Learning How To Avoid False Hope
Such are the paths of all who forget God; the hope of the godless shall perish. His confidence is severed, and his trust is a spider's web. (Job 8:13-14)People to be healthy mentally, emotionally, and physically need to have hope. Without hope we are in despair and depression. What is hope?Hope is that in the long run I will gain my desires and know victory in life. What is victory?To liveTo love and be lovedTo laughTo learn the truthTo leave an important legacyI might not fully have these things today. But to the degree that I joyfully anticipate that I will eventually gain them I have some hope and feel joy. To the degree I fear I will not have these things then I despair and feel depressed.However, I can have hope falsely because our trust can be in the wrong person or thing. We can be trusting in only our own strength, will, and wisdom, or the acceptance and support of other people, or in some human movement to provide for us the victory we desire. If our hope is found in something that is only temporal and finite then it will fail us.Do we have physical strength? It will fail us. Do we have a quick mind? It will fail us. Do we have some ability or talent? It will fail us. Do some people always support us? They will fail us. Do we just seem lucky? It will fail us. Everything "under the sun" and disconnected from eternity will eventually fail us. It is a ticking time bomb. To trust in such things is to trust in sand as the foundation of our lives. The author here speaks of it like trusting in a spider's web. Well crafted but very fragile.Now why do we trust in such fragile things to give us hope? Because we forget God. We push away the idea that there is one who is outside of time, who is not finite, and without limits. God is not fragile. But making God our hope means we must recognize God's place in the universe and in our lives. To actually make God our hope comes we have to acknowledge that we are totally dependent on God. We have to admit we are not in control. That is hard to do.The reason we live "East of Eden" instead of paradise is that humanity has wanted to "forget God" or twist the image of God into a shape we can control. We are runaways. Prodigals everyone of us. Left the house of the Heavenly Father either by outward rebellion or inwards distrust.God has come looking for us in Christ Jesus. Bone or our bone and flesh of our flesh to give us new hope. To give us a true hope. Christ has found us mauled and beaten by the side of the road, ignored and hopeless. HE is has bound our wounds and is carrying us to life, love, laughter, learning, and legacy. Christ Jesus alone is our true hope. The Lord Jesus is HOPE in the flesh.So where is your ultimate trust today? Have you practically forgotten God in what you trust in to make it through life? Are you trusting in "spider webs" to catch you when you fall? Maybe today would be a good day to remember that God really exists and is a rewarder of those who seek HIM. To remember that God has not forgotten you even when you have forgotten HIM. Put your hope in God as He is found in Christ this day. Christ is the hope of the world and needs to be your hope as well.