Point of Grace Worship 5.4.25 Sermon Notes – “Come and See, Go and Tell – Resurrection Hope”
“These three remain; Faith, Hope and Love”
Paul, The Apostle
1 Peter 1:3-9
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!
In his great mercy he has given us
- new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and
- into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade.
This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.
In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.
Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith,
the salvation of your souls.
Peter, a veteran follower of Jesus now for decades, is encouraging Jesus followers who are under pressure
to “give up” their faith because of the hard realities of life. He reminds them
- That the hope they have in Jesus is real because He is alive and with them,
- That the inheritance that awaits them is real, eternal and empowers “not yet” living in the “now”
- That through their “faith” connection with Jesus they get a “shield of God’s power”,
“a joy in the midst of suffering”, an “in love” relationship with Jesus for everyday life
- because the Resurrection of Jesus has made the resources of heaven available
for us to have “living hope” while navigating the everyday realities of life on earth.
Perhaps the most ordinary, daily benefit of the Resurrection is this. To follow not a dead, revered teacher but rather a Risen Lord is to have Him actually with us. In Revelation 3:20 Jesus says he, “stands at the door and knocks” and that if “anyone hears my voice and opens the door,” he will come in and eat with them “and they with me”. It is commonly thought that this is an invitation to non-believers to “open their hearts to Jesus,” but in the context of Revelation 3 Jesus is speaking to the church, to Christians. To eat with someone was and is to have fellowship with them. Jesus is saying to believers that there is a potential for rich, intimate communion with him, for knowing him and knowing his love, that is generally untapped.
Because of the Resurrection, he is not a deceased writer we know only through his books. He is alive and He is calling to us. “Here I am” he says to you. Open up and love Him and listen to Him. Those who do so will “awaken from despair and put away the imaginations of darkness”.
Timothy Keller –“ Hope in Times of Fear”
1 Peter 3:15 “But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,