Your ShelfYour Projects

The Christian’s Hope

8%

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Aug 15, 1907

FromReview and Herald, Vol. 84, No. 33.

Read the full edition

The Christian’s Hope

By Irwin Henry Evans

I. H. EVANS
God never intended that the Christian’s hope should center in material things. The kingdom of God is not of this world, neither is his service in meats and drinks. His kingdom is spiritual, and most of his promises pertain to the life to come.
The reward of the Christian is not measured to him in this world, but is promised at the “resurrection of the just.” Said the Master, “Thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just.” Again he said, “For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father, with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works.”
In the days of Christ the Pharisees taught that a man’s temporal blessings were an index of God’s love toward him. Christ shattered this idea by the parable of the “rich man and Lazarus.” From the lesson taught in this parable, we learn that material things are not looked upon by God as they are regarded by man. Neither riches nor poverty, sickness nor health, success nor failure in the affairs of this life, are evidences of God’s care, nor the measure of God’s disapprobation of the course of his children.
The Christian’s heart is not set on things below. Said Christ, “A man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth,” but the Christian’s hope is in the resurrection “from the dead.” To him all else is of little worth. His gains and losses, his joys and sorrows, are of little value, save as they help him on to the realization of his hope. Not in the present, but the future, is the Christian’s hope. So Paul wrote to his brethren at Corinth, “If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.”
But to attain unto a resurrection from the dead is the crowning act in the life of faith. What matter the ills and misfortunes of the present, of what account are its pains and heartaches and disappointments, if only we can attain unto this desired end? It was this hope that buoyed the heart of Job when suffering the loss of all his earthly possessions, and afflicted with the keenest physical pain. In the floodtide of his sorrow he cried, “For I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: and though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me.”
It was this hope that inspired Paul in his arduous evangelistic labors for souls. He wrote the church at Philippi: “But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, and be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: that I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; if by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.”
The assurance of the resurrection is confirmed by Christ’s own words when he says, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live. . . . Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.”
Life has much of bitterness for us all. If we have not already drunk from its cup of sorrow, we need not think to escape the bitter draught some other day. Every heart has its own secret chamber of grief, and each life its own bitterness. The gospel is given to enable us patiently to bear with the present, that the future with all its glorious inheritance may be ours. Nothing in this life is to despoil the Christian of this triumph. Sickness, poverty, misfortune, even death itself, can not prevent the realization of this hope.
The voice of inspiration lifts the despair from our hearts, and we hear the comforting words, “Thus saith the Lord; a voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rachel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they were not. Thus saith the Lord; Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears: for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the Lord; and they shall come again from the land of the enemy. And there is hope in thine end, saith the Lord, that thy children shall come again to their own border.”
What restfulness this hope brings to the aching heart! What joy amid sorrow! What confidence when in trial! So the Lord says, “Wherefore comfort one another with these words.”