Easter 2026 | 1 Peter 1:3-9

Hope Begins and Ends with a Risen Savior.

How would you finish this sentence?

“I really hope that…”

How did you finish it?

I really hope that I turned off the oven…

I really hope that I remembered to get everything for the meal later…

I really hope that I get that job…

I really hope I can make it till we go on vacation…

I really hope they can forgive me…

I really hope that this war ends soon…

I really hope this food lasts…

I really hope that my loved one will be safe…

When we say things like this what we really mean is that were wishing for something to happen or did happen.

Some of these examples are based in criteria like people or things that are out of our control.

As humans we hope because we need to.

We have plans, desires, ideals that we work towards that we live to accomplish because we believe we will find some satisfaction or fulfilment in them.

What we hope in is what keeps us going if you will.

Hope is necessary for our survival as humans. What we hope in matters. It’s necessary for our survival.

I heard a story about a man named Viktor Frankl, who was a Jewish psychiatrist who lived Austria, and was deported to a Nazi death camp, who while there became a counselor for those in the camp, they would come to him and he would talk to them about how they were coping in the camp.

What he documented from all his conversations, was how people who were coping with traumatic circumstances and what they found hope in.

Some who were unable to cope with the tremendous loss and trauma experienced had lost all hope became animals and were primal in their actions.

He wrote about a man who was confident that the war would end in three months and wrote it down on the calendar, and when it didn’t, he developed a fever and sickness and die with in the week,

Some coped with fantasies, and dreams in being able to get out and restart life, get their families back together and reopen their businesses, rebuild their wealth and homes. These hopes kept them alive but when he followed up with these people who made it through with these hope when or if they survived the camps often fell into depression because what they hoped wasn’t attainable no one was ever the same after, they couldn’t get what they once had back.

But the fact was that the Nazis still had some power over these things.

Then there were those whose hope was built in something more deeper than what the nazis could take.

the person who was a baker looked forward to the day he could bake again, kneed the dough, the smell of the flour and the flame.

the carpenter whose designs were yet realized, and who looked forward to the day he could use the draw knife and saw again.

Musicians whose only hope was to play music again.

hope that the nazi’s couldn't take away.

The bible present hope as something that has anchor in something greater than what we can do or achieve in this life.

Peter presents true Hope that Begins and Ends with a Risen Savior.

What is it you hope in that keeps you going in life?

Here in His first letter Peter recognized the need for hope for those he was writing to,

They were going through various difficulties, even facing sever troubles, and needed to be reminded of the hope they have as followers of Jesus.

Peter was one of Jesus’ disciples, who not only followed Him His whole ministry, saw him crucified, but encountered personally the resurrected Jesus.

Peter was known for his great profession of faith and confidence, but also his mistakes and his denial of Jesus.

His encounter with Jesus following his resurrection would turn him into a bold witness as the Holy Spirit began to build the church of Christ among the nations.

He writes to a church some 35 years later, after the resurrection, that has now been dispersed through out the Roman empire and Asia Minor because of persecution.

Christians were being imprisoned, beaten, and excommunicated by families and communities.

Caesar Nero blamed a fire that devastated Rome on what was to him a new religion, a more fanatical form of Judaism, that was started by an executed teacher some 35 years prior. This stirred up hatred for Jesus followers.

Did you know at this time Christians were called “atheists”? Because they rejected and did not participate in the worship of the Roman gods… They were also viewed as antisocial, even “cannibals” for their remembrance of Jesus’ death through communion.

This is who Peter is writing to, a displaced and persecuted bunch of Jesus followers. People who had as their possession hope that could carry them through life with joy in spite of their circumstances.

Where did their perseverance come from? How were they able to awake each day and continue in faith without wavering?

Peter reminds them of Jesus’ resurrection.

the basis of all blessing and hope for the follower of Jesus.

Peter presents true Hope that Begins and Ends with a Risen Savior.

What is the hope that no man can take away from us?

What does the resurrection of Jesus mean for those who believe in him?

Where does this hope lead us?

Beginning of Hope

1 Peter 1:3–9 (NKJV) 3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again (made us born again) to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

Peter describes the source and the quality of our hope as Christians.

The source of hope is found in the working of God the Father of the His Son Jesus Christ who has become Lord or King of all who believe in HIm.

He praises God, because of the reality of our salvation in light of what He has done though His Son.

The salvation of the Christian is according to God’s abundant mercy

abundant describes greatness or muchness. Its a word that describes quality or quantity used to describe something that is beyond ordinary.

and what is mercy but God’s great compassion, his undeserved favor, toward sinners in our hopeless condition.

How did God show this abundant mercy to us?

He moved and he acted on our behalf when we didn’t deserve it. this tells me and aspect to the hope we are learning about; it is not something i earned, so i can lose it.

What God did in mercy through Jesus was make those who believe in Jesus new creations.

This is what Jesus told Nicodemus in John chapter 3, that a person needs to be born again.

This is a gift not something a person can do themselves, its according to the great compassion of God that he does this.

This new birth results in a new hope,

Hope that is not based in perishable things or other humans, or circumstances we cannot control, but in a person who has died but has risen from the dead.

that is a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

This hope is living because Jesus is living.

He has died, and has risen from the dead.

This is why the Christian’s hope is not like any other hope.

This hope is as sure as the fact that Jesus has risen from the grave!

Paul would say that if Jesus didn’t rise from the dead then we are all dead and without hope in this world. (1 Cor 15)

If Christ didn’t rise from the dead then there is no reason to believe in Him or a God for that matter.

If Christ didn’t rise from the dead, it means that believing in him is empty, that our sins still remain.

If Christ is still in the grave, then there is no reason to hope in Him.

But this is not the truth!

Paul says, the truth is…

1 Corinthians 15:20 “20 But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.”

He says Jesus is alive and is the living proof that those who believe in him will have life eternal.

This is what Peter means when he says living hope, Jesus is alive therefore, our hope is alive and cannot die because it is in Him and wha he has accomplished through his death and resurrection.

This hope is concrete, in that there is a tangible aspect to it, a part that cannot be taken away despite what occurs to us.

4 to an inheritance incorruptible (imperishable) and undefiled and that does not fade away,

Inheritance is when something — like money, property, or traits — is passed from one person to another.

for example - If a father passes down his house to his children, that house is their inheritance.

The bible used this word inheritance to describe the land promised to Israel by God in the OT.

It was their possession, a gift from God.

The Christans inheritance is not only the riches and blessings of being with God but also the traits passed on to us.

just like Jesus though he died, lived again, in Him, we are promised life forever too.

John 11:25–26 “25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. 26 And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?””

Peter uses three words to emphasize the permanence of the inheritance of the Christian.

Imperishable, Undefiled, Unfading

This is how Peter describes the permanence of our inheritance from God.

Imperishable - it will not spoil like over ripened fruit,

Undefiled - it cannot be devalued, or taken away or destroyed.

Unfading - like clothes or died garments that fade over time, it doesn’t lose value.

and it is kept in the safest place

reserved (kept) in heaven for you,

set aside for you, secure because it is in heaven,

where nothing can get to it.

even human inheritances are subject to disaster or corruption.

the example of the house being left to the children, the house while it remains in the possession of the father could be hit by a natural disaster, or his wealth could be stolen…

This is what Victor Frankyl and the Jews experienced so rapidly, everything they hoped in was taken away from them, family, homes, businesses, property. All gone in a moment.

not so with the inheritance of those in Jesus Christ!

It is kept in heaven secured.

Nothing can happen to our inheritance and we are kept by God

5 who (the believer) are kept (protected; shielded) by the power of God through faith for salvation

what keeps or protects us is the power of the living God.

it is used to describe a army garrison within a city.

this is what God’s power is like, an army that surrounds you to protect you

is there any power greater? is there any?

ready to be revealed in the last time.

There is a time when this inheritance will be revealed, to be brought with Jesus when he returns in the last time

As christians we are saved now, it is a present reality that our sins have been forgiven and we are saved because of Jesus’ death,

but we still experience the effects of sin, and live in a world plagued with sin.

Our full inheritance of our salvation will be made know to us when Jesus returns.

This is how Hope begins and ends with a risen Savior.

But what about the middle?

What about everyday life? What about the difficulties your facing right now?

Peter goes on to give perspective to what your going through at this moment.

How does this living hope impact our lives everyday?

6 In this (salvation and Inheritance/hope?) you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials,

He says for those whose hope and salvation is in Christ, their inheritance secured, imperishable, not going away, they can rejoice in their present circumstances.

even if it is suffering,

now this can sound kinda weird right, someone taking joy in pain.

but that not what Peter’s describing.

He describing true hope that carries us through trials and sufferings, difficulties because we know where we are going and who we are as God’s people.

Remember Victor Frankyl’s findings that people whose hope was in something so based in their identity that they survived the best.

that baker who looked forward to baking bread, or the musician who longed to play music again. that was who they were and no Nazi guard or death camp could take that away from them.

As believers in Christ we are blood bought children of God,

that is our identity,

there is nothing that can separate us from that!

Our joy and our rejoicing is not grounded in our circumstances, or our hopes and dreams, but in Jesus who is alive; he is our living hope.

And a person with living hope can endure with joy whatever difficulty may come.

He says that trial provide an opportunity for what we know to become reality.

See Peter isn’t casting off as nothing the difficulties that the church was going through, the trials people were facing.

He recognizes the grief they’ve endured through the various trials

grieved is translated other places as sorrow, or distressed

He even uses the analogy of testing by fire to make his point in the next verse.

But He gives perspective to the church concerning their trials.

He says that the trials are only for a time and they are necessary.

They are time limited - as children of God the trials they faced were only temporary, they would not last forever, when Christ returns or we go to be with him, there will be and end of trials ans difficulies.

They are necessary - why are trials necessary?

I actually don’t like to here this,

Does Peter mean that trials are not something we deal with but they have purpose?

7 that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ,

See when our hope is centered on what Christ has accomplished through the resurrection, we can understand trials differently

They are actually a something God uses to bring out the most precious part of us; our faith.

that what is genuine in us God is purifying.

the testing of faith isn’t to prove we believe, rather to make what exists more valuable.

He’s using the analogy of metallurgy

how a chunk of raw of gold is placed in the crucible and subjected to intense fire for a period of time to cause the impurities to rise to he surface so that they can be removed and what remains is more precious than what went int the fire.

The gold is subject to the trial and testing so that the gold was more valuable.

Its a powerful analogy.

He says your faith is like gold, actually much more precious than gold — gold fails to hold it value in light of eternity,

Faith though is of greater worth, it is what connects us to the eternal,

It’s what “purchases” an eternal inheritance for us that can never perish.

See God is able to use the difficulties, the trials, the persecution of his people to bring about an eternal result.

This is hard for us to grasp in the fire.

the fire reveals to us what is impure, what is not of faith, what is just an act, what is hypocritical, and allows the genuineness of faith to become more solid and valuable.

It reveals to us what we are hoping in that is perishable and not eternal.

Trials bring to the surface insecurities, self-confidences, wrong motives, hidden sins, self-doubt, fears, misplaced trusts.

But they bring us to bear on the most foundational element of who we are as Christians; Jesus, and our faith in him.

when we are tried, and the dross is removed and faith in him is all that remains, this is what brings him praise honor and glory.

When the risen Savior returns to gather up what is his, he is going to take up all the riches of faith in him found in us.

in other words Jesus is returning for those who have believed in him,

8 whom having not seen you love.

The faith Peter describes is looking for Jesus’ revelation, or for him to reveal himself when he returns,

Now this verse to me is so relatable to us,

Peter saw Jesus personally, and it was that time spent with him that Peter grew to love him.

But He writes to those who have loved Jesus without seeing him.

That us, we believe but we haven’t seen Jesus,

The Bible Knowledge Commentary 1:8

Peter may have had in mind Jesus’ words: “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (

Peter continues,

Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, 9 receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls.

We love him and it is proved through the trials and difficulties we experience,

we have Him, our Living Hope, that carries us through the difficulties with joy we cannot express

the object of our faith is the true hero here.

Who has saved us from sin and death and has given us life - the living Jesus

he was crucified on Good Friday in order to save us,

He took the punishment of our sins, that is death,

so that all who believe in him could be forgiven their sin.

He rose again on the third day as he said he would, revealing his glory and his power to save.

Who brings us through trials — the living Jesus

Because he lives it means there is more to life than just living for our own purposes,

Because he lives it means that the difficulties we go through are never waisted, but always used to bring about a work in us that pleases Him and blesses us.

Who reveals the salvation of our souls - the living Jesus at His return

Our faith gives us hope that culminates in something that cannot be taken from us no matter what we endure — the living Jesus, who we will see and be with forever and ever.

Hope Begins and Ends with a Risen Savior.

Today is a great day, for those of you who do not yet trust Jesus to believe.

We celebrate his resurrection today.

He has done everything for you so that you can be saved. Will you receive it?

Whatever you think you’ve done that is unforgivable, the resurrection tells us different.

In the resurrection, Jesus says “think again, I have given my life so that you can have life.”

The creator of the world has laid down his life so you could be forgiven,

He has risen from the grave, giving you the most certain hope that all your sins are forgiven,

The only thing He can’t forgive, is your rejection of Him.

If you want to continue in life, hoping only in what this world has to offer, you can do that, but when the fire comes, what will be left?

Hope begins with the risen Savior who died for you and I for the forgiveness of sin.

For some of you believers, today is a great day to remind ourselves the implications of what we’ve just read.

Hope Begins and Ends with a Risen Savior.

If Jesus rose from the dead, it means he first suffered and died,

What this means for you is that the suffering or fire you’re in right now he knows.

He truly can sympathise, He lost everything for the sake of the cross,

He was forsaken by his friends, humiliated, mocked, His own brothers didn’t believe in him…

There may be some of you who have let the trials lead you to hopelessness, rather than the Savior,

God uses trials and difficulties to grow our faith.

If we don’t have this understanding, trials and difficulties develop into broken relationship, anxieties, depression, substance abuse,

Trials and difficulties are meant to drive us to the risen Christ our hope,

Don’t let his silence make you think he isn’t at work, don’t think that what you are going through is for nothing,

If his sufferings worked out something great for you, he will use the difficulties and trials you go through for his glory and your good!

Hope begins with a risen Savior…

If Jesus rose from the dead, it means that He is alive now.

Jesus our living hope, will never leave us nor forsake us. He is at work in our lives.

Hebrews 11:6 “6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”

If faith is what pleases God, it means that the living Savior is at work in us to produce what glorifies God.

When our hope is based in anything that can be taken away we will always be at risk of collapse,

There may be some of you who need to sit with that, to question what it is that has been driving your desires and life.

Confess and make the appropriate changes to prioritize your walk with Christ and gathering together with His church above these things.

Hope ends with a risen Savior

If Jesus rose from the dead, it means his word is true and he will come again.

Hope is fulfilled when Jesus returns.

All that Jesus has gone through to save us will culminate in His return.

All that we have gone through in this life is preparing us for Jesus’ eternal kingdom,

We rejoice because there is more than just this life, an eternal one.