Hope That Destroys Regret

Coffee With God: 8/4/2023 | Hebrews 6:11-12

Hebrews 6:11-12 And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end, 12 so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

Did you know that hope is something we are called to pursue?

It’s true. Hope is not meant to be an esoteric, vague idea that gets mentioned from time to time in passing. For Christians, hope is intended to be a tangible, objective, foundational part of everyday life.

What is our hope, exactly? Our hope rests in the certainty of a few very important things: that Jesus is who he said he was, that he died, rose again, and is coming back to judge the living and the dead and to establish his everlasting kingdom.

In Christ, we also have hope that when he returns to judge the quick and the dead, we will be accepted by him.

That is the hope discussed in Hebrews 6:11, the hope that we are called to pursue and obtain.

We are called to show earnestness in obtaining a firm certainty that we belong to Jesus, now and forever.

Now wait, before you say to yourself, “But I already know that I belong to Jesus!” allow me to say one thing. Most of the people to whom this letter was originally written (the letter to the Hebrews) were Christians. They believed with all their hearts that the blood of Jesus had saved them and that they were following him faithfully down the narrow road.

So why is this included as part of the letter? Why are we exhorted to “pursue an assurance of hope (that we belong to him) until the end”?

The answer is simple: By continually pursuing this certainty of belonging, we will put off sluggishness and lethargy and instead live every day for the one worthy of our faithfulness and devotion (6:12).

Our continual pursuit of Jesus is an essential part of the Christian life.

Lastly, pursuing an assurance of hope does not mean we are uncertain that we belong to Jesus. It means that we are sure that with each passing day, we are getting closer and closer to meeting him face-to-face.

And when we do, we will be able to look into his fiery eyes of love without a single regret for how we chose to live life in his name, for how we chose to honor his sacrifice and his grace.

Hope That Destroys Regret