The Cure for Hopelessness: Finding Eternal Hope in Jesus Christ

Living in Hopelessness

Imagine if you lived in cell number 645 on death row. All your appeals to reexamine your case have failed. You sink into hopelessness. The day of your execution you see someone who could help you. Instead of asking for help, you decide to reject the person’s assistance. But the person hangs around just in case you change your mind. You remember hearing about this person and how they could help, but you didn’t like their style of help, so you passed. But now the situation calls for desperate measures. But then you realize no one can rescue you, only the person you refuse to ask for help.

In your defense, you based your refusal on the information you heard from other people on death row. They said the person really couldn’t help even though the person said they could. They muddy your thoughts with doubt. However, for some reason the pain of your situation clears up your cloudy understanding. As you evaluate if you want the only help you can get, your pride begins to melt under the pressure of your desperation. You begin to realize that the peanut gallery on death row can’t help and that their information is faulty. Also, suddenly you remember witnessing the person helping someone else. Now what you dismissed as a hoax has turned into hope. You turn to the person and say, “Jesus, remember me when You come into Your kingdom!” (Luke 23:42)

Finding Hope in a Hopeless Situation

The day Jesus was crucified, He hung on a cross between two other men who were being crucified. They mocked Him, but one of them changed his mind, a thief. He decided that Jesus was who He claimed to be and decided to ask for help. The help the man needed that day as he hung on the cross close to death did not include a bigger house or a large bank account. His request ensured what would happen after his final breath. God promises eternal life for those who trust Jesus (John 3:16). Somewhere in his mind, he remembered what Jesus said. He may have even seen Jesus perform a miracle. But perhaps life was going good enough to dismiss needing God. But now his eternal destination moved into the number slot on his agenda. The distractions of life no longer a threat left him to contemplate what would happen next.  He decided to make his appeal to the only person that can grant eternal life. He realized that his death on the cross was not the death he needed to worry about. In response to his appeal, Jesus responded, ““Don’t worry, I will. Today you will join me in paradise.”If life has landed you in a space where dim tomorrows occupy your thoughts or if you can’t even imagine a tomorrow, reconsider Jesus. If you have been discouraged from believing in the existence of God, let your hopelessness be evidence that something is missing. Perhaps, it’s God.

Embracing the Hope of Eternal Life

While this life is only temporary, God offers us an opportunity to have eternal life with Him. God promises that He “will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away” (Revelation 21:4). Jesus says, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28). Despite his hopeless situation, the thief on the cross, even in his death, saw the hope of eternal life hanging on the cross next to him. The cure for hopelessness is the hope of spending eternity with God through a relationship with Jesus Christ.

This month we’re talking about hope in light of discouragement, future plans, and the Gospel . Read our last blog!