Faith Baptist Church of State College, Pennsylvania

The Better Hope
By  PastorDrew@growingatfaith.org 

    Saturday afternoon. Pop Pop. Swimming Pool. Sunny Day. Transistor Radio. Bill Campbell. Fightn’ Phils. Hope Lives. Better Hope? Jesus Christ!
    My grandfather, Pop Pop, loved listening to his transistor radio perched on top of the fence enclosing his swimming pool every sunny Saturday afternoon as Bill Campbell broadcasted the exploits of the Philadelphia Phillies. Summer after summer there was hope that the Fightn’ Phils would win it all!
     With baseball, as with all sports, “hope springs eternal.” However, Christians know that there is a better hope: a confident expectation which is found in Jesus Christ (Hebrews 7:19; I Timothy 1:1).
    This better hope is a living hope (I Peter 1:3). It energizes life! It enables the believer in Christ to engage the delightful day, as well as the dreary, with vibrant expectation.
    This living hope is through the resurrection of Jesus Christ (I Peter 1:3). No bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ, no living hope. No personal faith in the resurrected Jesus Christ, no living hope. No living hope, no hope at all, just an endless search to find something or someone to live for and to hope in.
    For the Christian, the search is over! The Lord Jesus Christ is alive! He gives those who believe in Him a living hope, a confidence that energizes their lives through the vicissitudes of day by day living!
    This better hope is a blessed hope (Titus 2:13). It is joyous. It is full of rejoicing even on a Monday morning, or even when a gallon of gas is $2.95 (just went up again!). Even in the most uncertain of times, Christians have a joyous expectation about what, or better yet, Who is to come.
    This blessed hope is focused on the Lord Jesus returning for those who believe in Him as their personal Savior. He is returning to be with them in such a way that they will “always be with the Lord” (I Thes. 4:17). There’s more! Christians will not only be with Him, they will also be like Him (I John 3:2). In all of their affections, attitudes, and actions, believers in Christ will find a perfect experience of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Gal. 5:22, 23).
    Those not believing in Christ have many panaceas when facing the uncertainties of the future. From the simplicity of “living for the weekend” to the complexity of religious systems that supposedly offer hope even beyond the grave, there is the wishful hope that somehow, someway everything will be alright.
    For the Christian, wishful hoping about the future is a thing of the past. It is replaced by the joyous expectation of being with and like the Lord Jesus Christ when He comes again.
    There is a better hope. It is found in Jesus Christ. He gives to all who believe in Him a vibrant expectation for today and a joyous expectation for the day to come!
    Two people. Beautiful lake. Catching Fish. Hanging out. Two beers. Peaceful evening. “It doesn’t get any better than this!” Sure does! Jesus Christ! The Better Hope!

 In Christ,
 Pastor Drew