The Gospel & Hope for the World

1. The Gospel & Hope for the World Ephesians 1

2. Ephesians 1 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5 he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace 8 that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, 9 he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10 to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.

3. 11 In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, 12 in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. 13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory. 15 For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God’s people, 16 I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. 

4. 17I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. 18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, 19 and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength 20 he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, 21 far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. 22 And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.

5. Ephesians 1 – A Chapter of Hope • The Hope that comes from the Gospel • The Gospel, which is the Good News of Jesus Christ • Why is Hope so important? • What is Christian Hope? • How will Christian Hope shape our life?

6. Why is Hope so important? Eph. 1:12 – in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. We began to be Christians when we hoped in Christ

7. However, in Eph 1:18 – I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you … There is another hope! Eyes of the heart – Inner being, knowing deep down in our souls, being completely enamored

8. Not enough that we know “the hope,” but we have got to be completely absorbed and saturated with this hope. But what does Hope mean? • Translates from the Greek Elpis • English “hope” too weak • Elpisrefers to something much stronger, based on what or on whom the hope depends on

9. Biblical hope defined in Hebrews 11:1 - Faith is the confidence of things hoped for, the certainty of things not seen.” • Biblical hope is life-shaping certainty about the future. • Living now in a way that is completely changed because of what you know will happen in the future. • That is hope—being certain about the future, something that is not here yet but that which still affects you now.

10. Identical circumstances are processed in completely different ways because of the two different futures that they believe in • We are inescapably hope-based creatures • We are controlled—how we live now—by our understanding of the ultimate future state

11. What is Christian Hope? Christian hope is about the ultimate future • the ultimate future state, not the immediate • “If I live a good life now, I will have peace and prosperity in this life.” • What about Jesus? • lived a perfect, godly, wonderful • yet, rejected, betrayed, tortured, and crucified “A servant is not above his master” (John 13:16); “if they hated me, they will hate you” (Matthew 10:22).

12. Your bad things will turn out for the ultimate good; your good things can never be taken away from you; and the best things are yet to come. • Jonathan Edwards • Looking at Jesus: • Life of suffering • Yet, ultimate and infinite good • There was suffering, but there was hope – of the ultimate good

13. When we don’t understand Christian hope, we are troubled by things that go wrong Because Christian hope is ultimate and not immediate, we should not be surprised when we do not have an easy life The Best Things are yet to come!

14. Christian Hope Personal Hope Vs. 14: • You are God’s possession – God’s treasure Vs. 18: • You are God’s inheritance You are God’s rich, glorious inheritance

15. If God in the past went to enormous lengths to reconcile you to him, paid the ultimate price … What do you think he will do when you meet him face to face? Ps 16:11- You will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand

16. “If we let Him... He will make the feeblest and filthiest of us into… a dazzling, radiant, immortal creature, pulsating all through with such energy and joy and wisdom and love as we cannot now imagine, a bright stainless mirror which reflects back to God perfectly (though of course on a smaller scale) His own boundless power and delight and goodness. - CS Lewis

17. Everything you have ever wanted, everything you have ever longed for, multiplied by a trillion trillion times, will be present in your heart the first second of his embrace of you when we see him face to face. • Tim Keller • That is our personal hope -

18. Christian Hope Material Hope Vs. 14 and Rom 8:23,24: Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in this hope we were saved. • There is the hope of the future redemption of our bodies • We will receive glorious, perfect, beautiful, death-free, disease-free, flawless bodies

19. that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God. - Rom 8:21 • Creation too will be liberated • There won’t be any death or decay or disease anywhere in creation. • “Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy; they will sing before the Lord, for he comes …” Ps 96:12,13

20. Christian hope is not just individual, but it is corporate. It is not just spiritual, but it is for a whole material new world without death or disease or injustice. Do you not think that this understanding of Christian material hope will influence what you think about injustice, and the sacredness and dignity of human life?

21. How Christian Hope shapes your life • Ages before anyone thought of self-esteem, the Christian Gospel told people that the God of the universe counted them as his inheritance. • Every other satisfaction of our heart is a drop compared to the ocean of God’s affirmation of who we are. • “Once you were nobody, but now you are somebody. Once you had no love, and now you swim in it. You breathe it. You wear it.” - 1 Peter 2:10

22. Going by vs. 18: Only if we ask the Spirit to illumine the eyes of your heart so that the knowledge of how he regards us and what he thinks of us infiltrates and saturates us, unless we are ablaze with the knowledge of how he regards each one of us—our lives will be bound in shallows and misery. If we can sink this truth of who we are in God deep into our hearts, we will be unsinkable people. We understand our true worth in God

23. Material Hope is both for ourselves as well as for a world of justice and righteousness. There are many ideologies: • One conservative extreme will say, “there is a good and bad. Accept the good, hate the bad” • A liberal extreme will say, “there is no good or bad, love everything, everyone” - Only a Gospel can combine Justice and Love.

24. When you are led by the hope of the Gospel, you will • Call people to the hope you have • Love them irrespective • Serve and sacrifice for them • Make your world a better place

25. Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed - 1 Peter 1:13