A Living Hope

November 18

Ezekiel 43-44

Psalm 124

Proverbs 27:21-22

I Peter 1:1-12

A Living Hope

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil, or fade. This inheritance is kept in Heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith---of greater worth that gold, which perishes even though refined by fire---may result in praise, glory, and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Though you have not seen Him, you love Him; and even though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.” I Peter 1:3-9 NIV

This passage in I Peter follows neatly our passage yesterday about being authentic in our faith. This is the why behind the need to examine our lives to make sure that we really believe what we say we believe. If we have been born again into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, then we have an inheritance that is waiting for us in Heaven. It cannot be taken away. It is sealed and secure. We are shielded by God’s power. We may face trials and heartache. We may experience great difficulties in this life, but He gives us the strength and power to endure whatever we face. The difficulties refine and prove our faith. I have said many times that we do not grow in times of ease. The only way to develop faith is to be put in situations where we must exercise it. When we experience God’s peace in the midst of pain, we learn to rely on it. We do not grasp the fullness of His grace and mercy until we recognize our own depravity and our need for it. The joy of His presence is not fully known until we experience it in the depths of despair. We cannot know that He is all we need unless we are put in situations where He is all we have.

Those who do not know Jesus, cannot possibly understand how we can love someone we cannot see. It does not make sense that we can believe in and place our faith in someone who we cannot touch and see. How can He give us joy and peace and strength? It logically does not make sense and yet, those of us who know Jesus understand because we feel His presence in our lives. We know His protection and His love. We know His voice and can hear Him leading and guiding us. The more we get to know Him, the more we experience His presence in ways that are just as real as they would be if He was physically in our presence. He is not only with us, but also living inside us. He is the reason we can carry on each day regardless of our circumstances. We know that the end result of our faith is the salvation of our souls that will be fully realized when Jesus returns to take us home. At that time, we will receive our inheritance that is being kept for us, eternal life in the presence of Jesus. We are filled with inexpressible and glorious joy because we have a living hope in Jesus.