Turn if you would to 1 Timothy
1. The name of the message is Christ
the Believer's Hope. Christ the Believer's Hope. 1 Timothy 1, verse 1, Paul, an
apostle of Jesus Christ, by the commandment of God our Savior
and Lord Jesus Christ, which is our hope. Our hope. Paul, an apostle of
Jesus Christ, by the commandment of God our Savior, Lord Jesus
Christ, which is our hope. The Scriptures here declare that
Christ is our hope. Christ is the believer's hope.
Turn, if you would, to Romans chapter 8. Now, if we see something,
then we don't hope for it, do we? I mentioned this before. If we see something, we don't
hope for it. We believe in one who we've not
seen, yet we trust our eternal souls
to. He is our hope. He's the believer's hope. Look
at this, Romans 8, 24 and 25. For we are saved by hope But hope that is seen is not
hope. For what a man seeth, why doth
he yet hope for? But if we hope that we see not,
then we do with patience wait for it. We are saved by hope in Christ. Christ died for my sin. We're saved by looking to Him
who is our hope. We saw in our text that we looked
at to introduce the message. Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ,
by the commandment of God our Savior and Lord Jesus Christ,
which is our hope. He's our hope. Think of this. When darkness and trouble come,
and they do, they do, whether it be in a health matter, a work
matter, a family matter, how can we have hope in any of those
situations other than looking to Christ? Think of this. Remember before
you were saved? We had no hope. Now, when a trial comes up or
something comes up, who do we look to? Christ, who is our hope. Turn, if you would, to Jeremiah
14, verse 8. And I'll read Romans 15, verse
13, which says this, Now the God of hope fill you with all
joy and peace in believing that you may abound in hope. How do
we abound in hope? Only in Christ. Only in our King. In the fact that Christ has paid
for all my sins. in the fact of Christ's active
obedience while he was upon this earth for me, and that's just
a theological term of Christ living before the law of God
for the believer while he was here on earth. We are saved by his life, and
we are saved by his death. And who's our hope? Christ. Only Christ. Look at Jeremiah
14. Oh, the hope of Israel. Who's the hope of Israel? Well,
if Israel's the church there, then it's Christ, isn't it? But
who's the hope of Israel the nation during these times of
the writing of Jeremiah? It was our Lord. It's God, Jehovah,
the Great I Am, the same God who we rest in. Oh, the hope
of Israel, the Savior thereof in time of trouble. Why shouldst
thou be a stranger in the land and as a wayfaring man that turneth
aside to tarry for a night? And then Romans 15.13 says, now
the God of hope, You see the pattern we're seeing
here in Scripture? Now the God of hope fill you
with all joy and peace in believing that ye may abound in hope through
the power of the Holy Ghost, Romans 15, 13. So, what is the Lord Jesus Christ
for His people? He's our hope, isn't He? What are we without Christ? Hopeless. Helpless. Bankrupt. But oh, what a hope the believer
in Christ has. And he supplies every grace.
He supplies every help. Christ supplies every blessing.
Why? Because it all abounds in Him,
beloved. It all abounds in Him. Nowhere
else. Nowhere else. He is an inexhaustible
storehouse of spiritual treasures. The one in whom all spiritual
blessings, Ephesians 1 says, are in. And it's inexhaustible. Now we could sit here and go
through the list of spiritual blessings alone. Justification,
redemption, sanctification, wisdom. And it just goes on and on and
on. But where are they all found? In our hopes. in Christ who is
our hope? Turn, if you would, to 1 Peter
1. The believer is not lacking for
anything for salvation of their souls in Christ. Nothing. And
you know that it's decreed by God that we must go through much
tribulation, right? To enter into the kingdom of
God. Acts 14.22. And trials and troubles assault
us from every side, don't they? They really do. I remember Scott
Richardson saying, and I never really understood what he was
saying until the Lord showed me grace. And he said, the Christian's
either going into trouble, in trouble, or coming out of trouble. But we have a hope, don't we?
Don't we? And the Lord, and this is, beloved,
let us remember this too. This is what helps me. And I've
mentioned this before. When I remember, when I look
back at all the things the Lord has taken me through, and how
many mountains He's turned into nothing, It gives me hope. It gives me
hope. No matter what I'm facing. Look
at 1 Peter 1. 1 Peter 1, verses 3-9. Blessed be the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to His abundant mercy
hath begotten us again unto a lively hope. There's that word again.
By the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. to an inheritance
incorruptible and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved
in heaven for you." So we have a salvation that's incorruptible,
undefiled, fades not away, and it's reserved in heaven for us. "...who are kept by the power
of God through faith unto salvation." Now notice that. A lot of folks
try to keep themselves, but look at that, who are kept by the
power of God. Now that doesn't mean we shouldn't desire to live
a holy life, or we shouldn't desire to do certain things.
I'm not saying that. But I'm kept by God. I'm kept
by the power of God. Through faith unto salvation,
ready to be revealed in the last time. Wherein ye greatly rejoice,
though now for a season, if need be, you are in heaviness, through
manifold temptations. Now here he's talking about temptations.
It's hard. We go through things, don't we?
Trials, temptations, tribulations. Look at this. "...that the trial
of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perishes,
though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and
honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ, whom heaven
not seen..." Look at this. Remember what we looked at in
Romans? about we hope in Him who we've
not seen? Look at this. Whom heaven not
seen, ye love. And whom though ye see him not,
yet believe in, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory,
receiving the end of your faith and the salvation of your souls.
So often the storms that God's people go through, and we go
through storms in this life, they're fierce, and they rage. And the winds howl. And the waves crash. And sometimes there seems to
be no harbor. There seems to be no harbor in
sight. And sometimes despair seeks to
crush us. Sometimes we wonder, how can
this be? And the Holy Spirit points us
to Christ and says to our troubled souls, fear not. And the Lord says to the storm,
be still. Fear not, for Christ is near. And the Lord is ready to lull
each storm that rises in our lives and say, peace be still. Turn, if you would, to Psalm
34. I'm starting to realize more
and more that our walk through this world, that our walk through
this world as we go through life here, We're being stripped of all confidence
in ourselves. For me anyways, I don't know
if it's so for you, but for me it is. I'm being stripped of
all confidence in myself, and having Christ continuously be
brought to the forefront, and continuously learning that Christ
is my rest. that Christ is my hope. I don't
know if it's so for you, but it is for me. It is for me. And God has supplied all the
believer's spiritual need in Christ. All. My God shall supply all your
need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. Look
at Psalm 34, verses 4-6. I sought the Lord, and He heard
me. and delivered me from all my
fears. They looked unto Him and were
lightened, and their faces were not ashamed. This poor man cried..."
Now, I could say this along with David, can you? This poor man
cried and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all his
troubles. When I look back at what the
Lord's delivered me from, oh my. Now do I still get stressed
out and do I still get distressed when something comes up? Of course.
Because I'm in this flesh. And this is me I'm talking about.
This is how I am. Turn, if you would, to Matthew
10 now. And I love how God constantly reminds us that he'll take care
of us. You all know I love birds. I
love songbirds. I just love them. I could sit
and listen to them and watch them. In the wintertime, it's
neat because they're foraging for food and they're scavenging
around and, you know, we put feeders out so they can eat and
we watch them and they all come and, you know, there's definitely
a pecking order. The jay comes and everyone scatters,
you know, and then the little guys come back again. I like
the little ones. I like the little chickadees.
I don't know why. Always have. You know that as I'm watching
those birds and watching them, you know that The Lord is providing
for every single one of them. Now, would it help me to look
at that and go, the Lord's taking care of them sparrows, right?
Oh my. Look at this. But I love watching
these. They're precious little animals.
And for me, it's a constant reminder of how God takes care of His
creation, His people, Providentially. Watches over. And it's a reminder
for me that He watches over me. Look at this, Matthew 10. I need
this reminder all the time. I don't know if it's so with
you, but I need it all the time. I need to be reminded all the
time. Look at this, Matthew 10, 26-31. Fear them not therefore, For there is nothing covered
that shall not be revealed, and hid that shall not be known. What I tell you in darkness,
that speak ye in light, and what ye hear in the ear, that preach
ye upon the housetops. And fear not them which kill
the body, but are not able to kill the soul. But rather, fear
Him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Are
not two sparrows sold for a farling? And one of them shall not fall
on the ground without your Father? But look at this. The very hairs
of your head are all numbered. My goodness. Fear ye not therefore, look at
this, and beloved, look at this, beloved, for we who are God's
people, fear ye not therefore, ye are much more value than many
sparrows. Now sometimes the fear of death
can bring great distress or weigh heavily upon one. Sometimes it
may be circumstances in life. But let us seek the Lord in His
strength. Let us pray for one another when
we hear of one another going through things. Let us petition
the throne of grace. that they or we might receive
grace and strength in time of need. Turn, if you would, to
Isaiah. And remember, beloved, that Christ
who is our hope, remember this, we who are saved, that Christ
who is our hope is never far away. He is with us all the time. Look at Isaiah 43. He is with
us all the time. Do you know that we are ever
before Him? That His people are ever before
Him? Look at this, Isaiah 43, verses
1-3. Actually, turn over to Isaiah
49 first. I'm sorry. Isaiah 49, and then
we'll go back to 43. I'm sorry. Look at this. Wherever before Him. What comfort
this brings to God's people. Look at Isaiah 49, 15 and 16. Can a woman forget her suckling
child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her
womb? Yea, they may forget, Yet will
I not forget Thee. God will never forget His people.
Why? Behold, I have graven Thee upon
the palms of My hands. Oh, my. My walls are continually
before Me. And then look at Isaiah 43, verses
1-3. So the hope the believer has
in Christ, it cheers our soul. Look at Isaiah 43. But now, thus
saith the Lord that created thee. Verse 1-3. But now, thus saith
the Lord that created thee, O Jacob, and He that formed thee, O Israel,
fear not, for I have... Look at the verbiage here, beloved. For I have. It's not a maybe. For I have redeemed thee. This is speaking... of the church. I've redeemed thee. How? In Christ. I've called thee by thy name. Thou art mine. When thou passest through the
waters, I will be with thee. And through the rivers, They
shall not overflow thee. Now, we've seen flooding lately,
right, and all that. We'll not be overwhelmed by the
floods of this life. When thou walkest through the
fire, thou shall not be burned, neither shall the flame kindle
upon thee, For I am the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Savior. I gave Egypt for thy ransom,
Ethiopia and Sebia for thee. This is the believer's hope. This is the God of the Bible. Do you see how different He is
than the God who wants to but can't? That's my hope. That's my stay. Christ. It makes our hearts sore when
we contemplate what he has done for his people. Redeemed, redeemed,
but at what price? He gave himself. He gave his life. He gave his
blood. bear the curse of God to endure
all the punishment and all the misery and all the anguish which
His people must have suffered? And the crime is finished. That's my hope. Is it yours? Christ. Christ. Turn, if you would, to
Hebrews 6. So the believer's hope is set
upon Christ. And the certainty of what God
has promised shall come to pass. And think of this. And the certainty
of what God has promised shall come to pass, right? Remember what we read in Isaiah.
When them storms come and they will, when the trials come and
they will, He has promised to never leave His people. Never. Never. Look at Hebrews 6, verses 13-20. The certainty of what God has
promised shall come to pass. Hebrews 6. Verse 13, For when God made promise
to Abraham because he could swear by no greater, he swore by himself,
saying, Surely, blessing, I will bless thee and multiply, and
I will multiply thee. And so after he had patiently
endured, he obtained the promise. For men verily swear by the greater,
and an oath for confirmation is to them an end of all strife,
wherein God, willing more abundantly to show unto the errors of promise
the immutability of His counsel, confirmed it by an oath that
by two immutable things in which it was impossible for God to
lie, we might have a strong consolation who have fled for refuge to lay
hold upon the hope set before us. which hope we have as an anchor
of the soul, both sure and steadfast, in which entereth into that within
the veil. Whether the forerunner is for
us entered, even Jesus made an high priest after the order of
Melchizedek. So our hope is Christ. Now what
is an anchor to a floating vessel? What an anchor is to a floating
vessel? Hope is to the soul. Hope is
to the soul. The anchor descending from the
ship grasps by firm teeth a solid footing. It clings to an immovable
foundation. The ship cannot drift to rocks
or quicksand. It cannot be torn away by tides
or billows. It rests safely amidst storms
and adverse waves. Brother John, you probably saw
that on those big ships you were on. You dropped that anchor.
You're not moving, eh? And thus our hope holds fast
to Christ who is in heaven within the veil. and keeps the soul
tranquil amid all the conflicts here upon the earth. He keeps us. We're anchored to
the rock. Anchored to the rock who is Christ. Anchored to the rock, Christ,
who is the believer's hope. Let's go, Lord, in prayer. Gracious
Heavenly Father, thank You for Your Word. O Lord, we who are
here, are saved, are so thankful that You have granted us faith
to believe in Christ, who is now the anchor of our soul, the
hope, the only hope we have. amidst all circumstances, trials,
tribulations, everything in life. Oh, Lord, we pray that You'd
continue to give us faith to rest and trust in You more and
more. You must increase and we must
decrease. And we love You and praise You.
In Jesus' name, Amen.