Living Hope


Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By his great mercy he gave us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, that is, into an inheritance imperishable, undefiled, and unfading. It is reserved in heaven for you,   [1Pe 1:3-4 NET] 

               When I was a little girl, my great-grandmother gave me a special doll from Japan that she had purchased on one of her mission trips with my great-grandfather. Even as a child I recognized that this was a special thing that I didn’t want to get spoilt. My grandmother offered to let me keep it in her special doll cabinet, a glass cabinet where her special dolls were on display. Forty years later there it still sits, in reserve for me. Whenever I visit my grandmother, I enjoy seeing it sitting there amongst her precious things. I know thar it is safe and will be ready for me whenever I am ready for it.

               I know it’s different, but this gave me a picture of how God has reserved our living hope in heaven for us. It is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading. When we accepted Christ’s gift of salvation, declared Him Lord of our lives and renounced our sinful past, our living hope was reserved for us. It is certain and assured.

               But what does it mean to have a “living hope”? When I looked up the words used here, I was amazed and excited by what I found. “Living” doesn’t just mean a warm body with a heartbeat, but when it’s used as an adjective as it is here, it means to be active, powerful, and efficacious 1 (not a word I use often, but a good one!). And “hope” refers to the joyful and confident expectation of eternal salvation 2. So, we have an active, powerful, efficacious, joyful and confident expectation of eternal salvation! And that living hope is assured, reserved for us according to the perfect work that was already accomplished by Jesus on the cross and through the resurrection. It is finished. It is forever!

Here's the Thing: Sometimes Heaven seems so far off, and almost impossible, like I’ll never reach it. The thing is, I don’t have to worry about that, it’s up to God and He’s got it handled!

 

1 - G2198 - zaō - Strong's Greek Lexicon (net) (blueletterbible.org)

2 - G1680 - elpis - Strong's Greek Lexicon (net) (blueletterbible.org)


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