Keep Hope Alive

Hope is the first theme of the Advent season. What does that mean for us? 

A special thank you to singer Evvie McKinney. No rights owned for “Do It Again.”

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Good afternoon, good afternoon, and welcome to our noonday service today. We're so glad that you've joined us. We've been um doing several things over the last few weeks, and we haven't been able to record our noonday services and send them out, but today God is so good and we're able to record. And so we just say thank you to each one of you that have joined us, and we ask that as you get the noonday service, that you will pass it on to others who may need to hear the word. So let us begin with prayer. Father God, in the name of Jesus, we come right now to say thank you. Thank you, Lord, for the beautiful sunny days, thank you, Lord, for the cool weather that we're able to feel it on our skin. Lord, we thank you for all your blessings. We thank you for the ups and downs of our lives because, Lord, without the downs, we don't appreciate the ups. We thank you, Lord, that you are in all things. And we ask right now that you be with several families that are bereaving, that are grieving today because of the passing of loved ones. We speak of the bereaved family of Brother Emmanuel Butler and the bereaved family of Sister Frances Baker Dunham. And we we also, Lord, speak of the passing, the family, the bereaved family of Supervisor Christy Davis Jackson, who unexpectedly passed on Sunday, December 1st. She was the the wife of um our former sixth Episcopal District Bishop Reginald T. Jackson. And so we ask that you be with those families on today. And Lord, we ask that you be with all the sick that are among us, those that have other issues and challenges, Lord. We know that this time of year, so many people have mental health issues and anxieties and worries because it's the season of giving and maybe they don't have to give, or maybe they're unable to do the things that they used to do. Some Lord are without loved ones that that were here this time last year. Just all sorts of things are going on. But we thank you, Lord, that you are here, you are with us, and you will never leave us or forsake us. And we ask right now for your Holy Spirit to come into this place to speak to your people, to encourage us, to inspire us, to help us move forward. We thank you, we praise you. It's in Jesus' name we do pray. Amen. Amen. On today we are coming from the Old Testament book of Jeremiah. Jeremiah chapter 29, one verse, verse 11. Jeremiah 29 and 11. And this is what it says, for I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord. Plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. To give you a future and a hope. And so our subject for this noonday service today is keep hope alive. Keep hope alive. This is the beginning of the season of Advent. Advent is the time of year when we are preparing ourselves for the celebration of the birth of Christ. We're waiting and looking and expecting the coming of Christmas Day with anticipation and joy. Many churches prepare for the celebration of Christmas by using the four themes of Advent, which are hope, joy, peace, and love. So this past Sunday in my church we lit one candle to represent this as a season of hope. Next Sunday we'll light another one for the season of joy, then the season of peace and the season of love. But today I want to talk about the theme of hope. Hope. Our subject being keep hope alive. First Corinthians thirteen and thirteen says now abide these three faith, hope, and love. Paul singles out three of the most important components of our lives as disciples of Christ. And I'm sure all of us know that love is the greatest, and we know that it is faith that pleases God. But what is the role of hope in our lives? Well, hope gives us the motivation to hold on until something better comes. No matter the challenges, with hope we can maintain a positive outlook and a belief that there will be a better future. In July of nineteen eighty eight, Reverend Jesse Jackson gave a powerful speech at the Democratic National Convention in Atlanta, and he ended by telling the people that we should use hope and creativity as weapons of survival. Imagine that, using hope as a weapon of survival. Dream, he said. Hold your head high, stick your chest out because you can make it. It will get dark sometime, but the morning comes. Don't surrender, he said, reminds us that suffering builds character, and character builds faith. In the end faith will not disappoint. So hold on, hold out, keep hope alive. And that speech, my friends, is stuck with me to this day. Keep hope alive. That's exactly what we need to do. But furthermore, Isaiah nine and two says the people walking in darkness have seen a great light. On those living in the land of deep darkness, a light has dawned. The word also says when Jesus spoke to the people, he said I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. That comes from John eight and twelve. And we are right now today people who live in a world of great darkness because sin is all around us. We ourselves are sinful creatures, but we walk in hope because of Jesus Christ. Jesus is the light of the world. So today, no matter what kind of challenges we face, what kind of anxieties we're holding on to, fears we have, worries, concerns, whatever they may be, we need to be remindful that Jesus is the reason for the season, and he's a reason for hope. And then there are several characters of hope in the Bible, examples that we can look at. For instance, there was Hannah. Hannah was rejected by the community and marked as a symbol of failure. Why? Because she was barren and she could not give her husband any children. She was like many of us, someone who was waiting for her miracle. The miracle she hoped for seemed impossible in the natural. She couldn't have any children. There was nothing her husband could do for her, nothing the doctors could do, her neighbors, her family. But she didn't give up. She kept walking and believing without losing hope. She prayed to God. And she let her priest know what her desire was that she would have a child. And God blessed her with a son. And not just any son, he blessed her with Samuel, arguably one of the greatest prophets in the Old Testament. And when he was born, she kept her promise to God that she would give him back to the Lord. So when he was about four years old, she took him to the temple to be raised by the priest. And he grew up there. Hannah was an example of hope. And another example of hope is Joseph. Joseph was born to Rachel, who had been herself baron for many, many years, and she finally had a son. And it was Jacob's favorite child because he had him in his older age, and he was the only son of his his favorite wife, Rachel. And so you know the story. They put him in a pit and then they sold him off to Midianite traders who sold him into slavery in Egypt. And it seemed that he had one, he was dealt one bad hand after another. Even though God was with him. And she told her husband that he had tried to attack her. So Joseph found himself again in trouble. He was put in prison. And even in prison, he rose to the top. And he was a blessing to all the prisoners that were there, especially two that were from the king's household, the butler and the baker. And they both had troubling dreams that only Joseph could interpret. He interpreted the dreams that the butler would go back to being at Pharaoh's right hand, and the baker would be hanged. And things happened just as he told them. But Joseph told the baker, especially the excuse me, the butler, he says, When you go back to Pharaoh's house, remember me when it is well with you, and please show kindness to me. Make mention of me to Pharaoh and get me out of this prison. But the butler did not remember Joseph. He forgot him. But you know what? God is always with us. And when it seems impossible, God makes a way out of no way. Because the king had a dream that he couldn't interpret. And none of his men could interpret it because he insisted you tell me the dream, and then you tell me the interpretation. And only Joseph could. And that was Joseph's ticket out of prison and into being second in command. You know how Reverend Jackson used to say, from the outhouse to the White House. And that was pretty much what happened with Joseph. Keep hope alive. And then finally, one other person I want to talk about that had a hard time and things looked very bleak for. Remember the woman caught in the very act of adultery? And the men brought her to Jesus? They did so to try to trip him up because they said to him, the law of Moses says, When we find someone like this, she's to be stoned to death. What do you say about it? Now remember, they caught the woman in the act of adultery. It takes two people at least to commit adultery. They only brought the woman to Jesus, not the man she was with. And they were trying to get Jesus to say that she needed to be stoned as well, or else they would trip him up for not following the law of Moses. It seemed pretty dark for her. Jesus was her only hope. Because there was no one there to speak on behalf of this poor woman. No family, no friends, no neighbors, nobody. She was all alone. And things looked pretty bleak for her. But the story says that Jesus started to write in the ground. Right. And we to this day don't know what he was writing. Some say he was maybe writing some of the sins of the men that were there accusing her. But he looked up once and he said, You who are without sin, you throw the first stone at her. You cast the first stone. And of course, we know we are all sinners. And so one by one, they left. Not wanting to be the first one, not wanting perhaps for their sins to be made known. And when they were all gone, Jesus said, Woman, where are your accusers? There are none left. He said to her, Then I don't accuse you as well. But go and sin no more. Look at Jesus. Look at how he comes through for us when it looks like there's no way out. But he's there. And so today I want to bring out three reasons for our hope. The hope that we have. I don't know what's going on with any of you today. I know the issues and challenges I face. And I have to remember that there is hope in God. And so, reason number one, the reason why we hope the way we do is that God is all powerful and He can disrupt any situation. Remember when Paul and Silas were in the inner part of the jail, chained, and at midnight when they were praising and worshiping and singing songs of praise to God, God disrupted the situation by bringing an earthquake that made the chains fall out and the prison doors open. God can make a way out of no way. He is all powerful, and it does not matter who man is, God is over all of us. And the second thing is that God is a God of a second chance and a third chance and a fourth chance. We mess up, we mess up all the time. And maybe you've done something that put you on the wrong road, the wrong path, made a poor decision. But God can turn it around for you. And He can risk He can restore you to your rightful place. That's number two. Number three is God promises to be there for us. No matter where we are, He will never leave us nor forsake us. You know Psalm 139? What does it say in verse 7 of Psalm 139? It says, Where can I go from your spirit? The Psalm writer is asking God that where? Or where can I flee from your presence? If I ascend into heaven, Lord, you are there. If I make my bed in hell, behold, you are there. If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me. It doesn't matter where we are. God is there for us. Right there with us. And finally, the fourth thing that I want us to remember about God is that this is the season of Advent. And we have hope number four because of Jesus. Our hope is in Jesus Christ. Because He came and He made things right for us. We have an opportunity to come before the Lord and ask for forgiveness for any sin that we have committed. To ask for help with anything we need help with. Any problems we have, we can put them at the foot of the cross. And Jesus will answer. Today, people, let's keep hope alive. Romans 15 and 13 says, May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. God bless you. Let us pray. Lord, we thank you today for the hope that you give us. Knowing that no matter what we face, what kind of trials or opposition, you are with us. And Lord, you're able to give us peace and joy so that we can enjoy this season. So that we can joy each day. All the blessings that you bring to us new each morning. That we can look upon our loved ones and be joyful. We thank you. We praise you. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Amen on today, everybody. You probably heard my grandson Stephen in the background. He's joyful, and we need to be joyful as well. Thank you again for joining us, and we hope to see you again next week. Now unto him who's able to keep you from falling and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy to the only wise God, our Savior, be glory, majesty, dominion, and power both now and forevermore. Let us all say Amen. Keep hope alive.