There is no one who will guard your heart like Holy Spirit. He is the gift of God to guide us and keep us safe. When troubles come, and they will, abound in hope by His power. He will never leave you to face life alone.
John 14:16 And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever—
“Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Romans 15:13
Rest in God’s mercy and grace!
…the writer of Hebrews provided instructions based on God's promises.
1. Press in to hope.
Hebrews 10:22 implores, "Draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith."
Now that "we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all" (Hebrews 10:10), we can have confidence (Hebrews 10:19) because our ability to draw near to God does not depend upon our works but upon what Christ did for us on the cross. Not only did His sacrifice pay for our sin, but it also cleansed our conscience so we can come into His presence with "our hearts sprinkled clean" (Hebrews 10:22) rather than stained by guilt and shame. We can press in and find pleasure in closeness with Him and confidence in His faithfulness.
2. Hold on tightly to hope.
Hebrews 10:14 promises that Christ's sacrifice on our behalf guarantees our sanctification, meaning Jesus " has perfected" us by forgiving our sins and also is perfecting us continually, making us more like Himself. Therefore, we "hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful" (Hebrews 10:23).
3. Keep your eyes on hope.
Awaiting the day of Christ's return steadies us from wavering in our faith. Some scholars suggest that when Hebrews was written, many Jewish Christians were forsaking their hope in Christ and reverting to hoping in Old Testament rituals to save them. This may be why they were promised a "great reward" if they "[did] not throw away [their] confidence" (Hebrews 10:35). First5
God's peace releases hope and assurance for what is permanent, guaranteed, and eternal.
Here’s the deal: I always thought I needed to explain grace. Find the box to fit grace in. Bottom line: I didn’t allow myself to simply rest in grace.
Even the parts that I didn’t understand. The gift of grace allowing me to be awake, to love all the parts, the cracks and the uncertainty. To be at home in my own skin. Or, Maria Shriver’s invitation, “This week, I hope you can make room for the unexpected, and when it arrives, show it some love.”
A blessed Lenten season to you. Our invitation to pause, and find ways to go deeper in our relationship with God. Sabbath Moments
If you knew that only a few would care that you came, would you still come? If you knew that those you loved would laugh in your face, would you still care? Christ did. He humbled himself. The palm that held the universe took the nail of a soldier. Why? Because that’s what love does. It puts the beloved before itself. He loves you that much, and because he loves you, you are of prime importance to him.
Want to love others as God has loved you? Come thirsty. Drink deeply of God’s love for you. Ask him to fill your heart with a love worth giving. Max Lucado
John 14:25–28
25 “These things I have spoken to you while being present with you. 26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. The New King James Version
The Greek term used here, paraklētos, refers to a legal assistant in a court who pleads someone’s case before the judge. The judge is God, and people are judged based on whether they follow Jesus’ command to believe that eternal life comes through His death and resurrection (John 12:48–50).
When on earth, Jesus was the means for believers to interact with God the Father since their sin prevented them from doing so directly. The Spirit is sent to do the same work. This is one of His many tasks.
Paraklētos is used throughout Greek literature in a legal context. Jewish writer Philo uses the legal term in a religious context, referring to a sinner pleading their case. The Spirit acts as the means of communication between God the Father and His people. Since God the Father dwells in His throne room in heaven, believers need a means to communicate with Him. The Spirit communicates with Jesus in heaven; Jesus then communicates with God the Father. Jesus’ sacrifice makes this possible since His death atones for people’s sins, providing the Spirit with a reason for believers to be allowed to communicate with the Father.
The Spirit, as God’s means of communication on earth, instructs believers and leads them to follow God’s will. The Spirit gives them access to God, His plans, and His wisdom. He can do so because of Jesus’ sacrifice for sins. They now have a way (the Spirit) to reach God—unencumbered by rituals, sacrifices, or laws—and atonement for their sins (Jesus’ death and resurrection), so that they are free to communicate with God and be in His presence.
Jesus wants His disciples to know that His coming suffering and death is not the end of His ministry; it is the beginning of His ministry’s final purpose and the completion of God’s will for Jesus’ life. Jesus’ disciples should have rejoiced and recognized this was essential for Him to complete God’s work and to unite them with God the Father. Faithlife Study Bible
Jesus told His disciples these things while He was with them, but when the Holy Spirit came, He would remind the disciples of all things that Jesus had said, and would teach … all things. This promise was primarily fulfilled through the lives of the apostles in the writing of the NT. Matthew and John wrote down Jesus’ words. Peter wrote about the gospel in his two letters and may have dictated some of his memories of Jesus to Mark.
The customary good-bye among the Jews was to say shalom, meaning “peace.” The Lord was about to depart, so He added to this farewell by saying, My peace. The word My is emphatic. This is no conventional wish; this is Jesus’ personal, special grant of peace. The peace that Christ gives banishes fear and dread from the heart, for Jesus is in control of all circumstances. This does not mean that Jesus is less than deity. Greater indicates a difference in rank. As the humble, submissive Son, Jesus submitted Himself to the authority of His Father. The NKJV Study Bible
John 15:26 “But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me.
John 2:22 Therefore, when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said.
John 14:1–4 “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you…
John 16:7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you.
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