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Hope Lives Because Christ Lives

We believe, therefore we speak. God keeps covenant. Jesus saves to the uttermost. Friends, we will not bow to despair, we will not make peace with fear, and we will not let darkness name our future.

Praise be to God, the Father has written hope into the very fabric of creation, into the stories of Scripture, and into the finished work of the cross. Brethren, lift your eyes, take courage, and say it with me, Thankyou Lord, Your promises stand.

Today we gather our hearts around ten living symbols from the Bible, each one a signpost that points to the God of hope, each one a call to believe again, to begin again, to belong again. Hope lives, because Christ lives.

Why Symbols Of Hope Matter Right Now

Bold truth, gently spoken. Symbols preach when our feelings refuse to listen. They help us remember what our trials try to erase. They carry memory, mercy, and meaning. And they do more than whisper, they witness. Every symbol below is anchored in Scripture, and every Scripture is God’s breath to your weary soul. Will you hear it today?

1) The Rainbow, God’s Covenant In The Sky

Promise: “I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth.” (Genesis 9:13, KJV)

Friends, storms come, but they do not own the sky. The rainbow does not deny the flood, it declares mercy after judgment and future after loss. When the clouds gather, God paints a memory across them. The bow is pointed away from the earth, as if the Warrior has hung His weapon, and the color-saturated arc shouts to your soul, The Lord remembers. Ask yourself, when I see the colors, do I run back to fear, or do I run forward into covenant faithfulness?

Take it to heart: God’s promise is brighter than your problem. Look up, breathe deep, and say, Praise the Lord, Your covenant holds.

2) The Olive Branch, Peace After The Waters Recede

Proof: “And the dove came in to him in the evening, and, lo, in her mouth was an olive leaf pluckt off.” (Genesis 8:11, KJV)

Noah did not get a map, he got a leaf. Small, simple, sufficient. That olive sprig was God’s peace note slipped under the door of the ark. Brethren, could it be that God is already sending you a small sign that the waters are going down, even if you are still floating in the fog? Do not despise the first evidence of peace. Receive it, hold it, and thank Him for the new beginning that follows.

Say it out loud: Thankyou Lord, I will treat small mercies as the start of great restorations.

3) The Cross, Love That Opens Eternal Life

Gospel: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16, KJV)

The cross is where hope bled and won. Not sentiment, salvation. Not mere symbol, substitution. The wood became the world’s mercy seat. Friends, stand before Calvary and answer the question, Do I believe this love was for me? If so, despair loses its argument. Sin loses its chains. Death loses its threat. Praise be to God, the cross is our open door to life that never ends.

Decision moment: Believe, receive, and rejoice. Hope is not an idea, hope is Jesus crucified and risen.

4) The Anchor, Steadfast In Every Swell

Assurance: “Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil.” (Hebrews 6:19, KJV)

Waves are real, but so is weight. Our hope is not tied to outcomes, it is tied to God’s oath. The line runs through the storm and into the inner sanctuary where Jesus intercedes. Brethren, the sea can shout, but it cannot move what is moored to the Mercy Seat. Are you drifting, or are you anchored?

Confession: Lord, fix my hope to Your unchangeable counsel, not to my changing circumstances.

5) The Mustard Seed, Small Faith That Moves Mountains

Call: “…If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place, and it shall remove, and nothing shall be impossible unto you.” (Matthew 17:20, KJV)

God is not grading the size of your seed, He is honoring the source of your faith. A tiny trust in a great Savior outweighs a huge doubt in your own strength. Friends, stop staring at the mountain and start speaking to it. The seed does not look like a tree, but inside it a forest is waiting. Plant it. Pray it. Practice it.

Action: Name the mountain, speak God’s Word, and take the first obedient step.

6) The Butterfly, New Creation In Christ

Transformation: “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature, old things are passed away, behold, all things are become new.” (2 Corinthians 5:17, KJV)

Cocoons look like endings, but they are beginnings wrapped in patience. In Christ, the old is not rehabbed, it is replaced. Brethren, stop calling yourself by yesterday’s name. When the Lord says “new creature,” He means new nature, new desires, new direction. Will you crawl like a caterpillar when God has given you wings?

Testimony: Praise the Lord, my past is not my prison. I am made new in Christ.

7) The Lamb, Hope Through Sacrifice And Redemption

Witness: “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” (John 1:29, KJV)

John did not say, “Discuss the Lamb,” he said, “Behold.” Look long. Look low. Look with need. The Passover shadows run to this Spotless Substitute who carries away what we could never carry off. Friends, your shame is not stronger than His shed blood. Your record is not thicker than His grace. Behold Him, and let hope rise on the altar of your heart.

Response: Thankyou Lord Jesus, You are my Lamb, my cleansing, my peace.

8) The Crown, Reward For Those Who Endure

Promise: “Blessed is the man that endureth temptation, for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.” (James 1:12, KJV)

Trials test us, but they also train us. The crown is not for the unbattled, it is for the unbowed who love the Lord in the fire. Brethren, temptation is a thief, but endurance is a watchman. Hold your post. One day the King will place on faithful brows what weary hands could never craft.

Hope strategy: Keep loving Jesus in the pressure, your crown of life is coming.

9) The Light, Guidance For Those Who Follow

Guidance: “I am the light of the world, he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” (John 8:12, KJV)

Light does not make the path easy, it makes it visible. Christ does not hand us a flashlight and wish us well, He walks before us. Friends, if you are stumbling, do not blame the night, check your nearness to the Light. Following is not a concept, it is a step. Then another. Then another.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, lead on, I will follow. Your light of life is my clarity and my courage.

10) The Bread And The Cup, Sustenance Of The New Covenant

Remembrance:
“This is my body which is given for you, this do in remembrance of me… This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you.” (Luke 22:19–20, KJV)

Communion is not a ritual to survive, it is a table to receive. In the bread, we take in His given body. In the cup, we drink deep of His shed blood. Here hope is not abstract, it is ingested, a holy reminder that Christ is our nourishment in famine and our fellowship in loneliness. Brethren, come hungry, leave strengthened. Come burdened, leave forgiven. Come scattered, leave one body in Him.

Gratitude: Praise be to God, for the new covenant that holds when our grip grows weak.

Tying The Threads, Living The Symbols

Rainbow speaks to promise.
Olive branch whispers peace.
Cross declares love and life.
Anchor holds steadfast.
Mustard seed moves mountains.
Butterfly shows new creation.
Lamb assures forgiveness.
Crown guarantees victory.
Light gives direction.
Bread and cup supply sustenance.

See the rhythm. Feel the repetition. Let it preach to you in the night and prod you in the morning.

Appeal To The Heart

Brethren, which symbol is God pressing on your spirit right now? Will you answer Him? Will you trade your panic for His promise, your grudge for His olive leaf, your guilt for His Lamb, your drift for His anchor? Friends, today is a good day to return, a good day to believe, a good day to begin again.

Pray with me:
Thankyou Lord, for hope that does not lie and love that does not leave. We behold Your bow in the cloud, we receive Your peace leaf, we cling to Your cross, we take hold of the anchor, we plant the mustard seed, we rise as a new creature, we behold the Lamb, we run for the crown, we follow the Light, and we eat and drink the new covenant. Seal this word in our hearts. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Next Step For You

Pick one symbol from above.
Write the Scripture on a card in KJV and place it where you will see it daily.
Pray it for seven days, out loud, morning and evening.
Share your testimony with someone who needs hope.

Praise the Lord, hope is not running out. In Christ, it is running over.

Call to Action: The Question That Demands an Answer

In Acts 2:37 Peter and the Apostles were asked the question – What Shall We do?

And in Acts 2:38 Peter answered, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.

Do you understand this? After hearing the gospel and believing, they asked what should would do. The answer hasn’t changed friend, Peter clearly gave the answer. The question for you today is, Have you receieved the Holy Spirit Since you believed?

If you’re ready to take that step, or you want to learn more about what it means to be born again of water and Spirit, visit:
👉 revivalnsw.com.au

Come, and let the Spirit make you new.