✝ Daily Encouragement (10/27/22) "Christ the Sure and Steady Anchor" (Part 4)
Published: Thu, 10/27/22
A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope, encouragement and exhortation. The online Bible teaching ministry of Stephen & Brooksyne Weber.
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Thursday, October 27, 2022
"Christ the Sure and Steady Anchor"
(Part 4)
Note: All this week we are using both the same verse and theme song as we consider twelve types of hope we have in Christ, highlighting three each day. Today we consider three more ways in which Jesus Christ is our sure and steady anchor of hope. Points 1-3 were shared in Tuesday's message and 4-6 in Wednesday's message.
Message summary: Place your hope in Christ the sure and steady Anchor, a hope that brings comfort, joy and stability!
"We who have fled to take hold of the hope offered to us may be greatly encouraged. We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure" (Hebrews 6:19). Christ the sure and steady anchor
Through the floods of unbelief Hopeless somehow, o my soul Now, lift your eyes to Calvary This my ballast of assurance
See His love forever proved I will hold fast to the anchor It will never be removed 7) "Christ the Sure and Steady Anchor" is a comforting hope.
We've all experienced disappointments and many have experienced significant losses, including the loss of a loved one or perhaps a spouse due to a break-up or a wayward son or daughter. Such losses often lead to deep grief and distress. Receive great comfort from this verse, "O Hope of Israel, its Savior in times of distress" (Jeremiah 14:8). God's delight is to administer comfort to wounded souls. The Irish poet Thomas Moore wrote it this way in his hymn, "Come Ye Disconsolate", "Earth has no sorrow that heaven cannot heal". (Disconsolate describes one who is inconsolable, without consolation or solace.) 8) "Christ the Sure and Steady Anchor" is a joyful hope.
“Be joyful in hope” (Romans 12:12). Christ came to bring us “a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair” (Isaiah 61:3)
When people outside our area ask where we live, we usually tell them Lancaster County, Pennsylvania since many in America are somewhat familiar with our area and can mentally picture our region. Less familiar is the name of our small town, Mount Joy, which we really like to identify with (though we do live outside the borough limits). Mount Joy sounds as if its name might have originated from Scripture such as Mount Sinai or Mount
Zion. Mount Joy prompts a consideration of many verses conveying joy.*¹
There are multiple sources of joy in one’s life; a newborn baby, a wedding, a milestone or accomplishment such as a graduation or job promotion. People also find joy in activities such as sports or being a spectator at sporting events such as the current World Series, especially here near Philadelphia.
Paul expresses, in the four words of our text, a blessed outlook for those belonging to Christ to "be joyful in hope". Essentially it seems when we are joyful we are hopeful and when were hopeful we are joyful!
An old chorus comes to mind that some of you will remember:
Joy is the flag flown high
From the castle of my heart (3X) Joy is the flag flown high From the castle of my heart When the King is in residence there! 9) "Christ the Sure and Steady Anchor" is a fixed hope.
"Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure" (1 John 3:2,3).
Our vital outlook is to keep our hope fixed on Christ. A similar truth is expressed in Hebrews 12:2,
"fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith". In reference to "fixing our eyes on Jesus" other versions/commentators expound:
The song we are featuring all week has a line "This my ballast of assurance". Tony de la Riva writes,
"Calvary, is my ‘ballast of assurance'. So what exactly is a ballast? Well, in keeping with the nautical theme, a ballast is essentially the weight at the bottom of a ship that keeps it upright and prevents it from capsizing. And the song says that Calvary is the ballast of my assurance.
Think about what this is saying: The ballast that guarantees the non-capsizability of my salvation is not my own performance, not my moods, not my consistency, not my faithfulness, not my sincerity, not the fact that I prayed a prayer, walked the aisle, or signed a card, but that Jesus has died instead of me. It is the death of Christ that ensures my salvation cannot be capsized. His death is the ballast of my assurance.”*² Place your hope in Christ the sure and steady Anchor, a hope that brings comfort, joy and stability!
Christ the sure of our salvation,
Ever faithful, ever true! We will hold fast to the anchor, It shall never be removed. Be encouraged today, (Hebrews 3:13)
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
![]() Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources
"Christ the Sure and Steady
Anchor" Video T4G Live IV Another presentation of the song we have featured all week. This is the type of vocally dominant congregational singing I am especially blessed by.
"His Mercy Is
More" playlist Video Keith & Kristyn Getty, Matt Boswell, Matt Papa, Shane & Shane
*¹ Mount Joy is actually named after an Irish ship rather than a mountain (since we are not on or near any mountain)! Another interesting village name here in Lancaster County is Mount Hope. It would be interesting to explore the derivation of this name. Since many devout religious immigrants settled this area in the 18th century it possibly represents an expression of faith.
*² Lyrical Expositions: “Christ the Sure and Steady Anchor” by Matt Papa and Matt Boswell. We normally think of exposition in regard to a careful study of the Scripture text. This blog has lyrical expositions of several thoughtful songs.
Yesterday I had a lunch
meeting with leaders and teachers from our "Crossroads" Sunday School Class, known as an Adult Bible Fellowship (ABF) in our church. The inevitable has happened as we have aged, we are now in a senior class with most members being 60+! Presently we use a variety of bullpen teachers, giving us older teachers, who still have some gas in the tank, to keep active without teaching every week. Our oldest teacher is in his 80's. In our group we have two businessmen, two missionaries, a
college administrator. Best I can tell I am the only former pastor/chaplain. Each one brings an interesting and varied approach.
Click on photo to enlarge Autumn foliage in our
backyard.
Click on photo to enlarge Manheim, PA farm next door to our friend, Lamar Dourte, who took this photo. We talked with Lamar via telephone this morning. He was diagnosed with ALS several months ago so we lift him up in our daily prayers as he deals with the progression of this disease. Lamar's wife grew up on this farm and her family later sold it to an Amish family who resides there now.
Click on photo to enlarge
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