Where there is pain, there is living hope! I Peter 5:8-9 says, “Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your family of believers all over the world is going through the same kind of suffering you are.”

‘Watch’ and ‘stand’ are common terms used back in ancient times because they didn’t have the technology we have today. Peeps back then didn’t have cameras nor video recording door bells. They had to use there eyes and their feet (old school) to keep watch of their surroundings. Paul was equally familiar with these two terms and in I Corinthians 16:13-14 he said, “Watch! Stand firm in the faith! Be courageous! Be strong! Let all that you do be done in love.”

If you noticed in each passage of text ‘be strong’ is a motif and Ephesians 6:10 adds, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.”

When we are overwhelmed by stressed it’s easy to call it quits! You might even think you are alone, but on the contrary! We have been grafted into the family of God with full access to the throne of grace to receive help and mercy in our time of need (Hebrews 4:16).

Our present condition is not our conclusion. Despite the incessant deadly blows the world throws at us, we don’t have to live in pain because we serve a Savior who delivers, restores, and heals! In times of difficulties we should always turn to God in prayer as it’s our only conduit to supernatural strength and peace (Philippians 4:6-7).

Beloved, we can find living hope in pain because living hope is found only in Christ Jesus! I Peter 1:3 says, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (CSB). The Greek term for “hope” in this passage means “an eager, confident expectation.” This hope of the believer is not only “living” but “lively.” The CEV translates the phrase as “a hope that lives on.” Unlike the empty, dead hope of this world, this “living hope” is energizing, alive, and active in the soul of the believer. “We live with great expectation,” as the NLT puts it. Our living hope originates from a living, resurrected Savior.

That being said, it’s imperative for us to remember that we don’t ‘watch’ nor ‘stand’ in vain. Our living hope is solid and secure! Hebrews 6:19-20 confirms that, “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain. Jesus has entered there on our behalf as a forerunner, because he has become a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek”(CSB).

Never forget, Jesus Christ is our Savior, our salvation, our Living Hope!

#Watch #Stand #BeStrong