I am sitting here in our office here in Rosemount in an otherwise empty house. My wife is in Pewaukee visiting her mother who then just passed away as I am writing this. Her Mom, Gladys, had been declining quickly. Kathy's siblings have been preparing themselves for this day for awhile now.
Having lost both of my parents, I can empathize with and understand the emotional turmoil and roller coaster that is a part of this kind of season of loss.
How about you - are you or have you gone through seasons of loss? Where did you find hope?
These are times worth our thoughtful consideration of whether we have or can have hope during these season's of losing someone close. Here are some thoughts from the perspective of a person losing someone close.
In my latest teaching at church, we are looking at four truths:
1. Christ is Risen
2. Christ is Lord
3. Jesus is making all things new
4. He has chosen us for this particular time and place
I think hope has a foundation in each of these truths as shared in God's Word. Let's take a look at the first three.
Peter in his first letter holds out hope to many Jews who now had received Jesus Christ, yet were under persecution as can be seen in 1 Peter 1:3-5:
1 Peter 1:3-5 "3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, 5 who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time."
We see here that hope is anchored for those who believe in the resurrection, that we have an inheritance waiting. (See John 20, Mark 16, Matthew 27 and 28, Luke 24 and Acts 1 regarding Jesus' resurrection)
We therefore have a hope "in" rather than a hope "for" (something that is true and has already happened). Our hope is in Jesus Christ and His resurrection, something we know has happened and will never change, as a certainty rather than wishful thinking.
Because we believe the truth of Christ is Risen, we also believe He is alive now. This fact has cosmic significance as this hope should anchor and secure our hope even in the midst of suffering, turmoil and loss.
Since Jesus is risen and is alive, we also know He is Lord - not just for my life, which He is, but also over everything - see Philippians 2:9-11:
Philippians 2:9-11 "Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."
And here we see the Lordship of Jesus highlighted in Act chapter 2 and chapter 4:
Acts 2:32-36
32 God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of it. 33 Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear. 34 For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said,
“‘The Lord said to my Lord:
“Sit at my right hand
35 until I make your enemies
a footstool for your feet.”’
36 “Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.”
Acts 4:11-12 "This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. 12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
Again, as we look at this truth, our hope finds a firm foundation in knowing that regardless of all the uncertainty and upheaval that comes during our seasons of loss Hope is anchored by these facts.
Finally, looking at the third truth that Jesus is making all things new (see Revelation 21:5 - 5 He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”).
This truth contains so much hope. In even normal seasons without loss, we know there is something wrong with the world and if our view of the world is not seen through the lenses of God's Word and His Son Jesus Christ, it can be tempting to just give up and say nothing matters.
In seasons where we are experiencing challenging loss, this desire to toss in the towel is stoked Satan pushing us to abandon hope - hope we see can see as discussed above is certain, not wishful thinking.
But, when we look back to 1 Peter 1:3-5 we see have an inheritance in heaven (held by Jesus, under the power of God) that will be a part of our salvation.
A huge part of this hope is again that Jesus is alive right now - it is critical that we understand and get this! Couple that with Revelation 21:5 where we see Jesus sharing "I am making everything new", we can see that the statement is not "will" but rather "I am" - present tense -right now as you read this.
We may not fully see this now (see 1 Corinthians 13:12 "For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.")
Again, we have certain hope anchored in all cases by Jesus Christ and His finished work on the Cross, by His Lordship and through the fact He is in fact now doing the work to make all things new.
What amazing HOPE that is! Whether you are in a season of loss or not right now, I pray you see the Hope that Jesus provides us all!
Lord Jesus, my prayer as we go into this weekend is that all who believe can and do find hope in and out of seasons of loss and that those that do not know You will see You, the author of our Hope through those who know you! Amen!
Enjoy this weekend knowing the truth of the work, the peace and love of our Lord and Savior Jesus,
Patrick Engesser
Having lost both of my parents, I can empathize with and understand the emotional turmoil and roller coaster that is a part of this kind of season of loss.
How about you - are you or have you gone through seasons of loss? Where did you find hope?
These are times worth our thoughtful consideration of whether we have or can have hope during these season's of losing someone close. Here are some thoughts from the perspective of a person losing someone close.
In my latest teaching at church, we are looking at four truths:
1. Christ is Risen
2. Christ is Lord
3. Jesus is making all things new
4. He has chosen us for this particular time and place
I think hope has a foundation in each of these truths as shared in God's Word. Let's take a look at the first three.
Peter in his first letter holds out hope to many Jews who now had received Jesus Christ, yet were under persecution as can be seen in 1 Peter 1:3-5:
1 Peter 1:3-5 "3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, 5 who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time."
We see here that hope is anchored for those who believe in the resurrection, that we have an inheritance waiting. (See John 20, Mark 16, Matthew 27 and 28, Luke 24 and Acts 1 regarding Jesus' resurrection)
We therefore have a hope "in" rather than a hope "for" (something that is true and has already happened). Our hope is in Jesus Christ and His resurrection, something we know has happened and will never change, as a certainty rather than wishful thinking.
Because we believe the truth of Christ is Risen, we also believe He is alive now. This fact has cosmic significance as this hope should anchor and secure our hope even in the midst of suffering, turmoil and loss.
Since Jesus is risen and is alive, we also know He is Lord - not just for my life, which He is, but also over everything - see Philippians 2:9-11:
Philippians 2:9-11 "Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."
And here we see the Lordship of Jesus highlighted in Act chapter 2 and chapter 4:
Acts 2:32-36
32 God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of it. 33 Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear. 34 For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said,
“‘The Lord said to my Lord:
“Sit at my right hand
35 until I make your enemies
a footstool for your feet.”’
36 “Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.”
Acts 4:11-12 "This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. 12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
Again, as we look at this truth, our hope finds a firm foundation in knowing that regardless of all the uncertainty and upheaval that comes during our seasons of loss Hope is anchored by these facts.
Finally, looking at the third truth that Jesus is making all things new (see Revelation 21:5 - 5 He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”).
This truth contains so much hope. In even normal seasons without loss, we know there is something wrong with the world and if our view of the world is not seen through the lenses of God's Word and His Son Jesus Christ, it can be tempting to just give up and say nothing matters.
In seasons where we are experiencing challenging loss, this desire to toss in the towel is stoked Satan pushing us to abandon hope - hope we see can see as discussed above is certain, not wishful thinking.
But, when we look back to 1 Peter 1:3-5 we see have an inheritance in heaven (held by Jesus, under the power of God) that will be a part of our salvation.
A huge part of this hope is again that Jesus is alive right now - it is critical that we understand and get this! Couple that with Revelation 21:5 where we see Jesus sharing "I am making everything new", we can see that the statement is not "will" but rather "I am" - present tense -right now as you read this.
We may not fully see this now (see 1 Corinthians 13:12 "For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.")
Again, we have certain hope anchored in all cases by Jesus Christ and His finished work on the Cross, by His Lordship and through the fact He is in fact now doing the work to make all things new.
What amazing HOPE that is! Whether you are in a season of loss or not right now, I pray you see the Hope that Jesus provides us all!
Lord Jesus, my prayer as we go into this weekend is that all who believe can and do find hope in and out of seasons of loss and that those that do not know You will see You, the author of our Hope through those who know you! Amen!
Enjoy this weekend knowing the truth of the work, the peace and love of our Lord and Savior Jesus,
Patrick Engesser
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