Keep it clear and to the point

There was so much evil in the world, that God decided to destroy all living things on land. The destruction happened through a massive flood of water coming from below and pouring from above. There was just one man called Noah that found favour in the sight of God. God instructed Noah and his family to build an ark so that they may be saved from the destruction that would follow. Noah and his family obeyed and the consequence was that they were saved and were able to start anew.

The Story of Noah illustrates how water was used to destroy, but in the same instance, water saved the life of Noah. The story tells how evil was washed away with water cleansing the earth. The same waters that destroyed evil, became a means of saving the righteous Noah.

Peter makes reference to this story, to illustrate the significance of baptism and that baptism is appealing to God. One can say that baptism, the washing with water, is to provide a good conscience in front of God. To have a clear conscience makes reference to the internal ability to choose between wrong and right. If one can be reassured that the right choices were made, that equals having a clear conscious. The baptism in such instances is to clear the conscience, as it was the correct choice making us right with God through Jesus Christ.

Having a clear conscience through baptism does not equal a pain-free life. The paradox that Peter is referring to is during suffering the righteous are blessed. We are blessed when suffering in Christ. This thought is reassuring but also strange. It is strange knowing we are blessed if all of our reality is stating otherwise. However, Is it really so strange? Rather, I think this is the Word of God encouraging us amits hardship. It is the Word of God stating that our blessedness is not from this reality but rather from us belonging to God.

As we belong to God, we do not have to be afraid because we already have a home with God. In the circumstances of life, we may continue to honour Christ the Lord, as this is our place of belonging. Interestingly, Peter then states that we need to be prepared to explain the reason for having hope. In other words, have it clear in our minds why we have hope in God.

I do not believe that it is an easy task to always have clarity of mind. Some topics are very difficult to comprehend and also very difficult to communicate. Also, when suffering from anxiety, the fight-and-flight function in our bodies makes it extremely hard to have clarity of mind.

Although, it is true to have clarity of mind can be difficult and even more so if you need to communicate, the Word of God is motivating us to have some kind of idea for our reason in having hope. When all the world does not have hope, why do we Christians have hope?

We have hope because our blessedness is not from this reality but rather from us belonging to God. We belong to God, and in all the turmoil of life, our hope is in Heaven above. I think the more challenging part is communicating our hope in a gentle and respectful way. The question is: How do we communicate our deep sense of hope in such a way that our conscience is clear?

Well, Peter states that it is far better to suffer for doing good than to suffer for doing evil. Do good and act with goodness when communicating our deep sense of hope. Communicate in such a way that goodness prevails. ***

Noah received an instruction from God to build an ark. He decided to follow the instructions and also to have faith in God’s command. His actions muched have looked very strange to the onlookers. What were they thinking seeing Noah constructing a boat in the middle of nowhere?

Maybe Noah did communicate with clarity to them the reason why he has hope in God. Maybe he told them about God’s instruction and about their sinful nature. What we know for certain was that he continued to build and construct the ark with a deep sense of faith. His actions demonstrated his He deep sense of hope.

It could have been that he did not have words as many words, but his actions showed Goodness.

There was so much evil in the world, that God decided to destroy all living things on land. May we have Noah, in that when all seems to be in decay, may we then find favour in God’s sight. Through being clear in the reasons for having hope demonstrated through our words and actions.