Listen to the Sermon
Sermon Details
- Pastor Name: Jonathan Cornell
- Date & Time: August 30, 2015 | 10:00am
______________________________
SERMON SERIES:
Practicing Faith, Hope, and Love
This morning, we continue in our study of 1 Thessalonians, a letter that Paul wrote to a group of people in Thessalonica. His aim for this letter was to help them grow together as a community, to deepen their faith, expand their capacity for love, and also have hope. And to this point in our series, we have looked together at faith, the powerful and active faith that draws people from different backgrounds and experiences together and unites them in a common community—recipients of God’s amazing grace. We’ve talked about love, the love that Paul has for this community, and also about how God intends our experience of his love among one another.
Today, we are going to look at hope, particularly hope in the face of death. All of you know what this is like, some of you more acutely than others. Death is something we all face in our loved ones and in ourselves. All of us will at one point or another face those unwelcome feelings of grief and sadness. But I want to make very clear that today’s message is not about sadness, but hope. My goal for us, as a community and as people who trust in Jesus, is that our lives become increasingly filled with a very powerful virtue, maybe the most powerful—hope. Specifically, hope in the midst of circumstances that are difficult. That is a powerful witness; it is a gift that brings peace during calm waters, that when the waves begin to roll, our lives will be guided and steadied by the powerful and steady rudder of hope.
Download the entire transcript here: 1 Thessalonians 4 13-18 Hope in Grief
