Hymn Study - My Hope Is Built On Nothing Less

1 My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness; I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus' name. On Christ, the solid rock, I stand; all other ground is sinking sand. 2 When darkness veils his lovely face, I rest on his unchanging grace; in every high and stormy gale, my anchor holds within the veil. On Christ, the solid rock, I stand; all other ground is sinking sand. 3 His oath, his covenant, his blood support me in the whelming flood; when all around my soul gives way, he then is all my hope and stay. On Christ, the solid rock, I stand; all other ground is sinking sand. 4 When he shall come with trumpet sound, O may I then in him be found, dressed in his righteousness alone, faultless to stand before the throne. On Christ, the solid rock, I stand; all other ground is sinking sand.

God reveals to us through His Word in the Bible that the world is an imperfect place and that because of it we’ll face strife, pain, trials and sadness. Nowhere is can it seem more prevalent than in the betrayal that can be experienced during our life. We have hope in a lot of things and yet each one of them is open to the indistinct trait of failure. Hope it seems, could be switched out with the word gamble. A man hopes in his lottery ticket, another person hopes on the stock market. Someone else hopes they got the job. People hope their medical tests return favorably, some hope their school tests alike. A person hopes their friend will be free that weekend, a teenager hopes that crush will notice them. We hope that government, laws, world leaders, businesses and a myriad of other political based strategies will make our lives better. As a matter of fact, our last president ran on a platform of hope and depending on who you ask that had varying degrees of success. Some of these things are reliable to a point, others exhibit a regularity of failure. Hope seems like a gamble.

There’s a musical group I listen to who have a recurring theme, “hope rides alone.” What that means is that hope does nothing, you can hope for a lot of things, but it only happens when you put your best foot forward. I’m a pretty big fan of “hope rides alone.” But what about with God? The hymn opens by stating our hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness. Well it doesn’t really fit the narrative of hope, does it? Is Jesus perfect life a gamble we could possibly be let down by? No. Is it something we can use to put our best foot forward? No. It just is truth. I think the better way to describe it is that our hope is built on nothing less, because there’s no possibility of failure. It’s not a gamble. Why do we have hope in the Lord? Because we don’t need to hope we are forgiven, that we have a place with Him in Heaven, we know it. There is no hoping in Christianity. The hymn gives an allusion to life in Christ as a strong, sturdy structure. It says, don’t even for a second even trust the most sound of structures if it doesn’t come from Christ’s promise. Look at the examples of hope we seek out up above, even look at “hope rides alone.” They can help, working toward the life you want helps, but glorification does not come from jobs, politicians, money, friends or even ourselves, it can only come from God, through the sacrifice of the Son. What happens when we put complete trust in the Lord? The hymn continues on with our metaphorical sturdy structure resisting gale force winds and keeping out flood waters. The troubles of life have no effect on us when we are wholly in Jesus. Think about the big troubles that are affecting your life now, or have affected you, they seem overwhelming don’t they. Now think of something that’s mildly inconvenient.

For the sake of example, let’s say you’re in your driveway and it’s raining pretty hard. Your front door is foot steps away but you know you’ll get soaked. Now on the other side of that door is warmth, new clothes, towels, food, comfy couches and family, but that rain seems really pesky in the moment doesn’t it? Life’s a lot like that, we can see the rain right now. We know Heaven is waiting for us, but for some reason getting wet, even if only for a minute, can really seem to ruin our day. But the hymn portrays a much more devastating example of what’s found outside of safety in Christ. The final verse states, that when that last trumpet sounds, judgement day, you’ll safely be found in Christ, unscathed and presentable. You’ll be made innocent and you’ll be eternally safe with Jesus by your side forever. That structure withheld all of the elements, rising waters, crushing winds, and finally when it was all over, you’re discovered safe and sound. How did you manage such horror they’ll ask and you’ll point to that sturdy shelter and say, because it kept me safe.

Hope, whether it come from a physical object, another person or yourself will not stand. The hymn tells us that all other ground is sinking sand. Your walls will crack and crumble, your foundation will become uneven at best and fall apart when it’s all said in done. There is no ultimate, unending happiness to be found in anything of this world, even if it benefits you, these are all temporary until the next disaster strikes your life. In fact, many of the things we may want can come from sin, think of government, the ultimate current stronghold of hope no matter where your affiliations lie, how often do the things the world ask for seem based in anything but God’s glory? That’s why I love this hymn so much, because even in the most sure of things to come out of this world, Jesus says, come to Me for shelter, I’ve been here, I’m here now and I will be here, and when everything else has failed or He takes it away finally, then that shelter will be the only thing left and no more will it offer peace from the outside elements, there simply will only be peace.