How Valuable is an Anchor?

This article was published in the May edition of the Broadcaster (newsletter) and was written by David Wollen, President of Haven Ministries and host of Haven Today, which airs at 2 PM CST weekdays on KHCB.

On the high seas and in a storm, an anchor could mean the difference between safe harbor and shipwreck. In such a moment an anchor is priceless, but simply having one is not enough. To keep you safe and hold you fast, the anchor must be secured with an unbreakable connection and go where no human being can.

Unlike physical storms which blow in from one direction, the gathering storm clouds in our world today are coming from virtually every direction. Pick any category: spiritual, moral, ethical, economic, political, international—and supercharging all of them—the alarming and super-rapid development of AI. We need an anchor that will not fail. And praise the Lord, we have one.

“We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure” (Hebrews 6:19a).

These words are often found on Christian wall art, bookmarks, and coffee mugs, but how well do we understand their meaning? Precisely what is this hope? What makes it firm and secure?

Hebrews was written by an unnamed pastor who was deeply concerned for a local church in the face of a gathering storm. The property of some believers had already been confiscated. No blood had been shed, but the writer seems to expect this would happen. It’s possible Hebrews was written to the church in Rome during their earliest days of persecution. If so, many would soon die for their Savior. Christ’s church is no stranger to storms.

What is our hope?

God made a promise to bless and multiply Abraham. On top of it He swore another oath promising the original promise was true. Why would God—who does not lie—do this? It was, “Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised…” (v 17). And we who belong to Christ as the heirs of the promise. Anticipating our doubts and discouragements, God made this double promise so that “…we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged” (v 18).

Here comes the twist. Our hope “enters into the inner place behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf…” (v 19-20). This means our hope is not a what but a who. Jesus is the anchor of our hope.

What makes our hope firm and secure?

At sea, the effectiveness of an anchor depends entirely upon where it rests. If a ship dropped anchor over the Mariana Trench, it would just dangle in the water with seven miles of water underneath. The ship would drift. Dropping anchor into a sand bar would only slow the drift, not stop it.

The familiar shape of an anchor is purposeful. It’s meant to catch solid rock—something that will not move. And nothing is more immovable than Almighty God who is holy, holy, holy.

The “inner place behind the curtain” is a reference to the “holy of holies” in the temple where the high priest would enter only once a year to make a sacrifice on behalf of all the people. The shekinah glory of God was present. Any kind of unauthorized entry would be lethal, so the high priest did not linger.

This changed when the great High Priest, Jesus Christ, entered and made a once-and-for-all sacrifice. He remains there still, at the right hand of the Father, in glory. Because He is anchored there, we are held fast. This is our hope. No storm can move us.

How do we weather the storm?

For thousands of years, ships made safe harbor by a practice known as warping. Against strong winds, a ship could not sail safely into a harbor. Instead, an anchor would be taken ahead of the ship and dropped precisely where the ship would soon find refuge. Once the anchor was secure, the ship would be slowly pulled toward its destination. It was only a matter of time until the ship would find its haven of rest.

In the troubled seas of this world, we will be tossed and buffeted for a time, but it will not last. Let us “take hold of the hope set before us.” Where Christ is, one day, we will be.