The Apostle Peter exhorts disciples of Christ Jesus to be prepared, and therefore able, to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you (1 Peter 3:15). This exhortation begs two questions: (1) what is our hope? and (2) why would anyone ask. This paper is the long answer to these questions as an effort to help the reader to “be prepared.”
Our Hope
There are many in the world who would accuse Jesus’ present day disciples of being escapists. What they mean by this is that they hope only to escape the earthly realm to go to the heavenly realm where they will experience no more difficulties. Inasmuch as these people live in the real world where hope realized is needed today, this neither makes sense nor is it attractive. I would like to say that the world is incorrect, that they just don’t know the hope that we really have. However, I think that their assessment all too well describes a typical Western disciple’s misunderstanding of hope. The world seems to be more hopeful for the world than are many of Jesus’ disciples. Escape is not the hope that Scripture sets forth.
Why Is Hope Needed?
Understanding hope begins with understanding God’s intention for creation, including humanity and what happened that creation came to need hope. First, God created everything and it was good.
And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds and the livestock according to their kinds, and everything that creeps on the ground according to its kind. And God saw that it was good (Gen 1:25).[1]
Second, God purposed creation to be subject to humanity.
And God blessed them. And God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth" (Gen 1:28).
Third, God created humanity in his image and maintained direct fellowship with them for his own pleasure.
Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them (Gen 1:26, 27).
And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed (Gen 2:25).
Fourth, they decided for themselves what was right and wrong in lieu of trusting God and thus experienced shame and fear before the Living God with whom they had been in fellowship. This sin created an unintended dichotomy between humanity and God, between the earthly realm of creation and the heavenly realm of God’s presence. They gave up fellowship for god-like rights.
So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate (Gen 3:6).
Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths. 8 And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the LORD God called to the man and said to him, "Where are you?" 10 And he said, "I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself" (Gen 3:7-10).
Fifth, God, in hope, imposed a curse for their sake. I know; that sounds like a conundrum, but it’s his plan and it’s working.
And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; 18 Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; 19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return. (Gen 3:17-19 KJV). [I depart from ESV in this verse because I believe KJV to have the highlighted section correct. Though it’s possible to translate the Hebrew as ESV, KJV matches NT theology, as you will see below].
So there you have it. Hope is in high demand today because creation is under a curse . . . for our sake. God purposed creation to be under subjection to humanity, but now we, a humanity that chooses a god-like right to choose right and wrong for ourselves, are subject to a creation that is full of chaos, sickness, disaster, and etc.
The Curse For Our Sake . . . God’s Hope
A creation subject to a humanity in perfect, intimate, and obedient fellowship with God would permit both a realization of creation’s original purpose and great gain for humanity. However, a creation subject to a humanity apart from fellowship with God, a humanity deciding for themselves what is right and wrong, would be a catastrophic formula. Ergo, the curse is for our sake and, if you will, for our good. Read this passage before we move on:
For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. 23 And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience (Rom 8:19-25).
Creation which was to realize its purpose in subjection to humanity is now subjected to futility (i.e., purposelessness) . . . in hope. God intends for humanity to have a reason to come back to him. When humanity arrives back in at his presence, creation will be freed to realize its intended purpose, subjection to a humanity that is in fellowship with God. We should ask ourselves this question, if there were no curse on creation working against us, why would we need God and therefore want to come back to him? Additionally, in humanity’s current insistence on using its selfish and petty god-like ability to choose for themselves what is right and wrong, how can creation be better off subject to humanity? The answer is the restoration of a correct hierarchy: humanity in subjection to a God who is love and creation in subjection to a humanity who loves. God’s hope is that the futility, chaos, and even suffering will compel humanity to reach out to him.
Our Hope
Our hope is a new heaven and new earth. Our hope is the removal of the dichotomy between the earthly realm of our experience and the heavenly realm of God’s presence. There will be a day that these two will be reunited.
as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth (Eph 1:10).
A day will come when everything will be new just as it was when it was created. God will dwell with humanity once again.
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. 2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. 4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away." 5 And he who was seated on the throne said, "Behold, I am making all things new." Also he said, "Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true" (Rev 21:1-5).
Creation will at that time be able to finally realize its purpose (i.e., be subject to a loving humanity). Humanity will finally be able to realize their purpose (i.e., be in fellowship with God and enjoy a harmonious creation).
A Few More Details that We Hope For
- God will be all in all, i.e., everything to everyone (1 Cor 15:28).
- We will have a new body, one that will be suitable for the renewed and reunited earthly and heavenly. It will by like Jesus’ resurrection body (1 Cor 15:12-23, 42-49).
- Death, presently a power over us, will be defeated (1 Cor 15:24-26).
- All causes of sin and law-breakers will be removed, ergo, no more exploitation, injustice, oppression, greed, selfish purposes, people who choose for themselves what is right and wrong (Matt 13:41-43).
The Interim Between Hope and Hope Realized
A growing group, disciples of Jesus, lives this hope. It is more than lived; it is experienced in part. Reconsider a couple of verses from our Romans passage:
And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies (Rom 8:23).
We who are in Christ have the Holy Spirit, which is a firstfruit. When the Jews offered a firstfruit to the Lord, it was the very first of any crop that came ripe. They offered that portion because it anticipated an abundance more. Disciples of Christ have the firstfruit that anticipates an abundance more. Paul, in another passage, calls the Holy Spirit a guarantee or down payment (Eph 1:14). Disciples experience a taste of what is to come; it keeps us hoping.
When Will Hope be Fully Realized?
Jesus is coming back. When he comes back, what is not made right by the work of the church, will be dramatically corrected—the correction is depicted in apocalyptic language in 2 Pet 3:8-13—via a separation, the removal causes of sin and law-breakers. The separation at that time will be the culmination of our hope. Jesus speaks of the separation, specifically stated in Matt 13:41-43. It will be the removal of evil things and people, not good things and good people. Ergo, I take passages like Matt 24:40, 41 to be the removal of people who are not interested in participating in a renewed heaven and earth where God will be deciding what is right and wrong, where God will be everything to everyone.
At Jesus’ second coming, he will bring disciples who have died. Consider this passage:
For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord (1 Thess 4:16, 17).
Contrary to popular Western Evangelical teaching, please consider that this is not a so-called rapture wherein disciples leave to a heavenly realm never to return. This is Jesus coming back to a renewed creation, bringing with him disciples who have already died a physical death, and those remaining alive on earth, going out to usher him in. He was once ushered into Jerusalem humble riding a donkey, this time he’ll be ushered into a renewed creation, mighty and riding a white horse (Rev 19:11-16). Supporting the assertion that Jesus is coming back with his disciples, not to obliterate creation, but to renew and abide, is Rev 21:1-4. New Jerusalem, i.e., the bride of Christ, the church dead, is coming “down” from the heavenly realm so God will dwell with men.
So back to the question, “when will hope be fully realized?” From the perspective of calendar dates, I don’t know and neither does anybody else. Speaking from the perspective of events, hope will be fully realized when Christ returns.
Why Would Anyone Ask the Reason for Your Hope?
First, let me suggest that if a disciple plan to escape one day by death or rapture, thinking he may as well let the world go to hell-n’-hand-basket, he doesn’t project a hope that communicates to a real world in real suffering. However, if he lives a hope and experiences the effects of hope, it will be both visible and attractive to the world, compelling them to ask. Disciples must be integrated into a kingdom community, i.e., a church. In a kingdom community, there must already exist a removal of exploitation, oppression, the effects of poverty, injustice, inequities, discrimination, and etc., that’s a hope visible and partially realized. The church, the corporate body of disciples, is the hope of the world today as it multiplies and expands to encompass more people in kingdom conditions.
As individuals, disciples impact the world they live in unto the present realization of kingdom conditions. Whatever station a disciple holds in life, he works toward the renewed creation that hope envisions. As he prays, “your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” (Matt 6:10), he’d better be open to being the answer to that prayer. Scientists do research to reverse the effects of futility. Teachers mold minds to anticipate a renewed creation and that can therefore work toward the same. Service industry workers demonstrate the kind of service in love that the kingdom anticipates. Engineers design systems that are friendly to creation and humanity. Artists create works that glorify God alone. Work all-out like it matters. It does matter. The work disciples do now contributes to the end-result.
Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain (1 Cor 15:58).
So the world sees that disciples work relentlessly where there seems to be no hope, that they are joyful in the midst of suffering, that they live with a tenacious purpose, and then the world asks. And you disciples can tell them why because you’ve heeded the exhortation to “be prepared.” Invite somebody to follow Jesus with you.
