What an amazingly beautiful three years it had been as the divine Son of God walked with His disciples and followers. They had all been filled with hope beyond their wildest imagination. They received more than just a glimpse of the new life in Christ as they observed Jesus overcoming the many obstacles from both the religious community and the power structures of decadent Rome.  From the many healings to the casting out of demons, and the many other miracles it brought forth an amazing hope for humanity in their darkest hour. But now things were different as they huddled together in the upper room to escape the prying eyes of the cruelest power on earth. Whatever happened to the hope that would deliver them from their cesspool of misery, long before they would classify this as depression and anxiety? All of Christ’s most ardent followers shared the same memories of a new hope for humanity who embraced the power of love and forgiveness. Somehow the light from within was still shining brightly even in the dark confines of their new sanctuary.

Once again after two thousand years, fallen humanity is huddled together with no real hope for the future. Although many loudly proclaim their false hope, many others are now questioning that hope as pure fiction. The great democracies of the West arose from the missionary movements that swept the known world. It arose from a strong desire to teach all children the foundations of our living faith. It arose from a belief in public prayer and obedience to all of God’s beautiful commandments. The great democracies of the West arose by shunning all perverted lifestyles, cherishing all children, even the unborn, and nurturing the strength of the family unit. In the beginning, there was great hope as the church bells rang forth from nearly every corner of society. It was a great day to be alive when our hope was built on nothing less than Jesus’s blood and righteousness. On Christ the solid rock I stand was more than just a hymn, it was the cement that bound us together as a nation and a true everlasting light to the Western democracies.

Tragically our vibrant hope in the Western democracies has turned into our darkest hour. Now we are faced with tragedy on every side. No one knows exactly where or when it started. Was it the television that led an entire nation to follow the liberal teachings of the left or was it the introduction of the internet that allowed people to enter the darkest alleyways of perversion? Perhaps it was the tearing down of God’s beautiful commandments or the cessation of prayer in public schools? Maybe it started when the local church adopted secular psychology and an array of psychotropic drugs to help their people to overcome the old sin nature and the wiles of the devil. I am sure there is a catalog of issues that started this horrific deterioration of the Western democracies. This deterioration eventually destroyed their hope as God’s wrath allowed them to lose one embarrassing war after another. Their hope has been diminished further with increasing earthquakes, tsunami’s, tornadoes, and heatwaves. Their hope has been diminished even further with continuous flooding in their cities.

Perhaps the greatest damage to their hope has been fear. There is the fear of recession, the fear of unimaginable lawlessness, and now the fear of a Third World War. As most of the Christian community huddles together in their homes and with like-minded friends on social media they too have had their hope greatly affected even if they are unwilling to admit it. Unfortunately, most of fallen humanity continues to proclaim their false hope to maintain their worthless ideology and their outright rejection of Jesus Christ as Lord. Truth be known, their hope is shaken too even if they too are unwilling to admit it. This is the Western democracies’ darkest hour. Although the other kings of the East have not yet joined Russia in its march against the Western democracies, starting with Ukraine, they have all justified their hatred and the latest invasion. They have publicly followed the Russian Church’s pronouncement that the West is decadent and must be stopped from spreading its lies and perversions. Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is backed by Patriarch Kirill of the Russian Orthodox Church. We need to find hope in our darkest hour.

It had been a long three days and nights as Christ’s followers hunkered down waiting for a sign, any sign that would deliver them from their peril and restore their robust hope. It finally came! Not at least what they expected. It was the women bringing forth the glorious news that Christ had risen. Shock turned into investigation, and investigation turned into a new revitalized Hope. The Apostles, disciples, and the followers of Christ came out boldly to a new world where their fear was eradicated. Eventually, with the power of the Holy Spirit, they separated themselves from the fallen world to strengthen their faith and to refine the irrefutable message of the Cross, the power unto salvation. It did not take long to embrace the new life in Christ so different from the known world. It didn’t take long before the message of Hope to spread throughout the known world turning the world completely upside down. Although persecution quickly arose it never doused the flame that was burning brightly in the heart of every believer. What a glorious day that was to see and touch the scarred hands of the resurrected Christ. What a glorious day to have their faith and hope renewed. They had gone from the darkest hour of their lives to the brightest day known to mankind. He has risen!

Now back to our present-day where honesty would proclaim that real hope is nonexistent for most of humanity. As we are hunkered down experiencing our darkest hour, hope is still on the horizon for those who believe. God can still withdraw His hand bringing forth one tragic circumstance after another. Repentance is needed. God can still stop Russia not by advanced weaponry or your useless and hateful sanctions, but by His righteous right hand. God can stop the hate and lawlessness that’s invaded our cities. He can stop the flooding along with every other so-called natural disaster. God still offers hope through His only begotten Son, for all those who believe. Yes, it is time for the followers of Christ to come out of hiding and march boldly in the streets of the world denouncing the perversion of the Western democracies and sharing unashamedly the everlasting Gospel of Jesus Christ. This must reach further than your keystrokes on social media. On this Easter morn, April 17th, 2022, let God’s children arise with new hope and determination that will shake the known world. Arise and stop the fighting and hate-mongering. Extend your right hand in love and fellowship. Arise! And all of God’s children said, “Amen!