I can literally thank God for Easter. Not the casual, slangyp-type way we say, "Thank God!", but with true thanksgiving. Yesterday's service was wonderful, for many reasons. It was our children's first opportunity to participate in the service. Our oldest daughter played piano for the choir and our next daughter sang in the choir. They both did a great job. An older grandpa came up to me and complimented my daughter's piano playing saying how wonderful it was to see her play and be a part of the service. But it wasn't just that. I couldn't wait to hear the sermon. That's how hungry I am lately to hear from the Lord these days. "Speak O Lord" is a song often sung before the sermon and I cry out for that each week.
Our pastor chose an interesting passage, not in the gospels, but in 1 Peter 1:3-9, written by the apostle that had denied Jesus three times. So interesting to read his letter as he was now convinced in His Saviour. He'd gotten through his time of doubting, seen his Lord die, but then be raised from the dead, so he could write this with great conviction.
It begins with describing our "living hope". He could have said just "hope", but it is a living hope. This means, he said, it is one that is alive, growing, never dying, all because of the resurrection. Our hope would be dead if He hadn't risen again. We are also told about our "inheritance" that is "imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time". We want this inheritance now. We want our salvation to be revealed now, but Christ's coming, our ultimate salvation is in the future, in heaven. For now we must remain on earth in our trials, but Peter says, we can "rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials." This is all throughout Scripture, to rejoice in our trials. We like to fight them and get discouraged by them. Last night we read in a book by Martin Lloyd-Jones that Satan loves to send us trials for the strict purpose to discourage us. Makes sense. It works! But Peter says, no, rejoice. There is a purpose to our trials, which we all know, but we still don't like our trials! He wrote, "so that the tested genuineness of our faith - more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire - may be found to result in praise and glory and honour at the revelation of Jesus Christ."
Even gold, when tested and refined for impurities, will still perish if the fire is hot enough. But not with our faith, the greater the trial, the testing, the refining, the greater the genuineness of our faith. Impurities do rise to the surface in our testing. We find out what our faith is really made of and we're shocked that it isn't as great a faith as we once thought. Each test reveals that our faith needs to be even stronger. But this is a much better way to see the test, that our faith is being strengthened. This way we don't question why all the time.
Thomas didn't see Jesus at first. He was perhaps one of the last disciples to see Him, so he didn't believe He'd risen from the dead. We also haven't actually seen Jesus, but we have so much evidence of His work in our life, in the world, in the Word of God, in creation. There is definitely evidence of His existence. Peter says, "Though you have not seen Him, you love Him. Though you do not now see Him, you believe in Him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory..." Jesus told Thomas, "Blessed are those who believe and have not seen." So though we don't have a lot of answers we love Him, believe in Him and rejoice with joy for what He is doing.
Peter ends this passage with our purpose. What is "the outcome of your faith"? Answer, "the salvation of your souls." That's it. With every trial, every situation in our life, the purpose is always the salvation of our souls. He's always sanctifying us, always growing our faith. The pastor said that really, every Easter we should say, "This was the best Easter ever!" and then the next year say, "No, this was the best Easter ever!" Every year, our faith should be stronger, our belief in what Christ is doing in our lives even greater. I can truly say that.
We also finished Lent officially. All throughout Lent we read a children's story about a boy named Amon. After each reading, the author gave a little devotional. On Saturday's reading, the day before Easter, we read about the disciples and their confusion. My husband said to our children, "We can't stay in Saturday. We've got to move to Sunday." I love that. We need to be Sunday Christians, not Friday and Saturday Christians, staying in a place of despair, like the disciples. Our pastor said it, too, but even taking it a step further, "We can't just have resurrection power on Easter Sunday, we need it on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday......."
It's a new week, a new day. Spring is here, though it is cold outside! We made it through the winter. Really, there is so much to be hopeful about and excited for. I woke up to birds singing, roosters crowing...such funny animals. We have a living hope. Yes, we have "various trials" and they do "grieve" us sometimes, but we trust that our faith, though tested, becomes genuine, ultimately giving glory to God.
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