Today we have more information, more lifestyle choices, more options than ever before. But in spite of all this, people are still searching for truth Ăą?" for a way to make sense of their questions, and of all the ups and downs of life. The questions don't stop when we become Christians. Yet we can find real truth in Jesus Christ, and real wisdom, security and hope. These seven studies help us go deeper into the truth we are offered in Jesus Christ, and to root our lives in it. Because Jesus offers us himself, a reality that satisfies not only our intellectual curiosity, but also the deepest longings of our hearts. He offers us true security and sure hope for the future. He reshapes our thoughts, our life, our identity and our purpose. Real truth is found in Jesus Christ, and knowing him changes everything. This title is brought to you by Keswick Ministries. Find out more at https://www.keswickministries.org
âEverything will be all right in the end...if itâs not all right then itâs not yet the endâ (Sonny, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, 2011). Christianity is unique among all the religions of the world because it offers us a sure and certain hope for the future, a home in heaven. But more than that, Jesus Christ offers us hope for each day. As we get to know Jesus through the Bible, he helps us make sense of our struggles and gives us a glimpse of the bigger picture of how God is working in the world.
READ Romans 8:18â39
18I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. 19For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. 20For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.
22We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. 24For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? 25But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.
26In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. 27And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for Godâs people in accordance with the will of God.
28And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. 29For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 30And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.
31What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all â how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died â more than that, who was raised to life â is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36As it is written:
âFor your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.â
37No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
FOCUS ON THE THEME
What are you hoping for? At this point in your life what are your hopes for the future?
WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?
According to verses 18â23, what hope do Christians have?
What guarantees do we have of this future hope? Look at verses 23, 28â30.
What does this hope mean for life now? How does this future hope impact the present? Look at verses 31â39.
In the Bible, hope is not a vague expectation â a kind of fingers-crossed wishful thinking. Rather, it is the Bibleâs shorthand for unconditional certainty. Hope is a sure and confident expectation about the future, based on a trust in Godâs sovereignty and a confidence in his faithfulness. True hope is future-orientated and grounded in the character of God and the fact that he has committed himself to us in the form of his unbreakable promises. Hope is therefore the confident anticipation of a future outcome.
(Mallard, Invest Your Suffering, p. 166)
INVESTIGATE FURTHER
What is the reason for our future hope given in 1 Peter 1:3â5?
Why can we put our hope in God during difficult times? Look at:
1 Peter 1:6â7
2 Corinthians 4:16â18
What difference can real hope make to our lives now? Look up:
Isaiah 40:31
1 Thessalonians 1:3
Hebrews 6:17â20
1 John 3:3
We assume that, in our trials, God has forgotten us or that they prove that we are of no value to him. Precisely the opposite is true. God tests us because we are precious and he wants to remove the dross and prove the reality of our faith. The fire of the furnace is proof of intentional grace and deliberate mercy.
(Mallard, Invest Your Suffering, pp. 96â97)
LIVING IT OUT
In what ways can we share Godâs hope with:
Christian friends going through difficult times?
Friends who donât share our Christian faith?
Our local community?
Consider your own concerns and struggles. How do these Bible truths
challenge you?
comfort you?
To be honest, during the last twenty years there have been times when my faith has seemed frail and fragile and almost ready to collapse. But one thing I have never doubted is that, in the darkest circumstances, we were only ever in the hands of God. That has been the ultimate source of comfort and hope.
(Mallard, Invest Your Suffering, pp. 34â35)
Reflect on your answer to question 1. What do you think God wants you to hope for? What practical measures could you take to get your focus right?
My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesusâ blood and righteousness.
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
But wholly trust in Jesusâ Name.
(Edward Mote)
PRAYER TIME
Thank God for being a constant source of hope.
Pray about the hopes for yourself and your family you mentioned in question 1.
Ask God to help you keep eternity your real hope and focus.
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
