The Only Message of True Hope

Ephesians 2:12 – “That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world.”

In describing the spiritual condition of the Ephesian believers before they came to Christ, Paul used the words, “having no hope.” Hopelessness is a dreaded condition. This is the desperate plight of every unsaved person. Outside of the grace and mercy of God and salvation through Jesus Christ, they have no hope. The Bible is very plain about this basic and fundamental fact; there is no salvation without Christ. People have no promise or assurance of help, or forgiveness. They are “without God in the world.”

It did not say that they are hopeless because they are without religion. Most people in the world are religious, even if they are trusting in a flawed or completely false religion. Suicide bombers are religious. Those who practice infant baptism are religious, but they have a false hope as they trust in their sprinkling for salvation. Humanists are religious, as they have made gods of the will of man. Buddhists, Hindus, and cultists are religious. But according to the Bible, those without Christ are without hope.

But thanks be unto God, we have an enduring hope because of our faith in Jesus Christ! Our hope is not anchored in a “religion” but in a Person. We have been given great hope through the promises of the Word of God. Christ abides in our lives. We have been made nigh by the blood of Jesus Christ. We have been adopted into God’s forever family. The blood of Jesus Christ has washed us and cleansed us. We, who were hopelessly lost, are now filled with joy and hope through receiving Christ!

The world we live in offers no genuine hope. The occupants of this society, and the cultures of the world, are for the most part, hopeless. The only true and meaningful hope is found in Jesus Christ. Because we have found hope, we have a message of hope to share with others. May God help us…those who have been redeemed from a state of hopelessness to a position of peace and assurance…resolve that we will, with our best efforts, spread this message of hope to a world that has no genuine hope.