1 Peter 3:13-17 (ESV)
“Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is
good? But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you will be
blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your
hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense
to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with
gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when
you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to
shame. For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be
God's will, than for doing evil.”
Continuing Pastor Kyle’s
message on finding hope, he confessed that a lot of times, we got upset because
we don’t feel hopeful because we are not looking for hope or looking for hope
in all the wrong places. Have no fear of them who do not know the Lord and come
against you, nor be troubled. Glorify God and in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy. That is how to find
hope and life. That is how we endure hardships and get through. There are many
times when we feel deeply troubled in a way that is not healthy for us. We are
yet to arrive at a place in life where we have no fears and no worries,
overcoming troubles.
It may not be possible on
this side of heaven to get to a perfect place where we are carefree and worry
free in this fallen and sinful world. But as gospel Believers, as we grow over
the course of our lives, is we learn to recognize when we are afraid and
worrying in a detrimental hope-robbing way. We can learn to identify when our
thought-patterns are turning from the godly truth. As followers of the Lord
Jesus, we can get better at recognizing and redirecting our mind’s eye back to
the Holy One every day as we walk in the Spirit. The way that we filter our
those negative thoughts is to seek the Lord constantly.
Matthew 7:7 “Ask
and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door
will be opened to you.”
So, go knock on Jesus’ door
in prayer when you feel down in spirit, depressed by situations, or worried
about issues, and when you do, expect the Lord to return a question back to
you. What is the reason for the hope that
is in you? The over-arching answer: Jesus conquered sin and death on the
Cross and by His resurrection; so the born again Believer shall also in a
confident hope by the promise of Almighty God. We must seek the Lord, our
Savior, the Holy One in this dark world. When we seek Him, we are full of life
and hope. Who is going to harm you if you
are eager to do good? 1 Peter 3:13
is really about us going to the source of lasting hope. But, the second aspect
of this verse deals with how we give and share that hope to others.
We can only give hope, if we
live hope. There is an entire field of Christianity called Apologetics about
making a defense for the faith. These studies are excellent for sharing
biblical truths with others. With today’s technology, there us such a vast
amount of excellent Christian writings, videos and audio resource material at
our fingertips at any time, that we have a literal Seminary at our disposal.
But, to know the reason for the hope that
is in you, you must know what you believe, why you believe it, recognize
how Jesus has changed your life through it, and be sharing your story of your
testimony. People want to see God in you and your life. They are looking for
the gospel truth because God has put eternity upon everyone’s heart. The Seeker
of The Truth is looking to see hope inside of you. Live a hope-filled life,
walking in obedience of God’s holy Word, Will and Way, then people will ask you
about it.
Make a defense of the faith
to anyone who asks. There is spiritual power when we are honest in connecting
with people. The Apostle Peter explains that it is not the crowd-pleasing
speech or the convincing words that we use that wins someone over. The thing
that ultimately influences someone of conviction of sin, repentance and finding
hope in Christ is gentleness and respect. Know your story of how the Lord has
changed you and your life, then live a life that begs the question about why
you believe in God and Jesus. Live hope and you will naturally give hope. A faithful
hope-filled life is passionate about the things of God. What is your passion? Use
your good earthly passions to impart the God-things to others seeking the Lord,
and do good by directing them to a personal relationship with Christ at the
foot of the Cross.
Hope is person; Jesus
Christ. Hope is a place; Heaven, where we will go when we repent, believe, cleave
and follow Jesus Christ – the Savior of the world – as Lord of our life. Hope
is a daily decision that we make to take up our Cross, follow Jesus, and set
our minds on things above, not on things of the earth. For we have died to sin
and have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer us who live, but Christ
who lives in us. And when Christ appears, who is our life, we also shall appear
with Him in glory.
A hope-filled life is comes
through Jesus. Hope is found when we are in the arms of Christ and the promise
of eternal life in Heaven is our perspective. Run toward hope.
In Christ, Brian
No comments:
Post a Comment