1 Peter 1:3-9
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
6In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honour at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
Jesus Christ has risen. The tomb is empty. The body of Jesus cannot be found.
• An angel appeared and announced: “He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay.” (Matt 28:6)
• The stone has been rolled away, not for Jesus to get out but for men to see.
Two things the angel said: (1) He has risen, and (2) just as He said He would.
• It is a fact and a fulfilment of what He had earlier said.
• At least 3 times, according to the Gospels, Jesus said He would suffer, be killed and on the third day be raised.
• Jesus is the only man who predicted - not just His death and the kind of death He would die - but also His resurrection. No one can.
• Jesus did that because He is the Son of God and He knows God the Father.
So we are here today celebrating Easter, the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
• Not commemorate a tragic event but celebrate a living hope, Peter said, in the text that we read this morning.
• Jesus Christ is alive and He is with us today. He died for the sin of man and paid the penalty that was required of a righteous God.
• With His sacrifice on our behalf, God’s wrath against sin has been appeased and the debt we owed God paid in full.
• God accepted His sacrifice and raised Jesus to life. Our faith in Jesus Christ means our sin is forgiven and we are reconciled to God.
• We receive a new life in our relationship with God through Jesus Christ.
We read what Apostle Peter said here in 1 Peter 1.
• 1:3 “According to His great mercy, He has caused us to be BORN AGAIN to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead…”
• Peter was the first disciple of Jesus to step into the tomb and saw the empty tomb.
• Peter and John were the first disciples to run to the tomb that first morning.
• John outran Peter but he did not enter the tomb. He stooped outside and looked in. Peter ran straight into the tomb and saw the evidence.
We have here the words of an eyewitness, who has seen and heard Jesus personally, before and after His resurrection, and whose life has been transformed.
• Listen to him. We need to hear him because he is not ordinary person.
• Peter was the earliest disciple called to follow Jesus. He was closest to Jesus, among the inner circle. He was the first to confess Jesus as Christ, the Son of the living God, aided by the Spirit. Peter was martyred for proclaiming Jesus.
• Peter tells us here the impact of Jesus’ resurrection. His own life has been changed because of it, and so can everyone who believes in Jesus Christ today.
THREE WAYS Peter says our lives have been transformed because of Jesus:
(1) We Have A Living Hope (1:3)
(2) We Have An Eternal Inheritance (1:4)
(3) We Have An Enduring Faith (1:6-7)
• Our faith in Jesus’ death and resurrection gives us a living hope NOW, and an eternal inheritance in the FUTURE, and in between the NOW and the FUTURE, we have an enduring faith through the trials of life because of His presence and help.
1. We Have a Living Hope
The Word of God says we are “born again to a living hope” because of the resurrection of Christ. Peter said specifically that it’s a LIVING hope because Jesus is alive.
• It’s one thing to have hope, it’s quite another thing to have hope that’s alive.
• In a way, all of us hope for something. We hope tomorrow is better, we hope we will have a long life, and we hope our children will do well in life.
• But we tend to look for hope in all the wrong places. We put our hope in our abilities, our wealth, our education, our career, or our relationships.
• And we put our hope in the circumstances around us.
Recent events like the Covid or the war in Ukraine tell us that nothing is predictable or secure in life.
• You just need one unseen virus to put a halt to life. You just need one man to think differently and you have a war and a world helplessly watching.
• If we are feeling anxious and worried all the time, then there is a good chance we are putting our faith in something that is dead and hopeless.
• Where can we put our faith in? What can give us hope? The right question is WHO!
The Bible says we have a LIVING HOPE today because we have a LIVING Christ.
• Our faith is not in any mortal man or circumstances but in Jesus Christ, our Saviour.
• “According to His great mercy, God has caused us to be born again to the living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead…”
• This new life is defined by our faith in Christ. He is our hope.
The truth is any misplaced hope is idolatry because something else has taken the place of Christ as our trust. We have replaced the divine with the mortal or material.
• Listen to what JOB says in Job 31:24-28 (NIV): 24“If I have put my trust in gold or said to pure gold, ‘You are my security,’ 25if I have rejoiced over my great wealth, the fortune my hands had gained, 26if I have regarded the sun in its radiance or the moon moving in splendour, 27so that my heart was secretly enticed and my hand offered them a kiss of homage, 28then these also would be sins to be judged, for I would have been unfaithful to God on high.”
• I would be worshipping the creation and not the Creator.
Why would we want to rely on everything else that is unreliable, and not the One and Only Lord who alone is in control?
• Our hope is alive and His name is Jesus! Human sin could not kill Him, the grave could not hold Him.
• Nothing in our world, not even Satan, can overcome the One in whom we trust.
• The risen Jesus is our living hope today and we trust Him!
2. FUTURE – We Have an Eternal Inheritance
We are born again to a living hope and we are born again “to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you…” (1:4)
• That’s the SECOND reality for Christians. We have a FUTURE home with God and our risen Saviour. We are going to our heavenly home.
The word “inheritance” means something that belongs to us and in the future. It is not earthly but “kept in heaven for you.”
• Who is keeping it? God is, of course! It will not go away and cannot be taken away.
• It has been secured for us by the death and resurrection of Jesus. Our faith in Jesus guarantees it.
• It is an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading; it is incorruptible and eternal.
That is our destiny. The grave is not our final resting place.
• If Jesus did not end in the tomb, then we who believe Him will also not end in the grave. God who raised Jesus from the dead will also raise us up and bring us home.
• Jesus promises us in John 14:2-3 “2In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? 3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.”
• This is the gift of eternal life with God.
3. Between the NOW and the FUTURE - We Have an Enduring Faith
Peter encourages us to hold fast to our faith.
• We are born again to a living hope and an eternal inheritance, with God watching over us - 1:5 - 5who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
• We are shielded, protected, and kept by the power of God through faith in Christ until the day we are safely home to be with Him.
It’s amazing. 1:4 says our inheritance is being “kept in heaven for you” and in
1:5 we are “being kept by the power of God”!
• We are fully secure in Christ, our hope is unshakeable. Nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. Nothing can change God’s plan for our lives.
Therefore, 1:6-7 “6In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honour at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
We can rejoice in the truth that God is “guarding us” and our risen Christ is with us.
• We can have this joy because both our future inheritance and present journey on earth is being kept by the power of God.
• So “now for a little while, if necessary” let us face the trials and tribulations of life with confidence.
• Peter was writing to the Christians in Asia Minor who were facing various persecution. “They have been grieved by various trials.”
But don’t give up hope because God has a purpose.
• 1:7 “7so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honour at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
• Through trials, our faith is tested and refined, like being purified by fire, and become “more precious than gold”, pure and genuine.
• When that happens, God is ultimately honoured and glorified. Our unwavering faith glorifies God.
James 1:2-4 “2Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”
• The trials cannot destroy our faith; they cannot weaken our faith. True faith in Christ is strengthened by trials.
• Trials can only lift faith to a new level, a higher level, one that is, in the words of James, “perfect and complete, lacking in nothing”.
Peter saw such an enduring faith among the believers. He said in the next two lines:
• 1:8-9 “8Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”
They love Him. They believe Him. They rejoice in Him, even though they have not seen Him and they are going through hardship.
• At that time, Peter was probably the last few surviving witnesses who have seen Jesus.
• These believers did not see Jesus personally and are not going to see Him any time soon, but they trust Him with unwavering faith. So can we today.
Will Peter see such faith in our generation?
• Yes, I am sure of that. We love Jesus. We believe Him. We rejoice in Him, despite the trials and tribulations.
• Our unwavering faith in Christ will “result in praise and glory and honour at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
• The risen Christ is our living hope. Our eternal destiny is secured. God has a purpose and we trust Him.
CONCLUSION
Dear friends, we need to put our trust in Jesus Christ. He is our only Saviour and the only hope of returning to God.
• Jesus says, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6)
• Jesus paid the price for our rebellion and sin against God. His sacrifice on the cross freed us from judgment.
• We can be forgiven of our sin when we repent and believe Jesus as our Saviour.
Let us pray.
If you want to trust Jesus Christ as your Saviour, pray with me in your heart:
“Dear God, I want to come back to you. I know I am a sinner. I believe Jesus Christ died for me and took my place and punishment. Forgive me, Lord. I repent of my sin and acknowledge you as my God and my Lord. Make me a new person in Christ. Thank you, Jesus for saving me. AMEN.”
We thank you, Lord, for your love for us and the gift of salvation you have given us through Jesus. His resurrection has given us hope and heaven.
Remind us that you are always with us through the trials of life and that this world is not our resting place. Help us love you, believe you and rejoice always in you. This we pray, in Jesus’ Name, AMEN.
