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Holy Trinity Anglican Orthodox Church
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Hope |
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Romans
15:4, Luke 21:25 Second
Sunday of Advent December
6, 2009 Again
we see logic and connection between the Scripture Readings, the Collect,
and the service for the Second Sunday of Advent.
We read in the Epistle; "Whatsoever
things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we
through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope"
(Rom. 15:4). Next, we
read in the Gospel that the words of Christ will never pass away, meaning
they are sure and true forever, and will remain for eternity after this
universe has passed into non-existence (Lk. 21:33).
Then we prayed in the Collect that we may hear, read, mark, learn,
and inwardly digest those words, that by patience and comfort of them, we
may embrace, and ever hold fast, the blessed hope of everlasting life,
which is given in our Saviour Jesus Christ (BCP p. 92). Hope
is wonderful. Hope is
beautiful. People name their
daughters "Hope." Yet
hope is difficult to define. Dictionary
definitions sound too clinical, like physicians referring to you by your
illness. Here is the American Heritage Dictionary's definition of
Christian hope: "The theological virtue defined as the desire and
search for a future good, difficult, but not impossible to attain without
God's help." Let me see
if I can define it a little more simply.
Hope is just confidence that God will always take care of us.
There are many things for which we have hope.
We have hope that God will provide for our physical needs while we
dwell on this earth. We have
hope that He will protect us from enemies.
We have hope that He will lead us in the paths of righteousness,
and that He will comfort us in the day of trouble and in the hour of
death. And we have hope that, using the principles and guidance of
His Holy Scriptures, we may actually enjoy some semblance of peace and
justice in this world. We
have hope that one day the wars will cease, we will beat our swords into
plowshares, and all nations shall come together into the house of God as
Isaiah told us in the First Lesson for Evening Prayer for last Tuesday.
These are thing for which we may legitimately hope, for these are
things promised by God. This
does not mean God is going to give us luxury and ease in this life. The Apostle Paul lived a life of difficulty and service, yet
he wrote some of the most beloved words in Holy Writ when in Romans 8:28
he said, "all things work
together for good to those who love God." Paul had hope, but his
hope went far beyond the things of this world.
He, like Christ, knew this earth, this universe, which seems so
vast and permanent, will one day pass into nothingness.
It will cease to exist. And
Paul's hope was not that he would have riches and glory in this brief
life, but that he would enjoy God, the greatest Treasure of all, in the
next world forever. Thus he
also wrote "to live is Christ and to die is gain," and "the
sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared to the glory
which shall be revealed to us" (Rom. 8:18). So
the real hope that hides deep in the soul of every human being is the hope
that things will be O.K. for us in the world beyond the grave.
Our real hope is that we will not go to hell. We don't want to
spend eternity in anything like the biblical depiction of hell.
And we who are Christians have an even higher hope; we want to
dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
This is what we hope for; now, what do we hope in?
The answer is simple, the Word of God. When
I say the Word of God I am talking first about the Bible.
It is the Bible that God has given to us to teach us His will and
His ways, and to show us the way of forgiveness and salvation.
The Bible is the Word of God written.
It was given through prophets and sages of the Old Testament.
It was given more fully in Christ, who gave it to His Apostles.
They recorded it in the New Testament and passed it down to us.
In this Bible we find the promises of God to bless and save His
people. In the Bible we find
what God expects from us; what we are to believe and what we are to do. In the Bible we learn about the Saviour, about the promise
that all who believe in Him will live with Him in the Mansion of many
Mansions in joy and peace forever. In
the Bible we learn to "embrace and ever hold fast to the hope of
everlasting life." When
I talk about the Word of God, I am also talking about Jesus Christ
Himself. He is the One of
whom the Bible says, "In the
beginning was the word, and the word was with God and the word was God...
and the word was made flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His
glory." It is
He that the Old Testament tells about.
The Scriptures "testify
of Me" He said (Jn. 5:39). Moses
"wrote of Me" (Jn. 5:46). It is in Him that our hope ultimately rests.
He is the One who came to be our Saviour.
He is the One who told us not to fear because He is gone to prepare
a place for us, and He will return to receive us unto Himself.
He is the One who died for our sins. He
alone can save us and take us to Heaven. And He is the One who said if we
believe in Him we will not perish, but have everlasting life.
He is our hope and our life. Thus
today's readings and prayers take us to the central theme of Advent, which
is also the central theme of Scripture and our greatest need in life; the
hope that God Himself will act on our behalf and accomplish for us what we
can never accomplish for ourselves. Let
us close the sermon by praying together the Collect for the Second Sunday
in Advent, found on page 92 of the Prayer Book. "Blessed
Lord, who hast caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning;
Grant that we may in such wise hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly
digest them, that by patience and comfort of thy holy Word, we may
embrace, and ever hold fast, the blessed hope of everlasting life, which
thou hast given to us in our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen."
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