320. Full Assurance of Hope
Hebrews 6:11 And we desire that every one of you do shew the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end.
God promises a full assurance of hope. Hope is the present reality and tangible substance of a desirable future that is not yet seen with physical eyes. The blissful, perfect, sin-free, and eternal life with God in a pleasant paradise is a future experience that cannot be proven beyond a reasonable doubt to our present state of existence in this visible world. Hope is the faith that sees the future; that hope is absolutely, positively, 100% guaranteed to us with full assurance. Hope pulls the unseen future into our present predicament and gives us a present day experience of what we can’t yet see.
Hope “remembers” both the past Christ event and also the future promise. When we hear the Gospel the Spirit touches our spirit with truth and life. When we remember our Baptism through dying and rising by repentance and faith we pull the past miracle of salvation into today. When we partake of the Lord’s Supper we “do this in remembrance of Him” and make the past event of death and resurrection a present truth in daily life; it is also a foretaste of the feast to come.
Paul’s desire (and Jesus’ desire) is that you show the same diligence unto the end of your life, or to the end of the world, whichever comes first. How do we show diligence? Not by trying hard to be a better person and doing good works with human effort; not by resolutions and promises to change our ways; and certainly not by pious and religious works righteousness and self-righteous attitudes. But we show diligence by hearing and remembering the Gospel through daily repentance and faith in Christ. Diligence is not working harder, but diligence is telling and reminding our soul of the hard work of Jesus Christ for me. Diligence is hearing the Law that convicts and condemns and the Gospel that forgives and saves. Then we have the full assurance of hope.