Misplaced Hope
The fragility and brevity of human life are easily and quickly exposed. While we know this to be a fact, its manifestation is still a great shock to us. In a moment, it becomes glaringly apparent that life is not as lasting as we had thought, that we are indeed mortal, and what's more, that we are not necessarily in control of very much at all. We are stunned when the veneer of permanence and stability we have ascribed to our world is peeled away. Without much consideration, we view this world, this society with its many trappings, as something steadfast and sure.

In addition, there are many ideals and virtues that we cherish. Justice, liberty, and prosperity, to name a few, are qualities of great importance to us; they are the embodiment of what we value. Though not tangible items, they have attained a sort of transcendent quality and seem to be beyond the attacks of ignoble mankind. And so we believe that we have within our possession a vast storehouse of surety. We think we have found a solid foundation on which to live and build our lives and societies. The items that form this foundation, tangible or otherwise, have secured our trust and have become the objects of our hope. When the things in which we hope are attacked, when the mortality of human life and the frailty of our existence are revealed, we cannot help but seek out both a hope that is real and a life that cannot be destroyed.

Rising Questions
In the midst of great uncertainty, many questions arise within us. Do we muster up our best face, stiffen our resolve, and simply try to return to life as usual? While such a course may seem appealing, or perhaps our only option, within we sense that such a possibility seems unreal and even inhuman. We are thoughtful beings, and as such, we cannot pretend that all is well. We cannot believe that a return to the trivialities of life will bring an end to our questions. Instead, what we must consider is our future. How will we live? What is life really about for us? What can we pick up and hold on to? Ultimately, in what can we hope and upon what do we build? When events in our lives force us to ask such questions, hope no longer remains a faceless longing. More than ever before, real hope becomes our desperate need.

If we are to obtain real and stable hope, the object of that hope must itself be enduring. As we consider what this might be, we must admit that visible things, while we somehow manage to grant them an inordinate amount of importance and place in them a good deal of confidence, are not really lasting. And what of the invisible things, our values, the virtues of humanity, and the ideas we treasure? While we might believe these to be permanent and indestructible, even these virtues seem short and empty today as we recognize that they are potential victims of the evils of mankind. Our growing realization is that this world, however much of our heart it has won, whatever amount of hope we have invested in it, is indeed passing away, even before our eyes.

True Center
"Things fall apart, the center cannot hold." The words of Irish poet William Butler Yeats (from "The Second Coming") ring true to us today. Within, we sense the lack of real stability in our lives and in our world. In such times we realize that we must find a true center, something more powerful than we or even our human society are. There must be a center that is eternal and indestructible. This center can be found only in Jesus Christ and in the power of His eternal and indestructible life. The hope that is enduring and the life that cannot be destroyed are real and they are available to us today. Christ and the power of His indestructible life are our unique need.

Christ is the embodiment of the eternal life, a life that is uncreated, divine, and everlasting.¹ As such, He is the center of the universe, and because of Him there is a definite reason why things do not fall apart. In his letter to the believers in the city of Colossae nearly two thousand years ago, the apostle Paul explained the universe in terms of this excellent person named Christ Jesus. Christ is the center of the universe, he wrote, both its point of focus and source of stability. In Christ and through Christ "all things were created, in the heavens and on the earth." All things in this universe cohere in Him. They subsist together in Him. Like spokes of a wheel held together by the hub, Christ is the universe's true holding center.²

Living Hope
As the embodiment of the eternal life and the holding center of the universe, Christ is the only One who can be our real security. He alone is worthy of our hope. In Him we find the only way to obtain the hope of stability for which we long, because in Him we find eternal life with all of its power and transcendence. Christ with His divine, eternal life is not bound by time or space. His life is unlimited in its capacity; it is an indestructible and indissoluble life, and as such, it is not fleeting and not subject to man's destructive acts.³ Our only chance for obtaining real hope is found by our believing into Christ and receiving His eternal and indestructible life.

This hope is a living hope and it hinges on the eternal life.⁴ While we may view eternal life as something exalted and beyond the reach of mortal men, it is nonetheless obtainable. Eternal life is the divine, uncreated life of God. Such a lasting and real life has been made available to us in Christ and through what He has accomplished. As the Son of God, Jesus came to be life to man and to give man life in an abundant way.⁵ In His work on the cross, Jesus Christ was crucified for our sins, shedding His own blood to redeem us and reconcile us to God. Christ's death, moreover, released His resurrection life. The power of His life could not be held by death. Instead of remaining in the grave, He arose, becoming the life-giving Spirit.⁶ As such, He is now able to impart His eternal life into all those who believe into Him.⁷ His life is the resurrection life—the only life that is true and the only life that can withstand death and rises out of it victorious. Christ and His life are those things which death cannot conquer. They are the object of our hope.

Indestructible
"He who believes into the Son has eternal life."⁸ By believing into Christ, we receive the life that is eternal and indestructible, and with this life we obtain a living hope. As the embodiment of the eternal life, Christ is the only One in whom we can truly hope. We can no longer hope in the things we find in this world, nor can we produce true hope out of our own strength or imagination. Hope is sure only when we place it in Jesus Christ. Unlike our own human life, His life is not fading but eternal. We find real and enduring hope when we believe into Him and receive His life. Then, and only then, will we know and possess the power of His indestructible life.

1 John 11:25. (back) 2 Colossians 1:16-17. (back) 3 Hebrews 7:16. (back) 4 First Peter 1:3. (back) 5 John 10:10. (back) 6 First Corinthians 15:45b. (back) 7 John 3:16. (back) 8 John 3:36.

No matter what your situation, Jesus Christ desires to come into you to be your indestructible life. To receive Him, please open your heart right now and pray the following:

O Lord Jesus! Thank You for speaking Your words of life to me. I have heard Your words and believe them. You are the solid rock and the indestructible life. You died and resurrected so that I could live. I believe in You and receive You right now. Thank You for saving me!