“To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” (Colossians 1:27, NIV)
In our crazy, chaotic and deeply challenging 21st Century world, it is so important to have the ability to look beyond what we see on our social media feed, the 24-hour rolling news channels, or the conversations about the cost of living we hear in our communities. We who are in Christ have a different perspective, a different standing, a different focus, and a far greater hope. This should always cause hope to flow from us.
We should never allow our confidence, attitude or understanding to be like those without hope (1 Thessalonians 4:13) because we now know that we (gentiles) have been adopted into God’s family and given an eternal inheritance (1 Peter 1:4). Not only that, we have been chosen to share in God’s glory. While this glory is God’s alone, He calls us to share in the experience of it through Christ.
“Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory.” (Romans 5:2, NLT)
So in the turmoil of this world, we are not like those without hope, we can live with a sure and steadfast hope that we will one day reign with Christ (2 Timothy 2:12). Yet, this is not just a hope of a future experience, this hope is deeply rooted in our relationship with Jesus now! At the moment of salvation we become part of God’s family, in that moment of calling, we are justified and also ‘glorified’ (Romans 8:30).
“The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one,” (John 17:22, ESV)
Therefore, this hope of experiencing the glory of God’s Kingdom is certain for the future, but the amazing thing is we get to experience it now too. We get to have a perspective of hope, and while those around us are often driven by fear, uncertainty, or confusion, we can be consistently influenced by this ‘hope of glory’. We get to partner with God in implementing His will in this world too, and as we live in and influence this world, we have the daily hope of seeing glimpses of glory as God moves in power to reveal this profound hope to others.
So Jesus is the root of our confidence, our perspective and certain hope. It is Christ in us who is our hope of glory! We can overflow with this hope because Jesus has secured our present and our future. We know we will have tribulation in this world, but we also know that He has overcome the world (John 6:33). Therefore, let us be good and faithful stewards of this hope within us! And as we rub shoulders with those who are filled with fear, uncertainty and gloom, let this hope of glory erupt from with you and influence the atmosphere around you!
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” (Romans 15:13, ESV)