“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil, or fade!” (1 Peter 1:3-4)
This great passage declares a number of significant and life-changing truths that we celebrate each day, but especially on Easter Sunday. One of the most prominent and precious is the hope that is ours in Jesus Christ.
Can there be a greater contrast between the world’s view of hope and the Christian’s hope? The world’s view can be summed up well in the little boy’s statement, “Hope is wishing for something you know isn’t going to happen.” You can hope for something to happen in the future, but it’s ultimately futile because you can’t control what happens in the future. Hoping is no more than wishful thinking. The testimony of God’s Word is that hope isn’t wishing. Hope is a certainty, a fact that God has promised and will fulfill. The bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ on Easter Sunday is the event in human history—the certain, factual basis of our hope as Christians.
Here’s another distinctive about our hope. It’s alive. What does that mean? The opposite of living hope would be dead hope, and that calls to mind a similar phrase: dead faith. In James 2:26, the Apostle writes “faith without works is dead.” Dead faith has no effect, no power, no influence. Living faith—and, by analogy, living hope—has power and influence. In short, it impacts your life. This living hope makes a difference in our lives today in at least three ways.
First, hope that lives gives you courage to face the challenges and trials of life. We’ve certainly faced enough of them in the past year! You need not cower in fear, for you know at the end Jesus is victorious over the greatest enemy to life. In Him, you will be too. If He’s solved the problem of death, you can be sure He’s taken care of all the other problems, difficulties, and trials we face. In John 16:33 Jesus said, “In this world you will have trouble, but take heart! I have overcome the world!”
Second, hope that lives gives you confidence because you know who’s in control. The resurrected Christ is not only alive at this moment—He’s alive in power and glory! The sovereign King of kings and Lord of lords is in control of creation, in control of human history, and yes, in control of your life. Because of what He did for you on the Cross, in love—giving His life for you—you can know that He’s personally, positively, and passionately committed to you. You can be confident because you know His purpose for you is good, for He declares, “I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” (Jeremiah 29:11).
Third, hope that lives in your life gives you comfort in the face of death. You’re freed from the fear of death, because you know that as Jesus conquered death, so too shall you. And that victory will usher us into an eternal life that is glorious, where in the presence of God Himself you’ll enjoy praise and peace, love and joy. There will be no more pain, no more tears, no more sorrow, no more death. This is the living hope that can be yours because the tomb is empty, because Jesus Christ has been raised from the dead!
There is a reason why hope is described in Hebrews 6:19 as “an anchor for the soul…both sure and steadfast.” Because Jesus rose from the dead on Easter Sunday, ours is a hope that is certain, ours is a hope that is alive, ours is a hope that is a difference-maker as we live as followers of Jesus Christ.
Jeff Jeremiah has served as Stated Clerk of the EPC since 2006.