Text: Deuteronomy 1:21-32
In past sessions, we've talked about how hope is always referring to something in the future. Once we have the thing we hoped for, hope is no longer necessary.
There are three kinds of hope:
1. Arriving - what you hoped for is coming soon. Arrangements have been made, the table is set, dinner is cooked, and the guests will arrive any minute. In other words, it will happen soon. Deut. 1:21
2. Awaiting - This is where God or His Word says something will happen at some point in the future. God gave Joseph a dream that he would rule someday. Genesis 37.
3. With the new kingdom - this is a hope for something in the distant future. Hebrews 12:1-13.
Discouragement can come when hope is misplaced. If Joseph expected his dream to come true the next day, he could have fallen into discouragement. It was 13 years before the fulfillment came.
Three kinds of discouragement:
1. When what we thought had arrived now seems unattainable. In Deuteronomy 1:22-32, fear robbed the Israelites of hope.
2. When what we thought would eventually come probably isn't, it's easy to lose hope. The Israelites knew of the prophetic word that a deliverer would come to free them from Egypt. After awhile, this stopped being a hope for most of the people and became a beloved myth. They let go of what God said and believed their circumstances. They were led into a different hope than the one God promised.
3. When what we thought God had laid up for us may not be there.
Keep your hope in its proper timing. Is the promise for soon, someday, or still to come?
Guard against hope's enemies: Fear, anger, insufficiency, resentment. If you allow fear to enter, it's hard to maintain hope and faith. You'll become weary waiting for the fulfillment of the promise. Weary people do things they wouldn't normally do. They'll take shortcuts like Abraham and Sarah and produce an Ishmael. The enemy wants to change your patterns that keep you focused on God's promises. Don't allow hope's enemies to rob God's blessings and future fulfillment.
To listen to the entire message, please visit our website and click on the Sermon Player. If you're in the area, we invite you to worship with us on Sunday morning, at 10:00 A.M. We're located at 1111 Easton Rd. (Rte. 611), Warrington, PA 18976. For more information, check out the website or call (215) 343-7686.
What New Testament book interests you to take up for study at our Midweek service? It has been a long while since we took up Ephesians or Galatians, as well as the other epistles.
