Good morning my “Walking with Jesus” friends,
We’ve all had the experience... some crisis or tragedy or very difficult situation has put us in a place of feeling somewhat helpless, vulnerable, and maybe in great need of rescue from some power greater than we have. All we can do is look ahead in hope things will be better before long. Remember the feeling? Maybe that’s where you are right now on this Thursday.
Yesterday I concluded our time by showing you a closing, very powerful statement of hope Peter was writing to Christians all across the Roman Empire in the middle first century when times were very difficult for them. “And the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will Himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. To Him be the power for ever and ever, Amen.” (1 Peter 5:10,11)
Let’s draw some hope from Peter’s words today my friends no matter where you live or what the suffering is you are experiencing. Grace is not a word we often use in the normal course of everyday conversation, but when times get tough it’s not unusual to hear some compassionate person say: “Show some grace, extend some kindness”. Grace, as we know, is when someone receives an undeserved kindness. Nothing is expected in return and the grace given flows out of a compassionate, perhaps empathetic heart, who understands the pain and desires to bring some hope and help into the situation.
Can you remember times you’ve Received Grace? Do you remember some occasions you’ve been the one Giving the Grace? In both situations the emotions of deep gratitude are very real, aren’t they? God is the originator of Grace, and God says His sending Jesus to pay the sin death penalty for all humanity is the ultimate expression of Grace! (1 John 4:9,10)But with God’s Grace there’s something else that takes it way beyond our comprehension. It’s called MERCY! Did you know Mercy is withholding the punishment deserved? You’ve probably done that or been the recipient of that and it’s wonderful isn’t it? For God when He looks at our human race which He created perfect and wonderful, in His image and for a special love relationship with Him, we can only imagine how God’s heart breaks as he looks at all our suffering, most of which is the result of our anger toward and mistreatment of our fellow human beings. We deserve God’s justice punishment; in fact, our sin is so bad we deserve God’s Wrath. But instead, God extends His Mercy, He withholds His punishment and then God doubles the blessing by pouring out His Grace upon us!
For God, when He extends His Grace to a repentant sinful person and applies the atonement death of Jesus to the sin condemnation of that repentant person, God’s Grace not only frees that person by breaking the hold of sin in their lives, God draws that person into sacred relationship with Him, through His Son Jesus Christ.
Paul wrote about that in his letter to the Christians in Colossae when he wrote: “Once you were alienated from God and you were enemies of God because of your evil behavior. But now God has reconciled you through Christ’s death to present you holy in His sight, without blemish and free from accusation…” (Col. 1:21,22) Furthermore, God not only transforms us from enemy to a friend of God, God desires that we spend the rest of eternity with Him in His glorious presence, heaven.
That’s why Paul wrote to the Philippian Christians that he found himself struggling as to where he would prefer to be… “To me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two. I desire to depart and be with Christ which is better by far, but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body…” (Phil. 1:21-24)
Like Paul, the Christians, in Peter’s mid first century Roman empire, were suffering greatly and the thought of leaving their persecution and going to heaven to be with Jesus, in all heaven’s perfection for all eternity, was very appealing, but they knew their families and friends and even the people persecuting them needed God’s Grace overflowing from them and what they had received from God to others!
So, Peter says in effect… as bad as things are, keep looking ahead to the day you will finally be in heaven with Jesus. In the meantime, experience the miracle of God’s sustaining power and grace while you suffer in these times. Peter wrote it this way: “And the God of all grace… after you have suffered a little while, will Himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.” My friends, do you need God’s restoring power unleashed into your life in your difficult situations, today? Do you long for Jesus to make you strong, firm and by His strength enable you to stand firm and steadfast in the challenges of life you are facing? That is what Peter promises for those of us who are Holy Spirit filled, redeemed, protected people of God!
But how does it happen? What is the process God uses to “restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.”? Listen to what Paul wrote to those Christians struggling to survive in the very heart of the Roman empire, where the Caesar sat, in all his opulence, making those horrible decisions which brought persecution to the Christians: “We boast in the hope of the glory of God… we also glory in our sufferings because we know that suffering produces perseverance; and perseverance produces character, and character produces hope. And hope does not disappoint us because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.” (Romans 5:3-5) My friends, are we each able to look back in our lives to see how God has used difficult times, challenging, perhaps painful experiences to grow us? Have you developed perseverance as you stayed faithful to the task, the calling, the assignment, even in very difficult times, and in the end you received the reward of hard work over the long journey? That is suffering producing perseverance. Do you see how God enabled you to stay faithful in the journey?
And do you see how your character has grown over the years, but especially through the perseverance in hard times, to refine and develop your character to maturity with wisdom and do you see the respect which comes your way as your character withstands the difficult life tests?
And have you found that hope is something God awakens in you often, now? Hope that your perseverance will withstand the long test of difficulty, over time? And do you see the character refining work God is accomplishing in you, and how it generates hope? And is your hope rooted in God’s unchanging character and His promises that you know are never failing?
For those of us who can say YES to those questions, Peter’s concluding words resonate in our hearts: “To Him be the power for ever and ever, Amen.” That my friends, is the ultimate fulfillment in life, have you discovered it? Knowing that your life, empowered by Jesus, brings God great glory and is the evidence of His devil defeating power, forever!
Oh my friends that is my great desire for all of us on this “Walking with Jesus” journey togther. And here’s a great, brief, worship song to celebrate this wonderful truth! It’s the purity of an acappella choir, no instruments, just voices praising Jesus…
Today’s Scripture is 1 Peter 5:10, 11.
Choose below to read or listen.
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Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
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Pastor Doug Anderson 262.441.8785
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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