WEBVTT 00:00:00.520 --> 00:00:05.879 Well, congratulations. My car said it was five degrees this morning as I was driving to church. 00:00:06.299 --> 00:00:12.080 You made it. I'm glad to see you all here this morning. 00:00:20.900 --> 00:00:28.000 Throughout the history of the Christian church, one of the hallmarks that has been true of Christianity throughout the years 00:00:28.000 --> 00:00:32.560 is that there has been joy in the midst of suffering. 00:00:33.320 --> 00:00:39.719 We see this from the very beginning. Acts chapter 5, the very beginning of the church. 00:00:40.859 --> 00:00:50.200 The apostles, having been beaten and persecuted for their proclamation of Jesus, described this way. 00:00:50.200 --> 00:00:57.200 Then they left the presence of the council rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor 00:00:57.200 --> 00:00:59.700 for the name that is the name of Jesus. 00:01:00.420 --> 00:01:07.659 And every day in the temple and from house to house, they did not cease teaching and preaching that the Christ is Jesus. 00:01:09.460 --> 00:01:10.820 Joy in suffering. 00:01:11.200 --> 00:01:14.340 It's not just in the Bible. It's not just in the first century. 00:01:14.340 --> 00:01:16.040 In the early church, we see this. 00:01:16.300 --> 00:01:17.879 We've seen it throughout history. 00:01:17.879 --> 00:01:24.699 I can think of friends who I met when I was doing ministry in China for a few years. 00:01:26.439 --> 00:01:27.759 Believers who had suffered. 00:01:28.859 --> 00:01:31.359 Suffered the rejection of their family. 00:01:31.899 --> 00:01:32.420 Alienation. 00:01:34.099 --> 00:01:40.099 Suffered by being brought in to be interrogated by the police because of their faith. 00:01:40.099 --> 00:01:45.579 I think of friends that we have and that we support who live in Central Asia, 00:01:45.579 --> 00:01:51.359 who spend their time encouraging pastors and other Christian leaders 00:01:51.359 --> 00:01:59.560 in a culture where families are threatened, where pastors are beaten, 00:02:00.939 --> 00:02:07.179 where the police and the mobs work together at times against the life of believers. 00:02:07.180 --> 00:02:11.640 And yet they live each day with joy. 00:02:15.260 --> 00:02:19.939 And it's not just far away and it's not just other people where I have seen this. 00:02:20.020 --> 00:02:23.439 I have seen this here in the lives of some of you. 00:02:24.580 --> 00:02:28.680 Some of you have walked through or are walking through today 00:02:28.680 --> 00:02:34.520 deep waters of loss, of pain, of suffering, 00:02:34.960 --> 00:02:38.719 deep wounds that have been inflicted by others. 00:02:40.180 --> 00:02:42.860 And yet I see you coming here 00:02:42.860 --> 00:02:46.620 and singing songs like the one we just sang. 00:02:46.980 --> 00:02:49.040 It is well with my soul. 00:02:49.039 --> 00:02:54.739 Why are we so surprised by this? 00:02:55.739 --> 00:03:00.959 I think it's because deep down we often think that suffering cannot really be God's plan for us. 00:03:01.699 --> 00:03:08.579 We think that somehow suffering is antithetical to the work of God in our lives 00:03:08.580 --> 00:03:15.460 and we wonder at times if we are suffering, whether God is in fact cursing us. 00:03:16.960 --> 00:03:18.740 We have lost God's blessing. 00:03:20.540 --> 00:03:24.120 We also struggle with this because we live in a culture 00:03:24.120 --> 00:03:28.280 where we want to overcome suffering at all costs. 00:03:28.280 --> 00:03:34.539 Our instinct as a culture is to try to control and fix whatever is wrong. 00:03:34.920 --> 00:03:36.460 Think about the last two years. 00:03:36.620 --> 00:03:40.379 We've been navigating a pandemic that has been greater than us. 00:03:41.400 --> 00:03:47.960 And all of us in various ways have sought to control and fix this in many ways. 00:03:50.740 --> 00:03:53.580 And if we can't do that, we often give in to despair. 00:03:53.580 --> 00:03:59.080 We rail against God and against others for their part in the suffering that we play. 00:04:01.860 --> 00:04:05.280 But Peter, in the book of 1 Peter, 00:04:05.360 --> 00:04:08.640 which we have just started a series in and what we're going to be looking at this morning, 00:04:09.040 --> 00:04:11.300 Peter is writing to a church that is suffering. 00:04:14.060 --> 00:04:18.160 He's writing to a church that in Rome and in Asia Minor 00:04:18.160 --> 00:04:22.800 would have suffered great trials during that time, persecution. 00:04:23.579 --> 00:04:30.099 And if you remember from what Pastor Nick said last week, 00:04:30.719 --> 00:04:35.759 he's writing to them, reminding them that they are elect exiles. 00:04:35.939 --> 00:04:38.979 That is, they are strangers in the world that they now live. 00:04:39.060 --> 00:04:41.519 Because of what God has done in their lives, 00:04:41.639 --> 00:04:47.519 they will no longer fit comfortably in the world that they live in. 00:04:47.979 --> 00:04:50.500 And with that discomfort will come suffering. 00:04:50.500 --> 00:04:52.800 Suffering for living in a fallen world, 00:04:52.899 --> 00:04:57.879 but suffering as well for the sake of following Christ. 00:04:59.819 --> 00:05:01.800 So if you want to turn with me in 1 Peter, 00:05:02.000 --> 00:05:05.620 we're going to look at this first opening section in the letter. 00:05:06.480 --> 00:05:10.720 Chapter 1, verses 3 through 9 is what we're going to look at this morning. 00:05:10.720 --> 00:05:17.500 Peter uses a common epistolary welcome of blessing, 00:05:18.080 --> 00:05:23.860 but in so he infuses it with words of encouragement and hope to his readers 00:05:23.860 --> 00:05:25.900 as he writes to them. 00:05:27.080 --> 00:05:28.920 So if you want to read along with me, 00:05:29.120 --> 00:05:32.920 1 Peter 1, starting in verse 3. 00:05:32.920 --> 00:05:35.540 Let's read this together. 00:05:36.240 --> 00:05:39.819 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. 00:05:40.199 --> 00:05:43.960 According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again 00:05:43.960 --> 00:05:48.080 to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 00:05:48.860 --> 00:05:53.300 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, 00:05:54.000 --> 00:05:58.980 kept in heaven for you who by God's power are being guarded through faith 00:05:58.980 --> 00:06:02.840 for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 00:06:03.980 --> 00:06:09.640 In this you rejoice, though now, for a little while, if necessary, 00:06:09.759 --> 00:06:11.600 you have been grieved by various trials 00:06:11.600 --> 00:06:14.939 so that the tested genuineness of your faith, 00:06:15.460 --> 00:06:19.200 more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire, 00:06:19.800 --> 00:06:26.200 may be found to result in praise and glory and honor 00:06:26.200 --> 00:06:28.540 at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 00:06:28.980 --> 00:06:31.680 Though you have not seen him, you love him. 00:06:31.879 --> 00:06:35.200 Though you do not see him, do not now see him. 00:06:35.460 --> 00:06:38.259 You believe in him and rejoice with joy 00:06:38.259 --> 00:06:41.800 that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 00:06:42.439 --> 00:06:44.500 obtaining the outcome of your faith, 00:06:45.020 --> 00:06:47.460 the salvation of your souls. 00:06:48.420 --> 00:06:49.759 Let's pray together. 00:06:50.920 --> 00:06:52.900 Lord Jesus, we thank you for this word. 00:06:53.020 --> 00:06:55.759 We pray for your help as we look at it this morning, 00:06:55.759 --> 00:06:58.280 that by your spirit, we would understand it. 00:06:58.279 --> 00:07:01.000 Lord, not only that we would know it in our heads, 00:07:01.099 --> 00:07:03.019 but that you would imprint it on our hearts. 00:07:03.419 --> 00:07:08.759 And Lord, that the things that Peter describes here would be true of us, 00:07:09.399 --> 00:07:13.000 who know you would see as we seek to follow you. 00:07:13.500 --> 00:07:14.759 Thank you, Lord, for your help. 00:07:14.759 --> 00:07:17.539 I pray that you would help me this morning to speak your words. 00:07:18.139 --> 00:07:20.180 In Jesus' name, amen. 00:07:21.480 --> 00:07:24.399 So what does Peter have to say to us about living and suffering? 00:07:25.159 --> 00:07:28.399 He says, because of Christ, we can live with a certain hope 00:07:28.399 --> 00:07:30.879 and an indestructible joy. 00:07:31.139 --> 00:07:32.339 And that's what we're going to look at. 00:07:32.420 --> 00:07:34.259 Certain hope and indestructible joy. 00:07:34.259 --> 00:07:42.839 How Peter fills out this description as he writes to the church in Asia Minor. 00:07:44.560 --> 00:07:47.779 Starting in verses, it breaks down into two sections. 00:07:48.019 --> 00:07:51.420 Verses three through five, we'll look at the hope, the certainty of it. 00:07:51.639 --> 00:07:54.699 And then verses six through nine, we'll look at the joy. 00:07:55.379 --> 00:07:58.259 And that this is what God has done in them, 00:07:58.420 --> 00:08:01.719 that he is affirming and encouraging them to continue in. 00:08:01.720 --> 00:08:03.160 So let's look at it together. 00:08:03.280 --> 00:08:06.520 Verses three through five, Peter says, 00:08:07.540 --> 00:08:12.060 there is a certain hope that we have because of God and what he has done. 00:08:12.260 --> 00:08:13.460 Look again at verse three. 00:08:13.560 --> 00:08:14.600 He starts with this blessing. 00:08:14.960 --> 00:08:16.000 Blessed be God. 00:08:17.200 --> 00:08:18.360 Blessed be God. 00:08:19.200 --> 00:08:20.580 According to his great mercy, 00:08:20.580 --> 00:08:22.940 he has caused us to be born again to a living hope 00:08:22.940 --> 00:08:24.640 through the resurrection of Jesus Christ. 00:08:25.060 --> 00:08:28.360 Peter begins by saying, this is what God has done for you 00:08:28.360 --> 00:08:31.340 based on two things, based on the character of God, 00:08:31.720 --> 00:08:38.160 that is his mercy, his action towards you that is undeserved 00:08:38.160 --> 00:08:40.800 and based on the work of God, 00:08:40.960 --> 00:08:46.379 that is the specific historical reality of the life, death, and resurrection, 00:08:46.620 --> 00:08:49.279 particularly the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. 00:08:49.720 --> 00:08:53.540 God has done something for you, for us as believers. 00:08:54.200 --> 00:08:57.160 He has caused us to be born again. 00:08:57.159 --> 00:09:01.600 He has given us a new spiritual life within us. 00:09:02.679 --> 00:09:06.659 And he says that this then results in or leads to, 00:09:07.500 --> 00:09:08.740 and you see the word to, 00:09:09.299 --> 00:09:12.319 we've been born again to three things. 00:09:12.879 --> 00:09:16.679 We've been born again, first of all, to a living hope. 00:09:17.379 --> 00:09:21.179 A living hope, not a dead hope, not a vain hope, 00:09:21.399 --> 00:09:22.919 not wishful thinking. 00:09:22.919 --> 00:09:25.120 Sometimes we think of hope as, like, 00:09:25.199 --> 00:09:27.559 I hope I might get to meet the Pope someday, 00:09:27.719 --> 00:09:30.159 or I hope that I might get to Disney World. 00:09:30.439 --> 00:09:32.379 That's a vain thought. 00:09:32.719 --> 00:09:35.159 But this is not what Peter is talking about. 00:09:35.259 --> 00:09:37.639 He's talking about the real hope 00:09:37.639 --> 00:09:42.179 that God has taken hold of us by giving us new life, 00:09:42.679 --> 00:09:47.620 and that what he has promised in the future for us will come true. 00:09:47.620 --> 00:09:51.679 And it's not just a certain hope, but it's a living hope. 00:09:51.860 --> 00:09:55.440 A living hope because it means that we are caught up with Jesus Christ, 00:09:55.560 --> 00:09:57.259 who is a living Savior, 00:09:57.840 --> 00:10:01.779 who is not dead, who is not in the grave, but he is alive. 00:10:03.419 --> 00:10:04.240 So Peter says, 00:10:04.620 --> 00:10:09.080 you have this hope grounded in the work and character of God. 00:10:09.500 --> 00:10:11.039 He says, but not only that, 00:10:11.320 --> 00:10:13.600 let me describe this hope a little more fully. 00:10:13.600 --> 00:10:18.340 You've been born again to an inheritance that is indestructible. 00:10:19.519 --> 00:10:24.040 And it's this beautiful cascade of words that he says, 00:10:24.139 --> 00:10:25.480 it is imperishable. 00:10:25.700 --> 00:10:26.879 It is undefiled. 00:10:27.060 --> 00:10:28.180 It is unfading. 00:10:29.180 --> 00:10:31.700 And for those who would have read the Old Testament, 00:10:31.820 --> 00:10:35.240 they would have heard the echoes of the language of inheritance 00:10:35.240 --> 00:10:38.600 that had been promised to the people of God, 00:10:38.700 --> 00:10:40.920 the Jewish nation in the Old Testament in Israel, 00:10:40.919 --> 00:10:47.000 that would have included a land that would be full of provision and riches and province. 00:10:47.379 --> 00:10:49.799 And yet, when we get to the first century, 00:10:50.039 --> 00:10:52.279 all the Jews know they hadn't received that, 00:10:52.419 --> 00:10:54.559 or they had squandered it, they had lost it. 00:10:54.799 --> 00:10:56.399 They knew that in the prophets, 00:10:56.579 --> 00:10:58.500 they had heard that the earth would be judged, 00:10:58.779 --> 00:11:03.179 that the land that had been defiled by the sin of God's people, 00:11:03.179 --> 00:11:08.339 and that even the grass would wither and the flowers would fade. 00:11:09.239 --> 00:11:13.799 But the promise, the inheritance that God gives to his people 00:11:13.799 --> 00:11:16.399 will not do any of these things. 00:11:16.639 --> 00:11:17.639 It will not perish. 00:11:17.779 --> 00:11:19.339 It will not be defiled. 00:11:19.419 --> 00:11:20.579 And it is unfading. 00:11:21.620 --> 00:11:23.779 It is the one thing in the world 00:11:23.779 --> 00:11:26.719 that is outside of the second law of thermodynamics. 00:11:27.219 --> 00:11:29.620 It does not go from order to chaos. 00:11:29.620 --> 00:11:32.299 It does not decay or decline, 00:11:32.620 --> 00:11:35.879 but it continues in its perfection. 00:11:38.440 --> 00:11:41.480 Imagine a treasure of inestimable worth. 00:11:44.220 --> 00:11:48.860 Peter says we will be all, all of us, like firstborn sons. 00:11:49.240 --> 00:11:51.000 We get the whole farm. 00:11:51.279 --> 00:11:52.519 We get the company. 00:11:52.740 --> 00:11:54.240 We get all the privileges 00:11:54.240 --> 00:12:00.279 that would be given to a firstborn son in the first century. 00:12:00.720 --> 00:12:02.279 And this is true for all of us, 00:12:02.340 --> 00:12:03.399 for all men and women, 00:12:03.480 --> 00:12:04.779 no matter what our birth order is. 00:12:04.919 --> 00:12:07.019 We all get it in Christ. 00:12:09.100 --> 00:12:11.519 What is the treasure that you long for? 00:12:12.440 --> 00:12:15.940 What is the inheritance that you most want in your life? 00:12:16.259 --> 00:12:16.960 Is it wealth? 00:12:17.039 --> 00:12:17.779 Is it security? 00:12:17.940 --> 00:12:18.620 Is it love? 00:12:18.759 --> 00:12:19.539 Is it belonging? 00:12:19.720 --> 00:12:20.299 It is home. 00:12:20.299 --> 00:12:25.199 Peter says we have a better inheritance in Christ, 00:12:25.299 --> 00:12:28.439 that we will be in God's kingdom forever. 00:12:28.859 --> 00:12:33.219 And we will know the riches of all of his goodness and glory. 00:12:36.219 --> 00:12:40.299 And this treasure is not only certain and undefined, 00:12:40.519 --> 00:12:42.439 but it is kept by God, 00:12:43.019 --> 00:12:45.139 kept in heaven for you, 00:12:45.139 --> 00:12:47.039 preserved, 00:12:48.000 --> 00:12:48.840 held in, 00:12:49.340 --> 00:12:51.679 waiting for you to get there 00:12:51.679 --> 00:12:53.319 so that you can take this. 00:12:55.100 --> 00:12:56.419 So that's the second thing. 00:12:56.460 --> 00:12:58.759 If the first thing that we're born again to is a living hope, 00:12:58.819 --> 00:13:00.819 the second thing is an indestructible inheritance. 00:13:00.819 --> 00:13:04.139 And the third thing you see in verse five, 00:13:04.899 --> 00:13:09.059 the language is a little unclear in the ESV, 00:13:09.059 --> 00:13:16.559 but it's that there is a salvation that is yet to be revealed that will be ours. 00:13:16.899 --> 00:13:17.839 That we, 00:13:18.059 --> 00:13:18.879 as God's people, 00:13:19.000 --> 00:13:20.919 having been born again to a living hope, 00:13:21.179 --> 00:13:23.319 we are being guarded by God. 00:13:23.419 --> 00:13:27.299 And the image here is that God has put us in the keep, 00:13:27.459 --> 00:13:28.459 in the castle. 00:13:28.619 --> 00:13:32.539 He has filled the parapets with soldiers. 00:13:32.539 --> 00:13:40.500 He has surrounded us with a garrison so that we would be kept from falling and from failing 00:13:40.500 --> 00:13:45.039 and from the enemies who would seek to assail us and destroy us, 00:13:45.179 --> 00:13:51.199 that we are being kept by God for a salvation that is yet to come. 00:13:53.620 --> 00:13:56.779 And it is the power of God that guards us, 00:13:56.959 --> 00:13:58.139 not our strength, 00:13:58.500 --> 00:13:59.500 not our wisdom, 00:13:59.899 --> 00:14:01.519 not our Bible knowledge, 00:14:01.519 --> 00:14:05.059 but it is the power of God that guards us. 00:14:06.919 --> 00:14:09.799 So Peter is writing to these people, 00:14:10.120 --> 00:14:12.179 to this church saying, 00:14:12.360 --> 00:14:15.059 look at what God has done for us. 00:14:15.340 --> 00:14:18.879 We have this hope that is unbelievable. 00:14:19.399 --> 00:14:20.720 And it is certain. 00:14:22.000 --> 00:14:23.799 And it is future looking. 00:14:25.079 --> 00:14:25.879 Peter says, 00:14:25.899 --> 00:14:27.980 this is something we are looking forward to friends. 00:14:28.079 --> 00:14:30.460 It's kind of like the last few days of school, 00:14:30.460 --> 00:14:31.100 the last, 00:14:31.300 --> 00:14:31.680 well, 00:14:31.759 --> 00:14:32.500 the last few weeks, 00:14:32.580 --> 00:14:35.080 the last few days of school nowadays is just watching movies. 00:14:35.240 --> 00:14:36.940 But go back a couple, 00:14:37.100 --> 00:14:38.060 last few weeks, 00:14:38.120 --> 00:14:39.240 do you remember what it's like? 00:14:39.879 --> 00:14:41.700 You know that there's work ahead. 00:14:41.820 --> 00:14:42.200 You know, 00:14:42.200 --> 00:14:43.759 you've got finals to go through. 00:14:43.860 --> 00:14:44.220 You know, 00:14:44.240 --> 00:14:45.259 you've got work to do, 00:14:45.379 --> 00:14:46.980 but on the other side, 00:14:47.060 --> 00:14:47.660 what is there? 00:14:48.200 --> 00:14:48.639 Glory, 00:14:49.280 --> 00:14:49.920 summer break, 00:14:50.160 --> 00:14:50.620 vacation. 00:14:50.620 --> 00:14:52.700 This is what we're looking for. 00:14:52.700 --> 00:14:55.679 I was actually trying to think of a better illustration than that, 00:14:55.820 --> 00:15:00.379 but I realized that every illustration of longing for something that is yet to come, 00:15:01.340 --> 00:15:04.720 humanly has this conditional aspect to it. 00:15:04.720 --> 00:15:06.560 It's never going to be good enough. 00:15:06.639 --> 00:15:10.120 It always might not work out as much as we want. 00:15:10.500 --> 00:15:13.540 And part of what Peter is saying is friends, 00:15:13.779 --> 00:15:23.840 what we have before us is so unbelievably good that we have this hope now that characterizes us. 00:15:23.840 --> 00:15:27.180 even as we walk through suffering, 00:15:27.680 --> 00:15:32.220 we have a future salvation that is being kept by God for us. 00:15:32.660 --> 00:15:39.000 And when we set our eyes on what God has done for us in Christ and what awaits us in Christ. 00:15:41.080 --> 00:15:41.660 Well, 00:15:41.700 --> 00:15:46.680 let me quote the apostle Paul so we can think about what it means for us. 00:15:48.139 --> 00:15:49.259 Second Corinthians. 00:15:50.440 --> 00:15:52.019 So we don't lose heart. 00:15:52.019 --> 00:15:55.500 Though our outer self is wasting away, 00:15:55.620 --> 00:16:05.019 our inner self is being renewed day by day for this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison. 00:16:05.299 --> 00:16:07.759 As we look not to the things that are seen, 00:16:08.079 --> 00:16:11.699 but to the things that are unseen for the things that are seen or transient, 00:16:11.899 --> 00:16:14.659 but the things that are unseen are eternal. 00:16:16.259 --> 00:16:18.879 For people who are living as exiles, 00:16:19.299 --> 00:16:21.079 strangers in a strange land, 00:16:21.080 --> 00:16:24.139 feeling the discomfort with the world that they live in, 00:16:24.139 --> 00:16:29.200 we fix our eyes on this unseen inheritance and hope that awaits us. 00:16:30.720 --> 00:16:32.580 And it renews us day by day. 00:16:32.580 --> 00:16:35.320 And in Romans 8, 00:16:35.320 --> 00:16:36.680 this well-known passage, 00:16:37.580 --> 00:16:40.400 what then shall we say to these things? 00:16:40.480 --> 00:16:41.740 If God is for us, 00:16:41.780 --> 00:16:43.259 who can be against us? 00:16:43.900 --> 00:16:45.800 He who did not spare his own son, 00:16:45.860 --> 00:16:47.340 but gave him up for us all. 00:16:47.639 --> 00:16:51.800 How will he not also with him graciously give us all things? 00:16:52.500 --> 00:16:55.379 Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? 00:16:55.379 --> 00:16:56.379 It is God who justifies. 00:16:56.379 --> 00:16:56.960 It is God who justifies. 00:16:57.439 --> 00:16:58.700 Who is to condemn? 00:16:58.960 --> 00:17:01.019 Jesus Christ is the one who died. 00:17:01.120 --> 00:17:01.759 More than that, 00:17:02.100 --> 00:17:02.939 who was raised, 00:17:03.059 --> 00:17:04.740 who is at the right hand of God, 00:17:05.220 --> 00:17:07.799 who indeed is interceding for us. 00:17:08.180 --> 00:17:10.680 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? 00:17:11.339 --> 00:17:12.380 Shall tribulation, 00:17:13.779 --> 00:17:14.380 or distress, 00:17:14.519 --> 00:17:15.240 or persecution, 00:17:15.460 --> 00:17:15.900 or famine, 00:17:16.019 --> 00:17:16.579 or nakedness, 00:17:16.599 --> 00:17:17.039 or danger, 00:17:17.119 --> 00:17:17.799 or the sword? 00:17:17.799 --> 00:17:18.879 As it is written, 00:17:19.000 --> 00:17:19.579 for your sake, 00:17:19.659 --> 00:17:21.500 we are being killed all the day long. 00:17:21.619 --> 00:17:25.279 We are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered. 00:17:25.339 --> 00:17:25.899 No, 00:17:26.240 --> 00:17:27.899 in all these things, 00:17:28.480 --> 00:17:32.019 we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 00:17:32.740 --> 00:17:35.740 For I am sure that neither death nor life, 00:17:36.139 --> 00:17:36.879 neither angels, 00:17:37.099 --> 00:17:37.659 nor rulers, 00:17:37.839 --> 00:17:38.539 neither present, 00:17:38.859 --> 00:17:40.240 or things to come, 00:17:40.399 --> 00:17:41.180 nor powers, 00:17:41.299 --> 00:17:41.740 nor heights, 00:17:41.819 --> 00:17:42.299 nor depth, 00:17:42.639 --> 00:17:45.059 nor anything else in all creation 00:17:45.059 --> 00:17:46.519 will be able to separate us 00:17:46.519 --> 00:17:49.680 from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. 00:17:53.799 --> 00:17:54.359 Friends, 00:17:54.440 --> 00:17:56.180 this is what certain hope looks like. 00:17:58.440 --> 00:18:00.900 This is what has characterized the church 00:18:00.900 --> 00:18:02.759 through many days. 00:18:04.720 --> 00:18:06.019 Peter goes on, 00:18:06.299 --> 00:18:06.619 however, 00:18:06.720 --> 00:18:08.299 he doesn't just stop with hope, 00:18:08.639 --> 00:18:11.180 but he continues to say that not only hope, 00:18:11.259 --> 00:18:14.920 but joy also marks Christians 00:18:14.920 --> 00:18:16.680 facing suffering. 00:18:16.840 --> 00:18:19.180 So this is what he says in verses 6 through 9. 00:18:19.300 --> 00:18:20.759 You see it right in the beginning. 00:18:20.900 --> 00:18:21.220 He says, 00:18:21.340 --> 00:18:22.640 in this now you rejoice. 00:18:23.019 --> 00:18:23.560 In this, 00:18:23.640 --> 00:18:25.740 meaning all the things that I've just said, 00:18:25.800 --> 00:18:28.320 this incredible work that God has done for us, 00:18:28.580 --> 00:18:29.460 this work of hope, 00:18:29.840 --> 00:18:32.580 this is what we rejoice. 00:18:32.579 --> 00:18:36.619 And yet Peter then dives not into, 00:18:36.960 --> 00:18:37.980 in this we rejoice, 00:18:38.220 --> 00:18:40.059 and resound with greater blessings, 00:18:40.259 --> 00:18:40.939 and sing songs, 00:18:41.059 --> 00:18:41.399 praises, 00:18:41.559 --> 00:18:42.339 and hymns, 00:18:42.480 --> 00:18:43.939 but he turns and he says, 00:18:44.159 --> 00:18:45.639 he goes straight to the place 00:18:45.639 --> 00:18:46.619 that we wish he wouldn't. 00:18:47.599 --> 00:18:48.879 He talks about suffering. 00:18:49.119 --> 00:18:49.559 He says, 00:18:49.980 --> 00:18:50.879 in this we rejoice, 00:18:51.019 --> 00:18:52.839 though now for a little while, 00:18:52.899 --> 00:18:53.599 if necessary, 00:18:53.720 --> 00:18:56.460 you have been grieved by various trials. 00:18:56.460 --> 00:18:59.680 Peter says, 00:18:59.759 --> 00:19:02.200 indestructible joy is not in the absence, 00:19:02.460 --> 00:19:04.220 but in the presence of suffering. 00:19:05.180 --> 00:19:07.140 The translation here in verse 6, 00:19:07.220 --> 00:19:08.579 I think is a little tricky, 00:19:08.700 --> 00:19:11.700 because it makes it sound as if the trials are possible, 00:19:11.880 --> 00:19:12.500 or potential, 00:19:12.759 --> 00:19:13.539 but not real. 00:19:13.900 --> 00:19:16.019 I don't think that's what Peter means here. 00:19:16.160 --> 00:19:17.720 I think what he really means is this. 00:19:18.400 --> 00:19:19.240 In this you rejoice, 00:19:19.500 --> 00:19:20.940 since for a short time, 00:19:21.059 --> 00:19:24.920 it is necessary that you will be grieved by various trials. 00:19:24.920 --> 00:19:29.860 This reflects some of the ideas here. 00:19:30.620 --> 00:19:33.980 What Peter is saying is a few things about suffering 00:19:33.980 --> 00:19:37.800 that help us shape what this joy looks like. 00:19:38.940 --> 00:19:41.860 As we understand suffering as a part of God's plan, 00:19:41.940 --> 00:19:43.620 we see that it is necessary. 00:19:44.220 --> 00:19:46.660 The verb there is a divine imperative 00:19:46.660 --> 00:19:49.600 that is used in various places in the scripture, 00:19:49.820 --> 00:19:50.700 where, for instance, 00:19:50.779 --> 00:19:51.640 when Jesus says, 00:19:51.840 --> 00:19:53.800 it is necessary for the son of man 00:19:53.799 --> 00:19:55.859 to be delivered up 00:19:55.859 --> 00:19:58.419 and crucified on the cross. 00:20:00.819 --> 00:20:02.000 It's the same word. 00:20:02.119 --> 00:20:03.579 It's the same idea here, 00:20:03.579 --> 00:20:08.180 that the hand of God is behind this divine necessity. 00:20:09.720 --> 00:20:10.819 And Peter is saying, 00:20:10.940 --> 00:20:12.619 it is a part of God's plan. 00:20:13.500 --> 00:20:16.079 He also says that these sufferings will be various. 00:20:16.079 --> 00:20:19.480 It will include both the persecution 00:20:19.480 --> 00:20:21.639 and suffering for being a Christian 00:20:21.639 --> 00:20:25.079 and the suffering for being in a fallen world. 00:20:25.779 --> 00:20:28.119 Friends, we don't need to compare our sufferings 00:20:28.119 --> 00:20:30.419 and say, well, this is more serious than that, 00:20:30.439 --> 00:20:32.480 or this is a different kind of suffering. 00:20:32.639 --> 00:20:33.859 We're all going to suffer. 00:20:34.059 --> 00:20:35.879 It is necessary that we would suffer. 00:20:36.139 --> 00:20:39.419 And we must walk through it. 00:20:39.819 --> 00:20:41.419 We don't need to compare them, 00:20:41.559 --> 00:20:44.099 but we are called to endure them. 00:20:44.099 --> 00:20:46.519 He also reminds us, though, 00:20:46.579 --> 00:20:49.899 that these sufferings were only going to be for a little while. 00:20:51.079 --> 00:20:52.759 They will not last forever. 00:20:54.980 --> 00:20:57.559 This is so hard to remember in the moment, isn't it? 00:20:59.099 --> 00:21:00.759 When things are really hard, 00:21:01.500 --> 00:21:04.419 all you can see is how hard they are. 00:21:04.420 --> 00:21:07.259 When you are feeling the pain of loss, 00:21:07.279 --> 00:21:10.220 it's at times overwhelming, is it not? 00:21:11.380 --> 00:21:13.400 When you're feeling hurt and betrayed, 00:21:13.720 --> 00:21:15.340 when you're feeling afraid, 00:21:17.340 --> 00:21:22.380 Peter says, none of these will last forever. 00:21:23.880 --> 00:21:27.640 He's already pointed to an eternal perspective of a future hope. 00:21:27.940 --> 00:21:30.060 He says, these things will not last forever. 00:21:30.059 --> 00:21:34.259 And then he says, and these things have a purpose in the hands of God. 00:21:35.279 --> 00:21:38.220 This is this funny phrase where he's talking about gold. 00:21:38.839 --> 00:21:42.440 Verse seven, so that the tested genuineness of your faith, 00:21:42.899 --> 00:21:44.819 more precious than gold that perishes, 00:21:45.059 --> 00:21:46.579 though it is tested by fire, 00:21:46.960 --> 00:21:48.559 may be found to result in praise. 00:21:48.679 --> 00:21:49.619 What is he saying? 00:21:50.019 --> 00:21:54.200 He's saying that what suffering does for us 00:21:54.200 --> 00:21:58.480 is it refines and strengthens our faith. 00:21:59.240 --> 00:22:02.539 That when God puts us through sufferings, 00:22:02.620 --> 00:22:07.700 it is like taking gold and throwing it into a hot fire 00:22:07.700 --> 00:22:11.340 so it will purify, burn out the impurities, 00:22:12.100 --> 00:22:15.860 and show the glory of the gold. 00:22:16.200 --> 00:22:17.680 And what Peter is saying is, 00:22:18.059 --> 00:22:19.940 gold eventually is going to disappear. 00:22:20.539 --> 00:22:22.299 Gold isn't going to last forever. 00:22:22.299 --> 00:22:24.299 But your faith will. 00:22:24.960 --> 00:22:29.299 Your faith has a greater lifespan than gold does. 00:22:29.680 --> 00:22:31.079 And this is what God is doing, 00:22:31.240 --> 00:22:34.019 refining us with a purpose. 00:22:35.279 --> 00:22:37.119 Edmund Clowney says this, 00:22:38.839 --> 00:22:40.539 trials should not surprise us 00:22:40.539 --> 00:22:42.740 or cause us to doubt God's faithfulness. 00:22:42.819 --> 00:22:45.440 Rather, we should actually be glad for them. 00:22:45.919 --> 00:22:48.879 God sends trials to strengthen our trust in him 00:22:48.880 --> 00:22:51.400 so that our faith will not fail. 00:22:52.280 --> 00:22:54.500 Our trials keep us trusting. 00:22:55.040 --> 00:22:56.860 They burn away our self-confidence 00:22:56.860 --> 00:23:00.020 and drive us to our savior. 00:23:01.760 --> 00:23:03.680 Friends, this is what God is doing. 00:23:03.840 --> 00:23:07.020 He is proving the faith that he has given us. 00:23:07.420 --> 00:23:08.600 He is testing it. 00:23:08.760 --> 00:23:10.020 And as he is testing it, 00:23:10.080 --> 00:23:12.900 he is building it and making it stronger 00:23:12.900 --> 00:23:14.140 and making it deeper. 00:23:14.140 --> 00:23:16.300 I was reading this week, 00:23:16.500 --> 00:23:19.180 some of the writings of Johnny Erickson Tata 00:23:19.180 --> 00:23:20.900 and Nancy Guthrie, 00:23:21.340 --> 00:23:24.900 both authors who have written extensively about suffering 00:23:24.900 --> 00:23:28.180 and about how to live with joy and hope 00:23:28.180 --> 00:23:29.100 in the midst of them. 00:23:29.759 --> 00:23:31.400 And it was striking to me 00:23:31.400 --> 00:23:32.800 that one of the things they said is, 00:23:32.960 --> 00:23:34.740 God doesn't give us more than we can handle, 00:23:34.860 --> 00:23:36.460 although it doesn't often feel like that. 00:23:36.500 --> 00:23:38.420 It often feels like it's more than we can handle. 00:23:38.720 --> 00:23:40.620 But God doesn't give us more than we can handle. 00:23:40.619 --> 00:23:43.639 But what he does do is give us increasingly more 00:23:43.639 --> 00:23:45.319 at times over life. 00:23:46.000 --> 00:23:47.079 And there are times when we think, 00:23:47.159 --> 00:23:48.539 God, I can't take any more. 00:23:48.699 --> 00:23:50.959 And he says, actually, you can. 00:23:52.000 --> 00:23:54.639 And he gives us more, more suffering. 00:23:56.019 --> 00:24:00.299 But through that, we also get deeper faith. 00:24:01.279 --> 00:24:03.559 And that faith results in joy. 00:24:04.719 --> 00:24:06.219 And this is what Paul says, 00:24:06.799 --> 00:24:08.319 or Peter says in verse eight, 00:24:08.319 --> 00:24:13.039 it results in praise and glory on the last day. 00:24:13.039 --> 00:24:15.720 Because when we make it through the fire 00:24:15.720 --> 00:24:18.299 and when we are found standing at the end, 00:24:19.299 --> 00:24:22.240 Jesus holds us up and says, 00:24:22.460 --> 00:24:23.639 these are my trophies. 00:24:24.259 --> 00:24:28.559 These are the ones that I have rescued 00:24:28.559 --> 00:24:32.019 and kept and preserved through all of these things. 00:24:32.319 --> 00:24:33.980 And I'm now putting them on display 00:24:33.980 --> 00:24:37.559 so that all will see the glory of the faith 00:24:37.559 --> 00:24:42.099 with which they have walked through this life. 00:24:43.960 --> 00:24:46.180 And for us who have walked through it, 00:24:47.960 --> 00:24:51.220 Peter reminds us that there is a joy there as well. 00:24:51.420 --> 00:24:53.380 This brings us to verses eight and nine, 00:24:54.380 --> 00:24:59.000 where Jesus becomes the focus of our joy. 00:24:59.440 --> 00:25:00.599 Though you have not seen him, 00:25:00.599 --> 00:25:03.759 he's just talked about the end of verse seven, 00:25:04.139 --> 00:25:06.939 that we're gonna experience this praise and glory 00:25:06.939 --> 00:25:08.519 at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 00:25:08.599 --> 00:25:10.399 When Jesus comes back, now he says, 00:25:10.659 --> 00:25:13.459 now I know you haven't seen him yet, right? 00:25:13.519 --> 00:25:17.000 Though you have not seen him, you love him, right? 00:25:17.159 --> 00:25:18.539 And Peter's writing this saying, 00:25:18.659 --> 00:25:20.019 I actually did see him. 00:25:20.359 --> 00:25:22.059 I saw the resurrected Christ, 00:25:22.199 --> 00:25:23.459 but you haven't seen him. 00:25:23.579 --> 00:25:25.359 And now you don't see him now. 00:25:25.439 --> 00:25:26.500 And I don't see him now. 00:25:26.599 --> 00:25:28.939 None of us see him now, right? 00:25:28.940 --> 00:25:31.180 But you believe in him. 00:25:32.180 --> 00:25:35.340 And in that faith, being refined, 00:25:35.779 --> 00:25:37.220 tested by these sufferings, 00:25:37.340 --> 00:25:38.340 in that faith, 00:25:38.820 --> 00:25:42.019 because we believe in him, 00:25:42.360 --> 00:25:44.279 because we see Jesus, 00:25:45.580 --> 00:25:47.039 that we don't actually see him. 00:25:48.180 --> 00:25:49.720 That we do not see him now, 00:25:49.799 --> 00:25:50.860 we believe in him 00:25:50.859 --> 00:25:54.479 and rejoice with a joy 00:25:54.479 --> 00:25:56.379 that is inexpressible, 00:25:57.579 --> 00:25:58.899 filled with glory. 00:26:00.399 --> 00:26:02.519 Friends, have you ever been rendered speechless 00:26:02.519 --> 00:26:03.819 by something beautiful? 00:26:05.279 --> 00:26:06.839 This often happens to me 00:26:06.839 --> 00:26:07.899 when I go to the mountains. 00:26:08.659 --> 00:26:09.899 And not just, sorry, 00:26:10.059 --> 00:26:11.179 not the East Coast mountains, 00:26:11.299 --> 00:26:11.919 the real mountains. 00:26:12.259 --> 00:26:13.359 You go to the Rockies, 00:26:13.599 --> 00:26:14.559 go to the Alps. 00:26:14.639 --> 00:26:15.959 I've never been to the Himalayas, 00:26:16.019 --> 00:26:17.119 but I really wanna go. 00:26:17.119 --> 00:26:19.599 I mean the mountains that are majestic, 00:26:20.199 --> 00:26:22.439 that soar and tower over you. 00:26:22.679 --> 00:26:23.859 The mountains that seem like 00:26:23.859 --> 00:26:25.039 they will never fall, 00:26:25.419 --> 00:26:27.819 that have a grandeur and a glory. 00:26:29.979 --> 00:26:32.179 And I'm caught with, 00:26:32.699 --> 00:26:35.319 I don't have words to describe 00:26:35.319 --> 00:26:37.279 the beauty and the splendor 00:26:37.279 --> 00:26:39.019 and the grandeur of it. 00:26:39.019 --> 00:26:41.639 This, I think, 00:26:41.720 --> 00:26:44.039 is what Peter is trying to suggest 00:26:44.039 --> 00:26:44.539 when he says, 00:26:45.079 --> 00:26:45.799 and it's such, 00:26:46.019 --> 00:26:47.539 we rejoice with joy. 00:26:49.480 --> 00:26:50.839 We rejoice with a joy 00:26:50.839 --> 00:26:52.119 that is inexpressible. 00:26:53.799 --> 00:26:56.559 Have you felt those moments 00:26:56.559 --> 00:26:57.519 of worship? 00:26:58.180 --> 00:27:00.160 Have you felt those times 00:27:00.160 --> 00:27:02.940 when you're singing, 00:27:03.180 --> 00:27:04.460 it is well with my soul, 00:27:04.539 --> 00:27:05.900 and you stop singing 00:27:05.900 --> 00:27:07.259 because you're overcome? 00:27:07.259 --> 00:27:07.379 God, I'm not. 00:27:10.720 --> 00:27:14.220 This is what Peter is referring to. 00:27:14.839 --> 00:27:16.359 Filled with glory. 00:27:19.059 --> 00:27:21.019 He's saying that as Christians 00:27:21.019 --> 00:27:22.379 walk through suffering 00:27:22.379 --> 00:27:24.579 with this hope before us, 00:27:24.680 --> 00:27:26.640 we walk through it with a joy. 00:27:27.059 --> 00:27:28.920 A joy that is present 00:27:28.920 --> 00:27:30.220 as well as future. 00:27:31.440 --> 00:27:33.619 A joy that starts now 00:27:33.619 --> 00:27:36.220 and continues along the way 00:27:36.220 --> 00:27:37.660 through the path 00:27:37.660 --> 00:27:42.279 to what is coming for us. 00:27:43.480 --> 00:27:44.839 And this is how Peter 00:27:44.839 --> 00:27:46.460 wants to begin his letter 00:27:46.460 --> 00:27:48.400 to these elect exiles 00:27:48.400 --> 00:27:50.240 by encouraging them 00:27:50.240 --> 00:27:52.700 to remember this hope 00:27:52.700 --> 00:27:55.279 and to persevere in this joy. 00:27:55.279 --> 00:27:59.899 Now look, we need to be clear 00:27:59.899 --> 00:28:00.500 on something. 00:28:01.039 --> 00:28:02.960 We're not to rejoice in evil. 00:28:03.960 --> 00:28:05.599 We're not to find joy 00:28:05.599 --> 00:28:09.700 in bad things 00:28:09.700 --> 00:28:11.559 that have happened to us. 00:28:12.240 --> 00:28:13.920 Nor are we to entertain the thought 00:28:13.920 --> 00:28:15.319 that God authors sins. 00:28:15.440 --> 00:28:17.059 But in the midst of the trials 00:28:17.059 --> 00:28:17.819 and sufferings 00:28:17.819 --> 00:28:19.500 that God allows in our lives, 00:28:19.500 --> 00:28:21.559 in the midst of the sufferings 00:28:21.559 --> 00:28:23.599 that will be a part 00:28:23.599 --> 00:28:26.180 of God's purpose for our lives, 00:28:26.220 --> 00:28:27.980 what do we fix our eyes on? 00:28:28.680 --> 00:28:31.160 If we simply look at the suffering, 00:28:31.380 --> 00:28:32.200 we will despair. 00:28:32.980 --> 00:28:34.700 Or we will become obsessed 00:28:34.700 --> 00:28:36.960 with trying to fix and escape it. 00:28:37.440 --> 00:28:39.039 Or we will doubt God. 00:28:39.039 --> 00:28:42.839 But if we fix our eyes on Jesus, 00:28:43.379 --> 00:28:45.799 the author and the perfecter 00:28:45.799 --> 00:28:46.440 of our faith, 00:28:46.559 --> 00:28:49.680 who for the joy set before him 00:28:49.680 --> 00:28:51.299 endured the cross, 00:28:52.039 --> 00:28:53.339 despising the shame 00:28:53.339 --> 00:28:56.579 so that we might be saved. 00:28:57.940 --> 00:29:00.379 This is where we find hope and joy. 00:29:00.700 --> 00:29:03.359 And this is where Peter ends. 00:29:03.619 --> 00:29:04.440 Verse nine, 00:29:04.559 --> 00:29:06.980 obtaining the outcome of your faith, 00:29:06.980 --> 00:29:09.799 the salvation of your souls. 00:29:11.120 --> 00:29:12.579 This is where he began. 00:29:12.720 --> 00:29:13.539 You've been born again 00:29:13.539 --> 00:29:14.319 to living hope. 00:29:14.400 --> 00:29:16.000 He brings it back here to the end. 00:29:16.460 --> 00:29:19.319 He says we have this obtaining 00:29:19.319 --> 00:29:20.180 a salvation. 00:29:20.180 --> 00:29:22.079 As we continue in faith, 00:29:22.240 --> 00:29:24.960 as we continue in hope and joy 00:29:24.960 --> 00:29:26.240 in the midst of suffering, 00:29:26.980 --> 00:29:29.700 we obtain the thing 00:29:29.700 --> 00:29:31.460 that we most need and most want. 00:29:31.680 --> 00:29:32.839 And that is our salvation. 00:29:33.599 --> 00:29:36.240 What Jesus has come to do for us, 00:29:36.240 --> 00:29:37.420 making us alive 00:29:37.420 --> 00:29:38.460 when we were dead 00:29:38.460 --> 00:29:40.019 in our sins and trespasses, 00:29:40.559 --> 00:29:42.079 raising us up with him 00:29:42.079 --> 00:29:43.680 to a new life 00:29:43.680 --> 00:29:44.720 and a living hope 00:29:44.720 --> 00:29:47.200 with a future that is certain in God 00:29:47.200 --> 00:29:48.000 and an inheritance 00:29:48.000 --> 00:29:49.579 that is waiting for us. 00:29:50.980 --> 00:29:53.200 Because we have seen our Savior, Jesus, 00:29:53.859 --> 00:29:55.460 we can live this way. 00:29:55.460 --> 00:29:58.579 This is indestructible joy 00:29:58.579 --> 00:30:00.480 and certain hope 00:30:00.480 --> 00:30:03.000 no matter what the trials that we face. 00:30:03.779 --> 00:30:05.299 Think about the audience 00:30:05.299 --> 00:30:08.960 that Peter would have been writing to 00:30:08.960 --> 00:30:10.880 and the things that he himself 00:30:10.880 --> 00:30:11.640 would have suffered. 00:30:12.319 --> 00:30:14.059 For Peter was the bishop in Rome. 00:30:14.700 --> 00:30:17.140 It's most likely that he wrote this letter 00:30:17.140 --> 00:30:19.240 during the reign of Nero. 00:30:19.240 --> 00:30:22.180 If you know anything about Nero, 00:30:22.420 --> 00:30:25.700 Nero was renowned for his cruelty 00:30:25.700 --> 00:30:27.720 and his persecution of Christians. 00:30:28.859 --> 00:30:31.420 The Christians were dying 00:30:31.420 --> 00:30:33.039 for their faith in Rome. 00:30:33.259 --> 00:30:36.539 And he writes to the Christians in Asia Minor 00:30:36.539 --> 00:30:38.620 who were likely also facing 00:30:38.620 --> 00:30:41.559 similar kinds of persecution and trials. 00:30:42.420 --> 00:30:44.740 He's saying, hang in there. 00:30:44.740 --> 00:30:49.700 You have begun this race 00:30:49.700 --> 00:30:51.400 with hope and joy. 00:30:52.000 --> 00:30:53.120 Hang in there. 00:30:55.400 --> 00:30:57.579 I was reflecting on the value 00:30:57.579 --> 00:31:02.220 and the worth of this today 00:31:02.220 --> 00:31:03.980 or this week 00:31:03.980 --> 00:31:06.120 because this weekend 00:31:06.120 --> 00:31:08.539 is the seventh anniversary 00:31:08.539 --> 00:31:11.700 of the death of my first wife to cancer. 00:31:12.620 --> 00:31:13.880 And I was thinking about 00:31:13.880 --> 00:31:17.020 what Peter writes here 00:31:17.020 --> 00:31:18.860 and the value that it has been 00:31:18.860 --> 00:31:21.100 because what he writes here 00:31:21.100 --> 00:31:23.400 is as I look back 00:31:23.400 --> 00:31:25.100 and as I look at my life today, 00:31:25.220 --> 00:31:26.800 what I've experienced 00:31:26.800 --> 00:31:30.940 in the bleakness of the situation 00:31:30.940 --> 00:31:32.820 in the days after her death 00:31:32.820 --> 00:31:36.740 when everything felt tasteless, 00:31:37.100 --> 00:31:39.560 the world seemed to be more black and white 00:31:39.560 --> 00:31:40.540 than color. 00:31:40.539 --> 00:31:41.899 And I struggled to see 00:31:41.899 --> 00:31:44.139 what God's plan was 00:31:44.139 --> 00:31:45.519 and how it could be good 00:31:45.519 --> 00:31:49.159 when I didn't feel like rejoicing 00:31:49.159 --> 00:31:51.779 and hope seemed only in the future 00:31:51.779 --> 00:31:53.859 and I didn't understand 00:31:53.859 --> 00:31:56.019 why God had chosen this path for me. 00:31:57.519 --> 00:31:59.039 God reminded me of the things 00:31:59.039 --> 00:32:00.539 that Peter reminds us of 00:32:00.539 --> 00:32:01.960 in this passage this morning. 00:32:02.920 --> 00:32:05.519 Look at what God has done in the past. 00:32:05.519 --> 00:32:08.059 Jesus is risen from the dead. 00:32:08.980 --> 00:32:10.500 Jesus has called you 00:32:10.500 --> 00:32:11.940 to believe in him. 00:32:12.920 --> 00:32:14.799 God has taken hold of you 00:32:14.799 --> 00:32:16.200 and he promises 00:32:16.200 --> 00:32:17.799 not only then 00:32:17.799 --> 00:32:19.960 having done that work in the past, 00:32:20.039 --> 00:32:21.000 but he promises 00:32:21.000 --> 00:32:22.019 in the future 00:32:22.019 --> 00:32:23.759 that he will finish what he started. 00:32:25.420 --> 00:32:26.900 He will take us home. 00:32:27.460 --> 00:32:28.559 He will take me home. 00:32:30.799 --> 00:32:32.099 He will keep me 00:32:32.099 --> 00:32:33.139 for the salvation 00:32:33.139 --> 00:32:34.359 that he has for me. 00:32:34.359 --> 00:32:36.439 And because of that, 00:32:36.500 --> 00:32:37.839 I can not only walk 00:32:37.839 --> 00:32:39.319 this life with hope, 00:32:40.059 --> 00:32:42.019 but I can do it with joy. 00:32:43.240 --> 00:32:44.879 And God has shown me joy 00:32:44.879 --> 00:32:46.419 in the last seven years 00:32:46.419 --> 00:32:47.740 in many good things. 00:32:48.219 --> 00:32:49.539 He has shown me joy 00:32:49.539 --> 00:32:51.039 most of all in him. 00:32:54.319 --> 00:32:55.879 There are still things that are hard. 00:32:56.379 --> 00:32:57.639 The loss is not gone, 00:32:57.879 --> 00:32:59.839 but it's become a part of my life. 00:32:59.839 --> 00:33:04.659 And I pray for you 00:33:04.659 --> 00:33:05.879 as I pray for me 00:33:05.879 --> 00:33:06.959 this morning 00:33:06.959 --> 00:33:10.559 that God is able to give us 00:33:10.559 --> 00:33:11.720 certain hope 00:33:11.720 --> 00:33:12.959 and indestructible joy 00:33:12.959 --> 00:33:14.599 as we walk through the sufferings 00:33:14.599 --> 00:33:16.399 that have been, 00:33:16.619 --> 00:33:17.159 that are, 00:33:17.240 --> 00:33:18.079 and that will be 00:33:18.079 --> 00:33:19.459 a part of our lives 00:33:19.459 --> 00:33:20.579 as well. 00:33:21.459 --> 00:33:22.179 Let's pray. 00:33:23.019 --> 00:33:24.099 Lord, we thank you 00:33:24.099 --> 00:33:25.639 for this passage. 00:33:25.640 --> 00:33:27.160 We thank you 00:33:27.160 --> 00:33:28.300 for the apostle Peter 00:33:28.300 --> 00:33:29.880 and for his words to us. 00:33:30.680 --> 00:33:31.640 Lord, we ask 00:33:31.640 --> 00:33:32.680 that by your spirit, 00:33:33.560 --> 00:33:35.080 Lord, you would help us 00:33:35.080 --> 00:33:36.140 to walk by faith. 00:33:38.100 --> 00:33:39.480 And in that faith, Lord, 00:33:39.540 --> 00:33:40.720 that we would know hope 00:33:40.720 --> 00:33:41.840 that is certain 00:33:41.840 --> 00:33:43.240 and a joy 00:33:43.240 --> 00:33:44.420 that is indestructible 00:33:44.420 --> 00:33:45.680 because of what you have done 00:33:45.680 --> 00:33:46.259 for us. 00:33:48.040 --> 00:33:49.720 We pray this in Jesus' name. 00:33:50.440 --> 00:33:50.759 Amen. 00:33:50.759 --> 00:33:50.940 Amen. 00:33:50.940 --> 00:33:50.960 Amen.