Blessed Hope - 2 November 2014
MEMORISE: Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Titus 2:13
READ: TITUS 2:11-14. Continue...
11 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,
12 Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;
13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;
14 Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 2 KINGS 1-2 and PROVERBS 20:18-30
MESSAGE
What is our hope as Christians, and why have we chosen to turn our backs on the world and its pleasures? It is the hope of glory, honour, immortality and an eternity spent in the bosom of our Lord (Romans 2:7). This mother of all hopes shall be made manifest at the return of our Lord Jesus Christ. Normally, a person hopes for something good and pleasant. However, for the children of God, there is no hope that compares with the return of Jesus to Earth. It is on account of this hope of Jesus returning for His people, that Apostle Paul confidently declared in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14 that:
“But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.”
Jesus is the grace of God that brings salvation by the gospel. The return of Jesus puts an end to all pain, all suffering, all disappointment, poverty, failures, battles, conflicts, sorrows and defeats. For those in Him, who eagerly look forward to His coming, I write this to you: His imminent return is very much around the corner, based on the signs of His return as given to us in the Bible. Note that today’s scripture passage provides certain dos and don’ts for those who have the blessed hope of the return of Jesus. Titus 2:12 says that the Grace of God – Jesus, is teaching us that we should deny ungodliness and worldly lust. Beloved, we are in an age where ungodliness and worldly lusts are becoming the norm; an age where people perpetuate evil without qualms and where mild terms are coined for sin e.g. having an affair when talking of adultery. In spite of this, the Grace of God teaches us that we should live soberly, righteously and godly. To be sober is to be responsible and serious. It means to comport oneself with dignity. To live righteously and godly is to live according to the word of God and to live by the leading of the Holy Spirit.
Besides, Titus 2:14 says we are to be zealous of good works – works of kindness, evangelism, visitation, follow-up, encouraging those needing comfort, interceding for others etc. We are not just to do these works, but we are to do them with zeal. Now the question is: are you giving attention to the teaching of the Grace of God? May the blessed hope be for you a blessed hope indeed when the Lord appears in Jesus’ Name.
KEY POINT: He that has this hope purifies himself even as he is pure.
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