1 00:00:00,520 --> 00:00:06,440 We now are going to continue in our series that I launched last 2 00:00:06,440 --> 00:00:12,880 week entitled Hope, Hope, and I don't know about you, but I 3 00:00:12,880 --> 00:00:17,280 could do with a dose of Hope. I explained to you last week 4 00:00:17,280 --> 00:00:22,720 that all it takes is for me to spend a few moments on my on my 5 00:00:22,720 --> 00:00:27,320 Daily News junket, around all the various apps I have and 6 00:00:27,320 --> 00:00:30,560 websites for me to feel a a sense of hopelessness. 7 00:00:31,040 --> 00:00:33,800 And certainly in the world events that we're seeing 8 00:00:33,800 --> 00:00:38,440 recently, there is such an escalation of conflict in the 9 00:00:38,440 --> 00:00:41,160 world for which we pray Lord Jesus, for your peace. 10 00:00:41,960 --> 00:00:48,320 We pray where man is trying to to to solve things, where man is 11 00:00:48,320 --> 00:00:55,880 trying to use might and and and war to solve these things. 12 00:00:55,880 --> 00:00:59,440 We know, Lord Jesus, that it is only your peace that comes from 13 00:00:59,440 --> 00:01:00,880 you. That is what we pray. 14 00:01:00,920 --> 00:01:03,240 We pray that through these conflicts, Lord God, there will 15 00:01:03,240 --> 00:01:05,519 be an awakening to you, Lord God. 16 00:01:05,760 --> 00:01:09,320 We ask that in your name. But all of that to say, you 17 00:01:09,320 --> 00:01:14,000 know, we, we do have this sense sometimes of hopelessness. 18 00:01:14,240 --> 00:01:18,080 But as Christians, we have to remember that there is a promise 19 00:01:18,280 --> 00:01:22,520 of hope that is rooted in God and God alone. 20 00:01:23,160 --> 00:01:27,320 And I shared with you what is the anchor text for our series, 21 00:01:27,600 --> 00:01:30,840 which is from Romans 12, verse 12, that says this. 22 00:01:31,040 --> 00:01:37,320 Paul says, rejoice in hope, rejoice in hope, and be patient 23 00:01:37,560 --> 00:01:41,600 in tribulation and be constant in prayer. 24 00:01:42,320 --> 00:01:45,240 And for me, that's a verse for the year for myself personally. 25 00:01:45,240 --> 00:01:48,840 And I believe that the Lord is sharing it for all of us this 26 00:01:48,840 --> 00:01:51,840 year. Because there is life in this 27 00:01:51,840 --> 00:01:56,680 instruction from Paul that we are to rejoice in hope, be 28 00:01:56,680 --> 00:02:00,840 patient in tribulation, and to be constant in prayer. 29 00:02:01,320 --> 00:02:03,400 Rather good instructions, I think you'll find. 30 00:02:04,400 --> 00:02:09,800 But I do believe that for many there is a sense that we are 31 00:02:10,400 --> 00:02:15,440 having a sense of hopelessness. And I wanted to come in this 32 00:02:15,440 --> 00:02:21,160 series and maybe shift our focus away from hopelessness onto the 33 00:02:21,160 --> 00:02:25,120 hope that we find in Jesus. And if you're wondering why I'm 34 00:02:25,120 --> 00:02:27,920 playing around with my notes, I just discovered that I pulled 35 00:02:27,920 --> 00:02:31,840 out my notes from last week. So for those of you who missed 36 00:02:31,840 --> 00:02:33,400 last week, that wouldn't have been a problem. 37 00:02:33,760 --> 00:02:36,080 For those of you who were here, sorry about that. 38 00:02:36,840 --> 00:02:38,360 But that doesn't change the introduction. 39 00:02:40,640 --> 00:02:44,160 So I don't know about you, but when I think about hope, 40 00:02:44,680 --> 00:02:50,280 sometimes my mind goes to, I hope that this is a worldly kind 41 00:02:50,280 --> 00:02:52,040 of hope. You know, I hope that it will 42 00:02:52,040 --> 00:02:57,240 work out OK Or I hope that, you know, the sun will shine this 43 00:02:57,280 --> 00:03:00,080 afternoon. Or I hope that that is not the 44 00:03:00,080 --> 00:03:03,120 kind of hope that we are going to be looking at over these 45 00:03:03,120 --> 00:03:05,480 coming weeks. The kind of hope that we're 46 00:03:05,480 --> 00:03:10,760 looking at is a hope that is living, that is alive, that is 47 00:03:10,760 --> 00:03:14,320 based on the promises of God. And what I said last week was 48 00:03:14,320 --> 00:03:18,680 that what you'll find is that that which you put your trust in 49 00:03:19,280 --> 00:03:22,880 is that which you hope in. Think about it. 50 00:03:23,000 --> 00:03:26,600 That which you put your trust in is the thing that you put your 51 00:03:26,600 --> 00:03:30,560 hope in. If you trust in your finances, 52 00:03:30,680 --> 00:03:38,000 you will put hope in your money for your future if you trust in 53 00:03:39,680 --> 00:03:42,240 people. And by the way, we want to be 54 00:03:42,240 --> 00:03:44,800 trusting one another. But I'm talking about a kind of 55 00:03:44,800 --> 00:03:48,320 trust that is for my whole life, you know, the kind of trust that 56 00:03:48,320 --> 00:03:49,880 we replace from God to other people. 57 00:03:50,040 --> 00:03:53,400 If you put your trust in other people, then your hope is going 58 00:03:53,400 --> 00:03:55,400 to be in other people. Who knows that sometimes we get 59 00:03:55,400 --> 00:04:02,160 disappointed by other people. And so really, when we're 60 00:04:02,160 --> 00:04:06,920 talking about hope in God, the question is who are you putting 61 00:04:06,920 --> 00:04:10,000 your trust in? And you can do this as an 62 00:04:10,000 --> 00:04:11,240 exercise. Think about it. 63 00:04:11,360 --> 00:04:12,840 What are you hoping in right now? 64 00:04:14,040 --> 00:04:16,240 Because your answer is going to show you who you're putting your 65 00:04:16,240 --> 00:04:19,279 trust in. Good little exercise, isn't it? 66 00:04:20,000 --> 00:04:21,480 What are you hoping in right now? 67 00:04:22,400 --> 00:04:26,560 Because that will show you who you are putting your trust in. 68 00:04:28,000 --> 00:04:32,960 And I was reminded of Ephesians 212 as I was preparing for this 69 00:04:32,960 --> 00:04:37,320 talk. And who says this to the church 70 00:04:37,320 --> 00:04:40,720 in Ephesus? Remember that you were at that 71 00:04:40,720 --> 00:04:44,320 time separated from Christ. So he's speaking to believers 72 00:04:44,320 --> 00:04:47,560 here saying, listen, there was a time where you were separated 73 00:04:47,560 --> 00:04:50,880 from Christ and you were alienated from the Commonwealth 74 00:04:50,880 --> 00:04:53,720 of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise. 75 00:04:53,760 --> 00:04:57,920 All of that is to say you were an alien from the promises of 76 00:04:57,920 --> 00:05:00,320 God, that Jesus died on the cross for you. 77 00:05:01,040 --> 00:05:05,120 And then he says this having no hope and without God in the 78 00:05:05,120 --> 00:05:08,800 world. And I think this rather focuses, 79 00:05:09,080 --> 00:05:17,320 focuses in on the point which is this a biblical hope is based on 80 00:05:17,320 --> 00:05:22,360 a relationship with Jesus. Because I want to say this and I 81 00:05:22,360 --> 00:05:26,400 said it last week in the 11:30 service, is that if you are here 82 00:05:26,400 --> 00:05:29,360 this morning or you're watching me online and you have yet to 83 00:05:29,360 --> 00:05:32,400 say yes to Jesus and you're not walking with him, I want to say 84 00:05:32,400 --> 00:05:34,760 this. There is no hope for you. 85 00:05:36,400 --> 00:05:38,200 Whoa. Did the pastor just say that? 86 00:05:39,440 --> 00:05:41,000 Aren't you supposed to encourage people? 87 00:05:41,000 --> 00:05:43,520 Yeah, I am. I'm encouraging you to say yes 88 00:05:43,520 --> 00:05:48,320 to Jesus because it's in that place that you will find a kind 89 00:05:48,320 --> 00:05:51,320 of hope that is not based on your circumstances. 90 00:05:56,280 --> 00:06:00,160 You see, once you are walking with Jesus, you have a hope that 91 00:06:00,160 --> 00:06:01,960 is assured. What is that hope? 92 00:06:02,120 --> 00:06:05,160 That he loves you and that you are going to be with him for 93 00:06:05,160 --> 00:06:08,720 eternity. What is that hopelessness that 94 00:06:08,720 --> 00:06:11,680 you feel without Christ? Let me tell you, if that you're 95 00:06:11,680 --> 00:06:13,840 feeling that sense of hopelessness, it is this. 96 00:06:13,840 --> 00:06:18,240 You're going to spend eternity without him and that you are 97 00:06:18,240 --> 00:06:21,160 lost. But you see, that is the gospel 98 00:06:21,160 --> 00:06:23,760 message, isn't it? The gospel message is the good 99 00:06:23,760 --> 00:06:26,000 news that we can have hope in a living. 100 00:06:26,000 --> 00:06:30,720 God paid the price on the cross for us, and you don't have to do 101 00:06:30,720 --> 00:06:33,840 anything for it. We looked last week as I laid a 102 00:06:33,840 --> 00:06:35,920 foundation at the Why and the What of hope? 103 00:06:36,440 --> 00:06:38,720 And we looked at three things about biblical hope. 104 00:06:38,720 --> 00:06:41,120 The first one was that true hope comes from God. 105 00:06:41,120 --> 00:06:44,040 We're just touched on that. The second thing is that hope is 106 00:06:44,040 --> 00:06:45,600 a gift. You can't earn it. 107 00:06:45,600 --> 00:06:48,320 You can't work for it. It's freely given to you. 108 00:06:48,680 --> 00:06:52,080 There's not many things in this world that are free, if any. 109 00:06:53,040 --> 00:06:56,760 But I tell you something, a hoping God that's free for you. 110 00:06:58,040 --> 00:07:02,000 You know, Christianity is the only religion that is not based 111 00:07:02,000 --> 00:07:06,560 on your ability to earn a relationship with a God. 112 00:07:06,560 --> 00:07:12,000 Do you know that Christianity is not about performing your way 113 00:07:12,000 --> 00:07:14,320 into heaven? It's about recognizing that 114 00:07:14,320 --> 00:07:16,880 Christ has done it all for you on the cross and you simply 115 00:07:17,040 --> 00:07:19,600 simply come as you are? And you say, Lord, would you 116 00:07:19,600 --> 00:07:22,760 take me as I am? I recognize that you've done it 117 00:07:22,800 --> 00:07:24,880 all. How liberating is that? 118 00:07:26,680 --> 00:07:27,840 So good. And then the third thing we 119 00:07:27,840 --> 00:07:29,480 looked at, which is hope endures. 120 00:07:31,480 --> 00:07:34,920 And this morning's talk then is entitled. 121 00:07:34,920 --> 00:07:40,760 Hope changes everything. Hope changes everything. 122 00:07:40,880 --> 00:07:43,680 Another way to look at this would be the fruit of hope or 123 00:07:43,680 --> 00:07:47,080 the benefits of hope. And I feel like that the Lord's 124 00:07:47,080 --> 00:07:50,440 kind of given me a mission the first three months of this year, 125 00:07:50,440 --> 00:07:53,640 as we lead into Easter and we celebrate Easter Sunday and the 126 00:07:53,640 --> 00:07:56,080 hope in a resurrected life with Christ. 127 00:07:57,240 --> 00:08:01,360 I feel like God's given me a mission to tell you that hope 128 00:08:01,480 --> 00:08:06,240 will change your life. I feel like God's laid on me a 129 00:08:06,240 --> 00:08:09,560 burden to tell you this. You don't need to live in 130 00:08:09,560 --> 00:08:10,880 hopelessness. Why? 131 00:08:10,960 --> 00:08:14,160 Because hope will change your circumstances. 132 00:08:19,930 --> 00:08:22,970 Hope changes everything. Now you don't need to put your 133 00:08:22,970 --> 00:08:26,450 hands up, but who would like to sign up for that? 134 00:08:26,450 --> 00:08:28,450 You put your hands up. Well done. 135 00:08:30,000 --> 00:08:32,200 Either you didn't listen to me or you're just, like, disobeying 136 00:08:32,200 --> 00:08:32,720 me. It's fine. 137 00:08:34,200 --> 00:08:36,440 Just kidding. Hope changes everything. 138 00:08:36,440 --> 00:08:39,960 And I think that it speaks to something in our heart to say, 139 00:08:40,000 --> 00:08:43,360 whoa, yes, that's what I need, That's what I want. 140 00:08:45,240 --> 00:08:47,840 And so we're going to look at what that looks like this 141 00:08:47,840 --> 00:08:50,320 morning. You know, we looked at hope as a 142 00:08:50,320 --> 00:08:54,520 future, invisible and confident expectation of the fulfilment 143 00:08:54,520 --> 00:08:57,680 and promises of God. And I said to you last week, 144 00:08:57,840 --> 00:09:00,240 this hope isn't about a wish upon a star. 145 00:09:00,440 --> 00:09:04,760 It's about a hope upon the sun, hope upon the sun. 146 00:09:05,280 --> 00:09:10,880 And I want to read to you one Peter 1/3 to four. 147 00:09:11,960 --> 00:09:14,880 This is what it says. Blessed be the God and Father of 148 00:09:14,880 --> 00:09:20,240 our Lord Jesus Christ. According to his great mercy, He 149 00:09:20,240 --> 00:09:26,440 has caused us to be born again in a living hope through the 150 00:09:26,440 --> 00:09:28,720 resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. 151 00:09:29,600 --> 00:09:33,280 You see, the hope that we are talking about is a living hope. 152 00:09:33,400 --> 00:09:34,400 It is living. Why? 153 00:09:34,400 --> 00:09:39,160 Because it's hope that is Jesus, and Jesus is alive. 154 00:09:42,200 --> 00:09:45,880 But I want to say this. This kind of hope takes work. 155 00:09:46,760 --> 00:09:48,040 I thought you said it was a free gift. 156 00:09:48,160 --> 00:09:50,880 It absolutely is, but it's not a passive gift. 157 00:09:52,120 --> 00:09:54,400 You will not receive this by osmosis. 158 00:09:57,200 --> 00:09:59,960 You will not receive this lying down on your sofa saying, my 159 00:09:59,960 --> 00:10:02,000 world is terrible. Let me keep thinking about all 160 00:10:02,000 --> 00:10:04,520 the bad stuff. That is not how you're going to 161 00:10:04,520 --> 00:10:08,080 receive hope. It's a daily choice to put our 162 00:10:08,080 --> 00:10:12,600 trust in him and to ask the Holy Spirit to pour out his hope in 163 00:10:12,600 --> 00:10:16,640 our lives. We have to make a decision to 164 00:10:16,640 --> 00:10:18,800 walk in hope. And you might say, Mark, I've 165 00:10:18,800 --> 00:10:22,280 got no strength for it. I tried that. 166 00:10:22,880 --> 00:10:24,400 It's been months. I've given up. 167 00:10:24,760 --> 00:10:28,400 And I hear you and I shared last week some of our own challenges 168 00:10:28,400 --> 00:10:30,840 as a family. I'm not speaking as one that 169 00:10:30,840 --> 00:10:36,040 doesn't live this with us all. But you see, the Christian walk 170 00:10:36,040 --> 00:10:41,440 is a walk. You see the Christian walk is a 171 00:10:41,440 --> 00:10:45,920 hold on. It requires movement in the 172 00:10:45,920 --> 00:10:52,160 direction of Christ. And so it's not about ignoring 173 00:10:52,160 --> 00:10:55,440 our circumstances and saying like, everything's OK. 174 00:10:55,440 --> 00:10:57,480 I am. I am an optimist, really by 175 00:10:57,480 --> 00:10:59,720 nature. But in order for me to be an 176 00:10:59,720 --> 00:11:05,080 optimist, I have to sometimes ignore the reality of life, much 177 00:11:05,080 --> 00:11:08,320 to the frustration of my wife. It's fine. 178 00:11:08,320 --> 00:11:09,800 That's not that bad. No, it really is. 179 00:11:09,800 --> 00:11:15,200 Nah, that's good. Now hope is not, you know, 180 00:11:15,200 --> 00:11:21,200 optimism based on unrealism. Hope is actually looking at the 181 00:11:21,200 --> 00:11:24,240 circumstance head on and then doing this. 182 00:11:29,600 --> 00:11:32,680 That's what we're talking about. But you've got to make a choice. 183 00:11:32,720 --> 00:11:37,840 I've got to make a choice to fix my eyes on Jesus, who is our 184 00:11:38,080 --> 00:11:40,200 living home, right? Let's do this bit of an 185 00:11:40,200 --> 00:11:42,840 exercise. I feel like exercises today, not 186 00:11:42,840 --> 00:11:46,160 the type of the gym or anything like that, right? 187 00:11:47,280 --> 00:11:50,480 I want you to look at something that is very difficult in your 188 00:11:50,480 --> 00:11:54,400 life right now, something that you feel hopeless about, 189 00:11:54,400 --> 00:11:58,080 hopeless about. I think it might be a family 190 00:11:58,080 --> 00:11:59,480 member. It might be a financial 191 00:11:59,480 --> 00:12:01,720 situation. It might be a job. 192 00:12:02,080 --> 00:12:04,160 It might be some decisions you've got. 193 00:12:04,360 --> 00:12:07,240 It might be a challenging meeting that you have tomorrow. 194 00:12:07,680 --> 00:12:09,560 It might be a difficult conversation you have. 195 00:12:09,560 --> 00:12:11,360 What is that thing? Look at it at the moment. 196 00:12:13,320 --> 00:12:17,280 Don't ignore it. Now I want you to do this. 197 00:12:17,280 --> 00:12:21,280 I want you to look at Jesus. Jesus is coming in the room with 198 00:12:21,280 --> 00:12:28,040 you and I want you to hand over that thing to Jesus. 199 00:12:28,040 --> 00:12:36,880 I'm going to pray, Lord, I just pray now that you would bring 200 00:12:36,920 --> 00:12:39,600 hope where there is hopelessness in this situation. 201 00:12:40,480 --> 00:12:42,280 I pray for all those that responded, whether in the room 202 00:12:42,280 --> 00:12:45,400 or online, Lord, that as they have handed over those 203 00:12:45,400 --> 00:12:48,960 circumstances to you, as they've made a decision to fix their 204 00:12:48,960 --> 00:12:53,880 eyes on you, Lord, hope would well up by the power of your 205 00:12:53,880 --> 00:12:58,000 Holy Spirit, would you pour out your hope into that situation. 206 00:12:58,720 --> 00:13:03,280 And I pray boldly, because it's in your word, Lord God, that 207 00:13:03,280 --> 00:13:06,280 they would rejoice in that there. 208 00:13:06,280 --> 00:13:10,160 Where once they cried through it, they would now sing for it. 209 00:13:10,880 --> 00:13:14,280 Where once there was trepidation, would there be a 210 00:13:14,280 --> 00:13:18,920 spring in their step? Lord God, I pray in your name, 211 00:13:19,640 --> 00:13:23,480 Amen. So with that rather lengthy 212 00:13:23,480 --> 00:13:28,080 introduction, how does hope change everything? 213 00:13:28,640 --> 00:13:33,760 I'd like to give you 4 things. The first one is this, and you 214 00:13:33,760 --> 00:13:35,680 won't be surprised by this because I just prayed it. 215 00:13:35,960 --> 00:13:38,840 Hope can bring us joy even in the tough times. 216 00:13:39,560 --> 00:13:45,240 Hope can bring us joy even in the tough times. 217 00:13:45,920 --> 00:13:54,120 You know, we've been singing this morning about how big and 218 00:13:54,120 --> 00:13:59,600 great God is. And I read to you earlier from 219 00:13:59,600 --> 00:14:07,040 Isaiah 12, and we looked at the truth of the salvation that we 220 00:14:07,040 --> 00:14:14,240 have in Him will bring us joy. For me personally, when I get to 221 00:14:14,240 --> 00:14:19,400 a place of hopelessness, I find comfort and joy in the truth 222 00:14:19,400 --> 00:14:23,120 that I am his and nothing can separate me from his love. 223 00:14:24,360 --> 00:14:28,200 Like, seriously, it's it's like a moment where I just say, you 224 00:14:28,200 --> 00:14:30,960 know what? This doesn't matter, really. 225 00:14:31,360 --> 00:14:35,680 In the grand scheme of eternity, which, FYI, is a very long time. 226 00:14:37,240 --> 00:14:41,480 In the grand scheme of life, it's OK. 227 00:14:42,240 --> 00:14:45,040 Sometimes we just need to say to ourselves, or someone needs to 228 00:14:45,040 --> 00:14:47,720 say to us, it's OK. But his. 229 00:14:47,720 --> 00:14:50,920 He loves you. I know it's difficult. 230 00:14:51,280 --> 00:14:54,200 I know it's tough. Hey, you're his. 231 00:14:55,360 --> 00:14:56,840 You mean I'm his? I'm his. 232 00:14:57,840 --> 00:14:59,440 Hold on a minute. Let's just get this right. 233 00:14:59,600 --> 00:15:02,800 You mean the God that created the universe and flung the stars 234 00:15:02,800 --> 00:15:05,040 into space? He said that nothing will 235 00:15:05,040 --> 00:15:06,640 separate us. Yes. 236 00:15:07,080 --> 00:15:08,520 Oh, my word. That's amazing. 237 00:15:09,760 --> 00:15:13,560 Like we need to make the decision sometimes to focus on 238 00:15:13,560 --> 00:15:18,000 the truth that we are His. I'm going to say it again. 239 00:15:18,000 --> 00:15:21,240 You are his. Right? 240 00:15:21,240 --> 00:15:24,480 All of you. Say now to yourself, I am his. 241 00:15:24,480 --> 00:15:26,240 Let's do this. I am his. 242 00:15:29,400 --> 00:15:31,280 Nothing's going to separate you from him. 243 00:15:31,840 --> 00:15:34,560 No height, no depth. No, nothing. 244 00:15:35,760 --> 00:15:38,720 Wow. You know, as I start thinking 245 00:15:38,720 --> 00:15:40,240 about it, I'm like, I want to get there quick. 246 00:15:42,120 --> 00:15:45,160 I mean, I've loved life, Lord, but I can't wait to be with you 247 00:15:45,160 --> 00:15:47,760 for eternity in heaven. I mean, that is going to be a 248 00:15:47,760 --> 00:15:51,760 joyous experience. But you see, you can real. 249 00:15:51,760 --> 00:15:56,920 You can walk through that joy right now, but it takes us a 250 00:15:56,920 --> 00:16:02,720 moment to remember the truth that we are his. 251 00:16:03,880 --> 00:16:07,080 And I don't want to minimize what you're going through, and 252 00:16:07,080 --> 00:16:09,520 for some of you that feel of hopelessness, but I want to say 253 00:16:09,520 --> 00:16:14,040 this, just put your eyes on him and say out loud I am his. 254 00:16:14,040 --> 00:16:22,360 Feel better. I mean, you're his. 255 00:16:22,960 --> 00:16:25,600 I could just do a whole sermon with that phrase. 256 00:16:25,640 --> 00:16:29,320 You are his. But there is joy. 257 00:16:30,320 --> 00:16:32,000 We know Habakkuk. We haven't got time to read it. 258 00:16:32,000 --> 00:16:33,440 Now it's going to come up on the screen. 259 00:16:33,440 --> 00:16:35,520 Actually, I think maybe we've got a slide for it. 260 00:16:35,800 --> 00:16:38,120 We got Habakkuk up there. There we go. 261 00:16:38,880 --> 00:16:42,600 Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit beyond the 262 00:16:42,600 --> 00:16:45,200 vines. The produce of the olive failed 263 00:16:45,200 --> 00:16:47,800 and the fields yield no food. Anyone feel like that? 264 00:16:48,600 --> 00:16:51,360 I mean, you might not have olive trees and all that jazz, but and 265 00:16:51,360 --> 00:16:54,480 you may not have a fig tree, but that might represent your life 266 00:16:55,040 --> 00:16:56,560 though. Carry on. 267 00:16:56,560 --> 00:17:03,440 Let's next slide yet. Oh, that's like another 268 00:17:03,440 --> 00:17:08,880 nevertheless word nevertheless. Yet I will rejoice in the Lord. 269 00:17:08,880 --> 00:17:12,119 And that Lord in capitals means Jehovah or Yahweh. 270 00:17:13,480 --> 00:17:14,480 What that? What does that mean? 271 00:17:14,480 --> 00:17:17,200 We have a personal relationship with a personal God that's 272 00:17:17,200 --> 00:17:24,359 revealed His name to us. I will take joy in the God of my 273 00:17:31,760 --> 00:17:32,720 We've got to. You know what? 274 00:17:32,720 --> 00:17:34,840 I'm going to say this right now. Us Christians, we've got to be 275 00:17:34,840 --> 00:17:38,720 more joyful. I mean, people must look at us 276 00:17:38,720 --> 00:17:40,520 and go, wow, man, they're miserable. 277 00:17:42,120 --> 00:17:42,720 I mean that. I know. 278 00:17:42,720 --> 00:17:44,000 Not you but me. Like, well, I don't want to be 279 00:17:44,000 --> 00:17:45,320 like him. He's always miserable. 280 00:17:46,040 --> 00:17:47,280 Like I thought it was supposed to. 281 00:17:47,800 --> 00:17:54,640 Like, seriously, imagine I gave you a billion pounds. 282 00:17:56,240 --> 00:17:58,360 I clearly don't have that money, so don't ask me for it. 283 00:17:58,360 --> 00:18:02,240 But imagine it, boy, you would have a smile on your face and 284 00:18:02,240 --> 00:18:04,920 someone said, Why are you so excited, Claire? 285 00:18:06,360 --> 00:18:11,760 Why are you always so happy, Edward? 286 00:18:11,760 --> 00:18:14,360 Why you've got this smile on your face and you've got a 287 00:18:14,360 --> 00:18:17,680 spring in your step. You've got a billion pounds. 288 00:18:19,160 --> 00:18:23,560 You're going to be happy, but you've got something way better 289 00:18:23,560 --> 00:18:29,600 than a billion pounds. You've been saved from hell and 290 00:18:29,600 --> 00:18:31,840 saved to eternity with God in heaven. 291 00:18:35,520 --> 00:18:36,720 And yet we'll walk around like this. 292 00:18:39,120 --> 00:18:40,840 Got to go to church on Sunday morning? 293 00:18:46,040 --> 00:18:47,280 Come on, put on your church face. 294 00:18:47,280 --> 00:18:54,720 Come on, you can do this clearly using humour to make a point. 295 00:18:54,720 --> 00:18:57,720 But you get it right. There is joy. 296 00:18:59,320 --> 00:19:01,960 Jesus, Where's Eduardo? Can we record that, please? 297 00:19:01,960 --> 00:19:03,680 It's a new song. It's very good song. 298 00:19:03,680 --> 00:19:07,680 I like the song. Right. 299 00:19:08,160 --> 00:19:11,080 Hey, let's ya. Go over there. 300 00:19:11,080 --> 00:19:12,400 Bless you, brother. Get up here. 301 00:19:12,400 --> 00:19:14,840 Get your guitar. OK, We better move on because we 302 00:19:14,840 --> 00:19:17,840 are running out of time. Who was #2? 303 00:19:18,560 --> 00:19:21,720 Good Hope can bring us peace in the midst of turmoil. 304 00:19:22,920 --> 00:19:26,200 Oh boy. John 1427. 305 00:19:27,040 --> 00:19:29,040 Jesus said there's peace. I leave with you. 306 00:19:29,520 --> 00:19:34,920 My peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give 307 00:19:34,920 --> 00:19:36,960 to you. Let not your hearts be troubled 308 00:19:36,960 --> 00:19:39,560 neither let them be afraid. Now what Jesus is saying is 309 00:19:39,560 --> 00:19:42,920 there's two kinds of peace. There's a peace that comes, a 310 00:19:42,920 --> 00:19:47,880 worldly peace, which is based on eradicating all of life's 311 00:19:47,880 --> 00:19:49,960 troubles and difficult circumstances. 312 00:19:50,320 --> 00:19:51,600 Well, sometimes we experience that. 313 00:19:51,600 --> 00:19:53,720 Isn't that lovely? You see, everything's all right 314 00:19:53,720 --> 00:19:55,320 at the moment. Actually, the kids aren't 315 00:19:55,320 --> 00:19:57,880 shouting. I paid the bills this month. 316 00:19:58,680 --> 00:20:02,520 I've got food in my it's all OK. And then all of a sudden, you 317 00:20:02,520 --> 00:20:03,960 hear the kids fighting. Oh, it's gone. 318 00:20:08,480 --> 00:20:13,600 Clearly not your house, of course, but Jesus says that kind 319 00:20:13,600 --> 00:20:14,680 of piece. I don't leave with you. 320 00:20:15,360 --> 00:20:17,360 I leave with you. A very different kind of piece. 321 00:20:17,360 --> 00:20:19,200 You see, it's a piece that comes. 322 00:20:20,240 --> 00:20:22,880 From knowing that you are his. So I told you I'd use that 323 00:20:22,880 --> 00:20:25,680 phrase again. It's the kind of peace that 324 00:20:25,760 --> 00:20:27,800 Jesus showed us. He was in the boat in a storm. 325 00:20:27,800 --> 00:20:30,800 You remember this story, and a storm is rising. 326 00:20:30,800 --> 00:20:34,040 Whoa, it's terrible. And the disciples are not going 327 00:20:34,120 --> 00:20:36,800 to die. And they turn around and there's 328 00:20:36,800 --> 00:20:41,760 Jesus. Can you sleep in this boat? 329 00:20:51,280 --> 00:20:54,680 You might be going through the most terrible storm. 330 00:20:55,560 --> 00:20:57,840 My prayer for you is that you will sleep peacefully. 331 00:21:00,040 --> 00:21:01,480 That comes from hope in him. Why? 332 00:21:01,480 --> 00:21:05,440 Because if you make a decision, the trust in him, hope will come 333 00:21:06,040 --> 00:21:08,400 and peace will follow. I'm up for that. 334 00:21:09,280 --> 00:21:15,400 Number three, OK? Hope can give us courage in 335 00:21:15,400 --> 00:21:17,960 spite of our weaknesses. Hope can give us courage and 336 00:21:17,960 --> 00:21:19,400 strength in spite of our weaknesses. 337 00:21:23,720 --> 00:21:28,240 CT Stud was a missionary, I believe in the 19th century. 338 00:21:30,080 --> 00:21:33,880 No, it could have been 20. Someone can Google it and let me 339 00:21:33,880 --> 00:21:35,840 know later. And he said this. 340 00:21:36,040 --> 00:21:40,200 His authority on earth allows us to dare to go to all the 341 00:21:40,200 --> 00:21:44,480 nations. His authority in heaven gives us 342 00:21:44,480 --> 00:21:49,920 our only hope of success, and his presence with us leaves us 343 00:21:49,920 --> 00:21:52,400 no other choice. Oh, isn't that good? 344 00:21:54,720 --> 00:21:58,400 You see, his authority in heaven gives us our only hope of 345 00:21:58,400 --> 00:22:02,760 success here, because every spiritual blessing has been 346 00:22:02,760 --> 00:22:04,720 given to us. We are seated with Christ in 347 00:22:04,720 --> 00:22:08,160 heaven, heavenly places. Are you understanding this? 348 00:22:08,720 --> 00:22:12,240 Like that which God called you to do will be successful because 349 00:22:12,440 --> 00:22:14,160 he has says he will equip you for that. 350 00:22:15,680 --> 00:22:19,640 And you see, what hope gives us is that when God says, I want 351 00:22:19,640 --> 00:22:23,160 you to go to that meeting tomorrow and I want you to not 352 00:22:23,160 --> 00:22:25,840 capitulate, but share how you feel. 353 00:22:26,040 --> 00:22:28,960 You can do so with hope, knowing that he is going to give you 354 00:22:28,960 --> 00:22:31,120 strength in that moment. You hearing me? 355 00:22:32,480 --> 00:22:35,040 That's the kind of strength that we're talking about. 356 00:22:35,160 --> 00:22:37,240 What about Queen Esther? I love Queen Esther. 357 00:22:37,240 --> 00:22:38,720 Anyone here? Reed Esther. 358 00:22:38,720 --> 00:22:40,840 What a great story of this woman. 359 00:22:42,560 --> 00:22:46,240 She wants to save the Jews. If you've got time, go and read 360 00:22:46,240 --> 00:22:47,240 it. It's not a long book. 361 00:22:48,440 --> 00:22:51,600 And she, in the face of adversity, demonstrates amazing 362 00:22:51,600 --> 00:22:52,040 courage. Why? 363 00:22:52,040 --> 00:22:56,240 Because she goes to King Xerxes and asks him to spare the life 364 00:22:56,480 --> 00:22:58,800 of the Jews. Now you can't just go up to a 365 00:22:58,800 --> 00:23:02,040 king and say, can I have a chat? You're going to die. 366 00:23:04,040 --> 00:23:06,040 And she was under. She understood what was at 367 00:23:06,040 --> 00:23:09,480 stake. Here she see she had trust in 368 00:23:09,480 --> 00:23:12,520 God, and so she put a hope in him. 369 00:23:13,360 --> 00:23:14,960 And from that came a holy boldness. 370 00:23:15,320 --> 00:23:19,120 Anyone here won a holy boldness. But your trust in God and your 371 00:23:19,120 --> 00:23:24,320 hope will be in him. #4 As we bring this plane to a land, hope 372 00:23:24,320 --> 00:23:29,640 can keep us focused on God, not the temptations of the world. 373 00:23:30,040 --> 00:23:31,720 Now this is a very interesting one. 374 00:23:33,840 --> 00:23:35,920 We are in a spiritual battle. You know this? 375 00:23:37,040 --> 00:23:41,520 And when we looked at the Call series last year, we looked at 376 00:23:41,520 --> 00:23:46,000 the story of when of of holiness that be called set, set apart 377 00:23:46,000 --> 00:23:47,840 from the world. Yeah, holiness has been set 378 00:23:47,840 --> 00:23:49,480 apart from the world and set apart for him. 379 00:23:49,840 --> 00:23:52,720 And we looked at the story of when the Israelites came out of 380 00:23:52,720 --> 00:23:55,040 Egypt. And I said that Egypt is a type 381 00:23:55,280 --> 00:23:59,000 of world of coming out of the world and being consecrated to 382 00:23:59,000 --> 00:24:01,640 him. And who knows the battle of the 383 00:24:01,640 --> 00:24:05,280 flesh that we have. It's the enemy, the flesh and 384 00:24:05,280 --> 00:24:09,440 the world that was to pull us away from walking with Jesus. 385 00:24:10,320 --> 00:24:15,560 And I have found that hope can keep me focused on God and his 386 00:24:15,560 --> 00:24:18,000 Kingdom and not on the Kingdom of this world. 387 00:24:18,480 --> 00:24:20,600 How does that play out? I was thinking about this this 388 00:24:20,600 --> 00:24:23,920 morning. See, Jesus said in Matthew 619, 389 00:24:24,040 --> 00:24:27,600 where our treasure is, is there. Our heart is also. 390 00:24:28,800 --> 00:24:32,640 And the thing about all these truths, like truth, these truths 391 00:24:32,640 --> 00:24:36,280 like trust and hope and truth, they're they're not isolated 392 00:24:36,280 --> 00:24:37,920 things. They're all interlinked. 393 00:24:38,480 --> 00:24:42,840 And I was thinking about this. It's like if my treasure is in 394 00:24:42,840 --> 00:24:50,360 my money, right, then my trust is in it because my heart's 395 00:24:50,360 --> 00:24:52,840 there and therefore I hope in it right? 396 00:24:52,840 --> 00:24:55,960 Do you see this linkage? Like your heart is involved with 397 00:24:55,960 --> 00:24:57,960 this? But here's the thing. 398 00:24:58,080 --> 00:25:03,880 Conversely, if my treasure is Jesus and Him alone, right, my 399 00:25:03,880 --> 00:25:08,960 heart is going to be there and I'm going to therefore trust in 400 00:25:08,960 --> 00:25:10,280 Him. Are you seeing the connection? 401 00:25:11,200 --> 00:25:14,960 And I find the more that I put my trust in Him, the more that I 402 00:25:14,960 --> 00:25:17,440 recognize that He is my treasurer, not the billion 403 00:25:17,440 --> 00:25:22,040 pounds per the example earlier. But all of a sudden the things 404 00:25:22,040 --> 00:25:26,440 of this world just don't seem as attractive as they once did. 405 00:25:27,440 --> 00:25:32,720 And I know you know this. You see, our daily walk is 406 00:25:32,720 --> 00:25:35,480 saying that he is more precious than this world. 407 00:25:38,480 --> 00:25:41,280 Because where your treasure is there your heart is also. 408 00:25:41,960 --> 00:25:46,000 And you see, you can't talk about trust and you can't talk 409 00:25:46,000 --> 00:25:49,320 about hope without talking about where your treasure is. 410 00:25:50,400 --> 00:25:52,440 And I'd like to ask you a question this morning. 411 00:25:53,400 --> 00:25:56,480 Where's your treasure? Do you? 412 00:25:56,560 --> 00:25:59,880 I'll be the more specific, lest I make you uncomfortable. 413 00:25:59,880 --> 00:26:06,000 Apologies. Is Jesus more of a treasure to 414 00:26:06,000 --> 00:26:14,920 you than this world? You see, hope changes everything 415 00:26:15,040 --> 00:26:17,760 because Jesus has changed it all for us. 416 00:26:18,720 --> 00:26:21,960 The question that is before us is are we going to make a choice 417 00:26:22,360 --> 00:26:25,440 to walk in hope? Are we going to make a choice to 418 00:26:25,440 --> 00:26:29,840 put our trust in Him? Are we going to make a choice to 419 00:26:30,440 --> 00:26:33,120 fix our eyes on him over the circumstances? 420 00:26:33,120 --> 00:26:36,360 That is what is before us this morning and I want to be able to 421 00:26:36,360 --> 00:26:38,160 pray with you all as we stand together.