Our Living Hope
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This morning we are talking about hope. We are not talking about the world’s version of hope however. There is a major difference between the way a believer and an unbeliever use the word hope. When the world speaks of hope they say something like this, “I hope I win the lottery.” What do they mean. The chance of me actually winning the lottery are very very small, but I just wish I would get lucky. The believer’s hope is the exact opposite. It is a confident expectation that something will come to pass.
Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;
This is what Peter is attempting to do for the believers that are scattered across Asia Minor. Peter writes to a group of mostly Gentile believers and He is attempting to encourage them to continue the process of sanctification in their lives.
Peter was instilling hope in the believers of the dispersion, so that their faith might result in the glory of God.
God has given us a living hope so that our faith might result in His glory.
Why should believers have such a great hope?
There are three elements of hope that God has given to us, so that our faith might result in His glory.
I. We have hope because of our salvation
I. We have hope because of our salvation
A. God’s Mercy
A. God’s Mercy
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
Blessed- In this passage Peter begins and ends with the glory of God. This is the primary focus of our hope- that God would be glorified.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which or who according to this abundant mercy
God’s mercy is abundant. Lit the word is many, according to God’s many mercies and the idea is that the magnitude of God’s mercy is abundant or great. God’s mercy is as infinite as He is infinite. And it is according to this great magnitude of mercy that God has begotten us again or the idea is that God has caused us to be born again. We have our salvation, we have been born again because of God’s great magnitude of mercy. Notice we were not saved according to our own effort, but God choose of His own accord to show mercy on us. That produces hope in our lives. God has saved us by his mercy, I now can have a confident expectation that He will continue working in my life in the future.
B. Our Living Hope
B. Our Living Hope
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
Unto a lively or a living hope.
Because of our salvation we do not have simply hope, we have a living hope. That means that the believer’s hope is genuine it is real it is vital. Our hope is alive and true, it is not empty or vain. For those multitudes that have been born again and experienced God’s mercy, ours is a hope that is effectual and alive.
C. Our Confidence in our Hope
C. Our Confidence in our Hope
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
Our living hope, is assured unto us by means of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. Why do we have a living hope? Because the object of our hop is alive! We serve a risen Savior!
King James Version Chapter 15
19 If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. 20 But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.
That is our confidence. Our hope is grounded in our salvation which produces a living hope which is assured based on the resurrection of our Savior. What a hope that is!
Illustration:
Grandma Ruth- she had a heart attack, even in that darkness there is much hope.
But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.
Why do we have hope, because I believe Grandma Ruth knew Christ as her Savior. She was born again according to mercy of God unto a living hope guaranteed by the resurrection of Christ from the dead. One day I will see Grandma again. I too have a hope grounded in my salvation. I have been born again and will be resurrected with her in the last days.
Refutation:
This hope is only available to those who have been born again. If you have never experienced God’s mercy in your life, then the offer of salvation is for you. God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come unto Christ and be saved. If you are not saved, if you have no hope let us show you today Jesus the hope of your soul.
Application:
How are you doing in the area of you hope? Would you describe your hope as a living hope? Is it genuine in your life, is it real in your life? Is your attitude or your confidence about the future grounded in your salvation? Do you have hope?
II. We have hope because of our inheritance
II. We have hope because of our inheritance
A. The nature of our inheritance
A. The nature of our inheritance
To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you,
Our inheritance is tied to God’s mercy in causing us to be born again.
Who according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again
1st- unto a lively hope
2nd- unto an inheritance incorruptible, undefiled, and unfading.
So if we are saved we have a hope of a future inheritance. We have a place in heaven awaiting us, we have the privilege of being co-heirs with Christ, we have the privilege of being rewarded by Christ for our faithfulness. We have an amazing inheritance.
Notice the three part description of our inheritance
Incorruptible- impervious to corruption and death. Our inheritance cannot be corrupted or killed. It is sure and cannot be altered or undone.
In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
Undefiled- our inheritance is pure. It is not tainted by sin or stain or blemish.
VBS- science experiment, iodine into water defiled it, bleach cleansed it to pure water. Sin cannot taint our inheritance.
For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens;
Just as much as our Savior is undefiled, so we too have an inheritance awaiting us where we will become undefiled. Free from all sin, changed forever to be like our Savior.
Unfading- our inheritance will not loose its pristine quality or character. It will not fade.
I love bow hunting, and I was able to get a really nice bow several years ago. I loved it, still do. I shoot it all the time it is accurate and very effective. But guess what ever year they come out with new bows. And when the 2017 bows come out some how the joy of my old 2014 bow fads just a little. I now long for something better.
Our inheritance will never fade, it will never grow old, it will never diminish in quality.
But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.
B. The guarantee of our inheritance
B. The guarantee of our inheritance
To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
Our inheritance is reserved or preserved in heaven for you. This is a perfect verb in the Greek. That means your inheritance was preserved for you at some time in the past and God will continue to keep it all the way into the future.
V. 5 states that you are being kept or better guarded by the power of God. This is a divine passive. Meaning that you have no part in your own keeping, but are completely protected by God Himself. How are you guarded? Through faith unto salvation. Boy, anyone that believes that you can loose your salvation needs to study this verse. Anyone that puts their faith in Christ for salvation is kept, they are guarded from loosing their salvation, their inheritance, by nothing less that the power of God Himself. If you believe that you can somehow loose that, then you drastically underestimate the power of God.
Notice also that our salvation and our inheritance is ready to be revealed when? In the last time. That means God will keep it all the way to the end.
C. The result of our inheritance
C. The result of our inheritance
Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations:
1st part of v.6- wherein or in this (in the knowledge of you amazing inheritance believer, that is incorruptible, undefiled, unfading, guarded by the very power of God) in this you greatly rejoice! How could you do anything less when you really understand the hope of your inheritance.
This is a present tense verb in the Greek which means you continually rejoice. Your rejoicing does not stop. Every time you meditate on God’s great inheritance for you, you should be exceedingly glad.
Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.
Illustration:
Perhaps you have gotten the email that some long lost African relative has died and you are his sole heir and he has left you a vast fortune and all you need to do is send in money to deal with the legal fees and the inheritance is yours. Scam- why do we buy into that? Because an inheritance like that gives us a hope for a better life here on earth. Believer the inheritance awaiting you in heaven should cause you to hope like nothing else this world has to offer.
Application:
What are you hoping in? Are you hoping in earthly treasure, or an earthly inheritance. Or are you living for the last days where God will reveal unto you an inheritance He has kept safe just for you?
III. We have hope because of our trials
III. We have hope because of our trials
A. What is necessary
A. What is necessary
Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations:
ὀλίγον ἄρτι, εἰ δέον °ἐστίν,
though now for a season, if it be necessary,
⸀λυπηθέντας ἐν ⸁ποικίλοις πειρασμοῖς,*
You have become distressed by various trials,
Ye are in heaviness- means to become sad, sorrowful, or distressed. It is a passive verb, so God is the one who allows trials in your life to cause you to become sad. Why? If need be. Because God deems it as necessary.
B. Why it is necessary
B. Why it is necessary
That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:
God deems it necessary to try our faith. Our faith is much more precious that gold, because gold fades away, but our faith is eternal. God even deems it necessary to try our faith with fire. Sometimes, God sends us trials, very difficult trials, trials that are like fire. They hurt, they are unpleasant, they are hard. Pastor Jon, then why do trials produce hope in our lives?
Notice what the trials accomplish. The trial of our faith might be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the appearing of Jesus Christ.
Wow. God sends me trials so that I can change and that one day when I stand before Jesus my faith will result in the praise and honor and glory of His name.
Isn’t that what we all want. We want to hear well done my good and faithful servant.
What would you rather have? Would you rather God not send you trials here and now in this life and let you continue on in a faith that is not acceptable in His sight? Imagine standing before Christ when he appears with a faith that is not worthy of His name. Or would you rather that God send you trials in you life now, even fiery trials, so that you would be marvelously changed by the grace of God and that your faith would result in the praise and glory and honor of His name when you stand before Him.
The fact is that we will all stand before Jesus Christ one day to give an account of how we have used our lives for Him. The hope is that if we learn what God has for us in the trials He sends our way, then God will bring into my life exactly what I need to be unto His glory. I am not in this alone. I don’t have to worry, I just need to be faithful and trust God so that when trials come they are to me an avenue of hope knowing that God is working in my life so that one day I will be to the praise and honor and glory of Christ. What a hope that is! That is why we can rejoice in trials, that is why we can thank God for our trials. Not for the pain, but for the end result that He will accomplish in our lives.
Illustration:
Our kids. We sometime have to discipline them in order to bring about change in their lives. You have all experienced the child in the supermarket screaming at the top of their lungs because they did not get the candy bar. We don’t want our kids to end up that way. So we use discipline. And it is hard. But the end result is worth it.
Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.
Application:
Do you find hope in your trials? Often time we experience the exact opposite right? Hard times come our way and we experience anything but hope. That is the time that you must run to God. You must run to Him and experience His grace in your life. You need His grace so very badly. You must put you trust in his sovereign control and ask God what do you want me to learn through this trial? And by God’s grace he uses that trial to change our sinful bodies to become more like unto Him. And that is hopeful.
Believer:
You have hope because of your salvation
You have hope because of your inheritance
And yes you have hope because of your trials.
God has given us a living hope so that our faith might result in His glory.
Will you place your faith in God and find your hope in him. Will you experience the grace available to you so that you can have a living hope no matter the situation you may face?