Word of Salvation – Vol. 42 No. 41 – November 1997

 

The Christian Is The Most Privileged Person In The World

 

Sermon by Rev. J. P. De Boer on 1Peter 1:3-5

Scripture Readings: John 3:1-8; Romans 8:18-38; 1Peter 1:1-9

Suggested Hymns: BoW 57a & 331; 148 (or 180); 465; 511; 432;
                        [where applicable: SIS 644]

 

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ.

How have you come to Church today?  Joyfully, or with a burdened heart?  With a faith that is alive and well, or one that is not so firm, and not so lively?  Are you on top of things, or in need of comfort and encouragement?

Whatever your situation this morning / evening, we have here one of those glorious statements that is guaranteed to stir life into the hearts of God's people – even those who are discouraged – and to challenge all who do not believe.  Here we have a reminder of the sheer wonder and blessing of belonging to Christ.

What makes our text so precious is that Peter wrote it to Christians who were suffering because of their faith.  Many of them had come from pagan backgrounds, and now they were being beaten and treated unjustly.  Others were hated and had to put up with slander.  For them, persecution was something they faced every day.  Yet, it is precisely these people who are reminded that to be a Christian is to be the most richly blessed; the most highly privileged person in the world.

So, what does he say?  How does he make his point?

He reminds us of three precious truths:

• the Christian has a living hope;
• the Christian has a heavenly inheritance;
• the Christian is kept by God's power, forever.

1.  CHRISTIANS HAVE A LIVING HOPE

In verse 3 we read, "In His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead."  Here we come face to face with one of the basic truths of the Gospel.  If you are a believer, there is only one explanation.  God has acted.  In His mercy He has chosen you from eternity; He has had compassion on you, a sinner, and caused you to be born again.  In love He sent His Spirit into your heart so that there has been a transformation.  The old has gone and the new has come.  And if He had not done that, you simply would not – and could not – ever believe in Jesus.

That is the point Jesus made to Nicodemus in John 3: "I tell you the truth, no one can see the Kingdom of God unless he is born again” (vs 3).  In other words: Nicodemus, you can have all the religion you like; you can do all the things you do as a Pharisee.  But unless you are born again, you will never be saved.

Have you ever understood this of the sinner?  He is so locked up under the power of sin; the devil has him so securely, that nothing but the almighty power of God's Spirit can set him free and bring him to living faith in Christ?  And for all who believe in Jesus: have you ever stopped to think that you have two birthdays?  One for the day you were born; the other for the day you were born again?

Peter, of course, is not concerned with that, but with how this truth radically affects the way you view life.  Here he reminds us: All God's children have a living hope.

Now what is 'hope'; how do we define it?  Hope, as the Bible speaks of it, is not just wishful thinking.  Rather, it is a confident expectation that God will do all that He has promised.  Here it is called a 'living' hope because it will not die.  God's people – even those going through persecution – can always look to the future with confidence.  We can have that confident expectation that God will do all He has promised for you.  He will finish the work of salvation; He will keep you in His care and not a hair will fall from your head without it being His will; He will bring you into glory and nothing will ever separate you from His love.

Can you imagine what that would have meant for Peter's readers?  The hard times you go through now are not the end of the story.  You have this living hope that the best is yet to come!

Can you see, now, why these are words of comfort and encouragement to God's people, even today?  Compare what Peter has written to what was written in a (1995) article in Grid magazine: One of the characteristics of our society is, quote,

"...the loss of hope and idealism: there is a pessimism about the future and a strong trend toward nostalgia in popular fashion and music...  This loss of hope affects the young most powerfully, as indicated by the current high statistics for youth and young adult suicides.'

What a tragic truth.  And what a contrast to the glorious Gospel truth that faith in Jesus Christ gives: We have a living hope!  God will do all He has promised.  The best is yet to come!

And it will; you may know that.  Because this is not just wishful thinking; crossing your fingers, hoping that things won't go too bad for you.  This is the hope of faith.  This is the hope based on the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.  And Peter knew that to be true.  He had seen the risen Christ and been with Him after He had risen from the dead.

But now, do you have this living hope?  My brothers and sisters, there are times you suffer in the world.  Perhaps you struggle with sickness or loneliness.  Perhaps the loss of a loved one is still hard to bear.  There may be hardships in your family, or uncertainty about the future.

There may be an ongoing struggle with the reality of sin.  You may have made a mess of your life in time past, and while you know that God has forgiven you, the fact remains that you can't undo the consequences.  You may have been abused, or you suffer because you are a Christian.

Today our text says to you, Keep this living hope before you as you live in God's world.  One day it will all be behind you; your salvation will be complete and you will be with Jesus in heaven.  That is why we can say: To be a Christian is to be the most privileged person in the world.

The second blessing Peter speaks of is that...

2.  CHRISTIANS HAVE A HEAVENLY INHERITANCE

The word 'inheritance' has to do with the property or goods that a person receives when another dies.  The will is read and each person that is mentioned receives his share, his inheritance.  Here Peter reminds us that we are already named in God's will.  God has not only caused us to be born again and given us this living hope.  He has also given us a place in heaven where we shall live with Him, and all God's people, forever.  That is our special inheritance.

This word 'inheritance' has its roots in the Old Testament.  God promised His Old Testament people the land of Canaan.  And every family or tribe had a part of that land which would always stay theirs.  This was called their inheritance.

Do you see the parallels here?  The Old Testament people were pilgrims and strangers, wandering through the desert until they reached the Promised Land.  Then they received their inheritance.  In the same way God's people in the New Testament time – us – are passing through this world, until we go to heaven to be with the Lord.  Then we will receive our inheritance.

But there is one important difference.  Unlike the people in Canaan, our inheritance will be perfect.  See how it is described in vs 4.  Three things are said and each of them is a negative: It will never perish, never spoil, never fade.  Can you imagine living in a place like that?  There will be no decay there.  Sin will never again be able to infect anything and continue its work of destruction.  And the glory will never fade.  Unlike Canaan, where the people had to battle times of drought and sickness, life in heaven will always be beautiful, fulfilling and joyful.

We know it don't we?  There will be no more pain, or crying, or mourning, or death.  Nor will there be any more broken families; or hospitals.  Injustice, poverty and hunger will be a thing of the past.  And in their place there will be joy and blessing, glory and wonder, and the presence of Jesus Christ into all eternity.  Can you see now why Paul says in 1Cor.2:9 that, "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him"?  Our text says: this is being kept in heaven – for you.

Can you see now the great blessing of the Gospel?  And why being a believer is to be the most privileged person in the world?  The Bible is clear that the unbeliever has no hope for the future; all he has to look forward to is the certainty of judgment.  But in contrast to that, the believer has this glorious inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade.

When was the last time you stopped to think of the wonder of that?  Have you ever thought about that?  In the past, people have often joked that 'Christians were so heavenly minded that they were of no earthly use.'  That does not seem to be our problem today.  Quite the opposite!  Our problem may be that we are not heavenly-minded enough!  If this is so, our faith suffers, particularly when we go through hard times.  It cannot be otherwise.  Our faith will never be living and vital, if all we ever do is focus on the here and now, particularly in times of hardship.  Peter wrote to these Christians, and reminded them of their heavenly inheritance.  Not as a cop out from life in the real world.  But to encourage and strengthen them in their lives.

Perhaps, today, you need encouragement or comfort.  You may be frustrated in your Christian life.  Or, as we said before, there may be sorrows or hardship.  Perhaps there are difficulties of one sort or another.  In spite of these you do not have to be despondent!  You have a heavenly inheritance and it is waiting for you.  One day you will be there to enjoy it.  Can you see, now, why the Christian is the most privileged person in the world?

But now we need to ask: How can we be sure that we will be there to enjoy it?  Our text tells us...

3.  CHRISTIANS ARE KEPT BY GOD'S POWER

The word it uses is 'shielded.'  This is a military term and it pictures for us a company of soldiers, standing guard over a city and protecting it against enemy attack.  In the same way, God's power – the power of His Holy Spirit – surrounds us and protects us against the attacks of Satan.  Can you see the comfort here?  Not only do we have hope and encouragement for the future; we have it right now.  We are being shielded by God's power, so nothing can snatch us away from Him.  Do you remember what the apostle Paul said in Romans 8:38-39?  "For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future...  neither height nor depth nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

It is that same truth which comes out here.  God promises that if you belong to Him, through faith in Christ, you can never be lost.  Once He has saved you, you are always saved.  You may go through times of doubt, when you wonder how real your faith is.  There may be times of sorrow and hardship, when your faith is stretched to the limit.  You may fall into terrible sin, as King David did.  But you will never be lost.  You cannot be... because God Himself is shielding you with His almighty power.

And how important this power is!  Just imagine if you did not have it.  Do you think that you could keep going in your Christian life?  How would you have the strength to resist temptation?  Or overcome doubt, or get out of the rut of sinful habits?  Without the Holy Spirit's power, do you think you could keep the commandments?  Or be truly kind, compassionate – and forgiving?

Of course not!  Here we see the blessing of the Gospel.  God has not just caused you to be born again, and then left you to battle through life in your own strength.  He has given you His power, and that will keep you going until the day that Jesus returns.  And then, finally, He will change you; you will become like Him.  You will be like a bride on her wedding day, spotless and beautiful.  Without any spot or wrinkle of sin.

You may ask: How does that happen?  Where does the power come from?  Our text says that it comes through faith.  That is the tool God uses.  So when you are going through those times we just spoke of – the difficult times, the days of sorrow and hardship; the times of doubt – do what we do every time the Lord's Supper is celebrated: remember and believe that the body of Christ was broken, and His blood shed – for you.  Put your faith to work, so that the power of it can take root in your life.  And you can go on in the strength of the Lord.

Conclusion

Today we have seen that the Christian is the most richly blessed, the most highly privileged person in the world.  Why?  Because he alone...:
            has a living hope;
            has a heavenly inheritance;
            is kept by God's power, forever.
Is there anything, in this world, which compares to this?

And now, where should all of this lead us?  What should the result of knowing this be?

May all of us grasp these truths in faith, and be led to praise God from the very depths of our heart.  Let us lift our hearts and voices in praise to God; let us worship and adore Him.  And with Peter, let us say: "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!"

Amen.