Jesus the Forerunner by Gill Newham, Missionary to Mongolia
The world convulses as the news of another disaster, another epidemic or an even more heinous terrorist attack hits the headlines. People crumple and nations stand in stunned silence. Nothing seems certain or safe anymore. Listening to the news fear wells up in my heart too, and against the backdrop of unmitigated suffering I tremble — my hope suddenly feels shallow and terribly flimsy and a barrage of scary ‘what if’ scenarios flood my mind.
“Stop!” I raise my hand to halt the runaway thoughts that push me towards the dark abyss of hopelessness. I reason with myself and start speaking truth to my heart. My hope is rock solid. Strong and one hundred percent sure and built on nothing less than, as the well-known song says, “Jesus blood and righteousness”.
Phew! I breathe a sigh of relief. The world we live in is filled with uncertainties and terrors at every turn so it is essential that I keep my heart and mind grounded in God and his word.
In chapter six of Hebrews the writer speaks of the certainties of God’s promises. Using rich images to convey the truth he tells us that our hope is sure and steadfast. He calls our hope an anchor for the soul which enters behind the veil or curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf.
“My anchor holds within the veil,” I repeat. Since hearing the story of the ancient Mediterranean ports this line has fixed itself even more deeply in my mind. In New Testament times a huge anchor stone was sunk deep into the ground on the wharf. When ships wanted to enter the harbour a small boat, known as a forerunner, left the safety of the port, navigated its way through the hazardous waters, which the boat’s pilot knew well, and out into the open sea to the waiting ship. The pilot then took hold of the ship’s anchor rope, returned to shore and secured it to the anchor stone so that the ship could safely be brought home.
Different pictures of the forerunner exist but each one depicts him as one who goes ahead of the danger to open the way of safe passage. Jesus is our forerunner; the rock of our salvation, the one who left the safety of heaven to come to the world to rescue mankind; Jesus, the one who passed through death to return to the Father to secure the way for each one of us to reach home safely.
So many layers, so many facets, to this picture but in the end, by faith, I realise that hope in God is full of certainty. He calls me to hold fast to hope — a word which I am told, in Greek, is the same word that is used for the rope of an anchor. And just like the sailors on those ancient ships who had to up oars and down sails, I too must surrender myself to the will of the forerunner and let him guide me.
“Lord,” I pray, “let me live in the reality of this hope and give me courage and wisdom to share the truth of your word with those who live with the fears of the world breaking their hearts.”