We Hope

Last Sunday Andrew commenced our series on our newly adopted values. RCBC Values are deeply held principles that guide who we are, our vision and decisions. These biblical values define who we are at Reedy.

Last Sunday we looked at our value “We Seek”. Jesus plainly taught us to “seek first his kingdom and his righteousness” (Matthew 6:33 NIV). We are to seek His kingdom through prayer. Jesus said in Matthew 7:7 NIV “…seek and you will find…” (Matthew 7:7 NIV). We are to seek God’s presence as King David says in Psalm 27:8 NIV “My heart says of you, "Seek his face!" Your face, LORD, I will seek” (Psalm 27:8 NIV). We are to seek Christ in repentance and for forgiveness. Peter says in Act 2:38, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit”. We are to seek dependence on God. 2 Chronicles 7:14 NIV “if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14 NIV). And we are to seek to make God known as Jesus commanded in Acts 1:8 “…you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8 NIV).

And so, our first value as a community of believers is We Seek. We are people who seek God for meaning, purpose, direction, help, guidance. By seeking God and His kingdom, we are humbling saying that He is the Mighty One!

Today, we are looking at our second value – We Hope. The Bible is full of hope. From creation, there was hope. In the midst of slavery in Egypt, to the prosperity of the United Kingdoms, through the suffering of being in exile, to the birth of the Messiah and His resurrection, and the promise of His return, the people of God had hope.

As Christians, we are people of hope – full stop. In the midst of good and hard times we are people of hope.

Perhaps the greatest work on the theology of hope outside of the bible was from Jurgen Moltmann of Germany. Moltmann's experiences in a prisoner-of-war camp at the end of World War II led him to a personal relationship with Jesus Christ in which hope played a great part. This subsequently influenced his theological studies. Just a couple of years ago, at age 90, his theology of hope has changed at all over the years. In fact, he recalls, “I asked myself: Why has Christian theology allowed this theme of hope to escape it? Are not God's promises and human hopes the scarlet thread running right through the prophets of the Old Testament and the apostles of the New?"

As a church that acknowledges the Lordship of Jesus Christ, we hope.

I define hope as a well sourced, well-grounded, confident assurance that comes through accepting Jesus’ death, resurrection and return.

It is not wishful thinking. It is well sourced, well-grounded, confident assurance that comes through accepting Jesus’ death, resurrection and return.

Our hope is well-sourced. In his concluding remarks to the church at Rome, Paul wrote: “I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in Him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit” (Romans 15:13 NLT). Do you see how Paul acknowledges that God is the source of hope? When we put our trust in God the source of hope, we will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit. Our hope is well sourced.

Our hope is well-grounded. It is well-grounded because of its foundation. Hope’s foundation is God. Paul tells this in 1 Timothy 6:17, “Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God…” (1 Timothy 6:17 NIV). It’s so true, that intentionally and unintentionally we put our hopes in material possessions, education, sporting abilities, hoping that our new car will solve our problems, or hoping that better education will lead us to better job satisfaction, or hoping that ours or our child’s sporting ability will lead them to fame. Paul says don’t put your hope in things that are uncertain but put your hope in God who is well-grounded. God the all-powerful, all knowing, ever present God is who we are to put our hope in. That is why Paul says in Romans 5:2, “we rejoice in hope of the glory of God” (Romans 5:2 ESV). Our hope is well-grounded.

A little over a month before he died, the famous atheist Jean-Paul Sartre declared that he so strongly resisted feelings of despair that he would say to himself, “I know I shall die in hope”. Then in profound sadness, he would add, “But hope needs a foundation”. The Christian hope is well-grounded in the Mighty God.

Our hope is a confident assurance. Paul says in Romans 15:4 that “the Scriptures give us hope and encouragement” (Romans 15:4 NLT). And it does. Over and over again we read of the people of God’s confident expectation that God would come through. We’ve just done three months of the Book of Psalms. How many times in these psalms did we read how the writer was in trouble or was going through a hard time and then they would say, “but my hope is in you all day long” (Psalms 25:5 NIV). The psalmist had a confident assurance that God will come through.

And the Scriptures do give us hope and assurance. The promises of God are filled with hope and expectation.

• To those needing comfort, there are promises for you.

• To those seeking guidance, there are promises for you.

• To those needing affirmation, there are promises for you.

• To those facing an uncertain future, there are promises for you.

• To those struggling with self-forgiveness, there are promises for you.

God has a promise for you and His promises give hope.

We know from the Bible that God promised Abraham that God will give him a son. Years went pass and yet Abraham still believed in hope that God would come through on His Word. And Romans 4 talks about this hope that Abraham had in God’s promise. I like Eugene Peterson's translation of Romans 4: “He didn't tiptoe around God's promise asking cautiously sceptical questions. He plunged into the promise and came up strong, ready for God, sure that God would make good on what he had said” (Romans 4:20-21 MSG).

I like that phrase “he plunged into the promise and came up strong”. And it is the same with us that when we plunge into the Promises of God, we will come up stronger with a confident assurance hope.

Before I move on, there are other reasons why our hope is confident assurance.

One is of the second coming of Jesus Christ. Paul’s letter to one of his converts Titus speaks about this hope: “For the grace of God has been revealed, bringing salvation to all people. And we are instructed to turn from godless living and sinful pleasures. We should live in this evil world with wisdom, righteousness, and devotion to God, while we look forward with hope to that wonderful day when the glory of our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ, will be revealed” (Titus 2:11-13 NLT).

The Early Christians experienced hardship and persecution. Leaders like Paul told them to hang in there because one day Jesus will return and with His return the church will be raptured and taken away from the miseries of the world.

For two thousand years Jesus has not returned. But He may today or tomorrow or the next day. Jesus said that He will return. And on that glorious day amazing things will happen that affirm the might and power of Jesus Christ. And so we are to look forward with a confident assurance hope to that wonderful day when the glory of our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ, will be revealed.

The Bible also speaks about the hope we have because of eternity. John 3:16 says, “For God loved the world so much that He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16 NLT). Eternal life is eternity with God. It starts as soon as you Admit that you are a Sinner; Believe that Jesus saved you through His death on the cross; and Confess that you need Jesus as your Lord.

With eternity the best is yet to come. Ephesians 1:18 says, “I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope He has given to those He called—His holy people who are His rich and glorious inheritance” (Ephesians 1:18 NLT). As children of God we are blessed to receive an inheritance. God will give us one of His rooms in His mansion in heaven – a place where “there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain” (Revelation 21:4 NLT).

To those who suffer through sorrow and pain, such a reality can give immense hope! You always have hope!

Paul has built upon this and says, “For we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and your love for all of God's people, which come from your confident hope of what God has reserved for you in heaven. You have had this expectation ever since you first heard the truth of the Good News” (Colossians 1:4-5 NLT). When we get to heaven God has reserved for us some amazing things. A new body fit for heaven, reunion with love ones who have died in the Lord, and a life of utter peace. I know that this truth gives hope to so many people.

With eternity the best is yet to come. You always have hope.

This hope is not found in New Age thinking and practices; it is not found by simply wishing; it isn’t found in possessions. It is found in the good news of Jesus Christ. This is why as a community of believers, We Hope. We hope because it is well sourced, well-grounded, confident assurance that comes through accepting Jesus’ death, resurrection and return.

As a Leadership Team, we felt that there are two areas that we need to grow in hope for.

The first is for transformation. We hope for transformation. Paul spells out what this transformation is in Romans 12, “Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect” (Romans 12:2 NLT). In hope, we pray that God will transform many lives, changing from the world values to God’s values. My hope is that God will continue to transform me and the way I think and behave. The bible calls this sanctification – a process in which the Holy Spirit in His time transforms us to be more like Jesus. I hope that when I’m confronted with whoever become an enemy then I learn to love them. I hope when I’m challenged by a very sad and lonely person that I would stop and make time for them. I hope that when I see an injustice happening to stranger that I would speak up. I hope the person I know who is heading to hell will hear the gospel from me. WE hope for transformation in not only other people’s lives, but our lives as well.

The second is to be a positive influence in our church and community. We hope to be a positive influence in our church and community. This is the heart of Jesus for His church. In His Sermon of the Mount, Jesus taught: “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again?... You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:13-16 NIV).

We know that salt adds flavour and so we are called to share the gospel with others, so their lives can be flavoured with Godly love. And salt was used before refrigeration to preserve meats from decaying. Speaking up for God’s ways stops further decaying of our society. And we know that light illuminates and so we hope that our light illuminates God’s kingdom. As a church, we hope to be a positive influence in our church and community.

As followers of Jesus, we are to be the most hopeful people on the planet. Our hope is well sourced, well-grounded, confident assurance that comes through accepting Jesus’ death, resurrection and return.

We hope. We hope in God, for transformation, and to be a positive influence in our church and community.

We hope in God for our children to walk the ways of God.

We hope in God for healing.

We hope in God for a spiritual awakening.

We hope in God for a fresh new start.

We hope in God to help us overcome our financial burdens.

We hope in God for a home for the refugee and the vulnerable.

We hope in God that our world leaders will just calm down.

We hope in God for our farmers to receive favouarable weather conditions.

We hope in God that He will build His church.

We hope in God for Christ’s return.

So, what are values? Values are deeply held principles that guide who we are. Together as a group of believers - We Hope.

We Seek

My Help Comes From The Lord | Psalm 121

For the past seven weeks we have been looking at the Psalms we have grown to love. Google lists the Psalms that we are looking at as the most popular psalms that people look for.

We’ve looked at what the Book of Psalms are about, and we also looked at perhaps the most popular Psalm – Psalm 23 – The Lord Is My Shepherd. We looked at Psalm 34 and verse 8 “Taste and see that the LORD is good” (Psalms 34:8 NIV). Five weeks ago, we studied Psalm 42, “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God”. We’ve looked at Psalms 46:10 “Be still, and know that I am God” and Psalm 51, “Create in me a pure heart, O God”. Two weeks ago Robbie preached from Psalm 118, “his love endures forever”. Last week we looked at the longest chapter in the entire Bible, Psalm 119 in which 170 out of 176 verses speak about the Word of God.

Today we are looking at Psalm 121. Notice that the Psalm commences with the title, “A song of ascents”. Actually, this title applies to 15 psalms, starting with Psalm 120 through to Psalm 134..

The word “ascents” means “steps” or “going up.” One of the reasons they are called Psalms of Ascent is because they were sung by Jews traveling to Jerusalem for the three annual feasts. There were three main feasts in Jerusalem each year: The Feast of Passover, the Feast of Pentecost, and the Feast of Tabernacles

The big one of all these feasts was the Passover. The whole family would come for Passover while only the men were required to go up for the other two feasts. Jesus would have sung these songs with his family as they made their way up to Jerusalem each year for the Passover. We read in Luke 2:41-42: “Every year his parents went to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover. When he was twelve years old, they went up to the Feast, according to the custom” (Luke 2:41-42 NIV). Notice that they went up to Jerusalem? Jerusalem is located at about 2800 feet above sea level, and so no matter what direction you approach the city from, you are always going “up” to Jerusalem. For example, walking the 27-kilometres from Jericho to Jerusalem the road rises by about 1,000 feet.

So, they are called Psalms of Ascent first of all because they were sung by pilgrims literally going “up” to Jerusalem.

But they are also called Psalms of Ascent because the psalms themselves have an upward motion. They begin with the believer crying out to God in trouble far away from Jerusalem, and they end with believers offering up praise to God in his temple courts. And so, these are travel songs – full of beautiful imagery, meaningful expression and divine wisdom for the journey.

Have you ever gone on a road trip and put together a playlist for the journey? That’s what the Psalms of Ascent are. They are short, easy to memorize, and meant to be sung in praise and worship to God. God’s people have always been a singing people and a worshiping people, and God gave us these psalms to help us give expression to the feelings in our heart as we worship him in prayer and song.

In the Bible, Jerusalem represents the city of God, the place of the temple, the place where God chose to dwell and to meet with his people. That’s why many would make the annual pilgrimage to Jerusalem. And so, as we read the Psalms of Ascent today, they hold great meaning for us as well. Because as Christians we also are on a journey – we are on a spiritual journey. We are all at different stages of our journeys. Some of you may not realise it, but even though you have not made that decision to follow Christ as your Lord and Saviour, God is working in your life. You are right at the very beginning of the journey, maybe at a crossroads. Some of you are here, some of you are over there, and, well some, may be well over there!!

It doesn’t matter what stage on the faith journey you are on, life will throw those curves balls. The road becomes rockier, narrower, and therefore hardier. For several of the Jews making that journey up to Jerusalem, it wasn’t always safe and so they would sing this psalm of ascent. Look at verse one, “I lift up my eyes to the mountains - where does my help come from?” (Psalms 121:1 NIV). Remember, they were traveling and looking at the mountain where Jerusalem was up the top. It was from the foot of the mountain that they looked up and ask where their help come from.

A few times in the Bible, we are encouraged to look up – to look up and see the majestic God. God says in Isaiah 40:26 says, “Look up into the heavens. Who created all the stars? He brings them out like an army, one after another, calling each by its name. Because of His great power and incomparable strength, not a single one is missing” (Isaiah 40:26 NLT).

It may have been that when the Jewish pilgrims were at the foot of the mountains, they looked up and asked where will their help come from? Climbing any mountain over 1000 metres high would be difficult. Anyone who has climbed the majestic Mount Warning know that it’s tough work rising over 1,156 metres. For the pilgrims, they knew that wild animals lived on that mountain, they knew that they could be robbed, and they knew that the track leading up the mountain wasn’t always smooth.

But as the pilgrims reached the foot of the mountain, they knew where their help to face the mountain would come from. Verse two declares, “My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth” (Psalms 121:2 NIV). They knew that their help would come from the Lord.

It is helpful to note of the name for God that is used not only in this psalm but in all fifteen of the Psalms of Ascent. He is “the LORD.” And when you see “LORD” spelled out in all capital letters like that, the Hebrew word is “Yahweh,” which is God’s covenant name. It is a name that speaks of God’s covenant relationship with his people and his faithfulness to them.

The name Yahweh in the Old Testament pointed to God’s covenant relationship with Israel. As followers of Jesus, you are also in relationship with the LORD. You are part of God’s covenant people, and you can trust God’s faithfulness to you in Christ. When you read the Old Testament and see how God helped Israel and took care of them, you can rest assured that He will do the same for you. Where does your help come from? It comes from the Lord God who is faithful to His promises.

After personally celebrating the Lord’s help in verses 1 and 2, the psalmist turns to give assurance to others in verses 3–8.

First, look at the first half of verse 3: “He will not let your foot slip…” (Psalms 121:3 NIV). I read an interesting take on this phrase and its meaning. Jason DeRouchie is the Associate Professor of Old Testament at Bethlehem College and Seminary. He points out that the word combination depicting the foot slip in verse 3 is never used in Scripture of physical falling. Rather, all four of its other occurrences uses it figuratively for someone who is overcome by divine judgment (Deuteronomy 32:35), personal sin or weakness (Psalm 38:16[17]), or enemy oppression (Psalm 66:9; 94:18). So, when the psalmist wrote, “He will not let your foot slip” he was most likely speaking of the perseverance of the saints.

The perseverance of the saints is the Christian teaching that says that once a person is truly "born of God" and "regenerated" by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, nothing in heaven or earth “shall be able to separate (them) from the love of God” (Romans 8:39). They are eternally secured or as it simply put “once saved, always saved”. This is a teaching that our church upholds as stated in our Statement of Beliefs.

The psalmist is not promising the absence of pain or even failure. But he is promising that, whatever that mountain may bring, the saved will not slip away from their salvation. No one can snatch God’s sheep out of his hand (John 10:27–30), and the one who has justified will never again condemn (Romans 8:33–34). What mercy! What promise! The sure confidence we have today that we will remain with God tomorrow is God himself. Thank Him. Remain dependent on Him.

The Psalmist says that the Lord our helper never sleeps on the job. Verses 3 to 4 says, “…he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep” (Psalms 121:3-4 NIV).

We can sleep peacefully because our Lord doesn’t sleep. Isaiah also said this about God, “The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary” (Isaiah 40:28 NIV). Yahweh is always awake, always aware, and always watching over his children.

And that is a key word in this psalm “watches”. It comes from the Hebrew word “shamar” which means “to watch over, to guard or to protect.” This word shows up six times in verses 3-8. In the NIV it is translated as “watches over” five times and then also translated as “keep” in verse 7. If you are in Christ, then He who watches over Israel watches over your life as well. The God of Israel is your protector. He is your guardian.

The Psalmist continued in poetic language about how God guards us: “The LORD watches over you - the LORD is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. The LORD will keep you from all harm-- he will watch over your life; the LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore” (Psalms 121:5-8 NIV).

Last Thursday, we were saddened to hear of the death of Soul and gospel singer Aretha Franklin, who died of pancreatic cancer at the age of 76.

I particularly remember Aretha singing in the Blue Brother’s movie. Aretha was a committed Christian. She was a lifelong Baptist with whom she gave God the credit for her unique voice. She started out in the 1950s as part of her pastor father’s gospel show. She made her first recording at the age of 14 at his New Bethel Baptist Church in Detroit.

She was known for secular hit songs, but Aretha recorded a best-selling gospel album, Amazing Grace, in 1972, which is among the five Aretha recordings featured in the Grammy Hall of Fame. The two-record set includes the classic John Newton hymn as well as What a Friend We Have in Jesus and God Will Take Care of You.

In 1987, the year she became the first woman to be inducted into the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame, she recorded One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism, an album of sacred songs that won a Grammy for best soul performance.

Aretha had battled cancer since 2010, but rarely talked about it. In 2013 after cancelling a series of concerts due to an undisclosed condition, she told The Associated Press that her healing was considered “absolutely miraculous”.

She said, “I was talking to Smokey Robinson, my oldest best friend Smokey, talking about the fact that some doctors are not very well acquainted with faith healing,” she said. “And Smokey said, ‘Well, they just don’t know who your healer is.’”

In 2017, she was asked by the Chicago Sun-Times about the importance of her faith and Aretha said: “It is very important. It certainly has sustained me to this day.”

Well, the Lord did watch over Aretha throughout her life and as the psalmist wrote: “the LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore” (Psalms 121:5-8 NIV).

And that is the hope we have. Our help comes from the Lord, who watches our coming and going both now and forevermore (Psalms 121:5-8).

Whatever part of the road you are on in your journey of faith, we are to look beyond the mountains to the God who created them. Mountains are symbols of strength and stability. They are great in size, long-lasting and unchanging. The creation reflects the Creator. And so, the God who made the mountains is even greater in power and strength.

The mountains are also upward in direction. We tend to look down when we’re facing challenges. Our faces are downcast. Our focus is on our troubles and all our problems down here, and they just tend to drag us down further. But we are not to look down. That’s the wrong direction! The mountains are a reminder that we are to look up. We are to lift our eyes to the mountains. But don’t stop there. Are you looking high enough? You must look beyond the mountains to the God who created them because God is higher than all.

Remember these psalms were sung by travelers on their way to Jerusalem, and it is possible they may have sung this Psalm as they were nearing the hills that surrounded Jerusalem. In that case they were not only looking up at the mountains, but they would also have been looking up towards Jerusalem and the temple, the dwelling place of God.

Psalm 46:1 tells us: “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble” (Psalm 46:1 NIV). We read in Psalm 90:2: “Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the whole world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God” (Psalm 90:2 NIV). God is bigger than the mountains and God is before the mountains. We don’t look to the mountains for our strength, but the mountains get our eyes off of our problems and lift our eyes up towards Jesus.

In the very early days of the church, there was a man named Stephen. Luke described him as “full of God's grace and power”. He performed miracles and spoke about Jesus and yet this infuriated very religious leaders. They stirred up trouble against Stephen, eventually seizing him before the Jewish court. Lies were told against Stephen and then he responded. He started with Abraham, then spoke about Joseph, and then the whole story about Moses. Stephen then shared about David and Solomon. Then Stephen came to the punch line and boldly told all those who were present: “Was there ever a prophet your ancestors did not persecute? They even killed those who predicted the coming of the Righteous One. And now you have betrayed and murdered him” (Acts 7:52 NIV). Then they became very angry at him and Luke simply but profoundly recorded what happened next: “But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God” (Acts 7:55 NIV).

Did you hear what Stephen did. Facing death, he looked up! Stephen looked up and he saw not only the glory of God but Jesus. What a sight that must had been.

And likewise, we to are to look up! Look up by praying, crying, singing, and reading His Word.

Don’t just look to the mountains but look to the one who made the mountains. Look past the creation to the Creator. Our help comes from Him. He is constantly watching over you.