HOLDING ON TO HOPE: 1 Peter 1:13-21

Thursday, May 6, 2021

Today’s reading: 1 Peter 1:13-21

“Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot, He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.”

Sisters, are you often discouraged by the difficult circumstances you face? I know I am! I believe that Peter would have empathized with us because he knew how challenging it can be to live each day as a Christian when Satan is constantly throwing obstacles in your path. Peter was repeatedly arrested and imprisoned. If anyone had an excuse to be discouraged, he did. But Peter did something that many Christians don’t. Rather than allow his mind and spirit to be crushed by his circumstances, he did what he directs us to do in today’s verse, “preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (vs. 13). No matter how bad or hopeless our present situation may seem, because we belong to Christ, we have an unshakeable hope for the future. We get to spend life eternally with our Heavenly Father because the same God that raised Jesus from the dead promises to do the same for us. This is something to look forward to! It is a reason to get out of bed in the morning even if the day before was filled with struggles!

Notice that Peter says to prepare ourselves “for action.” Faith is an action word! There’s no room for wallowing in self-pity. No hiding under the covers. We are to take action “sober-minded,” which means thinking it through in the light of God’s truth. The popular phrase from the 90’s that so many of us wore on the rubber bracelets, “What would Jesus do?”, is very appropriate here. We “have the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:16). We are to be like Jesus and act the way Jesus would in our situation.

Peter goes on to say something that some modern day Christians have trouble doing. He says: ‘...conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers” (v.17-18). “The time of your exile” is now! It's our time here on earth, where sin is rampant all around us. We all have days when we feel alienated from God because things are going so badly. “Exile” is a place of separation, but it is also a state of mind and heart. When we fall out of communion with God, we feel like we are in exile. But Sisters, remember this truth—that nothing can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus—not “the present nor the future... nor anything else in all creation” (Romans 8:38-39). This means that during our time here on earth, no circumstance can block God from us.

The “fear” that Peter mentioned does not mean being deathly afraid that God will punish us, but means having a deep reverence toward Him for what He did in order to ransom us; He literally paid for our salvation “with the precious blood of Christ,” His Son. If we have this kind of reverence, we can still praise Him while we are going through the toughest times. Another part of this reverence means refusing to live the empty, sinful life that we inherited from Adam and Eve. Because we have been redeemed, we have a new purpose: to “be holy in all our conduct” because the One who saved us is holy” (vs. 15-16).

If we truly love the Lord and believe that His Word is true, then the struggles we have each day won’t overwhelm us because we know we are linked to Him for eternity. We will remember that what we are experiencing is not permanent, but milestones along our spiritual journey. We have hope and confidence because our destiny is not determined by our failures, but by God’s promises in His Word, which never fail. And that is where I find my hope - in eternity with our Savior! What about you? Where do you find the hope in this passage?

Ladies, as we keep our eyes on our future with God, He will be with us in our present and make us “more than conquers” (Romans 8:37).

Precious Lord, You are our living hope! Forgive us for being overwhelmed by our circumstances. Instead, let us be overwhelmed by your love, power and truth. Thank you that You are with us through it all and will never leave us. Your promises give us hope for the future because we know that You empower and enable us to be “more than “conquerors” in our everyday lives. May we honor and praise You every day—no matter what situation we are in. In Jesus’ Name and for the Father's glory, Amen.