Hope
Hope
Kathryn Seib on Sunday morning, December 17th, 2023
Mary had every right to be scared. She was young, betrothed and now told she was pregnant. And to top it all off, the news was delivered by an angel — you know, spiritual beings that tend to terrify people.
As Mary processed the news, I can only imagine what was going through her head. Would her family disown her? Would people in town make assumptions and gossip?
Would Joseph believe any of this? Would she be rejected? Disparaged? Or worse?
But the thought Mary chose to settle on wasn’t one of fear but of faith: “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true” (Luke 1:38, NLT). Later on, when Mary visited her cousin Elizabeth, the latter said of Mary: “You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said” (v. 45).
It would be nice to say that our typical response to fear is always Mary’s response: a song of praise and hopeful expectation. But let’s be real. Fear creeps into our minds and souls like the slow roll of a dark cloud before a storm. How do you respond? Retreat? Isolate? Hold your fear close to your chest and spiral into endless “what-ifs”?
· taken from “The Weary World Rejoices” by Wycliffe Bible Translators
We know from Hebrews that without faith it is impossible to please God
Heb 11:6 - And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for the one who comes to God must believe that He exists, and that He proves to be One who rewards those who seek Him.
But Hebrews start s this whole faith chapter from this point.
Hebrews 11:1 - Now faith is the certainty of things [a]hoped for, a [b]proof of things not seen. 2For by it the people of old [c]gained approval.
Hope here carries the meaning of confidence, expectation and trust.
I don't know all what is being hoped for in the room today. I do know that it seems that at this time of year gives rise to hope in a different way. And we think about the promises God has given us and some of the desires and longings that are in our hearts.
So, I want to talk about a few things that might affect us:
1. When we focusing on fear
2. I was googling words that are the opposite of hope - of course hopeless but others that came up are
3. anxiety
4. concern
5. apprehension
6. despair
· 1 John 4:8 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear
1. When our hope is tied up in our past experiences
2. past experiences are not a predictor of future happenings
3. we seem to have long memories
4. This can be tied to fear
1. When our hope is misplaced on the gift instead of the giver
2. It seems to me that this is a good tactic of the enemy to get us distracted.
3. The story of apple crumble
1. When we can carry a burden that is not ours to carry
2. sadness, pain, fear, guilt
3. The burden could even be past experiences, mistakes and sin
4. 1 Peter 2:21-25 - For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, 22WHO COMMITTED NO SIN, NOR WAS ANY DECEIT FOUND IN HIS MOUTH; 23and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously; 24and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed. 25For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.
5. Is 53:1-6 - 1Who has believed our message?
And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
2For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot,
And like a root out of parched ground;
He has no stately form or majesty
That we should look upon Him,
Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him.
3He was despised and forsaken of men,
A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief;
And like one from whom men hide their face
He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.
4Surely our griefs He Himself bore,
And our sorrows He carried;
Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken,
Smitten of God, and afflicted.
5But He was pierced through for our transgressions,
He was crushed for our iniquities;
The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him,
And by His scourging we are healed.
6All of us like sheep have gone astray,
Each of us has turned to his own way;
But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all
To fall on Him.
Carrying burdens that are not ours to carry cause us to lose sight of who Jesus is and when that happens, we readily loss hope.
Which leads to us right into:
1. Hope returns when we remember who He is.
2. All powerful
3. A God of Justice
4. The one who carried all our burdens and sins
1. Hope returns when we remember who we are in light of who he is.
2. Sometimes we place alot of emphasis on ourselves. Makes sense we have to live with ourselves all the time. Our emotions, failings, hopes and dreams.
3. But when we remember who God is and that our roles is to trust Him and obey it sets a godly order back in place
4. Peace - order, wholeness, completeness - Peace on earth.
1. Hope returns when we repent and ask him to take away our sin/burden
2. This happens at salvation but it doesn't stop there.
3. This happened for me while being sick and it also help to turn a corner
1. Hope returns when we rejoice in him and praise him.
2. These don't have to happen in this order.
3. Like David, we can Magnify him with our praises - Make him large
Luke 1:45 - 55
“And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what had been spoken to her by the Lord.”
The Magnificat
46And Mary said:
“My soul exalts the Lord,
47And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
48“For He has had regard for the humble state of His bondslave;
For behold, from this time on all generations will count me blessed.
49“For the Mighty One has done great things for me;
And holy is His name.
50“AND HIS MERCY IS UPON GENERATION AFTER GENERATION
TOWARD THOSE WHO FEAR HIM.
51“He has done mighty deeds with His arm;
He has scattered those who were proud in the thoughts of their heart.
52“He has brought down rulers from their thrones,
And has exalted those who were humble.
53“HE HAS FILLED THE HUNGRY WITH GOOD THINGS;
And sent away the rich empty-handed.
54“He has given help to Israel His servant,
In remembrance of His mercy,
55As He spoke to our fathers,
To Abraham and his descendants forever.”
Mary dispelled fear with praise. She put aside insecurity with the truth of who God was, remembering her role in his story. And she looked past concerns of rejection or gossip, recalling that she served a God of justice.
And because of that, Mary could hope. And so can you.
· taken from “The Weary World Rejoices” by Wycliffe Bible Translators
