"An Active Hope"
Romans 5:1-5 NKJV
1. Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
2. through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God.
3. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance;
4. perseverance, character; and character, hope.
5. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.
Matthew 28: 1-10 NJKV
1. After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.
2. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it.
3. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow.
4. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.
5. The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.
7. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.”
8. So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples.
9. Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,”he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him.
10. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”
Matthew 28: 9-10 NJKV
9. Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,”he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him.
10. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”
John 20:19-23 NKJV
19. On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!”
20. After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.
21. Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.”
22. And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.
23. If you forgive anyone’s sins, their sins are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”
Matthew 28:18-20 NKJV
18. Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
19. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
20. and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
1 Peter 1:3-5 NKJV
3. Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
4. and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you,
5. who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.