WHO GOD IS AND WHAT GOD HAS IN STORE!

No matter what is going on in the world today, we need to give God praise for our living hope! 1 Peter 1:3-5 tells us why!

First, I want us to see clearly how a person moves from a hope that is wishful… or dead... to a hope that is alive.

Such hope only comes to by new birth through the resurrection of Jesus.

We know of the teaching given by Jesus regarding being born again.

This new birth is something that can only be found in Jesus.

Christ gave His life for all of us on the cross.

He took on the sins of the world and paid the price we could not pay.

His death opened the door for our sins to be forgiven.

Thus, in giving our lives to Jesus, our old self is crucified or put to death with Jesus.

This includes:

ALL of our sins.

Our past and present rebellion is forgiven and our future is redeemed by the blood of the Lamb.

ALL of our old ways.

We no longer live for the world but live to honor God.

We live by His Word, in His love, and empowered of His Spirit.

ALL of sin’ spiritual consequences.

Jesus died the death meant for us.

He took on the wages of our sins and offers a gift in return.

So let’s stop and talk about that gift for a moment… the gift of eternal life.

Our sins are done away with on the cross, but our new life is found in the resurrection.

Jesus conquered sin at Calvary, but He defeated death and the grave when He walked out of that tomb!

Just as His death becomes our death… so does His resurrection become our resurrection.

It is through the resurrection of Jesus that we come ALIVE!

As Galatians 2:20 makes clear, the old self is crucified with Christ and no longer lives… we are then born into new life that exists ONLY IN JESUS!

It is in our risen Savior that we find LIVING HOPE!

As I said before, we have reason to praise tonight!

And the passage goes on to give other reasons why our living hope should move us to rejoice!

One: As believers, We have experienced God’s mercy.

Instead of condemning us or abandoning us because of our sins… God showed us mercy.

God sent Jesus to do what we could not do for ourselves.

I am thankful for the mercy that God has shown me and… and I glad that His mercies are new every morning!

Mercy is not something we must wish for or merely desire… it is something we can be assured of.