Finding Hope

[0:00] But it's finding hope, finding hope. And how can we find hope? Have you ever lost hope? You've lost hope. We all have times like that, can't we?

[0:24] And it can be hard to regain it when we've lost hope. To rebuild trust in people. To make a fresh start. I want to tell you that you can. You can find hope.

[0:36] The opposite of hope, I suppose, is terror. How we desperately need hope, don't we? We need hope on planet Earth, don't we? In this world, in our hearts, in our lives, our world desperately needs a hope. A hope beyond this world. A hope that is indwelling. A hope that is forever.

[0:56] A hope in our world today. A world that may seem at times like all hope is lost. When we see all the awful things going around the place. A hope that will last. A hope that will be strong. A hope that will be real and true. Many people today have a vain hope.

[1:11] And when the rubber hits the road, it doesn't measure up. Even when it seems hopeless, I want to tell you that you can find hope. Sure, certain hope. You can find hope today in Christ.

[1:27] Amen. I want to tell you that Australia is only hope. Sometimes it feels like at times that all hope is gone. When you're going through a tough time. When all hopes are dashed, you have a disappointment. Your hopes are smashed.

[1:42] From time to time we have times like that. When it's hard going. When we're wounded. When we're hurting. When there's disappointment, rejection, loss. Lost hope is hard. And life's hard knocks can hit us hard sometimes. And leave people feeling hopeless. Lost. Where can hope be found? That's my message today.

[2:07] Some try and find a way to escape. They think that by escaping. By drugs or drink. By dulling the mind that they can find some hope. But it ends up feeling empty and lost. Some try to fill their lives with busyness. Or some kind of worthwhile endeavour maybe. Yet still, they cannot fill that void in their soul. They still lack that certainty of sure hope.

[2:36] Hope. Hope. Hope. Hope. If you go searching for the word hope on the internet. Sometimes you find this picture. You find this picture on the internet. This image. A man whose slogan was hope. A president. But did he really deliver hope?

[2:52] Some look for the word hope? Some look for the word hope? Some look for the word hope. Some look for a guru. For a mantra. For something they can mantra. That they can say. That they can pray. I've heard it said there's no hope in the Pope.

[3:05] Really, there's no hope in any person on this planet. No hope in any person, prophet or president. Hope is not found in a religion. A philosophy. Or a secret society.

[3:19] It's in none of these things. It's in none of these things. None of these things. All the claims and promises fall flat. This select marketing and the promises of presidents and politicians. Some well-meaning.

[3:32] Often, they don't materialise in the real world, do they? When you actually see what they have done. Watch what happens now to this image. Watch what happens now carefully to this image.

[3:45] and see if you notice anything different. Hype. You know, there's all kinds of unflattering images of President Obama on the internet.

[3:58] And his slogan of hope. Hope is more than a marketing ploy. Or a claim made by men. There is one. One who promises hope. Not hype.

[4:08] One who promises hope. And who truly delivers one person. The Lord Jesus Christ. Our Lord. And he is the one who gives us reason for hope.

[4:19] Real hope. Real hope that goes beyond this life for eternity. Real hope. And there was a... It's important to grasp this hope that we have.

[4:29] This real hope that we have in him. There was a woman a while back here. We invited along to the church. And she had contact with our church. And she kept in touch with us.

[4:42] We kept in touch with her. And we thanked her for keeping in contact. And she thanked us for inviting us. And one time, because I was contacting her so much, she was jokingly texting me back.

[4:53] She said, Have you got a single man lined up for me? Or something. And I found Leonard. And I joked to her that he was coming to church next week.

[5:05] And so she texted me back with, Laugh out loud. Stranger things have happened. Thank you again for loving my soul. Now I know sometimes churches can be like a matchmaking centre.

[5:18] I must confess that I found the catch of my life in church. And we've been attending church together ever since. I laid my eyes on her. No. Right.

[5:28] You know, we've always, you know, sometimes churches like that. But we don't come to church for those reasons now. But what drives us, what we're here for, and what we're wanting to reach out to people for, is because we do love souls in this church.

[5:45] We love people's souls. And I would like to think that we are a church that is known as a church that loves souls. Loves eternal, ever-living, immortal souls.

[5:57] And there is one. There is one. Who truly loves your soul. He is Jesus. Lover of my soul. The true giver of hope.

[6:09] The Lord Jesus today. And I'm going to break tradition this morning, and not have a three-point sermon, but a four-point sermon. So I'm going to go a little bit longer. I'm going to break that tradition.

[6:20] A four-point sermon. Hope in four dimensions. Hope in four dimensions. We're going to look at the depth, the height, the breadth, and the length of hope this morning.

[6:38] Firstly, the depth of hope. The depth of hope. The Lord Jesus is the one who gives us an anchor for our soul. An anchor for our soul.

[6:51] He can ground our lives and settle us, give us a rock-solid, sure foundation upon which we can build our lives. This is the depth of hope.

[7:04] The hope that goes deeper than the deepest pit you could ever go into. His hope is deeper still. This hope is deeper still. This hope reaches to the uttermost, to the guttermost.

[7:17] There's no one outside of reach of this hope. This hope that we have. There is none out of reach of this hope. Not one. You can't go low enough that his arm cannot reach you.

[7:30] Isaiah 59 verse 1. It says, Behold, the Lord's arm is not shortened, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it can't say. Neither is ear heavy, that it can't hear.

[7:41] His arm, his hand, can reach into the deepest pit. to those who are sunk in the deepest of sin. His arm, his hand is not shortened, that it can't say.

[7:55] We read about a hope in these pages that we can have, that can hold us steady, that can hold us sure and rock-solid, and certain in every storm, in every storm, and through the deepest, deepest pit that our lives may encounter.

[8:11] This hope is a deep, deep hope, as deep as the deepest sea. Yet your anchor can hold fast. This hope will hold you sure.

[8:24] This sure and steady hope, described as an anchor for your soul. An anchor for your soul. It grounds you, it holds you, it secures you, it gives you a certainty.

[8:39] The Word of God tells how we can flee to Jesus, run to Him for refuge, and find this life-changing hope in Him. Hebrews 6 verse 19, Which hope we have, as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which entereth into that within the veil.

[8:59] This tells us a hope, that goes beyond this dimension. One day we will step, beyond the veil, of this earthly time, like a curtain.

[9:11] We're going to go through the curtain, as it were, into a new life, a life beyond this life, this human life, this mortal life, and we'll step into that great beyond.

[9:22] And this hope, friends today, this hope that we can have, is timeless. This hope that we can have, goes through the curtain, of this life, into the life beyond the veil.

[9:34] And this ray of hope that we can have, can lighten our darkness, even the darkest of times, and bring radiant hope. In the here and now, and in the hereafter, we can find hope, in the promises, of the Lord Jesus.

[9:50] He says, He is our living hope. Even in the depths, and dread of death. Now when you think of, how deep, how, how, what are the depths of life?

[10:04] Sometimes it's death, isn't it? When we see a loved one, pass away. The depths, and dread of death. This hope is deeper still, deeper still, deeper than death. This hope stays alive, beyond the grave.

[10:18] Beyond the grave. 1 Peter 1.3 it says, Blessed be the God and Father, of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to, his abundant mercy, hath begotten us again, made us born again.

[10:31] Born again, unto a living, lively hope, by the resurrection, of Jesus Christ, from the dead. The empty tomb, gives us hope, doesn't it? Amen. To know that his tomb, is empty.

[10:43] He's not here, he is risen. There is hope. If God can take a body, that's been dead, for three days, and give life, and make it a glorified body, then he, will change us too.

[10:58] He will change us too. As he promises to. For the ones, who have been born again, this hope, that we have, this hope, that is as an anchor, for our soul, it is eternal.

[11:09] Eternal. Everlasting. This hope, that we have, is an anchor, of the soul. This hope, that we have, is cause, for true blessing, and joy, deep down, in our soul.

[11:20] We see the depth, now to the height, the height of this hope. Let's consider the height, of this hope. It reaches to, the heights of heaven, because that is where, this hope comes from.

[11:31] You know, for some of us, who have experienced, flying in a plane, above the clouds, and seeing the, the, the majestic, sight of clouds, fluffy clouds.

[11:44] This goes beyond, the clouds, into heaven, and from heaven, this hope, reaches beyond, because that is where, this hope comes from, from heaven. It's our joyful hope, that our Lord, will return.

[11:57] And when he comes, he will take, rightful rule, of this planet. Take charge, and overthrow the one, who is the so-called God, small g, of this world, for the meantime.

[12:07] The Lord Jesus, he will come, and he will right the wrongs, and he will, take charge. The government, will be upon his shoulders. And this is the hope, that transforms us.

[12:18] This is the hope, that fills our hearts. Looking for, that blessed hope. Titus 2.13, looking for, that blessed hope, that glorious, blessed hope, that happy, joyful hope, and the glorious appearing, of our great God, the great God, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ.

[12:37] We read here, of a blessed hope. Blessed, blessed, it speaks of happiness, of joy, of joyfulness. This is a high, and holy hope, a heavenly hope, a hope that reaches, to the heights, a hope that reaches, to the highest, to the heavens, from whence, our Saviour will return.

[12:55] And this hope, is as deep as death, it's as high, as the heavens. Our blessed hope, is found in him, this one who will, as he has promised, come again. And this hope, is a blessing, a blessed hope.

[13:08] It fills us with joy, and with gladness. Our glad hope, our certain hope, is that the Lord Jesus, surely, is just ready, to step in, to planet earth again, returning, as our King, and as our Master.

[13:22] And this hope, this blessed hope, fills our hearts, as believers, with joy, and gladness, to know this. Knowing that we're looking for, that blessed, that confident hope, this hope that we have, as an anchor, of the soul, is one we want to share.

[13:37] 1 Peter 3, 15, it says, but sanctify, the Lord God, in your hearts, and be ready, always, to give an answer, for, to every man, that asketh you, a reason of the hope, that is in you, with meekness, and fear.

[13:53] This hope, that we have, is too precious, it's too vital, for us to keep it, to ourselves. This hope, that we have, as an anchor, of the soul, is in us, it is deep, in our soul, it is heavenly hope, found in our Lord Jesus, our soon coming King, and so we have, good reason for it, and so we want, to set apart, the Lord God, in our hearts, we want to honour him, with our hearts, and with our lives, and tell someone, I've got to tell somebody, we want to set apart, him in our hearts, and honour him, find hope, God, is the author, of our hope, he wrote the book, hope, it's spelled, B-I-B-L-E, hope, there's joy, and peace, and blessing, and hope, in believing, through faith, through his Holy Spirit's power, Romans 15, 13, it says, now the God of hope, that's his name, he is hope, he is the God, of hope, fill you, with all joy, and peace, in believing, that you may, abound in hope, not just have a trickle of it, but be abounding in it, through the power, of the Holy Ghost, our hope, is built, on nothing less, than Jesus' blood, and righteousness, we should not trust, the sweetest frame, but holy trust, in Jesus name, upon Christ, the solid rock I stand, all other ground, is sinking sand, the scriptures give us, sure hope today, and we have a book, filled with, his precious promises, that can bring us, hope, and healing,

[15:31] Romans 15, for, for whatsoever things, were written, aforetime, were written, for our learning, that we through, patience, and comfort, of the scriptures, might have hope, that patience, that perseverance, that comfort, that encouragement, of the scriptures, that comfort, of the scriptures, brings us hope, this book is filled, with stories of men, and women, who have been, where you've been, and where you will be, men and women, and God at work, in their lives, God at work, in their lives, ordinary people, just like you and me, now sometimes, we think of these, men and women of God, in the Bible, we put them on a pedestal, but really, they're just human beings, skin and bones, and flesh, just like you and me, and they're an example, for us, so we can learn from them, people just like you and me, we've seen the depth, of this hope, this hope that we have, as an anchor, of the soul, it can be as deep, as the deepest pit, that you can ever go through, this hope, will not abandon us, even in the depths, of death itself, this is a hope, that is a heavenly hope, the heights of this hope, this hope, that reaches to the very heights, of heaven, the depth, the height, and now the breadth, the breadth, consider the breadth, this hope is as broad, as the human race, the scriptures bring us hope, they tell these stories, of lives changed, of the lives of people, that this hope, can reach everyone, who will believe, our problems, are not unique to us, and we can catch, a glimpse, of heaven's worship, in Revelation 5 verse 9, and picture this, now we've had, picture the old covenant, the sanctuary, the tabernacle, the holy of holies, picture this heaven itself, the holy of holies, yet to come,

[17:19] Revelation 5 verse 9, and they sung a new song, saying, thou art worthy, for thou art slain, and hast redeemed us to God, by thy blood, out of every kindred, for every family, every tongue, every people, every nation, wow, that means everybody, that knows him, from every nation, will be there, what a gathering, it will be, imagine the breadth, of that, the breadth, of humanity, this hope, is universal, this hope, is as wide, as every kindred, every tongue, every people, every nation, this hope, that we have, it reaches humanity wide, to all who will believe, we see down through history, people through history, have faced much trials, and tests, worse than we have, chances are, and God ministered to them, in their own situations, down through the pages of scripture, down through the record, of church history, and the same God, the same God, who was with those people then, is with us today, now, everything, seemed lost, for some, yet God was there, we see for example,

[18:31] David, David lost everything, that he had, at a place called Ziklag, the Amalekites, were coming, raiding, destroying everything, and taking everything, that he owned, what did David do, 1 Samuel 30 verse 6, you know, I love this scripture, this text, 1 Samuel 30 verse 6, and we can learn, from David's example, David was greatly distressed, it's natural for you, to get distressed, when things are going wrong, for the people, spoke of stoning him, because the soul, of all the people, was grieved, it looked hopeless, David, was really, facing, a difficult situation, he was distressed, it goes on, every man, for his sons, and his daughters, but David, encouraged himself, in the Lord, his God, God, he asked the Lord, then, shall I overtake, this trip, shall I pursue them, and God said, pursue, for thou shalt surely, overtake them, and without fail, recover all,

[19:39] God promised David, victory, and David won, he won through, he won the battle, right through this book of hope, we have so many examples, of these men and women of God, people just like you and me, people just like you and me, and God ministered to their needs, just like he does, to you and me, and he will minister hope, into our lives, here's how someone put it, this is some borrowed material, talking about some examples, through the scriptures, of these people, that God worked in their lives, for example, are you lonely, and depressed, you might not want to put your hand up, and let others know that, but you might say, yes Lord, that's me, lonely and depressed, look at Elijah, look at Elijah, he thought he didn't have a friend, in the world, he thought he was standing alone, on his own, on his lonesome, he thought he was the only one, who loved God, he was alone, and depressed, but Elijah found, that God was still with him, in that still, small voice,

[20:44] God showed up, and God showed Elijah, that things were not as bad, as he thought, there's numbers of others here, who have not bowed to me, to the Baal, to the idol God, but there are many others, who know me, and love me, are you lonely, and depressed, take heart, you've got the hope, that Elijah had, are you frightened, something in your life, has gotten out of control, for example, we see David again, as he fought this, nine foot, six inch giant, and he beat him, God was with David, there was no need, for him to be afraid, and for us too, why, because God, is on our side, as the Bible says, if God is for us, then who can be against us, are you frightened, like David, trust in David's hope, trust in David's hope, if God is for us, who can be against us, are you being treated, unfairly, what about Joseph, he was treated unfairly, here was David, treated unfairly, by his family, by Potiphar's wife, by Potiphar himself, and the list goes on, and on, he went through, so much hardship, in his life, as he was thrown out, of his family, as he was, imprisoned unfairly, treated unfairly, by many, yet,

[22:06] Joseph's hope, was in God, Joseph's hope, was in God, he went from the pit, to the prison, to the palace, to be the second, most powerful man, in Egypt, are you being treated, unfairly, take heart, Joseph's hope, is your hope today, Joseph, is another example, are you in some kind, of crisis, how would you like, to be facing, a group of, hungry lions, with nowhere to run, think about Daniel, that's where Daniel, found himself, these hungry lions, no escape route, he was there, and he was going, to be their next meal, what did Daniel do, Daniel prayed, he prayed, and he prayed through, and he knew, where his hope was, his hope, was in God, are you feeling, like you're going, through some sort, of crisis, like Daniel, do what Daniel did, do what Daniel did, put your hope, in God, put your hope, in God, the scriptures, are given to us, we read, that we might, have hope,

[23:09] Hebrews 13, 5 it says, let your conversation, be without covetousness, in other words, let your way of life, not be, a greedy, grasping kind of thing, looking for material things, or making a living, that that's your whole focus, but rather, it goes on, be content, with such things, as you have, contentment, is a quality, that's precious, isn't it, now you see, some of the most happy people, are the poorest people, doesn't matter, what you've got, in the bank, it's that contentment, of soul, be content, with such things, as you have, for he has said, I will never, leave thee, nor forsake thee, Jesus will never, leave us, never ever, hope in God, hope in him, hope in his promises, trust him, he is still with you, if you are his children today, God can give us hope, and we can overcome, friends, to touch base, one, so far we've seen, the depth, this hope is as deep, as the deepest pit, as deep as death, this hope is as high, as the heavens, from whence we have, our blessed hope, our Lord is coming back, so then we look, it's as high as the heavens, this breadth, the breadth of this hope, is as broad, as wide, as the human race, from every nation, every tongue, every kindred, every family, every tribe, every nation, and it is length, is another feature today, the fourth feature, the fourth dimension, is the length, of this hope, this length, of this hope, is as far, as Christ went for us, as far, as Christ, went for you, he went to the extremity, of the cross, for you, for me, the extremity, of the cross, he went all the way, to the cross, he did not stop short, he did not say, it's too hard,

[24:59] I'm stopping here, he went the length, of the cross, all the way, to the cross, and laid himself, on that word, and was pierced, for us, and we can know, where to find, our hope today, we can know, where our hope, is found, it is in him today, God's love, is as extreme, for us, extreme, as the cross, the extremity, of the cross, of crucifixion, his love, did not stop short, it took him, all the way, to the cross, and friends, his length, of his love, of his hope, of this grace, of this, knowing of him, is, goes, to the uttermost, his hope, is there, no matter our situation, his hope, is with us, wherever life's journey, takes us, along life's long, and winding road, at times, that hope, that we have, it goes to the length, and breadth, and depth, and height, and he is with us, every step of the way, if we will, but trust him, but trust him, we have reason, for hope this morning, because God has demonstrated, his love towards us, while we were, still sinners, he, took, the extremity, of the cross, for us, and the cross, reminds us, of the length, of God's love, the length, that God went to, from heaven's glory, to, calming, human flesh, to where, our sin, and bear, the penalty, for us, at the cross, he demonstrates, that somebody, loves us, doesn't it, the cross, demonstrates, the cross, reminds us, somebody loves you, somebody loves you, they went to the cross, for you, the master, of the universe, the Lord, of all glory, the Lord, of all, the King, of kings, the Lord, of lords, most of all, one, in whom we can place, our personal hope, our Lord, our King, listen to his words, he says,

[26:55] John 15, verse 13, greater love, hath no man, than this, that a man lay down, his life, for his friends, he is the lover, of my soul, the lover, of your soul, in him, you can rest, your anchor, in him, you can anchor, your soul, this hope, that we have, as an anchor, of the soul, Paul cared, about souls, and Paul, prayed this, in Ephesians 3, as we're wrapping up, verse 17, it says, that Christ may dwell, in your hearts, by faith, that you be rooted, and grounded, in love, here is where, our hope is found, Christ dwelling, it says, in human hearts, by faith, Christ, it says, dwelling, in human hearts, by faith, as they're grounded, as they're founded, in this love, of God, this great love, of God, and verse 18, it says, may we be able, to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height, and to know, the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled, with all the fullness, of God, here is love, you can find, hope in this, here today, here at the cross, your hope, can be found, back to verse 18, it says, again, to repeat, may be able,

[28:21] Paul prays, that ye may be able, to comprehend, get this, he says, with all the saints, what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height, the love of God, isn't it, the hope that we have, in these four dimensions, the depth, of hope, even in the deepest pit, his hope, his hope, is in you, it is with you, he is there, even in the shadow, of death, no matter how deep, his hope, is deeper still, the height of hope, is as high, as the heavens above, the heavens made, where to we look, where to, where from, our blessed saviour, is our blessed hope, and he will come, and what a glorious appearing, that will be, and the breadth of hope, it encompasses, all, who will believe, all, who will believe, no matter where they hail from, even, from this humble place, right here, even, in humble hearts, right here, and now, he can dwell there, by faith, the breadth, of his hope, and most of all, the length, of the hope, what our Lord, went through, as we consider the cross, as it was pictured, as we've heard, in the Old Testament, pictures, that were kind of snapshots, in preview, and now we see, the full, gruesome reality, of the cross, the blessed reality, of the bleeding, dying lamb, the length, of the cross, the length, of this hope, what the extremity, of the cross, means to us, who are redeemed, who are purchased, saved from sin, set free, because of his work, his finished work, and we have, a sure, lasting, eternal, everlasting, never ending, hope, finding hope, are you still searching, are you still searching, have you lost hope, you can regain hope, you can find hope, again, you can hope again, are you searching, but have yet to find this hope,

[30:27] I put to you today, hope is here, in Christ, put your hope in God, hope in God today, I pray, I appeal to you, this morning, you might say to me, preacher, I don't know that I've got this hope, that you're talking about, you might say to me, preacher, I don't have, I don't have that, hope, that certainty, I'm not, I'm not grounded, I haven't got that depth, I don't have that, that certainty, that I know, that I know, that I know, that I'm saved, please, speak to someone this morning, speak to perhaps Brad, myself, another trusted Christian, here this morning, we can point, a woman to a woman, a man to a man, if you'd like to have prayer, this morning, you want to say to me, preacher, I want to get it settled, I want to know for sure, that I'm saved, you can know that this morning, by faith, not through any, conjuring up, or magic tricks, or, or special, ceremonies of men, but in simple faith, trusting him, and finding that hope, in Christ, today for yourself,

[31:35] I pray you'll find him, and know him, and for we that believe, be assured of that hope, and be strengthened in that hope, this morning, for God's glory, and praise.