Where Does Our Hope Lie?

“Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins.  But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, and since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool. For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.” (Hebrews 10:11-14 NIV)

Two fields never cease to amaze—technology and medicine.  And combined, well, you just sit back and marvel.  Nearly two years ago, I had my natural knee replaced with an artificial one, a combination of titanium and plastic.  It feels so natural that I like to tell people if I were to wake up one day with amnesia, I would think it was the original. Amazing.  Almost every joint in the human body is now replaceable. Even valves of the heart can now be replaced with synthetic ones.  And through the development of new vaccines and treatments, people are living much longer and surviving diseases that once were thought to be terminal.  

And when we look at the evolution of computers, that, too, is amazing. The first portable computer I remember was one the size of a piece of carry-on luggage.  Now a computer can fit in the palm of your hand and we all have them.  They’re called smart phones and it is amazing what they can do.  

Yes, the developments of technology and medicine are mind-boggling and the temptation is to put our hope in them, but even with all the advancements, two things remain upon which they have had not one iota of impact: sin and death.  

For millennia, the Jews had put their hope in their religious sacrifices to take away sin.  They devoted themselves to a life of rituals, but to no effect.  For many today, religious rituals have been cast aside in favor of science and technology.  In them, they believe, are found the keys to life and the solutions to a fallen world.  Like the Jewish priests, daily they enter their labs or an Apple store looking for new advancements in which to put their hope.  And indeed they will find them.  No one can deny it.  Yet, regardless of the awesome new discoveries, sin remains and death is still the ultimate destination for all who live.

This is the stark reality of the modern advances of technology and medicine.  They can do a lot for us, but they cannot overcome sin and death.  And this is a sober reminder we need often because the lure of these advancements can dull us to truth—only Jesus can save us.  And if He is our only true hope in this world, then our devotion to Him is paramount.  He is the key to setting us free from the bondage of sin and relieving our anxiety at the specter of death, for He made the required sacrifice that made all the others unnecessary.  His death and resurrection made victory over sin and death possible.

Today, consider this: To which should you owe your devotion and put your hope—to that which ultimately has no power to free you from sin or death, or to the One who has the power to set you free from sin and give you the hope of Eternity?

© Jim Musser 2016