Anchoring Faith and Hope in God's Promises

 

Summary

In the first chapter of the first Epistle of Peter, we are reminded of the profound truth that our faith and hope should be anchored in God. This passage challenges us to examine our relationship with God and to ensure that our belief is not merely theoretical but deeply transformative. The essence of Christianity is not just to provide comfort or a sense of escapism but to bring us into a genuine relationship with God, where our faith and hope are firmly placed in Him.

A true Christian is one who believes in God in a way that affects every aspect of their life. This belief is not a vague acknowledgment of God's existence but a complete commitment to Him, influencing our thoughts, actions, and decisions. It is a belief that acknowledges God's sovereignty and His moral law, guiding us to live according to His will rather than our own desires.

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is central to our faith, serving as the ultimate proof of His divinity and the assurance of our salvation. It is through Christ that we come to believe in God, as His resurrection and glorification demonstrate God's power and love for us. This belief in God through Christ gives us the strength to forsake worldly pleasures and ambitions, knowing that our true hope lies in the eternal life promised by God.

As Christians, we are called to live as strangers and pilgrims in this world, with our eyes set on the glory that awaits us in heaven. Our faith and hope in God should be so strong that we are willing to sacrifice everything for the sake of our relationship with Him. This commitment to God is not a gamble but a confident assurance based on the historical reality of Christ's resurrection and the transformative power of His Spirit in our lives.

Key Takeaways:

- A Christian's belief in God is not merely theoretical but a complete commitment that influences every aspect of life. This belief is characterized by a deep trust and reliance on God, affecting our thoughts, actions, and decisions. [06:28]

- The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the cornerstone of our faith, providing the ultimate proof of His divinity and the assurance of our salvation. It is through Christ that we come to believe in God, as His resurrection demonstrates God's power and love for us. [31:48]

- Our faith and hope in God should lead us to forsake worldly pleasures and ambitions, knowing that our true hope lies in the eternal life promised by God. This commitment to God is not a gamble but a confident assurance based on the historical reality of Christ's resurrection. [26:15]

- As Christians, we are called to live as strangers and pilgrims in this world, with our eyes set on the glory that awaits us in heaven. Our faith and hope in God should be so strong that we are willing to sacrifice everything for the sake of our relationship with Him. [29:07]

- The transformative power of the Holy Spirit, given to us through Christ, enables us to live a life that is pleasing to God. This power is a testament to the truth of the Gospel and the reality of Christ's resurrection, empowering us to live with faith and hope in God. [38:40]

Youtube Chapters:

- [00:00] - Welcome
- [00:11] - Introduction to 1 Peter 1:20-21
- [01:16] - The Marvel of Salvation
- [02:38] - The Value of Salvation
- [03:58] - Tests of True Faith
- [05:31] - Identifying as a Christian
- [06:28] - Belief in God
- [08:28] - The Nature of True Belief
- [10:25] - Active Faith in God
- [13:30] - Life Under God's Eye
- [17:35] - The Impact of Belief
- [24:11] - Faith and Hope in God
- [29:59] - How to Believe in God
- [31:48] - The Resurrection of Christ
- [38:40] - The Power of the Holy Spirit
- [49:20] - Conclusion and Reflection

Study Guide

Bible Study Discussion Guide

Bible Reading:
1 Peter 1:20-21

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Observation Questions:

1. According to 1 Peter 1:21, what is the purpose of God raising Jesus from the dead and giving Him glory? How does this relate to our faith and hope? [00:31]

2. In the sermon, what does the pastor suggest is the ultimate end and object of Christianity? How does this differ from common misconceptions about the faith? [07:19]

3. How does the sermon describe the difference between a theoretical belief in God and a true Christian belief? [09:05]

4. What examples does the pastor give to illustrate how a Christian's life is influenced by their belief in God? [20:52]

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Interpretation Questions:

1. The sermon emphasizes that a Christian's faith and hope should be in God. How does the resurrection of Jesus serve as a foundation for this belief? [31:48]

2. The pastor mentions that believing in God involves a complete commitment. What might this commitment look like in the life of a believer? [13:14]

3. How does the sermon explain the role of the Holy Spirit in empowering believers to live a life pleasing to God? [38:40]

4. The sermon suggests that Christians are called to live as strangers and pilgrims in this world. What does this mean, and how might it affect a believer's daily life? [29:07]

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Application Questions:

1. Reflect on your own life: Is your faith and hope truly anchored in God, or are there areas where you rely more on worldly assurances? How can you shift your focus more towards God this week? [24:11]

2. The sermon challenges us to live as strangers and pilgrims in this world. What practical steps can you take to detach from worldly ambitions and focus on your eternal hope? [29:07]

3. Consider a decision you are currently facing. How can you ensure that your choice aligns with God's will rather than your own desires? [20:52]

4. The pastor speaks about the transformative power of the Holy Spirit. Identify one area in your life where you need transformation. How can you invite the Holy Spirit to work in that area? [38:40]

5. Think of a situation where you might be tempted to compromise your faith for worldly gain. How can you prepare yourself to stand firm in your beliefs when faced with such temptations? [27:19]

6. The sermon highlights the importance of a complete commitment to God. What is one specific way you can deepen your commitment to God this month? [13:14]

7. Reflect on the resurrection of Jesus as the cornerstone of your faith. How can this truth encourage you in moments of doubt or difficulty? [31:48]

Devotional

Day 1: Faith as a Transformative Commitment
A true Christian's belief in God is not just a theoretical acknowledgment but a transformative commitment that influences every aspect of life. This belief is characterized by a deep trust and reliance on God, affecting thoughts, actions, and decisions. It is a commitment that acknowledges God's sovereignty and His moral law, guiding individuals to live according to His will rather than their own desires. This kind of faith requires a complete surrender to God, allowing His presence to permeate every part of life, leading to a life that reflects His love and truth. [06:28]

1 Peter 1:13-15 (ESV): "Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct."

Reflection: What is one specific area of your life where you can invite God to transform your thoughts and actions today?


Day 2: The Resurrection as the Cornerstone of Faith
The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the cornerstone of Christian faith, providing the ultimate proof of His divinity and the assurance of salvation. It is through Christ's resurrection that believers come to know God, as it demonstrates God's power and love. This event is not just a historical fact but a living reality that empowers believers to live with hope and assurance. The resurrection assures Christians that their faith is not in vain and that their hope in eternal life is secure. [31:48]

1 Corinthians 15:20-22 (ESV): "But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive."

Reflection: How does the reality of Christ's resurrection influence your daily decisions and interactions with others?


Day 3: Forsaking Worldly Pleasures for Eternal Hope
Christians are called to forsake worldly pleasures and ambitions, knowing that their true hope lies in the eternal life promised by God. This commitment to God is not a gamble but a confident assurance based on the historical reality of Christ's resurrection. Believers are encouraged to live as strangers and pilgrims in this world, with their eyes set on the glory that awaits them in heaven. This perspective helps Christians prioritize their relationship with God over temporary worldly gains. [26:15]

Colossians 3:1-3 (ESV): "If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God."

Reflection: What is one worldly ambition or pleasure you can let go of today to focus more on your eternal hope in God?


Day 4: Living as Strangers and Pilgrims
As Christians, the call is to live as strangers and pilgrims in this world, with eyes set on the glory that awaits in heaven. This means having a faith and hope in God so strong that one is willing to sacrifice everything for the sake of the relationship with Him. This commitment is not about losing but gaining a deeper connection with God and a clearer vision of His eternal promises. It involves living with a heavenly perspective, understanding that true fulfillment comes from God alone. [29:07]

Hebrews 11:13-16 (ESV): "These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return. But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one."

Reflection: In what ways can you live more like a stranger and pilgrim in this world today, focusing on your heavenly home?


Day 5: The Transformative Power of the Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit, given through Christ, empowers believers to live a life that is pleasing to God. This power is a testament to the truth of the Gospel and the reality of Christ's resurrection. It enables Christians to live with faith and hope in God, transforming their lives from the inside out. The Holy Spirit guides, convicts, and strengthens believers, helping them to reflect God's love and truth in their daily lives. This transformative power is essential for living a life that honors God and fulfills His purposes. [38:40]

Ephesians 3:16-19 (ESV): "That according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God."

Reflection: How can you invite the Holy Spirit to transform a specific area of your life today, allowing His power to guide and strengthen you?

Quotes

"Indeed I want particularly this evening to deal only with the 21st verse but I read the 20th in order that we might include those last two words for you who by him do believe in God that raised him up from the dead and gave him glory that your Faith and Hope might be in God." [00:43:55]

"Well now on this last occasion as we look at it surely nothing is more important for us than this we must ask ourselves the question well what has been the value of all this to us do we know anything about this salvation do we believe in it have we received it, are we rejoicing in it?" [02:38]

"The look at truth alone is insufficient it is something that must possess us and we will know whether it has done so or not and therefore it seemed to me that we could do nothing better as we come to look at this passage from for the last time then consider some of the tests which we can apply to ourselves which are so plainly and obviously suggested by the Apostle Peter himself when he wrote this very section." [03:44]

"Here is the first thing that we find to be true about the Christian the Christian is one who believes in God whose Faith and Hope are with respect to God now let's examine this first test for a moment it's a very profound test a very fundamental test it's a a very searching test here I say is the ultimate end and object of all religion and of Christianity in particular." [06:47]

"To believe in God is to believe what God has said about himself in this book and that is what he said he has given us the Revelation he chose the Jews as a special people through whom he might reveal himself he gave to them what Paul calls the living oracles what are the living oracles they're nothing but declarations by God about himself and the man who believes in God is a man who believes what God has said about himself and about the men and about their relationship." [17:01]

"Believing in God means in other words that the whole of one's life is governed and dominated and determined by this realization that we are ever in the presence of God that is the thing that comes first am I making it plain that is the first thing that's true of a Christian a Christian is not a man you know who as it where carries his religion in a bag picks it up on Sunday morning goes to Chapel once or twice then Sunday night comes puts down the bag ah the rest of the weak he lives like everybody else such a man is not a Christian." [22:52]

"To believe in God means that the whole of your life is under God determined controlled by him and nothing you think or do or say is apart from him but it doesn't stop at that you know the man who believes in God is confident that God will bless him he is confident that what God says is true and that there are blessings at the right hand of God that the whole world cannot give him and he is a man you see who has banked his all and everything on that." [23:56]

"Now here first and foremost is the way of the world and all that it believes and all that it has got to offer and everything in me by Nature corresponds to that and agrees with that have a good time get on enjoy yourself occasionally do a thing PR your bit off doesn't matter it's all right on you go you mustn't be tied down by these moral taboos and these sayings of the there it is the way of the world but then there is this other call the call of God the message of the Bible and the two things are incompatible you cannot serve God and man you can't mix light and darkness good and evil you can't get mixed up between God and de you it's an either or here you see your house has got to be on the rock or on the sand you go in either at a narrow way or a Broadway Straight Gate wide gate you can't mix these things my dear friend you either believe in God or else you don't." [24:48]

"God raised him from the dead and gave him glory in order that your faith and mine might be in God you say can I believe on the bare word of a book like the Bible no no you needn't there is something more here is a fact in history look at the witness and the testimony of these Apostles you see our whole faith is based upon that here were men who accompanied with him saw him being arrested saw him being nailed to the tree saw him expiring saw him buried saw the stone being rolled on the face and were so certain of it that they were utterly disconsolate and miserable and unhappy and there they were gathered together in a room with a door shut because they were afraid of the Jews suddenly appears before them and speaks to them and says touch me I'm not a ghost the resurrection you know it was that resurrection that finally convinced these disciples themselves that he was the son of God." [33:20]

"God gave him glory on the day of Pentecost and continued it by giving miraculous powers to the apostles have you ever confronted this fact I'm talking about history you know how comes it that a handful 12 Artisans ordinary common men who knew no philosophy and had no learning how did those men managed to make Christianity the main religion as it were of the world how did they conquer the ancient world of gree and of Rome how did it happen there's only one answer it was God glorifying his son by giving these people miraculous utterance miraculous power to work miracles they were able to do the impossible they repeating the works of Christ and the world was astounded and amazed and believed." [38:26]

"God raised him from the dead and gave him glory in order that your faith and hope might be in God how does it work it works like this I look at all this and I draw the following deductions this was the son of God I can't come to any other conclusion as I read the story and I plead with you read it again read your gospels during the next days go on and read the book of The Acts of the Apostles this is the Eternal Son of God God has visited this world God in the person of his son has come down that's my deduction." [40:04]

"God raised him from the dead and gave him glory in order that your faith and your hope might be in God and in him alone very well then believing this the Christian is one who can look at the world at its best and walk around its Galleries and look at its most glittering prizes always accompanied of course by the condition that you follow its way that you surrender something of the true nobility of men and that you go against your conscience and that you deny the Bible and its teaching and all that he told us about God ah the Christian is a man who can look at them all and having looked at them all at their godest at their best at their most wonderful looks at them and says Jesus I my cross have taken all to leave and follow thee destitute despised forsaken thou from H my all shalt be why oh his faith and his hope are in God he sees beyond this world he knows that everything the world has got to give comes to an end when you die you can't take them with you your Jewels your fineries your money your bank balance your importance your position your car your children your wife your lens no no you leave them behind his Faith and Hope hasn't been in these uncertain riches his Faith and Hope are in God." [49:05]

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