Freiday Devotional

1 Peter 1:3-9
Scripture: 3 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, 4 to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, 5 who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, 7 so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ; 8 and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, 9 obtaining as the outcome of your faith the salvation of your souls. (NASB)

Exposition: "Blessed" can also be understood as "praise" to our God and Father. It is right for us to praise God, for as Peter illuminates, it is by His mercy that we have been born again. Our rebirth comes with a certain hope that is only made possible by the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. As Paul stated in 1 Corinthians 15, our faith is futile if Christ was not raised from the dead. In a similar way, our hope is in vain if Christ was not raised from the dead.

God's great mercy has not only given us hope and rebirth, but also an inheritance. Just like the Jews of the Old Testament waited on the Lord to fulfill their inheritance of the Promised Land, we Christians are awaiting our inheritance, namely Christ himself. But unlike the Promised Land, which is subject to loss and decay, our inheritance is "imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away." This is because our inheritance is not subject to the atrocities of this world, but is stored safely in the realms of heaven.
Peter tells us, not only is our inheritance protected but we Christians are as well, by God's power. It is our initial faith that grants us salvation and eventually an inheritance. It is God's power that keeps us saved, not our own. In essence, it is through His faithfulness that we can have assurance of salvation, not our faithfulness. For, we know how unfaithful we can be, but this has no effect on God's faithfulness towards us. Our salvation that is "revealed in the last time" refers to our glorification. This is the finalization of our salvation. We will be glorified at our death or the Rapture, which ever comes first.

Before this glorification can take place, we will go through many trials. This is nothing new, just the truth of the matter. We live in a world that is plagued by sin, hardship, and evil. And as such, we will endure such things until Christ returns. However, inspite of such trials we are able to rejoice, for we know that our salvation is in Christ and not of this world. We rejoice for our inheritance is sercured in heaven. We rejoice for we know the future will be a bright place, beyond the darkness of this world. Persecution may/will come and Peter encourages us to remember the hope that he has just talked about.

These trials that Peter is concerned with are means of testing our faith. The testing is a means of purification. Just like fire purifies gold, so trials purify our faith. The trials display the measure of faith and where it truly lies. Peter goes on to illustrate that our faith is more important than gold, for it (faith) leads to eternal life. Our faith is proved genuine when we are able to give praise, glory, and honor to God, and especially when Christ returns.

We are able to rejoice because we have hope, faith, and love. However, our rejoicing will be magnified when we come into the presence of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.

Through these trials, along with faith, hope, and love, we will obtain salvation. The term for "souls" literally refers to the whole person, not just the spiritual aspect. Peter tells us that at the end of the trials our salvation will be complete; that our faith will be purified; and the whole person will be glorified. All of this accomplished through the grace of God as stated in v. 3.

Application: In what specific ways has God been merciful to you recently? How have you thanked God for his mercies? What are you holding on to in this life that you can't take with you when you die? Or what perishable items have taken the place of God in your life? Do you praise God when you're facing a trial, temptation, or persecution? In what ways can you express joy through your trials?

Prayer: Our Heavenly Father, your mercies are great and wonderful. We thank you for your provision and protection in our lives. Without you evil would run wild through the world, but you have restrained it for a little while, and have placed your children under your protection. Although, we may not always understand the trials in our lives, we have faith that you will see us through. And we will praise your Name forever. For our inheritance is with you and not of this world. We thank you for the forgiveness of our sins through the life, death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord, Jesus Christ. It is in His name and by the Spirit we pray. Amen.