For we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and your love for all of God’s people, which came from your confident hope of what God has reserved for you in heaven. — Colossians 1:4-5
Don’t shake a Christian. Don’t rattle a Christian. Why? Because you can’t.
And you can’t shake or rattle a Christian—even when they’re down. What Paul and Timothy say here at the intro of their letter to the church people in Colosse is that Christians have confident hope. This confident hope comes from the scenes that unfold today where we find darkness and despair at every turn. Confident hope comes in knowing what lies ahead, which Paul and Timothy call a reservation in heaven for those who have faith in Christ Jesus and love for all of God’s people.
When we have faith in Christ Jesus, love for God’s people is easy. And natural. And obvious. And good. And positive. And wonderful. Our faith and love make a difference. I’ll argue that our faith and love is the difference.
We can’t have faith in humanity alone because everyone drops the ball. Sometimes there are big drops. And we can’t have love in humanity alone, either. At least not in the long haul because too many pieces in too many lives remain pieces. Suffering and hardships in life are pointless unless we understand who suffered hardships for us first, and, in so doing, took away bummer eternal endings by giving us eternal life. That is this heaven that Paul and Timothy are writing about here.
Consider the two words ‘confident hope’ together. As side by side partners, the word confident is the adjective; it is a qualifier for the word hope. I’ve heard people say they have little or no hope. I’ve also heard of people having great hope. But confident hope? Whoa! You can’t mess with that!
Confident hope quietly tells us that through the storms and struggles of life that, despite pain and heartbreak, despite bad days, grumpy people, and bubble poppers, that in Christ
Jesus the end is so good.
And the end isn’t actually the end. It’s the beginning of the best.
PRAYER: Help my confident hope, Christ Jesus. My faith is in you, and my love for all of your people is there. Keep me company until heaven for me—and for those I love—begins. Amen.