[The Words of Advent] HOPESample

Christ Is Hope

In the Old Testament, the word hope is translated from the Hebrew word tikva, which can be translated as, “I am certain of God’s protection over me.”

In the New Testament, hope is translated from the Greek word elpis, which can be translated as “an expectation of what is certain.”

The New Unger’s Bible Dictionary defines hope this way: “The anticipation of a favorable outcome under God’s guidance. More specifically, it is the confidence or certainty that what God has done for us in the past guarantees our participation in what God will do in the future.”

This contrasts with the world’s definition of hope. Most people think hope is just a feeling that what is wanted will happen. The world thinks it is a feeling, while the Bible tells us that hope is based on an absolute certainty.

In the first verse of 1 Timothy, Paul tells us that hope is even a person, our Lord Jesus Christ. Following the same train of thought, when John says that Jesus, the Word, was at the beginning with God, we understand that with Christ there was hope since the beginning of time. John says that Jesus was with God at the beginning and that He was God. Hope started it all. Jesus Christ was with God the Father when all was made. He is God the Son, which means that our hope is based on the God of the universe.

When Jesus was born 2000 years ago, hope was manifested in physical form – hope is God Himself.

In Colossians 1:27, Christ in us is the Hope of glory. In Titus 1:2 and Titus 3:7, Jesus is the Hope of eternal life. In John 6, He is the Source of life. In 1 Peter 2:4–8, He is the Rock on which our foundation is laid. In Revelation 1:11, he is the First and the Last. In Revelation 22, He is the Light of the eternal day. In Luke 24, He is the Messiah who brought salvation by his life, death, and resurrection. In 2 Corinthians 5:19–21, God was reconciling the world to Himself in Christ. And in 2 Corinthians 1:20, all of God’s promises are fulfilled in Him. Indeed, He is our hope and there is hope in Him.

Father, we pray that all eyes would be focused on Your Son, Jesus Christ. We ask Your Holy Spirit to reign over us.