A Living Hope (1 Peter 1:3-4)

Today’s scripture: 1 Peter 1:3-4

God is merciful to us. He chooses us to bless us and to give us hope in so many ways.

These verses speak to two very hopeful things. First and foremost: Jesus is alive! He is our resurrected Savior, and through Him, we can have a “living hope” that we too will live. We have an “inheritance incorruptible and undefiled” through Jesus.

The second hopeful thing: This inheritance “does not fade away.” We can live in this world, and we can live through difficult times. But we can live in the knowledge that our inheritance of eternity with Jesus will never, ever fade away. We can live with confidence in that hope.

But the bottom line?

We serve a living Savior, and that’s the greatest hope of all.

Thank God today that you have a living hope, that you have an inheritance that will never fade away. Thank Him for His mercy.

Faith In a Real Hope (1 Peter 1:20-21)

Today’s scripture: 1 Peter 1:20-21

One of the hardest concepts for nonbelievers to grasp is that of what we Christ-followers call the Trinity: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Many accuse us of worshipping three gods. Or they argue that it’s impossible for there to be a three-in-one being.

It is difficult to grasp, and continues to be one of those mysteries we probably won’t fully understand this side of heaven. However, it’s clear throughout the Bible that our Sovereign God manifests Himself as God the Father—Creator, Sustainer, Provider—God the Son—Redeemer, Savior—and God the Spirit—Helper, Encourager, Convicter.

Today’s verses tell us that Jesus was foreknown before the foundation of the world. And in Genesis, we read that God created man in “Our image.” In the gospels, when Jesus—God the Son—was baptized, God the Father spoke and God the Holy Spirit descended like a dove.

In God’s perfect plan, humankind would need a Redeemer, a perfect sacrifice to pay the penalty for our sin. God the Son appeared on earth “for the sake of you who through Him are believers in God.” Through the death and resurrection of Jesus, we have hope and faith in God the Father.

Are you feeling hopeful? Or hopeless? Remember that the only real hope we have is in Christ. When all else fails, our triune God—Father, Son, and Spirit—will never fail.

Never.

A Living Hope (1 Peter 1:1-5)

Today’s scripture: 1 Peter 1:1-5

Well … we’ve spent well over a year and a half going through most of Paul’s epistles … It’s been quite a journey, and I pray you have been blessed. For the next few weeks, we’re going to visit the epistles from Peter. And may I pray, as Peter prayed: May grace and peace be yours in the fullest measure!

We start our review of 1 Peter with hope—a living hope. We who follow Christ, who have personal relationships with Him, have been offered a great mercy from our Lord God.

We are promised an inheritance—imperishable and undefiled—in heaven.

We are promised protection—by the power of God through faith—here on earth.

When I read verses like this, I get homesick. I completely resonate with Paul’s words to the Philippians: “For I am hard-pressed between the two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better” (Phil. 1:23).

It gives me a hope I can live with on earth to know one day the cares and sufferings I experience now won’t even be a memory. I’ll be in the presence of the triune God!

Now, that’s a hope I can live with!