Rev. David Holwick O First Baptist Church Ledgewood, New Jersey April 20, 1997 1 Peter 1:1-9 A LIVING HOPE ============= I. The life of a fisherman. A. Son of prosperous fisherman. B. Joined Jesus, leader of apostles. 1) Denial and repentance. 2) Associated with Jewish mission (acc. to Paul). C. Moved to Rome. 1) Reason for Catholics referring to him as first pope. 2) Soon after this letter written, Peter died in persecution of Nero. D. This letter is to believers in Asia Minor (=Turkey). 1) Not on most people's Top Ten list. 2) But seminary professor found it is popular in Indonesia... a) Speaks to those who believe though in hostile surroundings. b) Living the Christian life no matter what happens. c) Salvation is a key theme. II. Salvation is God's doing. A. "Election" is a much-abused term. 1) "I am chosen by God - and YOU are NOT!" 2) Or even worse: "Everyone is chosen by God except ME." B. Election reveals the wonder of gospel. 1) It is foundation of spiritual blessing. Deut 4:37; 7:6-8 2) God elects because he loves. 3) Not threatening, but always presented as a basis of comfort. a) God chooses us before we chose him. -2- 4) Corporate or individual election? a) Usually God is choosing a group, ie, the Jewish people. b) But he also chooses individuals. C. Foreknown, then chosen. 1) Foreknowledge is more than God's simply knowing what will take place. 2) It includes God's special relations with humanity even before creation. cf. 1:20 3) Note Trinitarian formula... III. Salvation is a process. A. It is far more than a past decision. 1) I was saved 24 years ago, period. B. Sanctifying work of Spirit. 1) We are "set apart" for God. 2) He keeps working on us. C. Obedience to Jesus. 1) Faith involves moral change. a) If we really believe, we do what Jesus says. 2) Sprinkled by blood of Jesus. a) Most likely a symbol of forgiveness and cleansing. b) Blood was sprinkled in the Holy of Holies once a year. Dennis Fulton, former pilot with the Wings of Caring ministry in Zaire, tells of landing a newly purchased Cessna 402 at one of his regular stops in the back country. As always, the villagers excitedly gathered around the plane, but this time there was something new. Two men ran up carrying a live chicken. One had the bird by the feet, and the other had it by the head, and before either the chicken or Dennis knew what was happening, the fowl's head and body parted company. -3- The man with the flopping chicken corpse began swinging it over his head, round and round, with predictable results. Dressed in a freshly pressed white shirt, Dennis was splattered with chicken blood, as were the plane and the villagers. When Dennis asked what that meant, a native explained that for generations, the splattered blood had signified an end to suffering. To the people of Zaire, the Cessna promised hope and help of all kinds. In a graphic way, the splattered blood of that chicken shows what the blood of Jesus is all about. It means our suffering is going to be over. #1900 IV. Salvation requires a dramatic change. A. It is not a gradual touch-up but a new birth. 1) Very common image in New Testament: Jesus & Nicodemus. 2) Meaning of "born again." B. Living hope. 1) Samuel Taylor Coleridge once said that "Hope without an object cannot live." Hope must be based on something. If you have ever lost the focus of life, you understand hopelessness. Perhaps you have invested much into your job, marriage, or the struggles of life; and then you saw it all destroyed. The object of your hope was gone, and you felt dead and aimless. Psychologist William Marston asked 3,000 people this question: "What do you have to live for?" 94 percent responded that they were merely enduring their lives, hoping someday that things would get better. I suppose that this is an expression of hope to a small degree, hoping that the future will be better than the past or present. Yet, this seems so inadequate. If our only encouragement is found in hoping for a better tomorrow, is this an adequate hope? It has been said that some people see only a hopeless end, but the Christian sees an endless hope. The Bible says that hope will always remain. #3639 -4- 2) Christian hope is living and dynamic. C. We have an inheritance waiting for us. 1) Inheritance stresses family connection and gift. Financial writers are saying that Baby Boomers are very much interested in inheritances. Something like $3 trillion will be passed on to them. If your kids have that "vulture" look, you know why. When you sneeze and they say, "Are you OK?" they have ulterior motives. It is hard for us to wait. 2) Our spiritual inheritance cannot be threatened by inflation, war or greed. V. Salvation protects us. A. Shielded=guarded. 1) Stresses continued activity of God in our lives. 2) "Through faith" stresses our part in it. 3) Doesn't mean we cannot be hurt, but God looks out for us. B. This salvation will be revealed in last times. 1) Salvation involves more than just people. 2) The universe will be transformed at a future date. VI. Salvation is not always easy. A. We can rejoice in spite of sufferings. 1) Trials: Pagan pressure is mostly in view. B. Real faith is an enduring faith. 1) Example of Gold. a) Prized. b) Impurities removed by refining. c) Durable but not eternal. -5- 2) Faith is more valuable because it lasts longer and is purified in the tests of life. It was the height of World War II. Rev. James Gilkey sighed as he put down the letter. It was the second such letter in a week. This one was from a girl whose fiance, a naval officer in the Pacific, had been killed in action. The girl was so anguished and bitter, her faith was wavering. Life no longer had any meaning for her. How could she ever have faith in anything any more? He wrote to her the following: Misfortune cannot be conquered by furious and continuing resentment. It can be conquered only by quiet acceptance. We win victory over bereavement only when we face our loss, accept our loss, and then make our way through and beyond our loss. You ask how we make our way through it and beyond it? We do so by deliberately re-entering the world of daily activity - the busy world of problems, duties, friendships, satisfactions. A resentful, self-pitying life is a doomed life. Only the life which deliberately picks up and starts again is victorious. #3128 C. Real faith brings glory to Jesus. 1) Do people praise God because of you? 2) How real is your faith?