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Plainly Speaking
with Karl J. Forehand
Our
Living Hope
(1 Peter 1:3-5)
by Karl J. Forehand
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to
His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the
resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and
will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are protected by the
power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last
time. (1 Peter 1:3-5)
Thomas Grey said:
The boast of heraldry, the pomp of
power,
And all that beauty, all that
wealth e’er gave….
Awaits alike the inevitable hour,
The paths of glory lead but to the
grave.
Isaiah 40:6 says,
“For all flesh is like grass, all the glory of man like the flower of grass.”
It’s a humbling thought to think of our
lives as simply a journey to the end of our physical lives. As we feel the years slip by, we realize
our lives will be over and many of the things we cherish will perish with us. Our passage stresses something about the
hope we have in Christ – it is not perishing (like we are), it is a living
hope. Why is it living? I’m glad you asked.
1.
It is grounded on the living Word of
God. In verse 23 of the same chapter,
Peter says, “for you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable,
that is, through the living and
abiding Word of God.”
Hebrews 4:12 tells us that the Word of God is “living.” It is not like other books that we
eventually could exhaust. It is
living and active.
2.
It is made possible by the living Son of God. All others prophets and so-called Messiahs are dead. Jesus Christ is alive. He was with God in the beginning and now
sits at the right hand of the Father.
Many times, on the internet, we
hear people spouting their beliefs. A
few months later, we notice that they have totally different beliefs –
why? It is because they are putting
their trust in something that is not alive.
If something has life, it grows.
Our hope becomes more glorious every day, because it is living.
Notice, in the passage, that it says it
has “caused us to be born again” into this hope. We were first born into a terminal existence. Then we were born again (anothem =
“from above.”) We have a living
Savior and we are re-born into a living hope.
I want to suggest that it is time for the
church to live. We often resemble a
morgue. We are not sure if we want to
get excited. We are possibly afraid
that we will be disappointed or that our hope will fade. Remember, our hope is alive – it will not
fade or diminish – it should grow more and more glorious with each passing
day.
Our Living Hope
- It is incorrupt
Our hope is not corrupt, but it is also incorruptible. The meaning of this word is literally,
“exempt from wear, waste and final perishing.” I often wonder if some TV evangelists started out good. I assume that many of them became
corrupted by the power and influence that God gave them. But God Himself cannot be corrupted. He cannot be influenced to lower His
standards for popularity or money.
- It is undefiled
Our hope is not “polluted.” We
have air pollution and water pollution and the even more serious soul
pollution. Our mind, emotions and
will have been polluted by sin. But
God cannot be defiled by sin. Not
only will He not change His mind, but He won’t change His standards.
- It is unending
Literally, our hope “fadeth not away.”
Think about your gardens and how those beautiful plant start to lose
their beauty and eventually wither and die.
The saying, “all good things must end” is really incorrect. The really good things – the eternal
things – do not end. Our hope does
not fade at the first frost. It does
not go out of style – it is forever.
Why does it not fade away? Thanks for asking – the answer is in verse
5. It is protected by the power of
God.
We have said that we have an
incorrupt, undefiled unending hope.
If we truly understand that principle then we must stop living like
God is going to stop being God. Too
often we live with a cautious fear that something will change – but God does
not change. I know that people let us
down. I know we are not all as
successful as we thought we would be.
How do we live like we have a living hope?
- We have to learn to
trust Him.
Even when God seems to be slow,
we have to trust Him. Even when
people let us down we have to trust Him.
True trust is built in the times that we have no physical evidence to
go on. It is very easy to trust God
when He is providing. When He seems
to be silent is the point we must learn to truly trust Him.
- We must learn to
rejoice.
God never changes. We have a home in heaven. People spend millions trying to find what
God lavished upon us. We MUST rejoice
about that. If we don’t, the rocks and
hills will do it.
- We must learn to look
forward with anticipation
To do this we may have to look
past our circumstances. Satan puts
obstacles in our way and makes them seem bigger than they are. We must learn to look forward to our
living hope.
Karl J. Forehand, 2001
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