Hopelessness; despair; anxiety; depression; worry; stress; mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual fatigue...these are all common in our culture. Modern Americans are by and large a strung out and despondent peoples. We spend billions of dollars each year on medication and therapy in the hopes of curing our hopelessness. We spend billions more buying things and experiences in the hopes of masking it. This wasn't always the case though.
America was founded upon the dreams of a better tomorrow. The "American Dream" was once a real and promising reality for people from around the world who were seeking to escape their former lives and find a fresh start. Many succeeded in doing so; and with those successes, the "dream" grew bigger. Over time, somewhere along the way though, we became jaded and the dream soon eroded into more of a nightmare.
The problem with dreams is that they are constantly consuming themselves, getting bigger and more fantastical with each passing iteration. No matter what we achieve or obtain, the future always holds a brighter tomorrow filled with an endless supply of bigger and better possibilities. Eventually, nothing this world has to offer can sustain the weight of our hopes and dreams. Reality comes crashing down all around us. In those moments, we are left feeling hopeless, exposed, and afraid.
Our experiences testify to the difficulty of "real life." Don't get me wrong, I'm not a Debby Downer, but let's be honest, even on our best days, don't we often find ourselves just waiting for the other shoe to drop? When things are going well, in the back of our minds, we know that a rainy day is coming just around the bend. We even have a name for it...Murphy's Law. The most prudent of us plan for it, saving and preparing for the coming storm. The majority of us though just put on a brave face and keep pushing forward naively thinking that WE'LL BE THE LUCKY ONES who get through unscathed. The math rarely adds up. Seemingly "bad" things happen to "good" people, and vice versa. And we are left at best scratching our heads and at worst shaking our fists at the heavens.
This topsy-turvy, chaotic mess is the world we live in. It often feels that there is nowhere to turn for encouragement and nothing but shifting sand beneath our feet. We aren't alone in our predicament. It's been this way throughout history. We aren't the first generation to experience this and we surely won't be the last. So, what are we to do?
The Apostle Peter was writing to people who were struggling with these same thoughts and feelings nearly two thousand years ago in the earliest days of the newborn Church. Life brought with it the normal stresses of simply trying to survive. On top of that, they were suffering intense persecution for their faith; Peter among them. It was a difficult time, and hope was in short supply.
It's in times like these when we most need the encouragement we find in 1 Peter. We need reminded of a transcendent hope that has overcome the world. We need the gospel!
Back in 2011, Joe Thorn, pastor of Redeemer Fellowship in St. Charles, IL, wrote a short book called "Note to Self." In about 125 pages, Thorn literally writes notes to himself about a wide array of topics related to the Christian life; from his relationship with God, with others, and even with himself. The premise of the book is that in all areas of our lives, we need to be disciplined in preaching the gospel to ourselves. We daily need to be reminded of it, because if we aren't we are prone to wonder into despair.
Throughout our study over 1 Peter, we will be reminded of our hope in the gospel. Peter will continually point us to, and encourage us in, the grace and goodness of God the Father, available to us through faith and trust in his Son, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
As we learned in this week's lesson, in Christ we are born again into new life and invited into fellowship with God and participation in his kingdom. We are redeemed and restored through the finished work of Christ. And we are being guarded by the indwelling presence of his Spirit in our lives as we are daily conformed to his image. This gives us much to be hopeful in.
In Christ we are adopted as children of God and, as Paul says in Ephesians 1:3, given "every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places." In other words, God withholds no good thing from his children, even, at times, the trials and struggles which he uses to refine and equip us to be "perfect and complete, lacking in nothing" (James 1:4).
The gospel is a message of hope and Peter's first epistle is saturated in gospel hopefulness and encouragement. As we study through this letter, my hope is that we will see the true source of hope we have at our fingertips in and through God's word.
In Grace,
Chris Morris
If you missed this week's sermon (or just want to listen again), follow the link below to listen. Or subscribe to our podcast in iTunes.
Part 1 - Hope For The Hopeless
Questions discussed in this sermon:
1. What is Peter’s purpose in writing this letter?
2. How should we understand trials and suffering?
3. What is the source of our hope as Christians?
***Due to technical difficulties, the first few minutes of the sermon audio are missing from the recording
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