It's a tough life for people
with no hope. It's not Christian to live your
life in an attitude of no hope. In fact, the Lord is very plain
about this, hope in the Lord. My, what hope there is in the
Lord. Our God is a big God. He's able
to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or even
think. That's the way we're to live.
Knowing that He's able. And to live in this way. And
we know that all things work together for good to them that
love the Lord. To them who are called according
to His purpose. Tremendous hope in that, if we
could only enter into that and believe that. Hopelessness is
not known in the corridors of faith. If you're walking in faith,
living in faith, hopelessness is not known. If you're feeling
hopeless, it is because your mind needs renewing. Read the
scriptures. No hope is not in the new nature
that God has given you. That hopelessness comes from
your flesh. It's fleshly. It's carnal. It's a part of you where no good
thing exists. Your flesh. So to say we have
no hope goes beyond the truth. God is the sinner's hope. God
is our hope. A very present help in time of
need. You, child of God, have a good
hope. You are not hopeless. You have
a good hope. And it's not, I hope, I hope,
I hope, I hope. It's a hope that is steadfast
and sure. In the book of Romans chapter
5, the apostle Paul said that he was standing in this hope.
A hope that would not put him to shame. A hope that won't let
you down. I can remember when hope let
me down on Christmas day. I was hoping for a new Schwinn
bicycle. I didn't get it. Hope. The hope of the Bible is a sure
hope. It's built on a foundation that we are what we are by the
grace of God. And that salvation is not by
works. And it is God who works in you,
both to will and to do of His good pleasure. Everything that's
good and honorable that comes out of you, God put in you. Because that's the way it works.
And that's the way He works. I wonder if there's somebody
very lonely here today. You feel deserted. without hope. I'm positive that on most Sundays
I preach to children who don't know their real parents, adult
children who have been deserted and feel hopeless, people who
have a father vacuum, a mother vacuum. But I want to tell you
this, whoever you are, people who have gone to the streets
to try to find hope, it's not there. I speak to ladies who
have been in prostitution, men and women who have been drunk
on the street, people who are homeless. And one of the devil's
ploys is, especially after you're converted, is for you still to
have that feeling of hopelessness. You feel you have failed over
and over and will never accomplish your dreams and goals. I'm positive
there's someone in here that feels that way. And especially,
I would address this to you guys. Guys are project-proned and achievement-driven,
and you may be here and feel like it's never gonna happen.
It's never going to be accomplished. It's too hard. It's too difficult. Life is such a slippery slope,
and you seemingly can't reach the top. Child of God, this is
the way you ought to think. This is the way we must think.
This is biblical thinking. This is the new spirit thinking. I can do all things through Christ
who strengtheneth me. There's nothing you can't do
through Christ. There's nothing you can't achieve
through Christ.