“What is hope? Hope is certainty in a good future!”
James Bryan Smith (03/15/2020 Sermon)
“Hope is settled, unwavering confidence that God will not leave us or forsake us, but will always have more in store for us than we can ask or imagine.”
(N.T. Wright)
“What is your only hope in life and in death?
THAT I AM NOT MY OWN, BUT BELONG WITH BODY AND SOUL, BOTH IN LIFE AND IN DEATH, TO MY FAITHFUL SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST. HE HAS FULLY PAID FOR ALL MY SINSWITH HIS PRECIOUS BLOOD, AND HAS SET ME FREE FROM ALL THE POWER OF THE DEVIL. HE ALSO PRESERVES ME IN SUCH A WAY THAT WITHOUT THE WILL OF MY HEAVENLY FATHER.
NOT A HAIR CAN FALL FROM MY HEAD; INDEED, ALL THINGS MUST WORK TOGETHER FOR MY SALVATION. THEREFORE, BY HIS HOLY SPIRIT HE ALSO ASSURES ME OF ETERNAL LIFE AND MAKES ME HEARTILY WILLING AND READY FROM NOW ON TO LIVE FOR HIM.”
(The Heidelberg Catechism, 1563)