hope – James G. Owen, Author

by James G. Owen

The disciples were sailing on a ship on the Galilean Sea. It was nighttime and very dark, and I can imagine only a candle lit for light inside the ship on a lower deck. The disciples were on the main deck when the storm began to rage. The ship was listing side to side and being tossed. The front of the ship going up high over the waves. The waves of the sea were very rough. The voyage was treacherous, and the disciples were afraid because they knew that some ships were not successful in making the journey across the sea. Before them, many men had died in similar storms. Peter is watching the storm on deck, and then he sees Jesus in the distance walking toward them on the water. He beckons Jesus to let him walk on the water, to come to him. In those days it was reported by sailors seeing a spirit walking on the water. They believed it was the spirits of the dead who had lost their lives of storms past. In the culture of their day the people thought the storm god Baal was angry and caused the sea to rage.

After hearing Peter’s call, Jesus tells Peter to step out of the ship and walk on the water. Peter obeys while keeping his eyes on Jesus while he walked on the water. As he looked downward at his feet he began to sink in the sea. He began to cry out for Jesus to save him. Jesus was there at the very moment Peter began to be taken down into the sea. Jesus reaches out his hand, Peter quickly grabbed his hand and was pulled upward to safety within the storm. As Jesus and Peter walked together on the water to board the ship, the wind ceased, and the sailors on board saw and believed what they had just witness and saying among themselves, Jesus who walked on the sea is the Son of God. Why? Because no man can walk on the sea without the help of God or being God.

All of us have storms that come into our lives. The storms are various throughout our lives, and these storms either causes us to mature, or they bring us down to destroy us. Many of the storms we encounter is our fault because of sin, lack of faith, or just a circumstance in life. But I am here to tell you after going through many trials and storms in my life there is hope. Where is the hope many may think? They have looked to and fro on this earth while not regarding God our creator. People have looked for peace, love, and hope in the ways of the world, but could not find it because they were looking in the wrong place, and their hearts were not on God. God is the place, the person in which we find hope and we can trust him to get us through. All we must do is obey his commandments and live in his covenant. He takes care of his children. We may go through storms, trials, and tribulation but he is always present. We reach out to him through prayer, fasting, and believing up on his word as we read the scriptures and believe.

The hope that we are looking for to give us peace within this world is a peace of mind knowing we have eternal life as we live our lives. This peace gives us strength to carry on. We receive this hope and peace in giving our lives to God by accepting his son Jesus. This is called salvation because we are redeemed by the blood of the lamb Jesus. When we believe upon Jesus, accept him as Savior, and are forgiven of our sins then we have been given the spiritual tools to victory. The tools given us we will need to learn to use. The tools begin with faith, even though a small measure is given to us at birth we must learn to exercise our faith to see and bring greater things in our lives. To trust and believe what our faith has spoken, and realizing it is the grace of God that has saved us. When the storms come, we should remember our faith and then become determined in our mindset to endure because as we endure, we are working towards an inheritance, a blessing, and a blessing even I cannot comprehend because it is so large and continuous. God loves us and wants us to be victorious! It is his children, those who know him and have given their hearts to him to serve him on earth. Through the salvation process is how we become to know God, and he to know us. Together we enter a relationship of friendship, intimacy, and finally marriage when he returns to receive his bride —the Church.

The spiritual way to victory here I will list to summarize, so that all can see in one place to receive it in our hearts and mind. They are faith, trust, grace, salvation, redemption, peace, hope, Jesus, endurance, and blessings. Jesus is always in the middle of the process. For it was through him we have been given the victory! Through him we have found liberty, peace, and hope to endure. The prize is eternal life.

“I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. “

Philippians 3:14

This process we have been given throughout scripture will get us through any storm, battle, trial, or tribulation. We Americans, and the world are in a global storm. It is a physical and spiritual storm, but the spiritual storm is the largest aspect. We must realize we are seeing evil like we have never experienced. I believe evil will increase as time and days go by until we see our blessed Savior returning in glory and majesty on the Last Day. The last day is spoken of by John in his gospel,

“And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.”

John 6:40

As I conclude this group of scripture presents the truth and the hope to us all. It is only through Jesus that a hope is given that will bring us joy, peace, love, and understanding. Through him hope has become life.

“In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)”

John 7: 37-39

As of Acts 2 the Holy Ghost has been received and has continued until our present day. Jesus sent his Holy Spirit to strengthen us to serve, to empower us so that we can do the same ministry as he did while alive on earth. It is through his Spirit that the rivers of water flow when we receive the Holy Ghost at the time of salvation, and has we experience the living water flowing in our prayers and life. It is the witness of the Holy Spirit to others who see the hope and that God lives within because the Holy Spirit is our witness. Those of you who do not have Jesus in your life you can receive it today. Just reach out, pray, and ask him for forgiveness. This is how you receive hope. Those of you who know Jesus have hope knowing you have him in your life. Arise and live a holy and victorious life!

Notes:

All scripture used is taken from the King James Version, Public Domain, BibleGateway.

Being a Pentecostal all my life, I have come to understand how God interacts with man within man by his Holy Spirit. Man is the temple of God in which he comes to dwell, and there is no other temple that he desires. This interaction of the Holy Spirit within the temple man is an intimate relationship enabling man to hear God’s voice and to use man’s five senses to know God’s presence. It was about two weeks ago before the churches and other public places was shut down that I was at an eldership meeting when the presence of the Holy Spirit came into the building. The fire of God was present, and people could feel the heat from the fire that an angel was dispersing through the people. I went to get in line to be prayed for and I could sense and smell the presence of the Lord. This is not a first-time experience for me as I have encountered the fragrance of God on other occasions by prayer in my own home.

Within the works of the Holy Spirit there is pleasure as God gives joy, peace, and strength to the people, and may express himself through man in the form of laughter, dancing, or just by praise from the person receiving a blessing, or a need met. Listed below are some thoughts I had while reading Psalm 111 during my studies of last fall.

“For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.” Habakkuk 2:14 KJV

^“His work is honourable and glorious: and his righteousness endureth for ever.

He hath made his wonderful works to be remembered: the Lord is gracious and full of compassion.” Psalm 111:3-4 KJV

“God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be had in reverence of all them that are about him.” Psalm 89:7 KJV

Praising God opens door to his work and his glory. His glory is pleasurable, honorable and righteous.
His works are eternal.
His works set as a memorial (altar). Man will remember the work or the miracle. His works are a witness of himself.
As God works, man can see the works of God.
His works are founded in truth.
His judgement is a result of the truth.
His word is assured, set, and never changes.
His word sent redemption, salvation, deliverance, and healing by his work on the cross.
Reverence. The fear of God knowing he has all power to do as he wishes with his creation. Reverence creates wisdom and understanding resulting from innate knowledge.
The door is opened to the fullness of understanding his word.
God never forgets his covenant to man.

In Conclusion, God also interacts with man through covenants. His interaction of man we can see as we study those covenants of the Adamic, Noahic, Abrahamic, Davidic, and the New Covenant. All of these covenants show the glory of God in his promise of a messiah to Eve, his promise of never destroying the earth again by a global flood as we see his rainbow in the sky after a rain, the promise of a blessing to all nations through Abraham’s seed, and that seed that will bless all nations is Jesus. The interaction with man through the Davidic is the promise of a king to rule over a new Earth and Universe that is an everlasting kingdom where sin is not even known, no evil, no danger, and that the Earth is another Eden. This is the messianic era that is future after all things are set under Jesus’s feet. God’s glory is to interact with man in man by saving men, women, and children who want to be with the Lord eternally, obeying him, interacting with him through his Spirit knowing he is a good, loving, and gracious God.

Notes:

All scripture used was taken from the King James Version, Public Domain, Biblegateway.

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