Train to Live on Mission – Week 11

Battle Drill for Easter:

Walk with the Living Hope!

Romans 8:18-25 (NAS95)

 

Today, we are going to walk through the four action steps of a soldier’s training routine to learn the battle drill for Easter – “Walk with the Living Hope!” As one of my friends said to me on Thursday as we were sharing about our walks with Jesus, “Put your hope in the Living Hope – the Hope above all hopes; the Hope over all other hopes.” Today, we are going to learn that Jesus Christ is the Living Hope! We are going to train ourselves to walk with Jesus as our Hope above all, before all, and over all other hopes so that we are not hijacked by lesser things.

 

The following are some real-life examples of lesser things to guide us along this journey, remembering that “lesser things” doesn’t mean unimportant or not urgent things, just not things that we can’t reliably put our hope in if we want to live out the Easter miracle in our daily lives:

 

  • The promotion at work or a new job or the goal of retirement.
  • The college acceptance letter.
  • The dating relationship or marriage or even children.
  • The medical treatment plans.
  • The athletic victory or the completion of your bucket list.
  • The diet or fitness plans.

 

None of these things can guarantee you that which you hope they are promising you. It is easy to put our hope in any of these things to complete us, to help us feel better about ourselves, to make life worth living, but none of these can be our first and foremost priorities for which we live or build upon as our hope for the future. Because hope is not wishful thinking! Hope is the certainty of our faith in God for the future He promised. We must realize that there is only One who can keep and fulfill His promises. That is what the promise of Easter is all about, as Jesus said in John 11:25-26, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?”

 

Do you believe this and are you learning to take Jesus at His word in your everyday life? That is the question for today and the thrust of your ability to live out this battle drill – to live with Hope is to believe that Jesus is who He said He is and can do that which He promises – “the resurrection and the life.” In what or in whom are you putting your hope? This is an important question because you will devote yourself and be shaped by that which you put your hope in!

 

Paul teaches us in 1 Corinthians 15:20, “Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep.” It is because of Jesus’ atonement of sin on the Cross of Calvary and His victory over death through His resurrection that Jesus is the Living Hope. This is why we remember to open up the Field Manual and tell the story of Easter. This is why we celebrate!

 

Action Step #1) Know the Field Manual.

Paul gives us practical wisdom on how to apply the battle drill of Easter in Romans 8:18-25:

 

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body. For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it.

 

Because Jesus Christ is the first fruits of the resurrection, we who put our faith in Him, can walk in the power of His resurrection through the “first fruits of the Spirit.” John taught us in 1 John 4:4 to Spirit-walk in a creation that groans with pain and suffering: “You are from God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.” On that first Easter, Jesus defeated sin, Satan, and death, so that, as Jesus proclaimed in John 16:33, we may walk in His victory: “These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.”

 

Persevere in this hope – the Living Hope! Don’t let the score at half-time prevent you from experiencing Christ’s victory. Persevere with the Living Hope and you will overcome as you learn to walk with Him, through the resurrection power in you. That takes us to action step #2.

 

Action Step #2) Train together as one unit.

There is a story of two men who were distraught with the grief of Jesus’ death and did not know of the hope of the resurrection, yet. They walked together to Emmaus and Jesus joined them. Listen to this resurrection story from Luke 24:13-35:

 

And behold, two of them were going that very day to a village named Emmaus, which was about seven miles from Jerusalem. And they were talking with each other about all these things which had taken place. While they were talking and discussing, Jesus Himself approached and began traveling with them. But their eyes were prevented from recognizing Him. And He said to them, “What are these words that you are exchanging with one another as you are walking?” And they stood still, looking sad. One of them, named Cleopas, answered and said to Him, “Are You the only one visiting Jerusalem and unaware of the things which have happened here in these days?” And He said to them, “What things?” And they said to Him, “The things about Jesus the Nazarene, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word in the sight of God and all the people, and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him to the sentence of death, and crucified Him. “But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, it is the third day since these things happened. “But also some women among us amazed us. When they were at the tomb early in the morning, and did not find His body, they came, saying that they had also seen a vision of angels who said that He was alive. “Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just exactly as the women also had said; but Him they did not see.” And He said to them, “O foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! “Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?” Then beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures. And they approached the village where they were going, and He acted as though He were going farther. But they urged Him, saying, “Stay with us, for it is getting toward evening, and the day is now nearly over.” So He went in to stay with them. When He had reclined at the table with them, He took the bread and blessed it, and breaking it, He began giving it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized Him; and He vanished from their sight. They said to one another, “Were not our hearts burning within us while He was speaking to us on the road, while He was explaining the Scriptures to us?” And they got up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found gathered together the eleven and those who were with them, saying, “The Lord has really risen and has appeared to Simon.” They began to relate their experiences on the road and how He was recognized by them in the breaking of the bread.

 

You were never meant to walk alone! Walk with a traveling companion and you will experience the promise of Jesus Christ from Matthew 18:20, “For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst.” This is a powerful promise of Jesus walking with us as we walk with one another. Hebrews 10:23-25 commands all believers of the importance of doing life together, not just on Sundays and high holy days such as Christmas and Easter, but as a rhythm of our lives:

 

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.

 

We walk together to encourage one another so that our lives bring glory to God through our love and good deeds, shining brightly of Jesus’ resurrection power in us through the first fruits of His Spirit. That takes us to our third action step.

 

Action Step #3) Seek the Commander’s approval.

Lesser things can be important and urgent, but when we allow them to get a hold of our hearts and minds, we find ourselves hijacked by the worries of this world. Lesser things, when prioritized above our walk with Jesus, cause us to struggle in experiencing the promises of God. Peter emphasized this in 1 Peter 1:3-9:

 

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ; and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, obtaining as the outcome of your faith the salvation of your souls.

 

You will have tribulations and hardships in your life. Walking with the Living Hope doesn’t change the reality of your sojourn through this fallen world, where you will experience the distress of various trials, as Peter said. When you walk with Jesus, then your perspective of your circumstances is not bound up in the momentary sufferings, but rather is captivated by the Living Hope and His eternal weight of glory secured for you through Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. This is what Paul intended through his encouragement given in 2 Corinthians 4:17-18, “For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.”

 

As we move to our last action step of training ourselves according to the battle drill of Easter, remember that your greatest witness is how you walk through the testing of fire that is the circumstances of your life, whether that be through painful times of hardship and suffering, or through dangerous times of ease and success. Either way, whether in seasons of richer or poorer, sickness or health, we are to CM – Continue the Mission!

 

Action Step #4) Live on mission.

The third and final Scripture we are going to read today is a proclamation of the preeminence of Jesus Christ from Colossians 1:15-20:

 

[Jesus] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything. For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.

 

Does Jesus have first place in everything? We finish where we started, “Put your hope in the Living Hope – the Hope above all hopes; the Hope over all other hopes.” This is the battle drill so guard your heart from allowing any lesser hope from captivating your devotion. You were created, by God, to live a life of devotion for His glory, so train yourself to live on mission by prioritizing your walk with the Living Hope through every circumstance of your life.

 

It is for your peace with God through the forgiveness of your sin that Jesus Christ died on the Cross. It is for your peace of mind and heart that He gave you the first fruits of the Holy Spirit.  Until you are at peace with God and at peace with yourself, you cannot fulfill God’s mission in your life to be His living embodiment of the resurrection, a signpost of Heaven, an image bearer of His glory. It was for this purpose Christ came and until He returns you are chosen and called by God to bring the hope of resurrection to all people by walking with the Living Hope.

 

Make this battle drill a reflexive, instinctive, and habitual part of your Christian life so that you can CM – Continue the Mission! Therefore, live on mission today and train the battle drill of the week for the glory of God. Let us pray.
 

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