December 6 - Titus 2:13

December 6, 2025
December 6 - Titus 2:13

We often use the word “hope” to describe something that we are wishing for. You might not have to think that far back to remember pulling a present with your name on it from under the tree, hoping to find a specific gift under the wrapping paper. But the kind of hope that the Bible describes is more than wish or a want. It’s a promise. 

Throughout Scripture, God’s promises form the foundation for our hope, from His promise to bless the nations through Abraham, to the promise of a coming savior, to the promise that Jesus gave before His crucifixion that He will return for us.

It’s this final promise that the apostle Paul points us to in Titus 2:13: “Waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ.” In this passage, Paul is calling us to be self-controlled and to live with godly purpose as we wait for Christ’s return.

To live this way means more than simply enduring. It means that we should live every day in
anticipation of His coming, allowing that hope to shape the way we love and serve others. It also gives us confidence to rely on God in every circumstance. So when we walk through seasons of life that feel dark and hopeless, we can rest, knowing that our future is anchored in the steadfast promise of our blessed hope.

You might hear the word hope used a lot this Christmas season and when we use the word hope, we often use it to describe a wish or a want, something that we're hoping will happen. But the reality is when scripture talks about hope. It's way more than just a wish or a want. It's a promise. And we see all kinds of different promises in scripture from God's promise to Abraham that one day he's going to bless the nations of the world through him, to the promise that we see in the book of Isaiah, that one day he's sending a savior in Jesus. And then, of course, the promise that Jesus himself makes when he says he's coming back again. He's returning for us. And it's that promise that the apostle Paul calls our blessed hope when he writes in Titus chapter 2, verse 13. It says this, it says, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. Paul in this passage is calling us as believers to live lives that honor God and to live with an eternal perspective, with this hope in mind. And it means we can have hope regardless of our circumstances today. I don't know what you're walking through. But I want to encourage you, whatever that is, whether it's a season of great joy or a season of sorrow, we have hope because we know how the story ends. And if you're curious about what it is to have hope in Jesus. I want to invite you to join us at Northland Church this Christmas season. We want to share more about what it's like to have hope that transcends our circumstances, to know that our hope is anchored secure in that in that promise from Jesus that one day he's coming back again.