Hope with Belief
As children we loved going to the beach in Summer. Our mother faithfully plastered us in sunscreen and painted our noses with neon-pink zinc cream. Our father would line us up and give us the usual beach lecture which included always swimming between the flags, not going out too deep and if at any point we got into trouble in the water, we were to put our arm up in the air to signal to the lifesavers we needed to be rescued. Then off we would go into the surf. I recall one day, the waves were rougher than usual, and a girl was carried out into the deep, choppy waters. As she was struggling to stay above the water, she shot her arm up in the air to get the attention of the lifesavers. In a flash, the rescue mission was mounted as the lifesaver jumped on his rescue board, and paddled out, to save her.
Why did the girl put her arm up? She did so as an act of hope with belief. Her belief that the lifesavers could and would save her fuelled her hope of being rescued. The moment she signalled she was in trouble and needed to be saved, the rescuers responded. The girl’s belief gave her hope of being saved from drowning.
The focus of a rescue mission is not on the person in trouble. Rather it is on the rescuer and what determines their capability to save someone. The role of the person in trouble is to believe, having a sure hope they will not drown and blend into the ocean, under the relentless crashing waves.
Romans 10:9 reminds us we have a qualified rescuer, Jesus. An Australian lifeguard doesn’t just front up to the beach, put on the iconic red and yellow patrol uniform, strap a flotation device to their back and hope for the best. They must be qualified. No one would believe in their ability to save people if they weren’t accredited. When it comes to life and faith, Jesus is the only one qualified to save us and connect us to God because He is our resurrected King. God’s stamp of approval for Jesus to be our uniquely qualified Saviour is the resurrection. Jesus sanctions our salvation and gives us hope.
When we declare with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in our hearts that Jesus is the risen, reigning Lord, that declaration of belief is our signal to God that we need to be saved and God completes His recue mission on the basis of the finished work of Christ. We place our belief in Jesus and the hope of our salvation becomes a living reality and a daily experience. We confess Him as Lord, believe in His resurrection credentials and continue to attest to the truth that is imbedded in our hearts.
God’s rescue mission continues, not just as an initial act of our salvation but every single day. When we put our arm up in the air, needing to be saved, upon the confession of our faith and belief, Jesus saves us past, present, and future. Our belief brings us daily hope.
Hope with belief becomes a defining feature of our faith as our love for Jesus grips our hearts. There is a little saying that says, “what grips your heart wags your tongue.” Jesus is the centre of our lives. We love Him with our hearts; with our entire beings and we keep confessing this truth because want others to have a salvation story to tell. What a rescuer we have!
Friends, as you think about your own rescue story and stand in awe of Jesus, your Saviour, you do not stand alone. God joins every believer to the body of Christ and together we stand on the shores of life, confess Him as Lord and shine a beacon of light, hope and belief to the rest of the world, declaring there is a rescue mission that can lift them up and out of the torrent waters of meaninglessness and into the living waters of Christ. Be assured that your belief in Jesus will deliver you safely to the shores of hope where you can sit at His feet and continuously call him Lord.
Blessings
Tina