"Hope is a new idea in history, a uniquely Christian vision. We take it for granted because the mind of Christ is so pervasive in shaping the modern mind, but it wasn't always that way. The ancient Greeks had two kinds of stories: comedy and tragedy. A comedy was fun, but it wasn't real. A tragedy was real but not fun. If you took a hard look at life, it was sad. If you ignored life, then it was funny. Their philosophy mirrored their plays. Stoic philosophers sought to be moral in a meaningless world. Life was a tragedy. They toughed it out. Epicureans just had fun; life was a comedy. They coined the phrase, 'Eat drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die.'
The gospel is Good News. Because God broke the power of evil at the cross, we can, along with Sarah, look at our cynicism and laugh. Not surprisingly, Jesus' first miracle was making about 150 gallons of fine wine so a good party could become a great party (see John 2). Tragedy doesn't have the last word. God saves the best for last."
Paul Miller - A Praying Life
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