HOPE

Colossians 1

​“My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus' blood and righteousness
I dare not trust the sweetest frame
But wholly lean on Jesus' name
On Christ the solid rock I stand
All other ground is sinking sand
All other ground is sinking sand.” Edward Mote, 1834

Lately, in my conversations within the community in which I live, work, and minister, there is feelings of despair and hopelessness. This is a common theme among young and old. There has been a lot of struggles around the common nature of solitude. Solitude can be great, but not to the extent of months of isolation. We are not to live life alone, for we have been designed for community. The recent sheltering has created an environment of isolation that is resulting in off the chart spikes in fear, depression, anxiety, mental illnesses that has led to irrational actions, volatile actions, and even suicide. The recent sheltering has resulted in overall feelings of hopelessness and helplessness.

Warren Wiersbe reminds us in his commentary on Colossians 1 that there is hope—hope before you, hope beneath you, and in Christ, a hope with in you. As believers, we must know and make known the hope that we possess in Jesus Christ and His death, burial, resurrection, and ascension. We must remember and hold on to the hope we possess in the indwelling Holy Spirit and the promise we have in a future with Jesus Christ in the place He has created called Heaven. We hear this throughout Paul’s letter to the Colossians.

“We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, 4 since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, 5 because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, 6 which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth, 7 just as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf 8 and has made known to us your love in the Spirit. 9 And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy; 12 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.” Colossians 1:3–12 (ESV)

These people were going to heaven! They had heard the Word and trusted the Savior, and they had given evidence of their faith by their love for God and God’s people. God qualified them; they did not save themselves, for it is by faith you are saved, not by works of righteousness or a measuring stick. In Jesus, you have hope.

“He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. 21 And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, 22 he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, 23 if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.” Colossians 1:13–23 (ESV)

Hope is a foundation on which you stand when all around you is shaking. The city of Colosse was located in an earthquake area, so Paul’s admonition was especially meaningful to them. The false teachers wanted the saints to shift their foundation, but Paul pointed the church to Jesus Christ: Savior, eternal God, Creator, and Head of the church. What a perfect foundation for your and my hope! Even more so, for those with feelings of destitute and hopelessness.

I love the explanation of these passages as Dr. Harold Wilmington dives deep in his Bible Handbook to explain Jesus, “the preeminence of the preeminent One,” meaning Christ “is first in everything” because he “existed before everything else began.”

•​He is the very “image” of God. The Greek signifies not that he is simply like God but that he is God, for the very “fullness” of God dwells in him.

•​He created all things in heaven and on earth for his glory and continues to hold it all together.

•​He is the head of the church (1:18). Concerning “first of all who will rise from the dead.”

•​He is in the process of reconciling everything in the universe to himself. That is, he is bringing all things into a right relationship with the Father. This does not mean that everyone will be reconciled to God (universalism), but anyone who so desires can be. This reconciliation began at the Cross and will be complete at the sound of the seventh trumpet.

“Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church, 25 of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, 26 the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints. 27 To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. 28 Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. 29 For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.” Colossians 1:24–29 (ESV)

Heaven is more than a destination; it is a motivation because Christ lives within. It is a living hope that affects how we think and act all day long. Because Christ is within us, we need not fear what is ahead.

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” 1 Peter 1:3–7 (ESV)

Believer, Jesus reconciles sinners to God through His blood, shed on the cross. If you’ve placed faith in Christ alone, your bank statement of righteousness is reconciled by Him; you have perfect righteousness because you receive a credit from Him. In that, we should find comfort and hope, even in what seems to be hopeless times.
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Today, think on these things and know that in Jesus you have a bright, perfectly designed future. Your hope and future is secure in the work of Jesus Christ. And, in Him, and His Spirit in you, you are never alone. Find hope in Him by saturating yourself in His Words of hope and promise every day, and be sure to share it with others through social media and beyond the four walls.

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