Here in the beginning of June, MLB is just getting started. Imagine if a pitcher claimed, at this point in the season, that their team would win the World Series. He would be laughed at, thought a hopeless braggart. That’s what happened to Dizzy Dean in 1934, when he bragged that he and his brother would win 45 games and the pennant. People thought he was just bragging, but he famously said, “It ain’t bragging if you can back it up.” And he did. The two of them won 49 games, and Dizzy Dean’s record season of 30-7 still stands today.
As human beings we are inclined to brag, we are inclined to boast. What kinds of things are you proud of, what do you like to boast about? Kids? Accomplishments? Awards? Golf score? The word Paul uses in vs 2 that is sometimes translated “rejoice” can also mean “boast” or “glory in.” What kinds of things should we be boasting about as Christians?
Over the next two Sundays I am going to look at two of them. Today, “we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God.” Our Position in Christ (vs. 1) “We are justified by faith” It’s our starting point, the beginning of all that comes after. All the rest we have because of this. Our Possessions in Christ (vs. 1) “We have” that is, “we possess.” What is it? What do we have?
1. Peace with God. “since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Previously we were at war with God, at odds with God. Now we have peace. - Peace with God is not the same as the peace of God. Peace with God is a permanent change of relationship with God. It is objective and never changes. The peace of God is subjective and variable, depending upon how we react to certain situations.
2. Standing in Grace. “Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand.” (vs. 2) Faith is the vehicle by which we obtain this standing in grace. Paul says that our right standing with God is because of what God has done for us in his Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus lived and died. He paid the penalty for all our sin, and we receive his righteousness by faith. All of this is a gift of God’s amazing grace. And that is what enables us to stand before God.
3. Rejoicing (boasting) in Hope. “we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God.” Our main theme for today. What should Christians boast in? The hope of glory. Let’s look at the phrase: a. boasting. Mentioned before; strong word, “exult” b. glory. In Greek is doxa, “beauty, power, honor”. Where we get our word, doxlology, which means a “word of praise.” In the OT God’s glory was seen in his visible presence in the temple and tabernacle. Moses and the pillar of cloud and fire. In the NT God's glory is seen in the person of Jesus Christ. “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth” Jn 1:14 c. hope. We mostly think of it as a weak word, like a wish. “Hoping for the best” usually means we don’t really expect it.
In the Bible it is much stronger. Hope is “a joyful & confident expectation” of what God is doing and will do on our behalf. “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit,” Rom 15:13. It is the “future tense” of faith.
- Hope is never alone. It is one of a triad of Christian virtues. “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love,” 1Cor 13. What does hope do for us?
- Hope stabilizes the spirit of the believer. “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure,” Heb 6:18-19.
- Hope motivates godly living. “Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure,” 1 John 3:3.
- Hope inspires joyful confidence in God. “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose,” Rom 8:28.
- Hope is associated with victory, not defeat.
- Hope is the expectation of the best God has in store for us. - “Christ in you, the hope of glory,” Col 1:27
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