LEARNING DAILY

1 Peter 1:3-5, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

In verse two Peter is writing to the “elect”. These are the ones who have said yes to the salvation Jesus Christ gives through His death and resurrection. Did you notice that word “hope” again? Hope is based on Jesus Christ and His promise that because He overcame death, His followers would overcome the grave as well! What a wonderful promise – one that Believers can base their future on! What is the appropriate response to God’s great mercy toward the Believer? Praise, worship, obedience as he/she walks the narrow way into God’s eternal kingdom.

Our praise and worship are to “God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” because of the punishment each person deserves, He gave the Believer something he/she could never earn or purchase. Through His Son He gave Believers eternal life, “a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead”. No one has to wish about eternal life with Him. Because the Lord Jesus Christ died, and then showed Himself alive to so many, Believers can know they too will live again for eternity in God’s kingdom with the Lord Jesus.

Peter continues that Believers will be born into “an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away”. Paul wrote in Romans 8:16-17, “The Spirit Himself bears witness, with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs – heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may be glorified together”. In other words, because God has made Believers His children, they have full rights to receive His inheritance; Believers are His beneficiaries. Jesus, as the only begotten Son, is the only true heir of God, the Father. Being a joint heir with Jesus means Believers, as adopted children, will share in the inheritance of Jesus Christ. Hebrews 1:2 tells us, “He was appointed heir of all things”. That means what belongs to Jesus belongs to Believers; the believer’s inheritance can never be lost (nor fought over). It can never be lost, cannot be corrupted, and will never lose its value. It is worth everything the Believer does to walk the narrow way into eternity.

This inheritance is “reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time”. Peter has written about the Believer being a joint heir with Jesus Christ and about the inheritance that is the Believer’s. He finishes this making sure Believer’s know that God is actively guarding Believers right now. Guarding them from what? From persecution? From suffering? From trials and temptations? The word “kept” here means “to be shielded from or to be watched over” (Vine’s Bible Dictionary). Whatever the Believer is experiencing or during trials and difficult times, he/she needs to know that they are not insignificant or forgotten; they are secure in God through faith! That does not mean they are shielded from pain, suffering, or the hardships of life. It means that the Father in heaven is watching over their walk with Him, keeping them secure through His divine power and faithfulness to them. The Believer’s faith unties him/her to the Lord Jesus. The walk on the narrow way is stressed so much in this blog because it is on this path that the Believer grows in the faith and in their trust in their relationship with Him. What Believers go through is growing their relationship to Him. So, I write it again, Read/study/meditate on God’s Word daily! Be obedient to it and the Holy Spirit’s leading! Pray, pray, pray! Submit yourself to the will of God! The reward is so worth the walk on the narrow way!