April 27, 2017 LAYING HOLD OF
Hebrews 6:17-19: “In the same way God, desiring even more to show to the heirs of the promise the unchangeableness of His purpose, interposed with an oath, in order that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we may have strong encouragement, we who have fled for refuge in laying hold of the hope set before us. This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast and one which enters within the veil,”
A lot of the promises we find in the scriptures are not fulfilled automatically. As believers, we have the responsibility to discern our part in responding to the promises and the conditions of the promise. Often, God makes a promise that is dependent on our action or response. For example, God promises that we will find Him—If we seek Him. We know something about God, but God desires to show us even more about Him and His purposes. The good news is that His purposes are unchangeable and He has promised that we will find comfort and hope as we discover what He has for those who love Him, for those who seek Him. God is not hiding His purposes from us, but is desiring to reveal them to us-the heirs of the promise. Because man as a whole rejects God and insist on living according to his own dictates, the result is that the world is in darkness and in a state of crisis, and uncertainty is the norm. However, in God’s kingdom, His character and His purposes remain constant and His promises are sure and steadfast. God is light and He is wisdom, and only in Him can we find a hope that remains no matter what is taking place in the world around us. The hope that God gives is not tied to circumstances, but is tied to the unchangeable character of God. We do face trials and difficulties as believers living in the world, but we have the promises that God gives us strength for the trials and that He will use the trials for good and that we will know His presence in the trial. The ‘lostness’ of man, and the depravity of man is becoming more and more obvious; many are desperate and living without hope. For the believer, there is an anchor for our soul that holds during these turbulent times, and that anchor is the hope that comes from knowing that the promises of God to us are unchangeable. Let us search the scriptures so that we might know the promises that God has given to us, and let His promises be our anchor.
2 Corinthians 1:20: “For as many as are the promises of God, in Him they are yes; therefore also through Him is our Amen to the glory of God through us.”
Romans 15:13: “Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
Blessings,
Buddy
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