Our text from Colossians 1, verse 3 speaks about the hope which is treasured up for you. That's what it means literally. It is a treasure, and it is laid up for you in heaven, the hope of glory; the hope of seeing our Messiah. When we come to the Letter to Titus, we read about that
'blessed hope and the glorious appearing of our great GOD and Messiah, YESHUA.'
That's the literal translation.
'Looking for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing.'
What is that
'blessed hope'
? It is salvation, not only for the soul, but for the body! The body is important to GOD. The devil disputed with Michael about the body of Moses. Remember how a dead man was let in to the tomb of Elisha, the prophet? And when this dead man touched the dead body of Elisha, he was brought to life! The body is important to GOD.
In the place where YESHUA was crucified, we read in John, Chapter 19, there was a garden. Why do you think the Word of GOD tells us that the place of the Cross was a garden; there was a garden to tell us now, that because YESHUA has died on the cross, the cemetery is now a garden where GOD's children are sown to bear fruit unto eternal life. The cross has transformed the grave into a garden. That's our consolation.
So we have that 'blessed hope,'
and that means our bodies are going to be raised again. This time we will be beyond the reach of sin and of pain and of shame. We shall never die again. Lazarus had to die again. Jairus's daughter had to die again. That young man from the village of Nain, although YESHUA brought him back to life, he had to die again. But when YESHUA rose again from the dead, as the first fruits of the resurrection, He brought us a sure and a certain hope that shall never pass away; that one day our bodies, also, will be transformed; we will have eternal life; we will have a never-dying body. This body will be restored to us.
People ask, 'Is it possible that it is this body?' Yes, because Job says it: 'In my flesh, I shall see GOD. With these two eyes I shall see Him.'
And we read in Romans, Chapter 8 that: 'The Spirit of GOD that raised YESHUA from the dead, shall also quicken this mortal body.'
So you have your body back! If you've had any amputation, or any deformity, or any thing out of order; or if a child dies when it is still very young, maybe even before it is born; still a perfect body will be given to everyone! And it will be recognizable. You and I will know each other in Heaven! We will remember that we prayed and praised GOD on earth; that we wept and we laughed together; and we loved together. That is all part of what is meant by 'that blessed hope'
! And that's what keeps us sober. Our 'helmet'; so that when the devil attacks us, the helmet wards off the blow. Our hope sustains us in the conflict.
We read about this hope; it is an anchor for the soul. Hebrews, Chapter 6: 'Sure and steadfast, and that anchor is lodged in the Holy Place in Heaven where YESHUA is, even now, ministering and praying for us.'
Our anchor is in Heaven, in the presence of GOD. That is the helmet, the hope of salvation. Salvation. Salvation is past, present and future. There was a famous bishop, I think it was Bishop Taylor Smith. Bishop Taylor Smith was a very unusual and evangelical Bishop from the Anglican Church. He was riding in the train, and a Salvation Army lassie was going down the train giving out tracts to people and talking to them. Those were the days when they could do that without being stopped. And she wasn't going to be put off by this man in his Bishop's robes, so she offered him a tract, and he thanked her and took it. She said, 'Bishop, are you saved?' He said, 'Well, the Greek speaks about salvations; past, present and future. Which of those do you mean?' She wasn't going to be put off. 'Bishop,' she said, 'I mean all three - are you saved?' Now that's what applies to every child of GOD. Of course he had the joy of telling her - he firmly believed in YESHUA.