Week of September 14th – God’s Grace for the Hopeless

Key Thought:
The longer we live our lives the more we realize that hope and possibility are intertwined. As long as I can conceive of a possibility, I have hope. As soon as we don’t see any possibility, we lose hope. That’s when people move on, or they file for bankruptcy, or they commit suicide, or they stop trying anymore.

In the Greek Bible the idea of "possible" is the same word as “able” and “power.” When the angel tells Mary in Luke, chapter one, that all things are possible with God, he is telling her that all things are possible to the One who is all-powerful. Or, our English Bibles could say, to the One who is “all-possible” all things are “possible;” to the One who is “all-able,” He is “able to do anything.”

The more powerful someone is, the more they are able to do. If you can get a lot done in life, you are a powerful person. A person who is popular, rich, and talented has a lot of power – they potentially could do a lot. With power/ability comes possibilities which brings hope. However, every person at some point faces a situation where they feel utterly helpless no matter how powerful they are. The good part of coming to the end of our ability is that it leads us to God who is entirely able. That process renews our hope!

δύναμαι [dunamai /doo·nam·ahee/] v.; GK 1538; 210 occurrences; AV translates as “can (could)” 100 times, “cannot + 3756” 45 times, “be able” 37 times, “may (might)” 18 times, “able” three times, and translated miscellaneously seven times.

1. to be able, have power whether by virtue of one’s own ability and resources, or of a state of mind, or through favorable circumstances, or by permission of law or custom.
2. to be able to do something.
3. to be capable, strong and powerful.

Bible Reading:
Monday – Luke 1:26-38
Tuesday – Acts 1:8
Wednesday – Romans 15:13
Thursday – John 10:29
Friday – Romans 8:39

Key Questions/Comments to Ponder During the Week:

1. Share an experience where you came to the end of your own power and felt helpless.
2. Has God ever used a hopeless situation to bring you closer to him?
3. What lessons about hope do you learn from the friends of the paralytic in Mark chapter 2?
4. Have you ever been able to introduce someone who was in a hopeless situation to Jesus?
5. What is our perspective as believers when we take a hopeless situation to God and He doesn’t choose to bring a solution or healing? Is there still reason to hope in this situation?