More Precious Than Gold

Today we are going to meditate on God's word taken from I Peter 1:3-9. with the topic More precious than gold.

We always think that gold is something precious in our lives, but there is something much more precious than gold.

According to human standards, gold is highly prized as a source of prosperity and a symbol of all that is precious, But as Christians, we, there are many things in our lives that are far more valuable than money, which cannot be exchanged or bought with money. So, when we compare gold with something that has eternal values, what true value does gold have?

In today’s Bible passage, we also see something more valuable than gold, which is our faith, our hope and the inheritance that God has prepared for us.

Verse three begins with praise. This praise is the same as the doxology we sing. Praise given to God for His greatness, His mercy and everything so beautiful that God has done in our lives

What has God done? If we read this verse, we see there are many theological concepts that are very basic in our Christian faith.

First of all, the verse emphasizes the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. This is unique in our faith. In the world there are many religions, but not a single founder or religious leader in the world has risen from the dead, but the Lord Jesus has risen from the dead.

It also speaks of the great mercy of God. Because of His mercy, we are born again. So, our new birth is not something we can do, nor is it something we deserve, but it is God's grace and gift, which is given to us only because of His mercy.

And it is because of this new birth that we are given hope. And the hope that God gives is a living hope. Something that really exists. Different from something we expected. Sometimes we expect something and we believe that it will happen, but eventually our hopes fade, so we become very disappointed. There is a term that we often hear in Mandarin, the bigger our expectations, the bigger our disappointment.

But the hope that God gives is different, because on one hand, this hope is God's grace, which is given together with our new birth. This is a package, meaning whoever has been born again, he is a person who lives in hope. The new birth and hope are an inseparable unity. We who have been born again will not live in despair, because the characteristic of our new life is a life of hope.

The hope that we receive through our new birth has a strong foundation, which is found through the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. Just as the resurrection of the Lord Jesus is a real historical fact, so is the hope that God has given us.

Verse 4 explains the content of our hope. It says here that we will receive an inheritance that has three characteristics: it never perishes, spoils or fades. And it said that this inheritance is kept in heaven for you. It means that God kept an inheritance for you in heaven, and this inheritance will never perish, never spoil, and never fade. Is there anything that you have today that never perishes, spoils or fades?

This inheritance is more valuable than anything found here on earth.

This is an inheritance that we have that exceeds anything in this world. Peter shows that our inheritance has three characteristics.

First, it says that the treasures that God keeps for you in heaven will not perish. One day, whatever we have in this world will pass.

We are facing pandemics, recessions and all kinds of situations that undermine the peace of the human heart. We worry and live in fear. We value our earthly possessions and hold onto earthly things so tightly. We worry that we may lose all our earthly treasures. It is something that eats away at the human day, which makes people restless, uncertain and hopeless in life.

But you and I have a living hope. we have already received something in store for us in heaven, which will never perish, never spoil, and never fade. Something so glorious, so great, that God has prepared for us.

The world cannot defile it, and so it cannot wither away, something that remains fresh and beautiful. As human beings, we will all eventually pass away. All our circumstances in life will pass as well. But the treasures God has in store for us in heaven will never perish, spoil, nor fade.

The apostle Peter uses negative terminologies perish, spoil and fade to contrast how beautiful and great the treasure that God has saved for us, He takes it one step further by adding the word “never” before these words. So, it now becomes a double negative.