This message was presented on Thursday, February 21, 2019, at the IPHC 6thGlobal Assembly in Santiago, Chile.
By the grace of God, I am thankful for Presiding Bishop Beacham’s invitation to share the message entitled “Place of Hope” with you on this momentous occasion.
I don’t know how much time you spent traveling to this conference. Our 33-member team took 28 hours to fly all the way from Hong Kong. Why are all of us are here, traveling long distances to attend this conference? The main reason is that we want to be strengthened by the hope that has already been rooted and planted in our denomination.
IPHC churches can be found in nearly 100 countries around the world. Imagine if every one of us in this big family lived a life full of vitality and manifested the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Christ in every place–there would be places of hope in all these countries.
This “hope” is not a chimerical idea or a mere emotional comforter. Titus 2:13 describes it as “the blessed hope:”
11 For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people.12 It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, 13 while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.
The “blessed hope” in the Scripture refers to “the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.” It says that Jesus Christ will lead us into an intimate bonding that has no end!
Hence, the “blessed hope” is not remote and far away. It is right here and right now in the present age. The life in the present age has already been connected with the blessed hope promised by God in the future. The present age is the place for Christians to witness this hope God promises.
The blessing of “the blessed hope” helps us live differently in this world. The hope ignites our vitality. It empowers us with the ability to face difficulties, the ability to bear scars, the ability to love and sacrifice, and the ability to serve God as we wrestle against the powers of darkness in this world.
We see many people feeling hopeless as they face poverty, unfairness, sins, sorrows, and negative emotions permeating their entire lives, causing them to suffer from mood disorders that make them feel like there is “no way out.” This is not the way God intends for people to live.
In Hong Kong, the suicide rate is very high. As ironic as it may seem in a well-developed city like Hong Kong, it is in fact plagued with depressing poverty and a worsening wealth gap. Many young people have voiced that they feel disappointed and depressed by the fact that no matter how hard they try, with Hong Kong’s excessive property rates, limited personal space, poor quality of life, and rigid education, they have lost the hope to survive! People in Hong Kong need to hear the message of hope from God through us. They need us to tell them we have a good life to live in Christ.
I launched a youth pastoral plan last year for young believers that were searching for their direction in life and had lost enthusiasm for life. The most basic goal of the plan was to help them live responsibly and live a faithful life. I organized a group of dedicated life mentors in the church to teach these young people to have a positive attitude about work, to write resumes, and to help them discover their talents. The main purpose was to ignite hope in them while they were still young.
A young man who took part in this pastoral plan told us that he was treated like trash by his parents which eventually also made him believe that he was worthless, like trash. He later said that it was God and his brothers and sisters at the church who helped him change and truly believe that he was unique and valuable.
OUR LIVES BECOME PLACES THAT MANIFEST HOPE
11 For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people.12 It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, 13 while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.
Titus 2:11-12 gives clear instruction to Christians who have hope in Christ. This Scripture points out that God plays a persistent role in “coaching” Christians who have hope in Him. “The grace of God” in this context can, therefore, be recognized as God, our coach, who trains and equips us in the present age to live our lives to the fullest.
There are two dimensions of God’s coaching:
- The coaching of saying “No.”
“It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions…” (Titus 2:12a)
The first part of God’s coaching is to know how to say “No.” The Scripture says that God teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions. To “say no” is to irreversibly “remove” and “reject.”
“Ungodliness” means “no God in one’s eyes,” “living a life as if God is absent.” However, without God, how can there be hope?
“Worldly passions” are “sinful impulses” expressed physically. When people’s hearts are filled with sinful lusts and they spend a lifetime satisfying their flesh, they are completely captured by sin. How can their hearts become “a place of hope?”
I find that some of God’s servants, seeing ministry as a job, lose their heart for God. What they remember all day long are their welfare and future retirement. They do not grasp the opportunity to serve God as best as they can; instead, they become servants without vision and dedication! If we unknowingly fall into worldly values and accept a godless attitude toward life, we are literally wasting the identity of being a servant of God.
- The coaching of saying “Yes.”
“And to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age.”
(Titus 2:12b)
The second part of God’s coaching is to know how to say “Yes” as the scripture teaches us to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in this present age.
“Self-controlled” means to live a life driven by the Holy Spirit. This is the only way servants of God avoid being controlled by the need of the flesh!
“Upright” means that we must do our part in living right in the eyes of God.
“Godly” means submitting the sovereignty of one’s life to God; one who does not dare to fall short of the glory of God in complying to sin.
“Self-controlled” is about how you manage yourself. “Upright” is about how you deal with other people. “Godly” is about how you relate to God. Only then can we live a life guided by the Holy Spirit that glorifies Christ! Only then we can make a “place full of hope” anywhere we go. Hope is not a hidden dream for Christians, but a vision for Christians to live out.
PARTICIPATING IN UNDEFEATABLE WARFARE
“…who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good” (Titus 2:14).
According to the Scripture, the word “good” in this verse carries the instruction that we should confront “evil.” When Christ’s followers are willing to overcome evil by doing what is good in the eyes of God, we are indeed making our everyday lives the “place of hope.”
Many people, including some pastors who serve God, stay in their negative emotions for a very long time. While they keep complaining about how life fails them, they somehow give up in becoming involved in the spiritual warfare led by the Lord Jesus Christ.
“Getting involved” is, in fact, a blessing, a precious chance of working together with Christ and being used by Him. No matter how many difficulties we encounter, we should never give up!
Our power in facing difficulties comes from God who is the source of hope. As a matter of fact, the spiritual war has already been won by our Lord Jesus Christ, hence we are participating in an UNDEFEATABLE warfare!
BE THE PLACE OF HOPE: BE A CHRISTIAN WITH ESCHATOLOGICAL HOPE IN GOD
In conclusion, “place of hope” is not referring to the future in a linear timeline but referring to “the present with a hope of eternity.” Whenever we encounter God’s words and make the conscious decision to please Christ, the choice can be seen as an “eschatological choice.” Our “eschatological choices” here and now turn our present existence into a “place of hope.”
As “Christians with this eschatological hope,” we see now as the ultimate end time while we fight the spiritual war of the present age. We should hence make use of every opportunity to glorify the Lord Jesus in various life situations.
My dear brothers and sisters, let our lives here in the present age become a “place of hope.” Let our everyday lives become places of hope. Let the place where we are, become places of hope. Let’s be the places of hope right here and right now! Amen.
Dr. Joanne Wong Yuet-ying
Dr. Joanne Wong Yuet-ying is the assistant field superintendent of the International Pentecostal Holiness Church in Hong Kong. She is also the pastor-in-charge of Wing Kwong Pentecostal Holiness Church, which is a 6,500-strong congregation. Rev. Wong received her Master of Theology in 2001 and her Doctorate of Ministry in 2011.
