The Healing Word

Guest (Male): God has something great and beautiful for you in your life. There's power in Christ, resurrection power in the Lord.

Welcome to the Healing Word. We're so glad to have you with us today. Before we begin today's message, Pastor Jack Morris is here with me to share some exciting news. Pastor?

Pastor Jack Morris: Hello friend, I'm Pastor Jack Morris. I would like to unite with you in prayer for your more specific prayer needs. In order to do that, go to thehealingword.com and scroll down to "Pray Now." There will be specific categories such as forgiveness, overcoming fear, healing, decision making, and more. I will greet you, I will pray with you, and then I will share the word of God with you. Friend, God loves you and wants to answer your prayers. Go to thehealingword.com and let's pray now.

Guest (Male): Thanks for the update, Pastor. And I'm ready to pray now. But first, let's continue with today's Healing Word program. Finding hope in the Lord is a journey that can provide comfort and strength during challenging times. Listen as Pastor Morris opens the word of God and unveils the hope and power that can come when you focus on the Lord and trust him.

Pastor Jack Morris: The power of hope. You know the greatest thing in the world is love. It says in 1 Corinthians 13:13 that love abides forever, but it also says that faith and hope abide forever. I want to talk to you just a little while this morning about hope. I have preached a lot of sermons about love and a lot about faith, but not many sermons about hope. But I do hope and pray that the Holy Spirit will come and open my understanding and yours and that we will know where hope fits into our Christianity, for it certainly has a place.

Hope. You know we cannot live without hope. Did you hear me? We can't live without hope. Look at that's on the screen. We are saved by hope. Hey, if we're not saved, then we're not saved. But it is hope that saves us. In a little while I'm going to talk to you about that wonderful definition of hope.

We've had some big storms this past summer. The winds and rains and tornadoes and hurricanes, and I guess up here we have been very, very blessed. But those people in Florida and some of the other places... But even at that, we received the back end of those storms and it has died down a whole lot by the time it got to us. But even at that, some of our shingles went off the roof and some of the trees went down. A big tree went down in my backyard.

And then there was another storm about just about a mile from my house, another big tree went down right across the road. It looked as though it had been put there, just blocked the road and the roots were just hanging out, the whole thing went down. And I thought of why would those two big trees go down? Weren't they big enough to stand up? You know sometimes we look like big Christians, but boy when the storm hits, are we really standing there ready to resist?

Now, I wondered why the other trees didn't go down and why those two went down, but then it came to me that the other trees would bend with the storm. It would bend and then it would bend back, but these two trees wouldn't bend. They looked like they would stand forever, but some of the smaller ones were bending and they didn't go down. Now those little trees, smaller trees and bigger ones also, they felt the force.

Friend, you're going to feel the force, the power of pressure in your life. We're all under pressure and stresses that really are difficult and really just sap the life out of us and destroy us mentally and physically. Stress is a killer. And I liken those storms on hitting those trees, those trees they all felt the pressure. You're going to feel the pressure. You're not going to be exempt from the storms of life. They're going to force themselves against you.

But if you have faith, hope and love, those three roots anchored in the soil of God's grace, when the storm passes over, you're going to still be there. I have seen over the years I've pastored this church and other churches, when the storm hits some and I've gone to their homes and gone to the hospitals and prayed with them and almost begged them and they just gave up on church, gave up on the Lord and just quit. The big tree went over and I thought they were strong, enthusiastic, and the storm hit.

Friend, let me tell you again, some of you right now are being hit by a big storm or I wouldn't have been bringing this message to you. But some of you are right in line for that tsunami. It's coming at you. I don't know whether it'll be today, tomorrow, next week, but I know if you live long enough and if I live long enough, we're going to be hit with storms and lots of storms. But if we bend with that storm and we have the roots, that storm's going to go. It'll pass over.

Can you say praise the Lord? Praise the Lord. And that's what hope is. Hope is there standing strong, bending, not giving in, not being uprooted, but it's there. Hope in the Lord. Hope in what God has done. Deep roots into the soil. And how do we get the deep roots? By just casually going to church on occasion or reading the word once in a while or whatever? You know I'm talking about hope today. Listen to me, you need it and I need it and God gives it if we do our part.

So that's why I prayed and that's why you prayed a moment ago. Open my mind and open my heart to hear and receive the word. There's power in hope. The storms are coming, the storms are here, the storms will continue, but hope will keep standing after the storm.

I read a story of a man in the Midwest on one winter. There was a terrific storm, a great blizzard. I mean the snow was coming down. I lived out in Missouri for a while and I saw how those snowdrifts would just come and pile up, cover the fields and the highways. You couldn't tell where the road was or the field was. And this man had the storm come so quickly and this gentleman was trying to get home, but he couldn't find out where the road was and he couldn't get home fast enough.

And he got caught in one of those, his car did, in one of those snowdrifts and he couldn't get out. And it was freezing and he knew if he stayed in the car he'd freeze to death because he couldn't keep the motor running that long all night long and keep the heater going. So he got out of the car and he started walking home and he thought he knew the direction and he walked and walked and walked and then he gave up and he quit.

The next morning his body was frozen to death only about 200 yards from his house. He was almost home and he apparently thought that he was lost and was going to die, and he did die. Friend, keep on keeping on. The prayer life, the church life, the word of God life, the fellowship of God's people. We need strength that only God can give and that strength is called hope. You keep hoping because God keeps blessing and imparting strength. The poor man gave up.

All right, I said I was going to give you a definition of hope and I'm going to now. Thursday, Shirley Christian was in the office. Matter of fact, we've hired now a secretary to come on board. She begins tomorrow, a very fine Christian lady. But Shirley was coming in helping us out and I'm thankful for everybody that has been helping us out and I was giving Shirley the sermon title and the sermon outline that's in your bulletin and point B, look at your point B, the definition of hope.

The word "the" wasn't there. The word was "a", a definition. And I looked at it and I called her back and I said, "Shirley, the outline says a definition. That sounds like that there might be more definitions." But put up the word "the". Take the word "a" out and put up the word "the" because there's really only one definition of hope. Now I've heard people, and I have said it too, something like, "Well, I hope so." Have you ever said that? Somebody, "I hope so." That isn't hope and there's no definition that I can give you because I don't know any.

But I do know what the Bible says about hope and the definition that the Bible gives, and I have experienced it and I am experiencing it and you are also. Hope. Joseph Thayer, a biblical scholar, gave just about the best definition I've ever read or heard about hope. And listen to it. Hope is a joyful and confident expectation. I'll say that again. Dr. Thayer, a hope is a joyful and confident expectation that what God promises will become ours. What God promises will become ours.

It may not be ours now, but hope says it will be. It will be. That hope brings that promise into my heart and into a reality. Now look at the NIV underneath. I wait for you, O Lord. You will answer, O Lord my God. Now both of them, Psalm 38:15. Both of them are correct. Absolutely. Could have gone either way and they have gone either way. But hope is I'm waiting on that promise. I know the promise is coming.

But when we use the word "hope," we sort of think we sort of vacillate a little bit, "I hope it's coming." No, I hope when I really hope the biblical hope, the biblical definition which is the only definition of hope, then I have that promise within me. It is as already come. I have it. What are you hoping for? Do you have a hope? Think about it for just a moment. What is that hope? When you have the biblical definition, you already have it even though you don't have it yet. The reality of it is in there and you have the assurance.

It's that conscious, joyful expectation that it's a done deal. Wouldn't it be something to have that kind of hope? Well, we can. When we stop playing church or with the word, the hope is there. It will come. Hope is waiting with expectation. I want you to say that. Hope is waiting with expectation. Say it again. Hope is waiting with expectation. I expect it to be here just any minute now, any day now. It is as good as here. Hope is waiting with expectation.

And number two, hope is also a can-do attitude. Philippians 4:13. I can do all things through Christ who strengtheneth me. Friends, you can be stronger than you are, stronger than you think you are. And God will give you that strength and he's given it to you right now this morning. And I believe you're going to leave even stronger. I believe I'm going to leave even stronger than I came in today. God is here to do this for us. It is a can-do.

I think of Thomas Edison who created the light bulb. Why they were so funny-looking light bulbs when he finally created it, but they don't look anything like the light bulbs look now. But he created it and he said this to one of his contemporaries. He said, "We have tried a thousand experiments to create a light bulb, to make a light in a dark room." He said, "You know what? We are a thousand times closer to creating it." A thousand times closer.

Now this man was a Christian man. When he lay dying, his wife observed that he was saying something. His lips were moving. And she leaned over him and put her ear real close and he was looking up with his eyes partially opened, partially closed, and she heard him say distinctly, "It's so beautiful over there." He had hope. A man with hope. He was the one that created the light bulb, but he saw a greater light. Him who is the light of the world. And he said, "It's so beautiful over there."

Friend, it's altogether up to you. You're going to get out of your faith in God exactly what you put into it. That goes with your job. Like the pastor and the ushers were passing the offering plates. Remember when we used to pass the offering plates? Now all you have to put the money in when you go out. We'll get back to it some of these days. And so the pastor took out a dollar to drop in the offering plate. And you know, maybe I ought to say this now to the ushers. Ushers, put some money in in that plate. Don't let somebody come by and look at an empty plate. You know you sort of have to prime the pump a little bit.

Oh, I'm saying things in this sermon that I never intended to say, but you're patient people. Well the little boy, the pastor's little boy was there and when the offering plate went all through and it came back, it only had a dollar in it. Little boy said, "Daddy, if you would have put more in you would have got more out." Friend, serve God. Seek the Lord. Read his word and take it in. Your hope will grow strong. And when the pressures come, you'll be ready for it because you have God, his word, the fellowship of his people. It's all inside.

It is so beautiful over there. I told you the story about my aunt, my mother's sister lay dying and the other sister was there. There were four sisters. My mother wasn't there, but one of the other sisters and her daughter was there when my aunt was dying in the hospital. And she just went away. And my aunt almost screamed out, called her name and just hollered at her, hollered at her. And my aunt opened her eyes and looked at her. And then my aunt said to her, "Don't ever do that again. I was in the most beautiful place and I heard you calling and I came back. When I get there again and you see me there, don't call again."

Friend, your Christianity can be real, not just a theory, not just an "I hope so" religion. It can be the real thing. Hope never passes away when you make it hope for you and your family and your friends and whatever else is going on in your life. Hope never passes away. Hope is for real. Hope is there. Listen to what it says. Faith is the confidence assurance that what we hope for. Now I'll tell you this, there is no difference in the definition between faith and hope. Hope is what we're waiting for. We feel that is already come. But we can also say faith is what we're waiting for. It's the same thing.

It's just there's it's a sort of like a we're splitting hairs on definition of those two words. And I thought, well hope and faith. Faith is when I sit down and I write a letter and I seal it, put the stamp on. This is faith. I take it out and I put it in the mailbox and put the flag up. Now hope picks it up and takes it to its destination. Faith and hope is what God gives and blesses, and that's what he wants to give you today. Don't give up. Whatever it is that you feel like giving up, don't give it up. Trust the Lord, believe God.

Listen to what the scripture says in 1 Peter 1:3. It says, "Praise be to the Lord." That's why we sang just a little while ago, "I sing praises to your name, Oh Lord." I wasn't singing that just to make up some, fill up some time so make it worth you coming to church and have a short sermon. No, I was praising God. You were praising God because God is worthy to be praised. I give glory to your name, Oh God. We sing hymns that we pray over, "Lord, what do you want them to sing this morning? Which choruses do you want us to sing this morning that would glorify you?" And the Lord brings them.

Listen, faith is the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen. It is evidence of things we cannot yet see. The mother says, "I see her walking. I see her running. I see her playing." Friend, she's going to literally see it because it is happening now in her heart, in her mind, that little girl. What a blessing it is. You see God has given us a new birth into a living hope. He has birthed us into hope. Again, animals can't think ahead. They only think and eat now. When they get a good full stomach, they look again when it's dinner time to find something else to eat.

But you and I have a power within us. There is power in hope. Let God impart and do you with that hope and begin to see with the mind of hope, the mind of faith. Faith is when I get down on my knees and I pray and I put it into God's hands. Hope is when I believe that prayer's going to be answered. And I keep hoping day after day, week after week. Twenty-eight days like the parents have been, they keep hoping. Don't give up. God has something great and beautiful for you in your life. There's power in Christ, resurrection power in the Lord.

Storms are coming. They have come. You're still here. More storms are going to come, but the storm will pass over and you will still be there because you have hope given by the Lord. Amen. Amen.

Guest (Male): Hope is the assurance of what God has promised he will provide. Christ is risen and the living Christ is with you to provide living hope. If today's message has blessed you and strengthened your faith in God, would you consider partnering with Pastor Morris and supporting the Healing Word ministry with your prayers and donating to keep the gospel of Jesus Christ reaching thousands?

Go to thehealingword.com and click the donate button to pledge your support. And remember, the faith-building message you heard today is our gift to you. Your donation is your gift to God. Join us tomorrow for another Healing Word message. Until then, blessings on you.