Intro

A new year is always a good time to talk about hopes for the future, so I decided to make this first post of 2017 all about hope. I found there are more than 180 references to hope in the Scriptures!

Scripture and Commentary

Hebrews 6:17-20:

¹⁷ Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. ¹⁸ God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged. ¹⁹ We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, ²⁰ where our forerunner, Jesus, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.

This concept of hope as our “anchor” seemed an interesting metaphor, so I began to do research on the history and function of anchors in boating.  Eventually I stumbled across a great article describing 3 common mistakes boaters make when anchoring their crafts, and some interesting parallels can be drawn for us in our walk with God.

• Mistake #1: Anchoring in the wrong place

Clearly the Lord thought this was key, as there are many, many verses that address this.  We’ll start with the wrong places to anchor beginning with 1 Timothy 6:17:

17 Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment

And Proverbs 11:7:

7 Hopes placed in mortals die with them; all the promise of their power comes to nothing.

And John 5:39-40 and 45-46:

39 You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, 40 yet you refuse to come to me to have life.

45 “But do not think I will accuse you before the Father. Your accuser is Moses, on whom your hopes are set. 46 If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me.

So we are not to anchor ourselves in wealth, in other people, or in our laws or religious teachings.  So where then do we anchor?  We can start with a prophetic passage from Isaiah 42:1-4:

Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will bring justice to the nations. 2 He will not shout or cry out, or raise his voice in the streets. 3 A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness he will bring forth justice; 4 he will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth. In his teaching the islands will put their hope.

This is one of many Old Testament passages hinting at what was to come, that is that Messiah would establish His kingdom and bring salvation to all people.  Paul goes on to describe the fulfillment of this prophecy in Christ as the foundation for our hope in Romans 8.

Romans 8:3-4:

3 For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

And 15-17:

15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba Father.” 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

And finally 18-25:

18 I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. 19 For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. 20 For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God. 22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23 Not 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. 24 For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? 25 But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.

So then our anchor is secured in the knowledge that Christ has provided a pathway for us to be the children of God, and joint heirs in an everlasting kingdom of justice and righteousness.  Or as Ephesians 1:18 states:

I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people.

That sounds like a pretty good hope to me!

• Mistake #2: Your anchor is inadequate, and won’t hold your boat.

If hope is to be our anchor, we need to ensure that we have a good, strong supply of hope to hold us steady.  Paul offers the key to this in Romans 5:1-5:

1 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

So as we encounter trials of life in 2017, we should glory in the knowledge that this is God’s way of ensuring our anchor is strong enough to hold us steady.  Or as Romans 12: 12 admonishes:

Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.

• Mistake #3: No “give” in the rode

Surprisingly you can be too firmly anchored.  Boaters use something called a “snubber” to ensure that their anchor line, or “rode”, isn’t so rigid as to cause undue strain.  Without this flexibility the rode can become tangled, the boat can be damaged, or the anchor itself may break.  To me this is such a beautiful metaphor for the traps that ensnare many Christians.  How easy it is to be rigid in our doctrine and intolerant towards those struggling under the influence of darkness, only to realize we have gotten all tangled up, caused damage to our testimony, or lost sight of our hope!  But what shall we use a snubber?  As usual I will look to Scripture for answers, beginning with some verses from Romans 4:

Romans 4:2-3:

2 If, in fact, Abraham was justified by works, he had something to boast about—but not before God. 3 What does Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”

And 13-15:

13 It was not through the law that Abraham and his offspring received the promise that he would be heir of the world, but through the righteousness that comes by faith. 14 For if those who depend on the law are heirs, faith means nothing and the promise is worthless, 15 because the law brings wrath. And where there is no law there is no transgression.

And 23-25:

23 The words “it was credited to him” were written not for him alone, 24 but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness—for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. 25 He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.

And we know from Hebrews 11:1 that:

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.

So strong faith in the promises of God is the foundation of righteousness and the substance of our hope, and the hope itself is the anchor for our soul.  This leads us to 1 Corinthians 13:2 & 13:

2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.

13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

Love, then becomes the “snubber” in our rode.  Love for God and others will keep us from becoming too rigid, and ensure that our boat stays firmly anchored throughout 2017.  Until next time:

 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. (Romans 15:13).

I look forward to hearing your thoughts, please share.

Be blessed.

K