Know Greater Hope

April 16 | Every Spiritual Blessing

I love seeing people wearing the T-shirts that say “Blessed.” Do you feel “blessed” even when nothing is going right?  In this glorious passage that begins the letter to the Ephesians, Paul launches an avalanche of praise for God.  In the original language, it is one long breathless sentence. He begins by summarizing what he is so excited about: “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing!” Paul is in prison! Not so blessed, right? Yet, he feels incredibly blessed. He begins articulating the blessings we have been given in Jesus and the reason we can truly feel “blessed” and have a greater hope.

April 23 | Know Greater Hope

We probably have a lot of relationships that are shallow or even artificial. It is important for us to get to know people better. It is more important to get to know our spouse better. But even more important… is getting to know God better. That is the prayer today. That we might know God better. The more we learn about God and what He has done for us, the more we know the hope God gives us in Jesus. A hope that is based on his power to raise the dead to life! Grasp the awesome scale of God’s love. God brings from death to life by grace. God has done resurrection before. We know He can do it again. There is no greater hope. May we “know greater hope!”

April 30 | Death To Life By Grace

Why do Christians get so excited by “grace?” Why do we sing about “Amazing Grace”? We name our churches after it. We name our children after it. What is all the fuss about? God’s “grace” is his undeserved love for us. But why is it so amazing? This text reveals why God’s grace is the most amazing gift we could ever have. We have a problem – we are spiritually dead. We can’t do a thing to make things right with God. We are captive to the ways of this world and how they squash hope right out of our lives. BUT. God loves us. That changes everything. His undeserved love for us brought us back to life! The same power He raised Jesus with… He has raised us with. We were brought from death to life by God’s grace! God’s amazing grace is the greatest gift we could ever have! There’s no greater hope!

May 7 | A New Kind of Peace

There is a depressingly relentless cycle of political strife and military conflict between peoples, nations, and religious cultures in our world. There is constant suspicion and segregation in our cities and communities between black and white, rich and poor, right-wing and left-wing. The list goes on. There is even tension between colleagues at work and cruelty and hurt in our homes. Is it possible for human beings to stop fighting? Can there ever be lasting peace within our communities and cultures? The answer is yes. There is a peace and unity that happens between people when they come to know Christ. He unifies us in the only way possible. There is no greater hope for peace!

May 14 | The Mystery Revealed

Most of us enjoy the suspense of a mystery thriller. Books and movies keep us on the edge of our seats, as do documentaries about unsolved mysteries. Other mysteries are more personal – like figuring out how to fill out your tax form or what to get your mom for Mother’s Day.  The only thing more compelling than a mystery is when the mystery finally gets solved. Today’s text reveals a mystery that had troubled God’s people for centuries – a mystery now solved in the most astonishing fashion by the coming of Christ. The solution to this mystery is displayed so all can admire God’s wisdom. The mystery? The greater hope of Jesus is for ALL people. No one is excluded!

May 21 | Grasping the Scale of God’s Love

When you get married, and that person you love moves in, two wonderful things happen: they start changing everything to reflect their character, and they fill the place with their love for you. That’s what happened when I got married. My ratty dorm furniture got replaced and the décor got cleaned and greatly improved! All these new things were wonderful because I felt loved! Same thing happens for every Christian. When the Spirit of Christ takes up residence in our lives, He redecorates our souls with his holy character. He fills our hearts with more and more of his love. He gives us strength and hope and helps us live a new way. Our text is a prayer that God would do just that.

May 28 | Building Unity with Love

We want the church to grow so that we can make a difference in the world around us. But churches not only need to grow in number. We need to grow in holiness. We need to grow in unity. That will show the world what our three-in-one God is like. God’s grace, the hope He gives us in Jesus, generates this growth. There is one body, one church. Our Christian community should reflect that unity. We are like a symphony orchestra and God has given us beautiful music to play. If all the sections of an orchestra were fighting and competing with one another, the music wouldn’t sound so good. But when we play together, we bless the world around us with the beautiful music God plays through us. We speak God’s truth in love to draw people together to the hope in Jesus God gives us!

June 4 | Stop Copying the World and Start Copying Christ

We live in a fashion-conscious world. We see influential people wearing certain styles of clothes and imitate them by trying to keep up with the same fashions. We want to look the same as the world around us. We do the same thing in the way that we live. We imitate the world in the way that we act, talk, and think. Sometimes we blend right in and people don’t even know we’re different. The encouragement in this text is to stop trying to look exactly like the world around us and start imitating God instead. The benefits of being like the world are short-lived. The hope God offers lasts forever.

June 11 | Live In The Light

The world we live in loves to live in darkness. What people do behind closed doors should be up to them, they say. The world is accepting of all kinds of alternative expressions of gender and sexuality. But the God who loves us created us a certain way to glorify Him. His Word is very clear on how He wants us to live. In the light. Not in the darkness. As we shine this light into the world, it isn’t going to want to hear it. It seems backward and outdated. It sounds unloving and unsupporting. But the truth is, God’s way of living is the only way that is self-less and actually truly loving! Let’s show the world the beauty of God’s way! Let’s share it in a loving way. That’s the way to honor Him for the true light and greater hope He has given us!

June 18 | A Marriage Made In Heaven

Marriage has been instilled into human hearts and human society by our loving Creator to stir up human longing and to prepare our hearts for the love of Christ. Marriage conducted in God’s way by his people is a beautiful demonstration of his plan to gather all things under Christ and make us one in Christ. Among God’s people, marriage isn’t a battleground, but a field of victory, where sinners can remain united to each other in the service of Christ. Marriage is a beautiful object lesson of how Jesus loves the people who believe in Him. Today’s text not only speaks of the ways our marriages can be blessed, but also celebrates the spiritual union of all believers with Christ, to whom we will one day be united – the ultimate “marriage made in heaven.”

June 25 | At Home and At Work

From the beginning, God designed people to live in families. He also gave us work to do, a garden to take care of, something to give meaning and purpose. So a lot of our lives are spent at home and at work. As we continue to rebel against God, our homes and workplaces often become the scenes of our most obvious failings and flaws. They can become unhappy or even downright dysfunctional places. When Jesus came here to save us, He was born into a family of a worker, a carpenter. He lived in our place and died on our behalf to give us a new life. So we thank and worship Him. Not just on Sundays. We worship Him Monday to Saturday as well, in our families, homes, and workplaces.

July 2 | Stand Firm In The Fight

Most people today think the “devil” is a joke. And make jokes about him. But the truth is, the devil is a real and vicious enemy of God and his people. He tempts us to doubt God’s Word. He wants to tear us away from God, and he did so. But Jesus came to defeat the devil. And He did! The church displays that victory in all we do! But the battles rage on… our enemy is real and the daily battles we face with him are too. So Paul reaches the dramatic finale to his letter: “Finally be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.” (Eph. 6:10-11) Put on that armor of God and let the Word of truth continue to fill your life! There is no greater hope than what God’s grace in Jesus gives us! Know greater hope!