Tabor Baptist Church

Introduction

• Opening remarks - Church Name
• We need hope
• How do people find hope in today's world?
• The bible is very clear about the reason for this loss of hope
• It is because people are living without God
• Phil
• To be without Christ and God is to be without hope
• Christians should be those to offer hope
• Though difficult situations can shake us
• The lives of the early Christians was not easy
• Hope
• Many passages of Scripture speak about this
• Looking specifically at 1 John 3:3

A Certain Hope

• Every Christian has a certain hope
• Not an ordinary 'hope'
• The biblical definition - absolute and certain
• Fixed to events that are absolute and certain
• Historical events of fact
• Future events still to happen
• cf Prophecy foretold this morning and others that have come true in Jesus Christ
• Example of tent
• Fixed particularly on two events:
• The Son of God was manifested - 3:2, 5, 8
• Christ came into the world
• God was manifested in the flesh - 1 Tim 3:16
• The Second Coming - 3:2
• The Son of God was manifested
• He was perfect
• He came alongside others
• He spoke the truth and had wisdom from God
• His enemies could find nothing against Him so had to make up lies
• He was pure and kept every commandment
• He was without sin
• He offered His life as a sacrifice
• The Cross is central to our hope
• Heb 6:19 - our hope is anchored at the place of sacrifice
• The resurrection is central to our hope
• 1 Peter
• The Second Coming
• Jesus Christ will return one day and judge the world
• All will appear before the judgment seat of Christ
• He comes to raise up believers to glory
• For those that know Jesus as Lord and Saviour
• A new heaven and a new earth
• 2 Peter 3
• No death or sadness

A Christ-Centred Hope

• "Hope in Him"
• He/Him - the Godhead or Christ?
• John is emphasising the unity of the Father and the Son
• A oneness but a distinction in their persons
• If we have seen the Son, we have seen the Father
• See Him - Christ
• We cannot see the Father or the Holy Spirit
• We cannot be conformed to the Father or the Holy Spirit
• Not just fixed to events in the past/future but centred on the God-man Jesus Christ
• If He were not the God-man, we would have no hope
• Who but God could deal with the enormity of our sin?
• Only God can provide a sufficient sacrifice
• Only a true man can sympathise with us
• Not just what He has done, but who He is
• Quote from Warren Weirsby - "When the outlook is gloomy, try the uplook"
• Focus your eyes on Him

A Characteristic Hope

• A hope of what the true character of a Christian should be
• A hope lived out in the nitty-gritty of our lives
• It is a practical hope
• It enables us to live holy lives
• Believers can be called 'children of God'
• We can be welcomed into His family
• We can be given a new life
• We can be given the Holy Spirit
• We should live as children of God
• We should lives that reflect the holiness of God
• We will identify with Christ and reflect something of His Holiness
• We are being sanctified
• This must be the reality
• cf 3:4-6,9
• Not perfectionism
• cf 1:8–2:1
• We do not continue in the pattern of sin, though we do sin
• We immediately confess our sin to Christ
• Present continuous tense - continuing to sin - 3:6,9
• Examples
• We have been transformed and live differently
• If we have been born into the family of God, we must reflect this characteristic
• We must display the likeness of Jesus Christ
• This will affect many areas of our life
• Examples

"Everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure"