Sure and Certain Hope

Psalm 95, 69:1-23(24-30)31-38; Psalm 73
Jeremiah 5:1-9; Romans 2:25-3:18; John 5:30-47

Nouwen notes "Only if you pray with hope can you break through the barriers of death."

But the way I learned hope, at least at school and from the dictionary, is very little more than good wishes and unfulfilled desires. My understanding of hope changed as I read and meditated on the phrase Thomas Cranmer put in the Burial Office in 1549, 1552 & 1559: "earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust, in sure and certain hope of resurrection to eternal life, through our Lord Jesus Christ, who shall change our vile body, that it may be like to his glorious body, according to the mighty working whereby he is able to subdue all things to himself.”

Sure and certain as mofifiers on hope changed my understanding of the word 'hope'. I no longer thought of heaven as a collection of uncertainties cooked up in my head and from deduction from my head but from the promises of scripture. The phrase sure and certain not only increased my desire for resurrection but also my hope that God's kingdom would become visible here on earth.

Questions for your comments:
What are you sure and certain about?
What images of resurrection help you imagine the Kingdom of God?