Title: Living Hope / 1 Peter 1:3-7
Contents
Living Hope / 1 Peter 1:3-7
It is said that there is a large rock in Lisbon, the capital of Portugal. And on that rock are written these words: "Now it is over. There is nothing behind this." But despite the writing on the rock, "This is not the end. Here There is hope beyond the ." There was a man who exclaimed. He was Christopher Columbus. That's right. It shows the historical lesson that "hope" discovers a great world.
But today, in the midst of such a desperate situation, we are talking about why we should not lose heart and live with hope.
So what is that oxygen network? Why should we live in despair?
We all know the Reformer Martin Luther. While he was promoting the Reformation for a long time, he was troubled by many people's opposition and various trials, and eventually he lay down. Then his wife appeared in front of Martin Luther wearing mourning clothes. Startled, he asks his wife who is dead. Then the wise wife answers. “I see you, our God is dead.” He realized then. And it's the story of how he got to spur on his work once again.
We often despair even in the midst of good things. But our God is a living God. Our resurrection is the love of God who gave us life and made us born again. Being born again in Jesus is a spiritual resurrection. Despair is something that can never overthrow those who believe in the risen Lord.
Another reason we can live with hope even in the midst of despair is because we have received an eternal inheritance in the kingdom of God. Even in the early church, the word “corporate” was used a lot. It says in Hebrews 10:34. “You sympathize with the prisoners, and you have been glad to have your inheritance taken away, knowing that there is a better and more permanent inheritance.” This is also mentioned in verse 4. We have an incorruptible inheritance, a holy inheritance, and an immortal inheritance. Such a beautiful company is within me. Why is this company forever? It is because they are protected by the power of God (verse 5). When we hope for God's inheritance, we do not fall into the ups and downs of faith. You can live without being obsessed with this world. If we are Christians on our way to heaven, we cannot be discouraged no matter what difficulties we face along the way.
Finally, the reason why we can have oxygen even in difficulties is because these difficulties and trials make our faith more and more profitable (v. Faith matures through trials. God gives us enough trials to bear! And we trust in God who takes our faith to the next level through those trials. We are troubled for a while by various trials, but we do not despair, for we benefit from them.
In conclusion, we usually do not see our faith. But through the preciousness of the trial of faith, we see our faith. As the year draws to a close, the reason we live in despair is because the oxygen network is within us. The kingdom of God is also because the risen Lord is in me. Because these trials bring us to maturity in our faith. This is because we believe that in the end we will receive praise, honor, and glory before our Lord.