Title: Waiting Hope
“I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed in us. This is the creation of the creation being set free from the bondage of corruption to the glorious liberty of the children of God. We all know that the creation has been groaning and suffering together until now, and not only this, but also we, the firstfruits of the Spirit. Even we, who have received it, groan within ourselves, waiting for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. For through hope we have been saved, and hope that is seen is not hope. Who will hope for what we see? If we hope for what we do not see, let us wait with patience.
1. If we think about our , it is a series of waiting.
Nothing happens without waiting for something.
In waiting we see progress, in waiting we are guided, in waiting we see fulfillment. However, if you think about it, you will experience that the waiting period also varies according to age and environment. ① When they reach marriageable age (適齡期), young men and women wait for their loved ones ② Married mothers who give birth to children wait for the growth of their children ③ Hospitalized patients wait for a quick recovery ④ People who lived in the sorrow of being homeless live waiting for the day they will move into their new home, and ⑤ For us who are divided, they live waiting for the day of reunification.
In this way, in every way, it is being done in a continuation of waiting. Therefore, in all areas of our life, we can see that waiting is life itself. Conversely, there is no life without waiting. Waiting for something is our life itself. Seen in this way, waiting for something is proof that there is that much hope. All people look to tomorrow in waiting, and in that waiting, they are overcoming today's difficult pain. When there is no waiting in our life, it is called despair.
Everyone, please think about it. How desolate our lives would be without waiting! Because there is waiting, there is an effort to nurture dreams, and because of waiting, we can see that hope grows more and more ripe even in hardship and adversity. All the mothers who sent their beloved son to the army wait for the day that their son will return from military service, not knowing the hardship and enduring all kinds of hardships, and the wife who has sent her husband as an overseas worker looks at the joy of the day her husband returns. We live in “the hope of waiting”.
There is nothing more precious and beautiful than waiting in our life.
Waiting for someone!, waiting for something!, that is life itself, hope and happiness.
The fact that there is still waiting for me is proof that I have hope and love. Because if there is a life without waiting, it is no different than being already dead.
2. The joy of life of faith lies in waiting for the Lord.
Verse 18 says, “I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed in us.”
What does this mean? It is said that waiting for the glory that will be revealed in the future makes us able to overcome even the present hardships. In other words, those who live with the hope of the day they will meet the Lord will be able to overcome the hardships of the present. In other words, we can endure any hardships of the present in waiting.
Therefore, we should have hope to look to the Lord every day. It is easy to assume that we will meet the Lord after we die. We must realize that we do not meet the Lord after we die, but that the Lord is always with us in our present sufferings. Those who live by looking to the Lord in hope are always expected to live today and in this place, listening to the Lord's voice.
Even today, the voice of the Lord that we hear within us always gives us new strength, new wisdom and courage. “Do not be afraid, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you. I will help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand” (Isaiah 41:10).
In this way, even in the face of any fear and in the midst of any persecution or persecution, we can overcome everything by waiting for the Lord who comes in the Word. This is the greatness of the life of faith.
A Dutch theologian, Professor Johannes Halkendik, who fled to the mountains to escape German forces, broke up with his party and published the notes of a Jewish girl who died of starvation and cold in a lonely cave in a lonely cave. A sheet of paper was held in the hand of a girl who died lonely from hunger and cold, and in it were these words: "I can't see the sun right now, but I believe the sun is shining out there. God doesn't say anything right now, but I believe that God is definitely in this cave. Right now, I don't know the news of my family and friends, but I'm sure it's in the kingdom of God. I hope to see you again."
What a touching and precious confession! Even in the heart of a young girl, she was looking to the Lord and was thus facing her death head-on. Although she was a weak and weak girl, she died more calmly and bravely than the general who commanded and commanded thousands of horses. You see that you are not afraid of yourself and have accepted it head-on.
Everyone! Where do you see this courage and strength come from?
Needless to say, it is from the hope of waiting for the Lord.
Waiting for believers is different from waiting for the vain dreams of the world.
What are the dreams of people living with the covetousness of the world? It's a dream to get a lot of money. Rather than earning hard, serious, and hard money, these are the thoughts of trying to earn by stealing, lying, and even cheating. The dream of such people is a shameful dream. Such a dream is a dream that ends in death. So our hope is not a dead hope. It is the living hope of waiting for the glory that will be revealed to us in the future. Therefore, our waiting is a guaranteed waiting.
In fact, if you look at the Old and New Testaments, you can see it as a record of the hope of waiting.
The Old Testament is the word of hope waiting for the Messiah, while the New Testament is the word of hope that testifies of the coming of Christ and awaits the Lord who will come again. This is the 2nd and 2nd of these believers. The prophet Zephaniah of the Old Testament prophesied to the people of Israel who were suffering at the time. "When that day comes, people will say to Jerusalem, "Do not be afraid, Zion. Do not let your arms hang down helplessly. The Lord your God is with you. He is the Almighty God who will save you. He will rejoice and welcome you when he sees you. I renew you with love."
The waiting of our believers is not a vague waiting.
It is a waiting with the guarantee of God's promises that are always with us. Therefore, as in today's text, we are people who live with hope, even though we may be in trouble for a while. “We know that the whole creation groaned and suffered together until now, and not only this, but also we, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan within ourselves, waiting for adoption, the redemption of our bodies.” It means that we are living in the hope that we will inherit the inheritance of God's kingdom even though we are in trouble now. How specific is this hope of waiting? Please think of it as the logic of the people of the world. Those who wait for concrete promises with their loved ones live happily every day. No matter what difficulties we face, no matter what difficulties we encounter, we overcome them in the hope of waiting for the promise. Above all, we must live each day with gratitude as we look forward to the glorious day that will come.
Look at the many people who appeared in the Bible.
Zacchaeus, a tax collector who was being ostracized by his fellow countrymen, met Jesus and was freed from worldly power and greed for wealth and tasted true joy. The beggar who had been damned met Jesus and started a new life by walking and running. The woman caught in adultery met Jesus and was released from the brink of death. Lazarus, who had died, met Jesus and rose from the tomb again. What do all these people have in common? It is the fact that you have met Jesus in your life. And that life has changed. It is the fact that those who met Jesus today will be set free from sin and live with joy in the hope of waiting while looking forward to the day of Christ that will appear in the future.
3. The fruits of faith and love are produced in the hope of waiting for the Lord.
If there is hope, waiting is also happy. But if there is no hope, nothing will be as tedious as waiting. Also, if there is love, waiting is not boring. If you love, you will meet every day, even in your dreams. Therefore, waiting itself is joy, hope, and love. All those who looked to the Lord and lived by faith overcame the circumstances. We overcame any hardship, any persecution, in hope of looking to the Lord. I hope you will see many people of faith in Hebrews 11. Including Abraham, Moses, and many other forefathers of faith overcame reality in the hope of waiting. That is why he said, “Faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen.” As long as there is hope of waiting, the fruits of faith and love are bound to run. Even in the midst of the present hardships, we share love. Why? Because there is someone who looks to the Lord in his heart. Look at people living with jealousy, greed, loneliness, depression, autism, hatred, and cynicism. They have no hope waiting for anyone. Those who have the hope of waiting are destined to live with love.
If you look closely at the above, out of 8 things, 5 are all relationships with your neighbors. That is, it can be seen that it is related to the practice of love. Seen in this way, what kind of person is a mature believer? As someone who has experienced the love of the Lord, it can be said that he is someone who wants to share that love with his neighbors again. So, after receiving the Lord, Zacchaeus said that he would return half of his wealth to society, and that he would repay him four times if he had stolen anything unfairly. This is what it means to be a mature believer.
It is easy for us to think that our faith is good if we pray well like a clearing stream.
And you may think that having a lot of Bible knowledge is good for your faith. And if you are in a church position, you may admit that you have a better faith than others. However, if you do not experience the love of the Lord and believe in Jesus, you will inevitably become more greedy. Like a woman caught in adultery, those who believe without experience of remission of sins know nothing but criticize others. Like Mary Magdalene, who was possessed by seven demons, only those who have been healed can love the Lord. Even today, such people can become mature believers. ♣