We are fragile people. Yet, we have hope!
Christians are people of hope. Joseph Garlington declared this on the WOW Worship album in 1999.
My life is in You, Lord My strength is in You, Lord My hope is in You, Lord In You, it’s in You.
The Scriptures declare this fact also!
“But I will hope continually and will praise you yet more and more.” (Psalm 71:14);
“I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I hope;” (Psalm 130:5);
“There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call—” (Ephesians 4:4);
“Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.” (Hebrews 10:23).
The Apostle Peter tells us that we were born again to a Living Hope. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,” (I Peter 1:3)
Our hope is in Jesus Christ. We are one body called together by the Spirit through Jesus and we are connected together because of this one hope we have in Jesus, which is our only hope. Romans 12:4-5 tells us that we are one body with many members, individually connected to the many members. In fact, Paul tells us in I Corinthians 12:26 that we are so connected to each other in the Body of Christ that when one member suffers we all suffer.
We are fragile people! Yet, We have Hope! We need the strength of the other members in the Body to make it. But, sometimes we miss that connection or choose not to be connected. We think we can “do it on our own” or “I don’t need anyone to know my business” attitude which limits, often to our own peril, our ability to grow in God’s grace.
We, as God’s children, are in His family. He has uniquely gifted us for our place. God calls us into this relationship because that is what a family is. In every family there is a person or two who seem to know how everything works together so the family functions best. When someone is having issues or hurting, these are the ones to go to. Don’t miss those opportunities! Hear the words of James 5:16. “Let us confess our trespasses to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.”
Let’s experience the fullness of the Body of Christ by seeking out connections that allow us to find our place at the table of God’s grace with the others who believe.
Today, my creative wife fed me a delicious lunch of “home-made” (four items in the fridge that came together) soup and a rather unique grilled cheese sandwich made with cinnamon raisin bread. To my surprise it was all tasty! What’s in the Body of Christ (fridge) for you that needs to come together to make a unique, delicious, tasty, blended, meaningful connection? Together, we are the Body of Christ, and we have hope!
