“There is Always Hope”

 

BIBLE READING: Jeremiah 38-41


“So they took Jeremiah and cast him into the cistern of Malchiah, the king's son, which was in the court of the guard, letting Jeremiah down by ropes. And there was no water in the cistern, but only mud, and Jeremiah sank in the mud.”                                   -Jeremiah 38:6

                During WWII, a submarine was rammed by another ship and quickly sank. Despite many efforts to rescue the crew, it was feared that their oxygen would run out long before anyone could get to them. Hours into the rescue attempt, the sonar officer, who was listening for any indication of life on the crippled sub, heard a tapping sound, recognizing it as the dots and dashes of Morse Code, he deciphered the message, a simple question that came slowly: “Is . . . there . . . any . . . hope?” That is the ultimate question for most people! In almost every generation, during turbulent times full of difficulties, depression, and discouragement, many believers ask, “Is there any hope?”

Bills, relationships, health issues, the simple day-to-day difficulties of life, often cause us to feel overwhelmed and wonder if there is hope. That must certainly have been what Jeremiah was thinking as he sunk into the mud, his mind swirling with confusion, “I’m doing my best to serve the Lord, delivering the words He tells me. You would surely think God would take care of me, wouldn’t you?” Many of us have found ourselves sinking and wondering the same thing. We have this inaccurate concept that if we are true in our service to God then everything in life will be beautiful, easy, and pleasant.

Everyone wants an easy, peaceful life; no one thinks, “I hope I face pain and difficulty.” But Peter tells us that we will face trials and hardships: “Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; but rejoice . . . when [Christ’s] glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy” (1 Pet. 4:12–13). We haven’t been assured an easy life; we will have trials and hardships. So is there any hope? Yes, our hope is in God and His promises of peace to those of us who have surrendered all to His care. Jesus promised, “In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). If we trust and persevere, Jesus will help, encourage, and give us joy, even in the mire. But there is an even greater promise to hope in, and that is that one day the trials and hardship will end. When we finally finish the race and enter into heaven, we will at last live without pain or heartache. “God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away” (Rev. 21:4). The promise to us isn’t that life won’t be hard, we live in a fallen world, but that we don’t have to try and survive it on our own, and even greater, that this world and pain isn’t all there is.

 

 

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