There is no hope on earth. Only hope can pull people out of the mire of troubles and sins. Hope is the force that creates and shapes us and the world. It is a gift that comes to the patient and faithful.
Jesus Christ is the true hope. Light has descended into our darkness.
We hope, knowing "that he who raised the Lord Jesus will also raise us with Jesus and build with you" (2 Cor 4, 14). If the resurrection of the body will take place on the last day, then the resurrection of our hearts is already happening now. Our bodies will perfect what is already happening in our hearts.
Belief in the resurrection of the body is extremely important. God saves and redeems the whole person. Not only his soul, but also his body, because the whole man is the image of God, the whole man is precious to his Lord.
The prophet Isaiah speaks in the name of God: "Your dead will live, their bodies will rise, for your dew is dew, shining light, therefore the land of shadows will give up the dead." Awake and rejoice, all you who lie in the dust" (Is 26, 19).
The sign of the Christian faith is the Risen Jesus Christ - the hope of eternity.
Christ "destroyed death and brought life and immortality to light with his gospel" (2 Tim 1, 10). Risen to rise! Christ is our true hope!
Christ's DEATH on the cross and resurrection created a new covenant between God and humanity, introducing a new presence into human life in which Christ and the Christian share presence together. <...> By baptism - immersion in Christ - the Christian is actually identified with Christ's death, burial and bodily resurrection: "Did you not know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? So by baptism we are buried with him in death, so that just as Jesus was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, so we too may begin to live a renewed life. If we are mature for the image of his death, we will be mature for the resurrection" (Rom 6, 3-5)".
This is where our hope comes from - from the mystery of Christ's suffering, death and resurrection, which gives us a new life close to God. A life we share today and will enjoy abundantly in eternity. The more we are filled with the light of Christ, the more we kindle hope in the hearts of other people. It makes all of our lives richer. After all, we are resurrected to new life to resurrect others!
What do we need to strengthen our hope? First is trust. Trust in the all-conquering goodness of the Lord, His faithful love: "If God is for us, then who is against us?!" If he spared not even his own Son, but gave him up for us all, how could he not with him give all things?!" (Rom 8, 31-32).
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