And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming. If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of him. See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.
-- 1 John 2:28-3:3, ESV
In our modern vocabulary, we use the word hope to push the power of positive thinking. Such hope does not always materialize. I had such hope in one of those hair growth formulas I tried many years ago, but I'm still as bald as an eagle.
The New Testament word for hope is elpis, not to be confused with Elvis, whom my mother hoped was alive for many years after his death. It is a word that is neither optimistic nor pessimistic. Real hope is realistic.
Hope, in the Bible, means confident expectation. It is a bedrock belief in what God has promised in His word, He will do. Hope is a wonderful, and a terrible, thing.
We hope Jesus Christ is coming again. There is ample evidence to prove Jesus came to earth, the first time. While the theological truths of Jesus have been hotly debated for 2,000 years, the historical fact of His existence has never been seriously denied.
With the same hope, we believe He is coming again. John did not write in his epistle "if He appears," he wrote "when He appears." When it happens, it will be a wonderful, and terrible, time.
We hope to see Him in one of two ways. We hope He is coming, and we hope He is coming for us. Just as I believe in a limited atonement in Christ's first coming (His sacrifice only atones for the elect), I am convinced of a limited rapture in Christ's second coming. He will raise and rescue only His "little children," who have been "born of Him," who "abide in Him," which includes "everybody who practices righteousness," whom "the world does not know."
If this is you, then Andy Dufresne's words to Red ring true: "Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies." If this is not you, when Jesus returns, then you have no hope at all, for all eternity. John does not say much about those who will be left behind, other than they will "shrink from Him in shame at His coming." In Revelation, John shows them hiding under rocks.
We hope His love speaks louder than all of our sins. I expect many who profess faith in Christ will be caught not exactly practicing the faith when He returns. Imagine the desperate Christian young lady sitting in the waiting room of an abortion clinic. Think of the recently baptized young boy staring at pornography on his personal computer. A normally nice couple from church are having a horrific argument, in front of their children, calling each other the worst names possible. Then, the trumpet sounds.
What will such sinners see in the eyes of Jesus when He catches them in such shameful situations? "Love," if we are indeed "the children of God." Love is louder and grace is greater than all of our sins.
We hope to be like Him, finally. The purchase of your Christianity was made by God, and God alone. The purpose of your Christianity is to be like God, like the Lord Jesus Christ. This will finally happen when "we shall see Him as He is."
Our bodies will be perfect. We'll run like the wind, fly like the angels, sing in perfect pitch. Our minds will be perfect. We'll understand why bad things happened and how God worked it all for good. Our souls will be perfect in the perfect body of Christ.
This is what I hope. I hope you can confidently expect these things, too, when the final advent comes.
Chuck DeVane is the pastor of Lake Hamilton Baptist Church. Call him at 501-525-8339 or email [email protected].