BE HOPEFUL!

Session 7 (11/15/2023): A Living Hope

REVIEW

  1. Biblical hope is an attitude characterized by a favorable and confident expectation regarding some unseen future reality.
  2. It is a ministry of the Holy Spirit to open the eyes of our heart to the unseen and hopeful realities that we possess in Christ (John 16:14-15; Ephesians 1:15-19; Romans 15:13).
  3. To stay hopeful, we must walk by the Spirit and allow the Word of Christ to richly dwell within us (Romans 15:13, 4; Ephesians 5:18; Colossians 3:16).
  4. Biblical hope enables us to bridge the gap between our present sufferings and the future glory that God has promised and prepared for us (Romans 8:18-30).
  5. The sealing of the Holy Spirit of Promise works to assure the believer regarding his future inheritance (Ephesians 1:13-14).
  6. The blessed hope for the believer is the imminent rapture into the presence of Christ (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18).

STUDY QUESTIONS

  1. Read Luke 22:54-62.  Reflect on Peter’s experience in his failure and the death of his hopes following Jesus’ arrest.  Have you ever experienced the death of something you’d hoped for?
  2. Peter wrote 1st Peter some 30 years after his denials of Christ.  What had changed for him since that day?
  3. Read 1 Peter 1:3-6.  What is the main theme of the passage? To whom was Peter writing? What challenges were they facing (1 Peter 1:6, 4:12)?
  4. 1 Peter 1:3 “bursts forth” with lively themes.  Identify and describe each.  What is foundational to the living hope possessed by the believer?
  5. According to 1 Peter 1:4, what is the nature of the inheritance you possess in Christ?  Contrast the imperishable nature of this inheritance with other perishable things (1 Peter 1:7, 18, 23).
  6. What are the two ways by which this inheritance is assured to us (1 Peter 1:4-5)?
  7. How does the prospect of this future inheritance work to encourage us amidst the troubles we face (1 Peter 1:6)?

APPLICATION

  1. Peter thanked God for the living hope availed to us through the resurrection (1 Peter 1:3).  Are you even now “overflowing with gratitude” (Colossians 2:7) for the living hope you now possess?
  2. How much do your present hopes align with that which is spoken of in this passage?  What can work to help you better refine your focus?
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Author: looking2jesus13

Jerry Conklin, born and raised in Hillsboro, Oregon, served six years in the US Navy Submarine service. After earning a degree in Nuclear Technology, he worked at Trojan Nuclear Plant as a reactor operator. In 1990, after earning a Masters Degree in Theology, he became the senior pastor of Lewis and Clark Bible Church in Astoria for 27 years, also serving as a fire department chaplain and making nine trips to Uganda for ministry work. After his wife’s cancer diagnosis, they moved to Heppner. Since 2021, he has served as the part-time hospice chaplain for Pioneer Hospice. In 2023 he helped establish South Morrow County Seniors Matter (SMCSM) and now serves at the board chairman. In February 2025 Jerry was honored as Heppner’s Man of the Year. In March 2025 Jerry was honored by US Senator Jeff Merkley for his work with SMCSM. Jerry and Laura have four children and three grandchildren.

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