Hope for 2010 in Christ Jesus

What is hope? As a noun, hope is defined as a trust, a confidence, a desire accompanied by confident expectation of fulfillment.

Do we have hope in 2010? As believers of Christ, the answer is yes, we do have hope for the coming year. We have hope in spite of gloomy forecasts or otherwise, because we have the love and grace of our Savior Jesus Christ.

Love of Jesus. 2009 has been a mélange of the good and the bad: calamities and blessings, mistakes and accomplishments. As we review the past year, we identify several should-haves and shouldn’t-haves. “I should have read my Bible more” or “I shouldn’t have said those hurtful words.” So we come up with a list of Do’s and Don’ts called New Year’s Resolutions. Some say New Year’s resolutions are good only for New Year’s Day, or for the month of January at best. How about us, are we trapped in a cycle of resolutions that we ultimately fail to do?

Resolutions are better achieved not by a list of do’s and don’ts but by a growing relationship with Jesus. Focus on Jesus’ extravagant love. John 15:13 says, “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends…” Jesus suffered and died a humiliating death on the cross to pay for the penalty of our sins. When we know about Jesus’ love for us, we in turn are able to love our neighbors. “We love, because He first loved us,” says 1 John 4:19. Through the love of Jesus Christ, we can hope that, for the coming year, we can be better Christians.

Grace of Jesus. Justice serves offenders the punishment they deserve. Mercy withholds that punishment. Grace withholds the punishment and gives the offenders a gift they do not deserve.

Absurd? Grace always will be, unless we view it as its recipients. The Bible tells us we are recipients of Jesus’ amazing grace. We were yet sinners when Jesus died on the cross for us. Ephesians 2:8-9 tells us, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.” Jesus meets us as we are, where we are. And when we screw up, God wipes our slate clean.

Grace is a gift. It is God at work, the opposite of which is me at work, me trying to figure out what I can do to help me with God. When we endeavor to become better persons this year, it is not to earn God’s amazing grace, but to respond to it. Amazing grace has no prerequisites or conditions, and it is not
an obligation. When God gives us a clean slate when we screw up, we are moved to extend the same to others—to our spouse, our children and our officemates. Grace is so amazing, it moves. If we are not moved by grace, we probably have not really understood it.

Changing for the better in 2010 goes beyond making New Year’s resolutions. It entails a change of mindset. We focus on what has been done, on the love of Jesus Christ and His amazing grace for us. Through God’s grace, we have new beginnings, second (and third) chances, and a hope for the coming year.

Hope in Jesus. Jesus said in John 16:33, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

Jesus invites us to find peace, not in church nor in religion, but in an intimate fellowship with Him. The peace Jesus offers us is no ordinary peace. John 14:27 describes it as a gift the world cannot give. “In this world, [we] will have trouble.” It may not be tomorrow, it may not be next week, but trouble will surely come. Nevertheless, our hope is in Jesus Christ who has overcome the world.

When we find ourselves at the absolute bottom, look upon the cross of Jesus Christ, where He died to rise again on the third day, and see His extravagant love, His amazing grace and His overcoming, saving power. Trouble will come but Jesus has overcome. The question is, will we turn to Him when trouble comes?

What would the 2010 be like? No one knows for sure, but our hope is in Jesus Christ, our Overcoming Savior. So let’s fix our gaze on His extravagant love and saving grace as we move forth in the year head, then 2010 becomes a Christ-filled and joyful new year indeed.