No hope!
1 Thessalonians 4:13 But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope.
A Depressing Situation
One thing a person doesn’t want to hear when they go to the doctor is the statement that “you have no hope.” That is a dismal but honest assessment that some disease is progressing and is incurable. That person has no future to encourage them. They have no earthly hope..
Encouraging Words
I remember taking a car to a mechanic who spent some time going over it and finally turned to me and said, “We can save her.” Those were words that I wanted to hear and they gave me hope with regard to that old car. The nation of Israel heard similar words when the angels announced the birth of the Lord to the shepherds. Gentiles also were given hope that they had not had. They were “strangers” to the covenants of promise in the Old Testament now were being brought near because of the death of Christ according to Paul in Ephesians 2. No longer were they “outsiders” but they could have the same spiritual promises as a Jew. I am glad for that because I am a Gentile. We need to remember that the Lord was a Jew but His Father loved the WHOLE WORLD. When the Lord came, He provided HOPE for the whole world.
The Long Delay
The primitive church looked for the Lord to return during their lifetimes. They were discouraged as they saw people dying and wondered how the dead “in Christ” would be able to participate in the promise of the Lord’s return as given in John 14. Paul said that they should not worry. The unbeliever has NO HOPE but those who believe will actually be caught up to meet the Lord before the living are caught up. There will be those who are alive and remain to the coming of the Lord, but the generation that had “fallen asleep” in Christ still had hope as well. They would be raised to be with the Lord forever.
There has been a long delay since the promise of the Lord’s second coming was made. Many have lost the HOPE that the Lord could return at any time and make things right again. The world is constantly at war. Economies are struggling. The potential for nuclear war gets worse every day. Terrorism is a constant threat. People are killing one another in our cities. The world has “haves” and “have nots”. Politics is now a contact sport figuratively speaking. How can we say there is hope when the future looks so dismal? How can we have hope when it has been so long since the Lord promised to come and make things right?
The Promise is Still True and it is still Certain
I have a hard time understanding how people who feel that this life is all there is have the mental strength to get up in the morning. I realize that it is possible to acquire things, and power, and friends. But at the end of life we still die. And then what? How can 70 or 80 years of happiness in this life be really meaningful if that is all there is? I believe God when He says that after death there is something more. It is called eternal life for a believer. While we don’t know a lot about heaven, it is a place where the believer goes and enjoys the presence of God forever. There are no tears, sorrow, death, darkness, nor anything that defiles. Lies are over. Competition for the most and the best will be a thing of the past. Service and praise to the Lord and peace will be the norm. What a day that will be!
The unsaved do not have that hope. They look forward to separation from God and the blackness of darkness forever. While I don’t understand how the eternal destiny of the unbeliever is also described as a Lake of Fire and a place where the worm doesn’t die and the fire is not put out, I am sure that the Lord can give the unbeliever both eternal conditions. I certainly wouldn’t want to be living without hope. Many people say that when they die they that will be it. That still seems to be discouraging and dismal to me but think of their surprise when they find out that God meant what He said. Imagine dying to wake up with a mind and a body prepared for an eternity of torment.
Please
Many who read this will resent my warning and will say that I am just using scare tactics. Frankly if scaring people is what it takes, then let me do it. I wouldn’t do it if there weren’t an alternative–if there wasn’t something that those without hope can have that will give them a bright future.
Let me say that the world is scary enough right now that it should cause people to start asking where they stand with God. No matter what happens in this life, the believer has an eternity of bliss to look forward to. The believer has HOPE. The unbeliever, not so much. Please, please, if you are an unbeliever, consider the consequences of being wrong and come to the Lord by faith in order to have real hope for eternity.
Bruce Collins
Meditation for the week of December 25, 2016