There is Hope: Look to the Son

Description

There’s no fire on the altar of idols
There’s no hope in the shrines of religion
But there’s a love that calls to the spirit.
And there’s life in a season of death.

There’s no justice in a world full of self.
And no truth in the bigotry and hate
But There’s a light in the days of darkness.
And there’s peace in a season of a war.

Some are building kingdoms in the sand,
while the tide is rising fast
Life is found in hope worth living for
And in a love worth dying for
Look to the Son and live

There’s no help in all the show and pretence
There’s no power in all the rituals and words
But there’s beauty in a garment of praise.
And comfort in a season of change

Some seek their fortune in the stars
while the ground beneath feet begins to fall
Life is found in hope worth living for
And in a love worth dying for
Look to the Son and live

There’s no hiding from the valley of death
There’s no running away from all the pain.
But There’s joy in the times of mourning.
And there’s grace in a season of tears.

Some look to men and their
ways while the blind lead the blind to the grave
Life is found in hope worth living for
And in a love worth dying for
Look to the Son and live

A Hope Worth Living For
Growing up on a council estate in York, the path ahead for many young people seemed fairly predictable — a job on the railway or in the chocolate factory. Yet deep down, I always believed life must hold something more, something with real purpose and meaning. As a teenager, I threw everything into music. It became my passion, the thing I lived for. But as the years went by, I discovered that even music couldn’t fill the empty space inside me.

When my children were born and I became a father and a partner, I thought I had finally discovered my purpose. I loved my family dearly, yet even then a quiet ache remained within me — a gap I couldn’t describe, like a hole in my very soul.

Before I met Christ, I searched for meaning in all the wrong places, and that search nearly led me to ruin. Then one day my girlfriend at the time — now my wife — went to church. She returned full of excitement, telling me she had seen a vision of Jesus during the service. Curious, I went with her the following Sunday. Expecting nothing more than boredom, I instead found myself wrestling with emotions and thoughts I could not explain.

That inner struggle opened the door to a journey — a journey into a dimension of life I had never known. Over time, I realised that the aching gap within me was slowly being filled. Though life still brings its challenges, I now carry a joy and a peace I once believed were impossible. I found a hope worth living for and it changed my life forever. It wasn’t an encounter with religion or church that changed me — it was an encounter with Jesus.

No Fire on the Altar of Idols
There’s a line in a Bob Dylan song that says, “You’ve got to serve somebody.” It speaks to our inherent need to worship something — whether it’s a football team, a pop star, drugs, alcohol, pornography, our children, or even religious relics and good-luck charms. These things might take our money or distract us from the daily grind, but they cannot satisfy the deep yearning within us. They offer noise, not nourishment. They offer escape, not life.

No Justice in a World Full of Self
True justice can only come from a judge with no self-interest — one who sees the truth as it truly is, not the version we craft for ourselves. True justice isn’t shaped by political agendas, cultural biases, or national borders. In Amos 5:23–24 (MSG),
God says:
“I can’t stand your religious meetings… I’m sick of your fund-raising schemes… Do you know what I want? I want justice — oceans of it. I want fairness — rivers of it.”
Christ, the true Judge, promises that one day the oppressed, the broken, and the wronged will receive justice. In Him, justice isn’t a concept — it’s a promise.

Looking for a Way Out
Some people try to find life in the little kingdoms they build around themselves. Others search for guidance in star signs, spiritualism, or occult practices. Still others hope in political agendas. Yet when storms come, these foundations wash away — like the man who built his house on sand (Matthew 7:24–27).

Real life — true, unshakeable life — is only found in a hope worth living for and a love worth dying for.

Only by looking to the Son, Christ our rock and firm foundation, can we truly stand and truly live.

There’s No Hiding from the Valley of Death
We are mortal, and one day our bodies will return to dust. There is no escaping the grief and pain that death brings; it is a path we all must walk. Yet for those in Christ, there is joy even in mourning, and grace even in seasons of tears. The life He gives is not a comforting idea — it is eternal reality. Christ is the Tree of Life, our hope now and forever. Though we must all pass through the valley of the shadow of death, we need not fear,
“for He is with us; His rod and His staff, they comfort us” (Psalm 23).

In the end, every heart is searching — searching for meaning, for truth, for something solid beneath our feet. In Christ, that longing finds its answer. He offers a hope strong enough to live for and a love powerful enough to die for. He is the fulfilment of every ache and the foundation beneath every storm.

Prayer
You know the deep longings of our hearts — the ache for meaning, the cry for hope, the hunger for a love that will not fail. Open our eyes to see that You alone are the hope worth living for and the love worth dying for. Pull us away from the idols that cannot satisfy and the false foundations that cannot hold. Lead us back to the solid ground of Your truth, Your mercy, and Your everlasting arms. Fill the empty spaces within us with Your presence and awaken in us a desire to follow You with all that we are. May Your hope anchor our lives, and may Your love reshape our hearts. Amen.