Brave And Hopeful
“I have told you these things so that you can have peace in me. In this world you will have troubles. But be brave! I have defeated the world!” John 16:33 (Easy-To-Read Version, ERV)
World events right now are looking very bleak and can be discouraging to many people. Many feel hopeless and discouraged. Jesus said we would experience troubling times. However, He assured us that we could be of good cheer- we can be brave and hopeful- because He’s already beaten the devil and his world system.
But give reverent honor in your hearts to the Anointed One and treat him as the holy Master of your lives. And if anyone asks about the hope living within you, always be ready to explain your faith I Peter 3:15 (The Passion Translation, TPT)
While many people are feeling down and believe that things are hopeless, this verse tells us that hope is always closer that you think when you’re a Christian. When Jesus lives in us, hope lives in us. Hope has been defined as earnest expectation that something good is about to happen. Hope and faith work together. Hope says, “I expect good no matter the bad circumstances I am seeing around me.” Faith speaks those things that are not seen in order to bring about what we are hoping for.
In those days you were living apart from Christ. You were excluded from citizenship among the people of Israel, and you did not know the covenant promises God had made to them. You lived in this world without God and without hope. Ephsians 2:12 (New Living Translation, NLT)
The world doesn’t understand the hope that is present in us in times like these. The reason they don’t understand it is because they do not have it- and they cannot have it without God. Hope comes from God. And once we accept Him, the God of Hope lives in us. We can be hopeful and convinced that God will take care of things for us because we know He loves us. The world has no such assurance. And that difference can be an amazing tool to bring people to the Lord- if we choose to walk in the hope of the Lord rather than give into the world’s fear and worries. When we live with an attitude of hope and do not cave to fear, we are a strong witness to the unsaved. They see the peace and hope in us that can be theirs if they will receive Jesus Christ.
Today, it could be very easy for us to say “Where is the hope?” The world is saying it. But as believers, we should know where the hope is- it is in us- Jesus Christ the hope of glory.
Living within you is the Christ who floods you with the expectation of glory! This mystery of Christ, embedded within us, becomes a heavenly treasure chest of hope filled with the riches of glory for his people, and God wants everyone to know it Colossians 1:27 (The Passion Translation, TPT)
