The Hope we Have in Christ

If you want to know your heart leap for joy at the hope we have in Christ read the first two chapters of Ephesians. Chapter one reminds us of who Christ is, what he has achieved, reminds us that all we have as believers is 'in him.' Then, as though to sober us from our celebrations lest we get cocky about all that we have, Paul reminds us:

'And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked...like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses and sins, made us alive in Christ...' (Eph.2:1-5)

The first thing to realise is you can be dead and alive at the same time, alive to the things of this world but dead to the things of God. The second is that it is the common lot (like the rest of mankind) until Christ comes along. The third is that your new life is a work of God, and the fourth is that this new life costs you your old life.

The Bible calls relinquishing your old life repentance. Perhaps one of the greatest examples of repentance is found in the story of David. Psalm 51 is King David’s great prayer of repentance and a model of how we, as sinners, should approach God’s throne of grace.

David had committed adultery with Bathsheba and then had her husband, Uriah, killed (2 Samuel 11), and this prayer comes in light of the prophetic rebuke he receives in chapter 12. When we come to see the depth of sin in our lives and face the charge, “you are the man!” (ch.12, v.7) there is only one recourse and that is to throw ourselves on God’s mercy.

As David prays certain truths become clear:

1. Sin runs deep and defines us (v5)

2. God requires righteousness (v6)

3. When we sin we sin against God (v4)

4. Religion and good works won’t save us (v16)

5. We are totally dependent on God’s mercy (v1)

David’s plea is heartfelt and real, an appeal to God who alone can save him.

On what basis is David appealing for mercy? “According to your unfailing love, according to your great compassion…” (v1)

What is David asking God to do? “Blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from sin” (vv 1-2). “Hide your face from my sins and blot out my iniquity” (v9). “Save me from bloodguilt, O God, the God who saves me…” (v14).

What is David’s expectation? “Cleanse me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me and I shall be whiter than snow” (v8). Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me…Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me” (vv 10-12).

What is the key to this great blessing of cleansing, forgiveness and a place in God’s presence? “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise” (v17).

Who has done all this?

It is God who washes away my iniquity and cleanses me from sin.

It is God who makes me whiter than snow.

It is God who creates in me a pure heart.

It is God who gives me a steadfast and willing spirit, to sustain me.

It is God who restores my joy.

Christ Paid

Every wicked thought, every spiteful word, every selfish deed. Every shameful glance, every cruel blow, every act of betrayal, every lie and broken promise. Every word that should have gone unspoken, every failure to speak, to act for craven cowardice. Every horror that haunts by night, every fear that pursues by daylight, every shame, disappointment, and misdeed, every thoughtless thought, word, and act...Christ paid the price.

The Christian hope runs wider than the merely intellectual, deeper than the simplistically emotional, higher than the doctrinally contentious. it is visceral, a knife that cuts right to the heart of the matter. This is the hope we bring to the cults, to the world.

'He loved me and gave himself for me!' Gal.2:20

The Christian hope is that there is forgiveness and full acceptance with God to everyone who believes. That “the same Lord is Lord of all (of David and of you and of me) and richly blesses all who call on him, for, ‘everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved’” (Ro.10:13).

The Christian hope is “that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philip.1:6)

The Christian hope is that, “Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession – to the praise of his glory” (Eph.1:13-14)

The Christian’s hope, like David’s, is in God, “Christ in you the hope of glory” (Col.1:27). “Faith is being sure of what we hope for” (Heb.1:1). Do you have a sure hope today? Such a hope is “an anchor for the soul, firm and secure” (Heb.6:19).