A Living Hope
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1 Peter 1:1-9
1. Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To the exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2. chosen and destined by God the Father and sanctified by the Spirit for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood: May grace and peace be multiplied to you. 3. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By his great mercy we have been born anew to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4. and to an inheritance which is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5. who by God's power are guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while you may have to suffer various trials, 7. so that the genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold which though perishable is tested by fire, may redound to praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8. Without having seen him you love him; though you do not now see him you believe in him and rejoice with unutterable and exalted joy. 9. As the outcome of your faith you obtain the salvation of your souls.
Early Christians scattered throughout Asia Minor. The people being addressed in this letter were present in Jerusalem @ Pentecost. They were there when the Holy Spirit descended!
My NIV translation of v1 says: “To God’s elect, strangers in the world.” Our true home is in heaven. While we’re on this temporary earth in these temporary bodies, we long to “go home.” God knows that once we are saved we have an even more difficult time living as strangers, aliens, sojourners in this world. He sent Christ as the perfect example of how to live, and Christ sent the Holy Spirit to help us, to fortify us, to guide us, to reassure us. How is it possible to conceive of a love so great that everything, absolutely everything, we need for eternal life is given to us? We don’t even need to ask for it! It’s already there, available and freely offered! It is unimaginable!
Our hope is not wishful thinking! It is deeply rooted in the truth of the risen Lord. It is bound up in the history of the world. It is certainty of what awaits us in the next life! God created us with a longing for Him, deep inside our souls! And we spend our whole lives seeking Him, searching for Him. But the truth is that He is within each of us. And each of us possesses a miniscule, smaller than microscopic particle of Him through the Holy Spirit which unites us all as the body of Christ.
As Christians, we are able to persevere because we are shielded by God’s power, but also by our faith. The temporary sufferings in this life will pass away. Our longing for eternal peace and joy and fellowship of the believers spurs us on. Our faith assures us that we will receive all of these – and more: the face of God.
I hope you spend your day seeking the face of God; spurred on to perfection by the living hope of what awaits us in eternity.
Mary
