Psalm 69: 1Save me, O God; for the waters are come in unto my soul. 2I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing: I am come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me. 14Deliver me out of the mire, and let me not sink: let me be delivered from them that hate me, and out of the deep waters.
This is the reality—the predicament—and the prayer. We should be so conscious of our lives that we can identify with the psalmist.
I Peter 1: 3Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
Doesn’t life overwhelm us now days? If you’re not feeling that way right now, be thankful. Realize though that tomorrow it can come again. Just living in this natural world works on our human nature. Our ship of life is likely to have holes in the boat. Once we have holes, we take on water and begin to sink. The world is geared to poke holes in our life ship. The devil works hard to make sure of that.
To stay on top of life and feel fulfilled, people do many things. The problem is that those things fail to give hope. There are lots of promises being thrown around, but they don’t work. There is a general feeling of loss of hope. There is a loss of confidence in what used to make people feel safe. We cannot trust this world and our earthly life. Nothing here can deliver hope.
First Peter gives us the sum of the answer, the explanation of possession of hope that can make life, no matter how rough it gets, unsinkable. How are you doing deep down? Have you been let down by what and/or who you trusted? Is your boat getting holes in it? Do you feel like the waters are getting higher and higher and your boat is about to sink? If we trust the Lord, we will not sink. You can’t say that about anything or anyone else in this world. Nothing can deliver hope and peace in this life or life to come. There is hope today because there is a Person. We have that something because of Someone.
Two thousand years ago Jesus was born. Hope came when the baby cried in that stable. Hope was brought to the world in Bethlehem. Look at Easter and what he brought. The Bible says he bore our grief and carried our sorrow. He was afflicted and smitten of God. All our iniquity was laid on him. The punishment of our sin and the hopelessness that comes with it was upon him too. He suffered to the death. The world was without hope, and Jesus took it upon himself, bore it for us in our place.
All the hopelessness will sink your boat. Put your trust in the wrong things and you will sink. Think about what people trust in. The government can’t give us hope. Wall Street and the dollar won’t help us. It changes daily. There is lots of promising going on with very little following through. The only person with a title who can promise and deliver on those promises is King Jesus. When we know his truth, we are set free. He is the same today as he was yesterday and will be the same tomorrow. He was dead but is alive forevermore. He brings us a lively hope brought to us through his resurrection.
No matter how fit we try to be, eventually something in our physical being will give. We’re not made to live forever. The longer we live, the greater the chance our boat will get holes. Our only hope is the One who took our physical suffering for us. People fail. Friends and family let us down. If our trust is in people, we will have a letdown sooner or later. The only Person we can put our trust in is risen from the dead and sitting at the right hand of God in heaven. He has it together. I can’t guarantee you the moon, but God can. In your lifetime you’ve been promised a lot. What you’ve received has not always been what you were promised. Only One—Jesus Christ—goes beyond what we expect. He died so we can have hope. Because of this, our ship won’t sink when we trust in his ability. Do you know enough? Are you capable enough to handle what comes your way? The fact of the matter is that we can handle very little. You can guard yourself the best you can, but life is a greater power. You can imagine any kind of world you want, but the reality is reality and could be far from it. Hope has to come from someone stronger, someone better. He backs up his word in a perfect way. Where will you find this in the world? You won’t!
Above us is the throne of God. He alone has all power; he has set his Son above all things. Through the power of his resurrection, we have hope for the moment and something better ahead. He alone has all power and all control. He is under our circumstances at all times. Can you say that about anyone else? No! We’re in an insane world. The only sane place to be is with the Lord. He helps us with our thinking. He’s our Shepherd. He takes care of it all. Because he lives he offers a real, living hope.
The Christmas before the maiden voyage of the Titanic, Thomas Andrews, the designer and builder of the ship, sent out cards that stated “It’s not what you think. It’s not what you say. It’s not what you feel. It’s what you do.” The ship was made not to sink. That fateful day, the designer told the Captain not to push it, but he did. They struck an iceberg. It was made so that three of its compartments could fill with water and it still wouldn’t sink. When water went into the fourth and fifth compartments, the designer told them to put out the order to abandon ship. He knew it would sink. It was there in the operating manual that he wrote. People died because they said it wouldn’t sink, making what he said very true. It’s not what you think. It’s what you do.
What you do with Jesus counts. He is the only way you’ll have hope in this life and the life to come. What will you do with Jesus? Your prayer should be as the psalmist: deliver me out of the mire, and let me not sink.
Adwolfe Freewill Baptist Church 