A Funeral Message on Hope

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.
​(Ro 15:13)

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​Life inside a mine is dark, even the lights struggle to cut through the darkness. If you’ve ever toured a mine you’ll know that when all light is turned off it is pitch black.

Darkness is what consumed our beloved.

And darkness is growing in our society.

And on a day like today we feel the effects of that darkness in grief.

Where does darkness come from? The Bible says that darkness is the result of sin, being lost in our rebellion from a good God. (c.f. Ro 6:23a)

In the face of the darkness of sin, we all need HOPE!

Not a fleeting hope that the world offers but true and real and lasting hope that only God can offer and has offered in the Good News of the Death and Resurrection of His Son, for the believer’s forgiveness and gift of life eternal!

What is hope? It isn’t wishful thinking, though it can be. It IS faith in something certain. In this case, God and His word.

I want to dwell upon a prayer for hope found in Ro 15:13, “May.” Paul, an early follower and missionary of Jesus is writing to Roman Christians about Jesus, the hope of the nations. It is a prayer for believers and unbelievers alike, a pray for hope.

It is my prayer that this prayer would become your prayer in this hour of darkness and always.

Three points from this verse:

1. Hope begins with God.

In fact, among His characteristics like almighty, love and truth, mercy, justice, etc, we should add to the list HOPE.

Because the impossible is possible with Him, He can be hoped in.

1. Hope comes by believing

Not merely agreeing that God exists, but trusting Him, particularly, believing in His Son, in His death and resurrection, turning from sin and trusting in Him for forgiveness and new life.

Until this point no one has true and lasting hope. Darkness prevails upon us.

At this point, the very moment you cry out to God for mercy, believing in His Good News, one has hope in the here and the hereafter.   

1. Hope is a gift the believer receives

Forgiven and assured of eternal life by the presence of the HS, the HS—not by works or conjuring—but His power and His filling, the believer gains, no, abounds in hope! We know we are forgiven. We know that He is with us.  We know that the Lord has a bright future for us, and whatever we face until then, that He will help us through it.

As we believe in and follow the RISEN Lord Jesus Christ, ascended into heaven, seated at the right hand of God the Father, coming again to judge the living and the dead, our hope abounds so we have enough not only for ourselves but to offer to those in the deepest darkness.

Friends, those walking in the darkness of sin and grief… Life doesn’t need to be dark. We have hell to shun and heaven to gain. Hope begins with repentance and faith in Jesus. In Him and Him alone we have strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow (c.f. Hymn- Great if Thy Faithfulness). There is a hope… [lead in to closing hymn of that name]