MEMORY VERSE: ‘Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.’ Romans 15:13.
LESSON AIM: For all people, Jew and Gentile, to have hope through the Holy Spirit.
‘The apostle Paul exhorts us to lay hold on the hope set before us in the gospel. By faith we are to appropriate the promises of God, and to provide ourselves with the abundant blessings which have been secured for us through Christ Jesus. Hope has been set before us, even the hope of eternal life. Nothing short of this blessing for us will satisfy our Redeemer; but it is our part to lay hold upon this hope by faith in Him who has promised. We may expect to suffer; for it is those who are partakers with Him in His sufferings who shall be partakers with Him in His glory. He has purchased forgiveness and immortality for the sinful, perishing souls of men; but it is our part to receive these gifts by faith. Believing in Him, we have this hope as an anchor of the soul, sure and steadfast. We are to understand that we may confidently expect God’s favour not only in this world, but in the heavenly world, since He paid such a price for our salvation. Faith in the atonement and intercession of Christ will keep us steadfast and immovable amid the temptations that press upon us in the church militant. Let us contemplate the glorious hope that is set before us, and by faith lay hold upon it.’ Lift Him Up, page 331.
1. What does the Bible say is the Christian’s anchor? Hebrews 6:19.
NOTE: ‘Jesus lives, and because He lives we shall live also. From grateful hearts, from lips touched with holy fire, let the glad song ring out, Christ is risen! He lives to make intercession for us. Grasp this hope, and it will hold the soul like a sure, tried anchor. Believe, and thou shalt see the glory of God.’ My Life Today, page 183.
2. What event brought this vibrant hope to us? 1 Peter 1:3.
NOTE: ‘Is there any reason why this lively hope should not give us as much confidence and joy at this time as it gave the disciples in the early church? Christ is not enclosed in Joseph’s new tomb. He is risen, and has ascended up on high, and we are to act out our faith, that the world may see that we have a lively hope. Our hope is not without foundation; our inheritance is not corruptible. It is not the subject of imagination. We read in the Bible about the resurrection of Christ from the dead, but do we act as though we believed it? Do we believe that Jesus is a living Saviour, that He is not in Joseph’s new tomb, with the great stone rolled before it, but that He has risen from the dead and ascended on high? He is there to plead our cases in the courts of heaven. He is there because we need a friend in the heavenly court, One who is to be our advocate and intercessor. Then let us rejoice in this. We have everything for which to praise God.’ In Heavenly Places, page 45.