Today we lit the "Hope" candle on the Advent Wreath. As we come closer to Christmas, this is
the last of the four Sundays of Advent. I can almost hear some of you saying, "I can't believe
there are only two days left 'til Christmas." Some of you may be saying, "I hope this sermon is
short today, I've got to get to the mall and finish my shopping!" And there is one of the ways we
think of the concept of hope: I hope the sermon is short.
Hope is tossed around so much that we tend to use it without even thinking about what it means. Yet, someone has rightly observed that hope is putting faith to work, when doubting would be easier. Think about the great people of faith across Biblical history. It was their faith in God and His will for their lives that gave them hope as they set out to do what seemed to be crazy things.
We all live in hope in one way or another. We hope that we can do this or that. We hope that we can go and visit a friend or family member. We hope that someday we may be able to go to France and see the Mona Lisa in person or go and view the Grand Canyon. Often, when I tell people we lived in Australia for three and a half years, they say, "I hope to go there some day."
We have hopes for our children or grandchildren: that they will become someone special, that they will go to college, become famous, etc. When Linda taught school, she had hopes of making a difference in the lives of at least some of the children. As a pastor, I have hopes that I am making a difference in the lives of some of you and that I made a difference in the lives of others I have pastored over the years. I have hopes that we can work together to build a strong and vibrant church here in Jones Creek.
When we face death, be it our own or that of a friend or a loved one, we have hope that they will go to a better place, that we will see them again; or, for ourselves, that we will see God face to face.
All of that hope for ourselves, for others, for those we teach or pastor, is based on faith. It is our faith that gives us hope. It is the confident assurance that what we want will come to pass. Now, when we hope in things such as our children or grandchildren's success or our visit to the Grand Canyon, those hopes are based primarily on faith in ourselves. We have faith that we will be of enough encouragement to those we want to succeed. We have faith that we will earn the money and take the time to travel to that place we hope to see.
For many other things, however, our hope is based on faith in what God has promised. And in order to develop that faith, we must learn to accept what God has written as being the truth. For some, that's difficult. But that's what faith is all about. Trusting God that He knows what He is doing and that He is who He says He is. That's what our hopes are built on.
A man was being pretty snoopy just before Christmas and found a package with his name on it. He knew from the shape, size and weight that it was the set of golf clubs he had hoped for. His hopes were fulfilled, but he could not enjoy the fruit of those hopes until Christmas. So it is with our hopes in what God has done for us in Jesus Christ. We have read what He said He would do. We have placed our faith in His word and as a result, we know that our hopes will be fulfilled. But not until the time is right, not until God's timing is right.
One of the earliest examples of God's people having hope, and supporting their hope with faith, is Abraham. God told Abraham to take Isaac, his only son, the only way that God's promise to Abraham could be fulfilled, and sacrifice him. Now, we are told that Abraham did what God told him to do. But don't you know, Abraham had to be saying to himself, "I sure hope God knows what He is doing." Or "I sure hope I understood God correctly." And, of course, God did know exactly what He was doing - He was testing Abraham's faith. When Abraham had proved himself, God intervened and spared Isaac's life. The Apostle Paul wrote of Abraham's faith saying, "Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him...." (Romans 4:18 NIV)
Then there was Daniel who was thrown into the lion's den and Shadrack, Meshach and Abdnego, who were thrown into the fiery furnace. Don't you know they were hoping they had done the right thing. Don't you know they were saying "I sure hope God is with me in here." You see, their hope was putting their faith to work. Sure it would have been easier to tell God He was wrong or give in to the King's demands about worshiping his idol. But that meant turning away from God. That meant rejecting the faith that God had indeed spoken to them.
The same hope carried forth among New Testament people as well. Don't you know that Matthew and Zaccheus went merrily along scamming the people for their tax collections and living a very comfortable lifestyle? They were no doubt hoping that God might forgive them someday. But they were wealthy, even though they were hated by most everyone. But then that hope for some future forgiveness was challenged, when they met the living Lord Jesus and He called them to come and follow Him. When they met the Christ, they knew immediately that their hope needed to be in Him not some vague uncertainty in the distant future of their creation They realized that forgiveness came from being honest with themselves and with the people they had defrauded and repenting of their sinful ways.
The Apostle Paul endured a great deal of suffering and difficulties because of his faith. He had hoped to destroy the Christian faith. But in fact, He met the risen Christ and he then knew that his faith had been misplaced. He began to place his hopes in the living Lord Jesus and knew a peace that he could write of so eloquently in Romans 5. He tells us how this all works for those who love God. "We are happy because of the hope we have of sharing God's glory. We also have joy with our troubles, because we know that these troubles produce patience. And patience produces character, and character produces hope. And this hope will never disappoint us, because God has poured out his love to fill our hearts. He gave us his love through the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to us." (Romans 5:2b-5 NIV)
When I felt the call to the ministry, I had to step out in faith. I hoped I had heard God speak to me. I put my faith to work and trusted in the hope of God's call. Every step of the way, He confirmed that hope and assured me that I was indeed following His will. Some of the details I have shared with some of you, but I don't have time this morning to go into all the details. But there were so many things that showed me clearly that God was in charge and was working things out, so that I could fulfill His call and serve Him. There were the coordination of events and activities that could only have been by the hand of God. There is no way that a reasonable person could assign those things to coincidence.
The writer to the Hebrews, whom some believe to be Paul, said, "What is faith? It is the confident assurance that something we want is going to happen. It is the certainty that what we hope for is waiting for us, even though we cannot see it up ahead." (Hebrews 11:1 LB) Hope, you see, is built on faith. Those who have no faith, those who refuse to accept the faith to which God calls us, are doomed to live their life without hope. They will likely, at the end of life, recognize that George Bernard Shaw, the renowned free thinker and liberal philosopher was right when he said, "The science to which I pinned my faith is bankrupt. Its counsels, which should have established the millennium, led, instead, directly to the suicide of Europe. I believed them once. In their name I helped to destroy the faith of millions of worshipers in the temples of a thousand creeds. And now they look at me and witness the great tragedy of an atheist who has lost his faith." Shaw, you see, learned the truth of the saying, "life without hope is a life without meaning."
So what does all this have to do with Christmas? How does hope fit with the message of Christmas? Why do we light a candle called hope? The coming of the Messiah was the birth of new hope. Isaiah records these words of hope from God, "The people who walk in darkness shall see a great Light--a Light that will shine on all those who live in the land of the shadow of death." (Isaiah 9:2 LB)
The prophet Simeon was at the temple when Jesus' parents brought Him for the purification ceremony. When Simeon saw Jesus, he said, "He is a light to reveal God to the nations." (Luke 2:32 LB) Not only was His birth foretold to Mary and Joseph, and announced to the shepherds and wise men, but it was independently witnessed to by Simeon and a prophetess named Anna. This was the reason for the hope of the nations. Here was One who was recognized by so many different people in so many different ways, that it is difficult to refute their testimony. Just as God worked in my life to affirm and reaffirm my call to the ministry.
Since He fulfilled the prophecies of the Old Testament that foretold of the coming Messiah, He gave a new hope to the people. That hope has been passed on from generation to generation right down to today. For those who trust their lives to Jesus Christ and let Him guide them in this life there is the greatest hope. That is the hope of Christmas: The assurance that God is alive and well and wants people to trust Him, to put their faith in Him. If there are two words that should be said in the same breath and said regularly to express our hope, they are the words "faith" and "courage." It takes courage to believe, and in order to have that courage, we must believe.
I read an article about Yugoslavia several years ago when war was raging there. The reporter told of how he walked down the street on Christmas Eve and listened to the gunfire in the background. He said there was a lull in the fighting and, as the sound of gunfire stopped, he heard the sound of Christmas carols coming from the churches that lined the street along which he was walking. That is hope: the assurance that better days will come, that the fighting will cease, that God will reign over the earth, that God's will will prevail.
Christmas heralded the beginning of hope for the world. Through the birth of Jesus the Messiah, hope came anew to the world and gave people the encouragement to have faith in God once again. At Christmas we celebrate and renew our hope by giving thanks to Him who was sent to pay the ransom for our sinfulness.
That brings us to the culmination of the hope that is ours in Christ Jesus. Ours is a hope fulfilled in the events of Easter. Now, some people may think it odd to talk about Easter at Christmas. But let's face it, Easter and Christmas are inextricably tied together. They are tied together because it was for Easter that Jesus came to earth. God came to earth in human form in order to pay the price for our sinfulness. He bore our sins in His body on the cross.
You know I have always loved Christmas because of all the decorations and the trimmings and the many songs that we sing to celebrate the birth of Jesus. But it was Easter that was the really meaningful piece of the work of Christ in the world.
You see, there are two very important facts that come out of Easter. First, Christ died for us. He took the sins of the world upon Himself and they were nailed to that cross with Him. As a result, through our faith in that act of unselfish love, we can be forgiven. The Bible says, (Jesus) "is the one all the prophets testified about, saying that everyone who believes in him will have their sins forgiven through his name." (Acts 10:43 NLT) There is that requirement for faith that trusts what God's word says and that faith is what gives us the hope that we are forgiven when we confess. The Bible says, "God is faithful and reliable. If we confess our sins, he forgives them and cleanses us from everything we've done wrong." (1 John 1:9 GW)
The second very important fact that comes out of the events of Easter is the resurrection. Christ rose from the dead. As a result, we can be confident (have hope) that there is life after this life and we can, through our faith in Jesus Christ, have life with God forever. That is the best promise anyone can ever make to you. That gives life meaning. That gives life hope. As someone has said, "Life with Christ is an endless hope, without Him a hopeless end."
One of my favorite Christmas Carols is O Little Town of Bethlehem. The last phrase of the first verse says, "The hopes and fears of all the years are met in Thee tonight." Easter is the answer to the hopes and dreams of all the years that are met in Christ. With His birth, real hope began to blossom in the hearts and lives of believers. In His crucifixion, those hopes died. But three days later, those hopes were renewed and have been carried on through generation after generation right down to today. Because others have clung to that hope, we have heard the message of hope in Jesus Christ and are assured and reassured that the Lord Jesus lives and reigns forever and ever and there is life forever beyond this life.
That's the hope of Christmas: that what began that night so long ago, culminated in what is the singular most amazing fact of history - the death and resurrection of the Messiah, Jesus Christ. That is a fact that has been disputed throughout the ages, yet has never been disproved. That is the fact that gives us hope for this life and teaches us the patience to wait for God's guidance and His final call to come home to be with Him. The Bible says, "everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope." (Romans 15:4 NIV)
Friends, if you are not sure of that hope, I would encourage you to talk with me after the service. Or, call me later today or tomorrow. Everyone needs hope to carry on; and the one hope in which we can be confident is Jesus Christ.
Prayer:
O, Lord Jesus: You are the Hope of the world. Help us believe the promises of Scripture and
have the faith of those who, all across the ages, have had that faith proven by Your love and help,
Your Spirit's counsel and comfort. For Your love's sake. Amen.
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July 15, 2007 - Guest preacher, transcript not available
July 22, 2007 - Guest preacher, transcript not available
Sermon July 29, 2007
Sermon August 5, 2007
Sermon August 12, 2007
August 19, 2007 - Youth Service, transcript not available
Sermon August 26, 2007
Sermon September 2, 2007
Sermon September 9, 2007
Sermon September 16, 2007
Sermon September 23, 2007
Sermon September 30, 2007
Sermon October 7, 2007
Sermon October 14, 2007
Sermon October 21, 2007
Sermon October 28, 2007
Sermon November 4, 2007
Sermon November 11, 2007
Sermon November 18, 2007
Sermon November 25, 2007
Sermon December 2, 2007
Sermon December 9, 2007
Sermon December 16, 2007
(Please note: At this point in time, we are only able to keep the last few weeks' messages available. As a result, links to
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If you have questions about this message or wish to contact Dr. Kile for further information, feel free to e-mail him at pastor@gulf-prairie.org