Hope That Never Disappoints 1978

The first few verses of Romans 5, bearing in mind how often the word hope crops up here. Since therefore we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in our hope of sharing the glory of God.

More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, which has been given to us. When Paul says in 1 Corinthians 13, now abide faith, hope, and love, these three, but the greatest of these is love, he is in no way implying that the other two are unnecessary.

And we understand that clearly in our minds when it comes to faith. We know that we can't survive without faith. But there is a strong tendency in all of us to undervalue the importance of hope.

Yet if we look back over our own lives, we can see that in almost every instance where we fell, our fall was preceded by the disappointment of some hope. We find again and again that when hope goes down, it's not long before faith and love go down too. And on the other hand, when we have a burning hope inside our hearts, we find that the faith that God has given us and the love which comes with it are able to survive any storm.

It's not an exaggeration to say that the basic ingredient of the life of faith in this world is a hope which is never disappointed. It begins when hope is first aroused in our hearts that God does care for us and that it is possible for him to change us and that he will take us out of this hell we're in. And then it springs to life that one day we open our eyes and there's Jesus speaking to us personally, calling us to come and follow him.

And all along the road, through whatever trials or suffering, whatever cross we have to bear, whatever death we have to die, hope. As long as that hope is there, like Pegu, he says, like a little girl jumping out of bed in the morning with a smile on her face, everything else keeps going. The hope that God plants in our hearts leads us on and never disappoints us, and it's in this environment inside our hearts, that kind of hope, that the love of God is shed abroad and only in that environment can it live.

But while there is this hope, which is never disappointing and is always true and never lies, there's another kind of hope, which also grows up in our hearts and focuses on pictures which seem to come into existence in our minds, which are better known to us as fantasies. You know, and when we start having these fantasies, these pictures in our minds, something inside us also begins to look for their fulfillment in our lives. That's for me.

I can have that. Very often we find, without even realizing it, that we begin to base the whole meaning and purpose of our life in this world on one of these or several of these pictures. And then one day we wake up, bitterly disappointed, our hope is destroyed, and our lives go down.

So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food and that it was a delight to the eyes and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate and she also gave some to her husband and he ate. Then the eyes of both were open and they knew that they were naked. So you know, what was it that enabled Eve to realize that that fruit was good to eat and that that tree was to be desired to make one wise, that fruit? She never tasted it.

She really didn't know. But there was an inspiration coming from the father of lies himself, which caused hope to mushroom in her mind. And every time she looks at this tree, she's filled with hope.

Every time we look at that billboard or that centerfold or that person who walks in the room and looks so interesting, we're filled with hope. But what kind of hope? Then she takes this fruit and eats some and gives it to her husband. See, and instead of finding the fulfillment that she expected, their eyes are open and they realize that they're naked.

And for the first time in their lives, they experienced disappointment and fear and shame. And how many times people come into, well, for instance, marriage, expect to be married for marriage or fulfillment that marriage was never intended to bring them. Then it turns into a hell and both partners sit there resenting bitterly the partner who failed to bring that fulfillment that was supposed to come.

And the whole reason for this is that they went into that relationship expecting something out of it that was never meant to be. It's also possible and often happens that we attach a hope to Jesus himself that was never meant to be with him. For instance, John the Baptist expected something from Jesus, a role from Jesus, for Jesus to play that Jesus was never meant to play.

Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, says John, and steps back into the shadows. But as time goes on, when it turns out that Jesus remains only the lamb and never manifests the lion aspect of his nature, John becomes disappointed. Are you the one who is to come or do we look for another? And exactly this happens in your life and mine.

We begin to expect from Jesus some things, for instance, that might put us in a place of prominence or power. Oh, how we love to hear about the power of God. We attach to Jesus a hope that somehow he's going to vindicate me in the eyes of people who are criticizing me all the time.

He's going to bring our enemies down and raise us up, even in this life. Years go by and it doesn't happen. Same old junk, same old routine, no vindication, no power, nothing.

And when hope is disappointed, even this false hope, we begin then to become vulnerable to temptations that we wouldn't have dreamed of. And perhaps the clearest expression of this in Scripture, of what happens to the disappointed heart and how it opens itself to all kinds of temptation is found with Lot. Now, Lot, you would think after being delivered from Sodom by the skin of his teeth, should have been trembling with awe down in his face before God worshiping.

And maybe he was for an hour or two, who knows? But Lot's behavior after his deliverance from Sodom betrays a disappointed heart. And all the things we see Lot doing are exactly what you and I attempted to do. Now Lot has lost his wife and all his possessions and his son's-in-law to be.

And so three temptations come to Lot and his two daughters that are invariably present when the heart is disappointed. Now, Lot went up out of Zohar and dwelt in the hills with his two daughters. For he was afraid to dwell in Zohar, so he dwelt in a cave with his two daughters.

And the firstborn said to the younger, Our father is old and there is not a man on earth to come in to us after the manner of all the earth. Come, let us make our father drink wine and we will lie with him that we may preserve offspring through our father. So they made their father drink wine that night.

And the firstborn went in and said, But he did not know when she lay down or when she arose. And on the next day, the firstborn said to the younger, Then you go in and lie with him that we may preserve offspring through our father. So they made their father drink wine that night also.

And the younger arose and lay with him. And he did not know when she lay down nor when she arose. Thus, both the daughters of Lot were retrialed by their father.

First of all, Lot and his two daughters escaped to a cave. And how many times after we've been disappointed, that's what we do. We run for a cave.

I'm going to withdraw. I'm going to bury myself in my own thing. I'm not going to expose myself to all these hurts and all this rejection that I've been getting from everybody.

And this is what we do. One way or another, we find ourselves some kind of spiritual or even physical cave to withdraw to. And there we sit.

The world goes on around us, but we refuse to become involved. Then, Lot gets drunk. Well, the girls gave him their wine, but Lot could have said no.

He doesn't object. What the heck? I might as well. Nothing goes right.

And this is what we do. We disengage ourselves from reality in some way. Perhaps by means of alcohol.

Perhaps by means of fantasy. Or some hobby that we bury ourselves in. Which is not only a cave, but an escape from reality.

Some foolish obsession that consumes our thought and our time. You know, as a comfort, because we've been disappointed. I'm not going to bother with this over here anymore.

I'm just going to busy myself with my hobby. And then, Lot and his two daughters abandon themselves to something unholy. See, the heart tries to find some kind of relief in the sensual.

And how many times when the heart has been disappointed, it tries to nurse its self-pity in the sensual. Also as a way of getting back at God. You didn't do it even for me.

And we know this one will hurt. So whenever we catch ourselves in any way withdrawing into our little cave. Disengaging, escaping from reality.

And trying to find some kind of solace by sucking our thumb in the sensual. We can be sure that these are the signs of a heart which has been disappointed. By a hope on which it should never have fixed itself in the first place.

Now, notice our Lord never indulges or sympathizes with the dejection which comes to us after this false hope has been disappointed. Rather, he firmly calls us to get our eyes back where it belongs. Our eye back on the thing that really is our hope.

For instance, he doesn't say to John the Baptist. You know, that's too bad, John. You know, I really feel bad.

Here you are sitting in jail and then everything seems to go wrong and your hopes are dashed. I didn't turn out the way you expected me. Here's the sympathy part.

Instead of it, he says, go tell John again the things which you see and hear. The blind receive their sight. The lame walk.

The lepers are cleansed. The deaf hear. The dead are raised up.

The poor have the good news to preach to them. And blessed is he who is not offended in me. No sympathy for John because it won't do John any good.

What John has to do is get his eyes back on Jesus. Keep looking at me until you understand who I am and what I've done for you. We see it again, excuse me, after the resurrection.

When these disciples are trying to find a cave over in Emmaus, they're on their way out of town, really down the dumps. And the stranger walks by their side and they don't realize who it is. And he said to them, what is this conversation which you are holding with each other as you walk? And they stood still looking sad.

Then one of them named Clopas answered him. Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened in these days? And he said to them, what things? They said concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet, mighty indeed and word before God and all the people. And how our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death and crucify him.

But we had hope that he was the one to deliver Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since this happened. Moreover, some women of our company amazed us.

They were at the tomb early in the morning and did not find his body. And they came back saying that even they had seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but they did not see him.

And he said to them, all foolish men, slow of heart to believe all the prophets have spoken. Was it not necessary that Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory? And beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the scriptures and the things concerning himself. So they drew near to the village to which they were going, and he appeared to be going further.

But they constrained him saying, stay with us for it is toward evening and the day is now far spent. So he went in to stay with them. And when he was at table with them, he took bread and blessed it and broke it and gave to them.

And their eyes were open and they recognized him and he vanished out of their sight. They said to each other, did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road? And while he opened to us the scriptures. Here they were really down, down because their hope had been destroyed.

They had expected Jesus to want to do one thing and he didn't do this. And so while they're walking along the road, so down, so discouraged, here's Jesus, their very hope, the hope that he had talked about again and again, he told him he would die and rise again. Calling them to open their eyes and see here they are wallowing in self-pity because the conception they had had been destroyed when the real hope that would change their lives was so close they could reach out and touch.

Jesus again doesn't sympathize with them. And how this is with us, too, you know, we have all kinds of conceptions as to what Jesus ought to do for us. And we miss and we get all discouraged.

And so Jesus says, was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things in order to enter into his glory? Was it not necessary for your hope to be destroyed so that the real hope could begin to take hold of your lives and that in that hope, the love of God might be shed abroad in your hearts by the Holy Spirit? And so if you and I have been disappointed. Or as somebody said a couple of Wednesday nights ago, if our whole life has been a big disappointment, or if everything we thought gave meaning to our life has been swept away by a sea of trouble. It's so that our eyes and our hearts might be open to the one who walks by our side and has been talking to us and has been trying to open the scriptures to us.

So many times we think this, you know, that we know all about the scriptures, you know, the scripture, I got the scripture. What are you talking about? It's all there. But until Jesus opens the scriptures, nothing is there.

He has to open. And for him to open the scriptures, the phony hopes have to be destroyed first. Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel? After all, that's where our hope was, Lord.

That's why we followed you around these three and a half years. It's not for you to know the times and the seasons, which the father has fixed by his own authority. He could have said that's going to be a long time yet.

See, but you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you and you'll be my witnesses. Isn't that enough to be a witness? Be my witnesses. Don't let your hope degenerate into speculation, guessing, vanity, fantasy, says Jesus to us.

Fix your hope where it belongs. Get it on me and get on with what I've called you to do. Be my witnesses.

Right where you are. And I promise you that that hope will never be disappointed. For I have not seen nor ear heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man what things I have prepared for those who set their hope on me, says the Lord.

Why don't we wait upon him now in prayer? And anybody, let's use this time of the service to just worship him and call upon his name or thank him or praise him. And anybody who feels inclined to pray, just do so. Why don't we stand up for this? Just take a time in prayer.

Father, we're just asking that today your spirit would cleanse us and help us in the midst of the things that clutter our lives and confuse our minds, Father, and the tiny things we allow to throw us off balance, that we might behold you in your glory by faith and that by the spirit's power, our hope in you might be renewed, that we might begin afresh today to worship you and praise you and thank you and live for you and adore you and lose ourselves in you. Thank you, Father.