The Birth of Hope!

The Birth of Hope!

Matthew 1:18-25 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost. (19) Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away privily. (20) But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. (21) And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins. (22) Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, (23) Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us. (24) Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife: (25) And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS. 

Hope.  We desperately need Hope!

Hope is needed as a result of despair, misery and distress. The problem with despair is it tends to be like a snowball going down a hill.  The longer it goes on, the bigger the burden gets and the faster the catastrophic conclusion comes.  The result: the more hopeless everything seems.  And the more impossible the prognosis seems to be.

How do we shake despair from our lives?  Hope!  There has to be a reasonable belief that there is light at the end of the tunnel that the burden will end! That somehow, some time, normalcy and happiness can and will return.

Hope isn’t a pipe dream.  Hope isn't a delusion.  For it to be real Hope, there has to be an expectation of a desired outcome. 

At the root of all despair, misery, and distress is Sin.  Sin has always been and will always be the root of agony.  Just ask the family suffering from the loss of a loved one at the hands of a drunk driver.  Just as the family broken apart by sexual immorality.  Or ask the number of people in our jails and prisons.  Some misery is not a direct result of sin like our examples above.  However, sin is the ultimate foundational cause of all evil, pain and suffering.

In our text today, we find the Matthew’s account of Jesus’ birth.  The key to our blog today is found end of verse 21.  The description of Jesus as promised to Mary was:  

                    “For he shall save his people from their sins”.  

So with the coming of Jesus, we have the possibility of have the source of despair removed.  This passage doesn’t just tell us of the coming and birth of Jesus, it promises the Birth of Hope.  The hope of having our sins removed!  The Hope of eternal life.  The Hope of Heaven!  The Hope of a relationship with God!

With that kind of Hope, a person in despair can now see a new light at the end of the tunnel that they could not see before.  This hope can rejuvenate us to give us a renewed vigor to face our burdens.  But it is even better than that.  With Jesus, we get a partner in life!  A person to help us bear our burdens.

1 Peter 5:6-7 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:  (7) Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. 

Does your life feel hopeless?  There is no reason to feel this way a moment longer.  Jesus came to this world to give us life and to give it more abundantly! (John 10:10).  Take charge of your life by submitting it wholly to a merciful master that came to give Hope!

Reflecting the SON, 

Dennis Hogan

dennis.hogan@icloud.com

Questions, comments or  further explanation?  Contact me at:  dennis.hogan@icloud.com

Reflecting the SON!

Matthew 5:16  Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

The name of this blog (Reflecting the SON) was inspired by today’s verse.  In context, this verse is part of Jesus’ famous Sermon on the Mount.  The Sermon on the Mount is believed to be early in Jesus’ 3 year ministry leading up to his crucifixion and was preparing the people of the day for what it takes to be a part of the Kingdom of Heaven.

To better understand what he is teaching, let’s break this verse down into chunks.

1.  Let Your Light So Shine:  What is the Light that Jesus is referring to?

John 8:12  Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

Jesus claims that he is THE Light of the world!  While we do not have time in this post to explore the depths of this topic, suffice it to say that ‘darkness’ in the Bible refers to sin, evil and wickedness.  So Jesus is both the extreme opposite of Darkness and the the remedy for the darkness of evil in this world.  But the light that is mentioned in Matt 5:16 is not Jesus specific, but rather it is “Your” Light.  So are we in competition to Jesus and his light?  Of course not.  Remember, we are incapable of the kind of purity and  perfection that this concept demands.  Instead, we should live our lives in such a manner that we should REFLECT the light that is Jesus. 

1 John 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. 

That means we MUST make every change possible to be as much like Jesus as possible.  When we sin we are in darkness.  When we follow the teachings of Jesus and obey his will, we let his light shine in our lives!

2.  Before Men:  There is a widespread misunderstanding of God that I hear quite a bit.  “I have my own deal worked out with God.”  In other words, people want to be a closet christians.  Sure they claim to love Jesus.  Yes they want all of the benefits that he has to offer ….BUT!  There’s always a but.  The “but” is they want to do what they want to do and they do not want to follow any strict, conforming rules. They want the best of both worlds.  Jesus claims here that christianity is a 24/7 proposition!  Every moment of our lives should be spent demonstrating our loyalty to him.  People should see the difference in us.  People should notice the change in us.  Notice the two verses preceding

Matthew 5:14-15 Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. (15) Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.

I love Jesus’ use of metaphors.  Light has a purpose!  It is to be seen in and from the darkness, like a city on a hill.  Why would we light a candle only to cover that light by putting a basket over it?  It defeats the purpose!  If a light is only going to be covered…Don’t bother lighting it!  That means that when we become followers of Jesus we have a purpose!  Our purpose is to reflect the light of Jesus and to be a beacon showing the way to Jesus to those that are lost in the dark!

3.  That They See Your Good Works:  We clearly live in the Kardasian era!  An era where you can become famous and rich for nothing.  Where your every outfit is put on display for the world to see and celebrate.  A world where there are people that are famous on Instagram or YouTube for doing stupid stunts, playing video games or for what you wear.  We live in a society that the most notable citizens are ones that play games for a living. 

As a Christian, what should people see in us?  What should they notice about us?  Jesus tells us!  When becoming a christian, we are to change to act, behave, react, judge, think, and feel like Jesus did.  The word christian literally means to be “Christ Like”.  We should be as much like Jesus as humanly possible.  But Jesus  did not go around just giving speeches.  He was a doer.  He healed the sick.  He washed peoples feet.  He fed the hungry.  He raised the dead, and the list could go on.  Jesus was known as much for what he did good for others as for what he said!  Is that true about us?  Are we doers?  Do we go about doing good works?  Are we known for our kindness, generosity and compassion?  If we are going to let our light shine, the world MUST see us through our manifestation of Jesus’ characteristics!

4.  Glorify Your Father In Heaven:  Here is one of the most underestimated concepts in all of the Bible.  We live in a society that is all about “ME”.  In many ways, we make every decision of our lives through the filter of how does this effect me.  If we are faithful to God, we need to make a paradigm shift.  We need to begin asking:  Does this thought, action, behavior, lifestyle, choice, reaction, etc., GLORIFY God?  Does it make him look good?  Or does it bring reproach upon him?

When one becomes a christian, part of the process is to Confess Jesus (Matthew 10:32; Romans 10:9; Romans 10:10).  To think this is a one time act is a failure to understand God’s will.  Instead, we should demonstrate, through our actions, our loyalty to Jesus on a daily basis.  We must let our light SHINE so that the world can see Jesus!

Reflecting the SON, 

Dennis Hogan

dennis.hogan@icloud.com

Questions, comments or  further explanation?  Contact me at:  dennis.hogan@icloud.com

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