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A Future With Hope!
John 14:1-3
Proverbs 3:5
Whatever each new day may bring, Christians face the future with hope.
Hope is the cornerstone of Christian faith.
Christians have a responsibility of nourishing hope.
To claim to believe in God who can do all things, and then live without hope, is to tarnish our Christian testimony.
As Christians, we must nurture a real believe in God and in what has been done for all mankind
through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
There are three kinds of hope for the Christian.
There is hope now, hope for the future, and hope beyond this life.
There is hope now!
Look at the many faces you pass each day -- on the street, while shopping, and at work.
Many people look as though hope has flown the coop.
The telltale signs of hopelessness are clearly seen in the faces of many.
Those signs are worry, disappointment, grief, burdens, heartaches, sadness, and unhappiness.
Of course, some people are better at hiding their true feelings than others.
It is true, as someone has said, "A person's face tells what he or she is."
- If a person is kind, that kindness can often be seen in a person's face.
- If a person is selfish or cruel, that also may be seen in a person's face.
Let us, as Christians, present a face to the world that would reflect the love of our Savior.
May our faces also reflect the true hope that we have in Christ.
Hope is evident in the dawn of each new day.
Every new day is like a clean slate for each one of us to write upon.
As Christians, we truly believe that God is in full control of everything on this planet and throughout the universe.
This belief sustains hope on a day-to-day basis.
We have hope through God's constant and continual love for us as revealed in Christ.
There is hope for the future!
Life would be barren and desolate without hope for the future.
That hope will keep us going even in the midst of darkness.
Even in the midst of a severe winter, the hope of another spring is there.
With the arrival of each new spring, hope is fulfilled.
The arrival of the new baby is life renewing itself, and this wonderful arrival provides great hope for the future.
Among these babies will be the leaders of our nation, musicians, scientists, doctors, pastors,
and leaders in all fields for the future.
The person with hope for the future is a person who can learn from his or her mistakes.
- Think of the vast potential for the future and what it may bring to each one of us.
- Think of what you may become in the future.
- Think of what you may accomplish and achieve.
Every Christian can draw strength from the faith and conviction that God is going to have the last word
in the affairs of our world.
No president, dictator, nation, ideology, or some horrible disaster will have the final say.
God is the Alpha and Omega.
God is weaving a great tapestry, using history and individuals to bring about His divine will.
Knowing the future is in the hands of the Almighty God is a strong and continuing source of assurance and hope.
There is hope beyond this life!
Another wonderful hope for the Christian is the hope of a future life beyond this earthly life.
This kind of hope and faith gives more meaning to our life here and now.
If everything ends with our physical death, what point is there to life at all.
Does God create us, only to destroy us like sand castles being washed away by the waves on a beach?
Considering the shortness of the average human life, if death is the end of it all, there seems to be
no purpose, plan, or order to life.
Dr. Harry Fosdick poses a crucial question about death:
"Are we bodies that have spirits, or are we spirits that have bodies?"
The Bible states that we are souls, not that we have souls, but we are souls.
The New Testament describes the body as a dwelling that we must vacate, a tent that we must abandon.
It also describes the body as a garment that we shall put off forever one day.
As Christians, we will exchange our earthly tent for a heavenly home.
Paul expressed it like this: "There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.
If our earthly body be taken down, God will supply us with another or a new body." ( 2 Cor. 5:1f)
We have the promise of Christ:
"I go to prepare a place for you.
And if I go and prepare a place for you,
I will come again, and receive you unto myself,
that where I am, there you may be also." (John 14:2-3)
When Christ came to the tomb of Lazarus, He told Martha that her brother would rise again.
Martha replied: "I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day."
Christ then said to her:
"I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.
And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die." (John10:28-29)
We worship a risen Saviour.
Because Christ lives, we too, shall live.
We have been saved and assured of eternal life in and through our Lord Jesus Christ.
We are pilgrims on this earth.
This is not our home, and death is not the end of our lives.
Death is merely a doorway to our true life in Christ Jesus.
Most people belong to one of two basic clubs in life.
- One club is the Optimist's Club.
Members of this club demonstrate a real hope for each day in the here and now,
and also for the life beyond this life.
- The other club is the Pessimist's Club.
This club consist of people who look continually on the dark and gloomy side of life.
Can you guess which club has more members?
I can say with confidence that the optimists get far more from life than the pessimists.
- They sleep better, worry less, and gain strength through each day.
- They get along better with people, and are more enthusiastic and interested in everything about life.
Now, everything isn't always roses for optimists.
- They have sadness, disappointments, and many problems.
- They also rise above them and usually overcome them.
- They have learned that it is wiser to live life with hope than without it.
Some years ago, J. Malloy Roach was attending church with his mother, and she suggested that he light a candle.
As he made his way down the aisle, the thought struck him that if everyone lit just one little candle,
the world would be a much brighter place.
Later, he put that thought into a beautiful song that was recorded by Perry Como,
and became the theme song of the Christopher's, a Catholic brotherhood organization.
The name of the song was "One Little Candle."
Wouldn't it be better to light just one little candle of hope than to stumble through the darkness?
Few of us will ever be able to ignite a blazing torch of hope, but everyone can light one small candle.
The combined light of all our small candles would certainly make this world a brighter and happier place.
Let us commit ourselves to light our little candle and bring light to those around us who are in darkness.
Sermon by Dr. Harold L. White
Email Dr. White at hleewhite aol.com
