Brothers and Sisters, our hope as Christians is not in an idea, but a person.  Jesus is alive.  He intercedes for us, and anyone whose hope rests in Him alone has nothing to fear in this life or the next.  My hope is that each of us can find our rest in God from the gospel of Jesus, and a joy in knowing that if you are in Christ by God’s grace through faith, everything in life is drawing us closer to Him.

1 Peter 1:3-9 – “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, ⁴ to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, ⁵ who by God’s power are being 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, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, ⁷ so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. ⁸ Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, ⁹ obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”

All that we have is from Christ.  All that we need is found in Christ.  All that we could ever hope for is secure in Christ.  In the passage above, we are told that we will be grieved by “various trials”.  What kind of trials would this comprise?  Being in need?  Yes.  Being betrayed?  Yes.  Sickness?  Yes.  Loss? Yes.  Abandonment? Yes.  Abuse?  Yes.  We are not given a list of trials, but we know that what is meant is that it will be more than one and more than one type.

Is our faith genuine?  The passage above tells us two things; One, true faith is a gift of God’s power, who guards our faith our entire lives (verse 5).  It is not up to us to muster faith on our own.  Second, genuine faith will emerge from trials rejoicing in the gospel and in the sufficiency and supremacy of Jesus.

If you are in Christ, there is always a purpose in pain.  God will use your trial to draw you nearer to Him, and in eternity it will be a source of praise and glory and honor of Jesus.  If you are not in Christ, then the pain you feel now is nothing compared to the feeling of eternity apart from God.

My encouragement is to rest in Jesus.  Rest in His finished work, and know that in Him we have all that we need.  Lay everything at the feet of God, and ask for whatever you need, and God will meet you there.  Jesus died to make an end of all your sin and reconcile you to God.  His blood covers all of your sin, past, present, and future.  It is because He lives, He is risen from the grave, that we know our salvation and future hope is secure.  Jesus is alive!  He will never leave or forsake you, His desire is for your joy in Him.  He may see us with idols in our lives or hearts and use trials to draw us closer to Him, but ultimately these things are done in love.  We know this because it was the love of God that overcame our sin, when Jesus willingly died in our place.

Are you burdened by your sin?  Pray to the God of grace and ask Him to continually change your heart and glorify His name through holiness in your life.  Are you burdened by outside circumstances?  Lay every anxious thought at the feet of God, knowing that He is in control and cares for you.  Above all, be encouraged and bold in both proclaiming the gospel and seeking the grace of God – Jesus conquered sin and the grave.  He is our living hope, and our hope in Him is more than enough.

Grace and Peace,

Adam