Pastor Dave Martin ~ Cross Creek Community Church ~ March 21, 2010

HOPE!

“Welcome to Friend Day”

Mark 2:1-12

At the end of World War II, an American sub came back to Newport News, Virginia to dock.  As it came into port something terrible went wrong with the hatch mechanism and it began to sink in the harbor.  They immediately dispatched coast guard to go out because obviously it was full of crew and they were trying to save the crew.  They dispatched divers who would dive down to the hull of the submarine and find out what went wrong.  As the divers swam around the sub they could hear that one inventive sailor had a hammer and was knocking on the hull from the inside in Morse code, “Is there hope?”

Is there hope? That’s one of the fundamental questions of life.  Is life worth living?  Is there  hope?  Can I count on anything in life?  Is there hope?  It’s asked everyday by thousands of people in thousands of different ways.  Digging through the debris of an earthquake, family members asking, is there hope?  When you’re setting in the doctor’s office awaiting tests, you hear the question, “Is there hope?”  When you’re standing by the bedside at the hospital, you hear the question, “Is there hope?”  When a couple who’ve put months and months into marriage counselors sitting there and getting nowhere, they’re thinking in their minds, “Is there hope?”  When you’re dealing with a tax accountant in a bankruptcy court and you ask, “Is there hope?”  When a couple or a family hears that their child is missing, they ask the police, “Is there hope?”  America’s political leaders and citizens asking the question, “Is there hope?”

A fundamental question of life…

• You can go forty days without food and three days without water and you can go 8 min without air.
• But you can’t go a single second without hope.  Hope is one of the essentials of life.
• When hope is gone, life is over.  You need hope to cope.

Dr. Harold Wolfe who is a professor at Cornell University in the medical school did a study on the effects of hope on the human body.  He studied 25,000 prisoners of war over an extended period of time to see what hope did to them and what difference it made.  He discovered that out of those 25,000 POW’s there was one group of men on whom the experience of being a POW had no effect at all, in spite of brutality, in spite of torture, in spite of solitary confinement, in spite of all kinds of inhumane abuse.  There was one group it just didn’t phase.  There was no posttraumatic stress syndrome.  They didn’t get ill.  They didn’t have flashbacks.  They just handled it and went on with their life.  When he studied that group, the one common denominator was an extraordinary high level of hope.  Hope makes all the difference in the world.  It is essential for handling the crises of life.  In Dr. Wolfe’s concluding study he said, “When a man has hope he’s capable of bearing incredible burdens and cruel punishment.  But when hope is gone, people fall apart – emotionally, physically and spiritually.”

Two Types of Hope…

• Cultural Hope – Based upon wishful thinking (hoping for warmer weather, meet right person, get raise)

1. Changeable, Optimistic Desire that IS NOT Guaranteed… (often a false hope)
2. Hope seems to be in short supply in our society today, people will fall for all kinds of scams.  They actually put their hope in false hope. They trust in things like physic hotlines and palm reading and astrology, fake healers, quack cures, all kind of crazy things – crystals – putting their hope in rocks – and things like that.  And of course, inevitably, these things disappoint and actually they end up being worse off because nothing is worse than being disappointed by a false hope.  Nothing is more useless than false Cultural hope.
3. Cultural Hope usually centers on the “here and now”… optimistic desires, often falling short…
4. Changeable Hope NOT guaranteed… one day hopeful, circumstances change now hopeless

Is there any place that I can get hope I can depend on, that I can count on for the crises of life, the things that are going to come into my life that I don’t plan but blow me over?  Are there any things like that that I can count on?  Where do I find that kind of hope?

• Christian Hope – Based upon God & His Word

1. Unchangeable, Optimistic Assurance that IS Guaranteed…
2. God Himself guarantees this hope speaking of it some 180+ times in His Word, the Bible
3. Christian hope is unchangeable because God is unchangeable and backs it with His promise!

Titus 1:2 in hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began,

1. We try so often to grapple with the meaning of life… deep down we know there is an afterlife
2. God says “live in hope of eternal life”… Rely on God who cannot lie… He promised us this hope!
3. My friends, this is the anchor that secures us no matter which way the winds of life blows…
4. Think about this for a moment, let this truth sink in… “in hope of eternal life…”  eternity!

1 Peter 1:3b “…In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead’

1. This AWESOME Christian Hope is a gift given to us thro
2. Too many people live their lives with very little “living hope of eternal life” that God promises
3. This living hope is available to you through Jesus Christ…

Discovering Confident Hope for the Future…

I.  Know that God is the Source of our Hope

Romans 15:13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

• The key is “trust in Him”… Put your faith in Him, put your hope in Him, put your trust in Christ…
• In other words, as you put your faith in Christ, He gives you joy, peace then abundance of hope!
• Remember, Rock solid, Unchangeable Christian hope is assured, it’s guaranteed by God Himself
• Am I overflowing with hope?  Am I Living this life fully and ready for the next… cross in eternity?
• You may be here this morning lacking confident hope for your future… perplexed, troubled…

John 14:1-2 ¹ "Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. ² In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.

• When the “things” of life gets unbearable… remember our ultimate hope is heaven…
• Jesus tells us… don’t be troubled(hopeless) believe in me (Jesus)… preparing a place in eternity
• There is more to life than just “here and now”… confident hope for eternity found in Jesus!
• Mark records a story about a paralyzed guy, a hopeless situation, 4 good friends and Jesus!
• About a man expecting one thing but finding something different… whatever reason you came this morning to Cross Creek… I trust you too will leave very different, like this paralyzed man…

II.   Choose to Seek the Lord

Mark 2:1-4 ¹ A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. ² So many gathered that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. ³ Some men came, bringing to him a paralytic, carried by four of them. ⁴ Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus and, after digging through it, lowered the mat the paralyzed man was lying on.

• Where ever God moves in power – people are attracted… Jesus fame spreading everywhere!
• Capernaum a small fishing village on the north side of the Sea of Galilee was Jesus’ home base of operations… This is where the sermon on the mount was taught, two blind men healed, even people raised from the dead, demons cast out, lepers cleansed – miracles!
• Crowds gathered that day, the house became jammed with people gathering to see Jesus and hear His Words of Truth.
• We see in v3 four guys carrying their paralytic friend seeking the Lord... for help/healing!
• You’re not here by chance, there is no chance with God, I believe God brought you today for a reason... In fact I believe everyone in this building is a seeker... seeking the Lord – this is good!
• Crowds were flocking to Jesus… His popularity was growing… Four guys brought their friend…
• Maybe, just maybe, Jesus could heal me… from my hopeless situation – I want to walk again!
• They made an opening by digging through the layers and lowered the man in front of Jesus…

Isaiah 55:6 Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near.

Lamentations 3:25 The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him;

• God is Good! Seek Him, get to know Him… place your hope in Him… God is good all the time…

God is source of Hope, We must seek Him…

III.   Realize Only God Can Meet Your Deepest Needs

Mark 2:5-8 ⁵ When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven."⁶ Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, ⁷ "Why does this fellow talk like that? He's blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?" ⁸ Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, "Why are you thinking these things?

• They had to dig through the roof, demonstrating faith that Christ could heal their friend…
• There are sometimes obstacles in the road that must be overcome for our faith to grow...
• “Jesus saw their faith”... Can you see faith? What does faith look like? Real faith is “seen”…
• Sitting there were Pharisee’s who were self-righteous, religious Jews… trying to trap Jesus
• They had a head full of knowledge but their hearts were far from God
• Notice Jesus knew exactly what they were thinking in their hearts… same with us today
• The legalistic Pharisee’s became inwardly upset… ONLY GOD CAN FORGIVE SINS…
• This is absolutely true, Jesus is God in the flesh… The perfect God-man 100% God & 100% man
• No human could pay the penalty for our sin debt except Jesus Christ… died, buried, ALIVE!
• Jesus knew the paralytic deepest need was not physical but spiritual healing… forgiveness of sin
• He sought Jesus to walk again… not get clean spiritually…
• We may need a physical healing or restored relationships or you may find yourself stressed to max or simple no purpose of life, empty… deep down you know something is missing…
• Man’s greatest need is not more possessions, power, money, position… greatest need is Christ
• Put your hope in Lord, for He is the ONLY one who can forgive your sins and give new life/hope
• Believe in God, believe also in me! Put your HOPE in me, Jesus says

Isaiah 40:31 but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

• Wearisome, tired, stressed out, discouraged, what’s the use attitude???
• Cultural hope will always let you down… put your hope in the Lord and be renewed!
• Christ sets us free from the shackles of sin and turn your life around… fill the emptiness, soar…

God is source of Hope, We must seek Him because only God alone can deal with man’s deepest need…

IV.   By Grace through Faith Receive Hope for Your Future!

Mark 2:9-12 ⁹ Which is easier: to say to the paralytic, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Get up, take your mat and walk'? ¹⁰ But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins...." He said to the paralytic, ¹¹ "I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home." ¹² He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, "We have never seen anything like this!"

• Jesus proves to the crowd that He is who He says He is… Get up!  Take your mat!  Go Home!
• Jesus is God! Trust in God, trust also in me… Absolute power and authority…
• He is able to forgive sins and He is able to heal the crippled man… He is able to change us!
• Because of Christ this man left different then the way he came… new spring in his steps!
• In obedience he got up and walked out an eternally changed man!  To everyone’s amazement!
• God brought you this morning to hear this message on Christian Hope…  Understand…
• God loves you, His Son died for you… now waits for you to receive Him in your heart by faith
• In love, God’s grace has been poured out on your behalf… providing salvation through His Son
• BUT you must believe in your heart and receive Him by faith… would you do that?

Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Psalms 147:11 the Lord delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love.

• The Lord has wonderful plans for you now and in your eternal future when you die… RU ready?
• I’m asking you this morning to put your hope in His unfailing Love… leaving this place different then when you walked in… just like the paralytic… He left rejoicing in hope of eternal life!

Confident Hope for the Future

Placing our faith in Christ is the means by which we take hold of our hope in Him and receive all the benefits of having Christ, including living throughout eternity in heaven with Him.

• As the paralytic left that house changed, you too can have the HOPE of being eternally changed

Let’s bow for prayer…

Welcome to the family of God…  I am not the same… Jesus makes all the Difference!