Hope
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January 07, 2008 |
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 "And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased'" (Luke 2:13-14).
Some two thousand years ago in the town of Bethlehem in the land of Judea, Baby Jesus was born in a stable. Even though His birth seemed abasing in appearance for the Savior of all mankind, good-natured people desiring the truth could recognize the coming of the Messiah.
The Magi from a faraway land and the shepherds keeping watch over their sheep came before Baby Jesus by the guidance of the star and the command of angels and earned the glory of the opportunity to offer Him precious gifts and worship Him. A prophetess named Anna and a man named Simeon, to whom the Holy Spirit revealed that he would not face death before he saw the Christ, immediately recognized Baby Jesus who came into this world as the Savior.
Above all else, they had desired the coming of the Messiah and for that reason, the birth of Jesus held such great significance for them.
The Hope Jesus Has Given to the World through His Coming
In order to live a life filled with joy in this world, each individual pursue such things as wealth, fame, and the like and tries to satisfy his or her needs with them. Our Jesus, however, came into this world after leaving behind all the glory of the heavens so that He could give us eternal – spiritual – hope.
In fleshly eyes, Jesus was born in a shabby stable but spiritually, He was born amidst great glory. At the time of Jesus' birth, we read that "the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.'" This is because, by destroying the wall of sin through His birth, the gap between God and the sinners was restored to a relationship between the Father and His children, Jesus could greatly magnify God. Furthermore, each person who comes to understand the message of salvation through Jesus Christ and strives to live by God's Word receives salvation and the hope for heaven. That is why, in spiritual terms, Jesus' birth is "glory to God in the highest" and a source of hope for God's children. What, then, is the true hope that Jesus has given us through His coming into the world?
1.Hope of Salvation
The greatest blessing for mankind on their way to death on account of their sins is salvation from eternal death. As the first half of Romans 5:18 tells us, "As through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men," all mankind became sinners on account of the sinning of one man Adam, and as the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23), mankind were subject to hell, the eternal punishment.
That is why man lives each day in torment and without hope amidst disease, accident, hatred, quarrel, grief, and loneliness from the moment he is born. For such mankind, Jesus was a shaft of light that cut into the darkness. Forsaking all the glory of the heavens to which He was entitled as the Son of God, Jesus came into a world filled with sin, grief, and suffering. He was placed in a manger in a stable, lived a poor life was persecuted and held in contempt, and was crucified by the mankind He had created.
On account of the love and the sacrifice of Jesus, our problem of sin has been resolved and we now have a hope to live forever in the beautiful heaven. As the wall of sin that stood between God and mankind was destroyed, Jesus restored our relationship with God and He has made it possible for us to live in peace and joy, not as the slaves to the devil but as the children of God with salvation.
2.Hope of Resurrection
As he was created as "a living being," the first man Adam was not to age or die. After he sinned, however, Adam's spirit died and he became a fleshly person who was to grow old, change, and decay; after he breathed his last, Adam was to return to dust. All of Adam's descendants born with sinful attributes are tormented by disease, accidents, and aging, and eventually face death. People who do not believe in God, in fear of death, strive to live as long as they can. But no drug treatment, medical technology, or science can solve the problem of death.
Yet, there is only One who can solve the problem of death and He is God the Almighty. We who were to die on account of our sins, but God gave up Jesus to be crucified for us. Yet, as He was without the original or self-committed sins, Jesus destroyed the authority of death and resurrected on the third day. When we believe this, our problems of sin will also be resolved so that death will no longer control us and even if our life in this world comes to a close, we will resurrect and live forever (1 Corinthians 15:42-44). For that reason Jesus tells us in John 11:25-26, "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die."
If we truly believe in God, we will make every effort to cast off all fleshly things of this world that are to perishable, dishonorable, and weak and we will resurrect in imperishable and spiritual bodies.
When we refer to our brothers and sisters in Christ who have gone first to heaven, we do not say they "died" but that they "are asleep." As 1 Thessalonians 4:13 tells us, "But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope," death is not a source of grief for the people of faith because we have a hope of resurrection and meeting with our loved ones again.
Therefore, I urge you to believe that our Lord Jesus became the first fruits of resurrection after coming into this world in flesh and being crucified, and to fervently hope of turning into a spiritual body at His Second Advent.
3.Hope for Being Lifted into the Air and for New Jerusalem
When the Lord returns to the earth in the clouds of glory to take us to heaven, all the saved souls will become His brides. On that day, the cultivation of mankind will come to a close and the Lord will hold the Seven-year Wedding Banquet with all the saved souls. Those who are alive at the time of Jesus' return with countless heavenly host, angels, and citizens of heaven will transform into beautiful brides and be lifted up into the air.
It will be such a majestic sight when those who have been asleep in the Lord don the resurrected bodies first, followed by the transformation of those who are alive at the time of Jesus' return.
For those of us living in the last days, so close to the day of Jesus' return, there is a hope of being lifted up into the air alive (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). The moment you see the Lord your Groom, all your heart's hurt and torment sustained in this world will melt away and peace will settle in your heart. The Lord will lead to the Wedding Banquet those who will be transformed and don imperishable, spiritual bodies. Following the Seven-year Wedding Banquet, the Millennium, and the Judgment of the White Throne, each person will enter a heavenly dwelling place prepared for him/her by the Lord Himself. Especially those who have become God's true children by overcoming the last days by faith, becoming wholly sanctified, and having been faithful in all God's household will enter New Jerusalem.
However, the hope for seeing the Lord's return in the air is not given to just anybody; it is a privilege, given not to those who have already run the race of faith and are asleep now but to those who are alive in this age.
Any one who, in gratitude of the love of God and the Lord for having given him such precious hope, not only becomes a good worker but also accomplishes sanctification will be the heir to New Jerusalem.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, may each of you give great thanks and joy to God who has given you the hope of resurrection and New Jerusalem, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ I pray!
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