1 Peter 1:3-9
Besides separating the books of the bible into chapters and verses, the editors also place sub-headings which explain the stories or lessons withing those books. I don't always agree with the subheadings, but I guess that's just the rebel in me - I like to formulate my own thoughts and ideas by opening myself up to how God is speaking to me in that moment. However, today's "title" is, as the saying goes, spot on. This passage from 1 Peter speaks to me about "A Living Hope."
As I read it, I found myself taken to a place where my belief in the resurrection of Jesus Christ, and the hope in a life filled with the promises of joy and peace that resurrection brings for me, filled my heart with hope. But, not just a hope which brings about wishes of a fantasy-like life. No, this passage brought an honest, deep-seeded belief that God is alive in my life through the life of Jesus Christ.
The message of Jesus could not be stopped, not even by death. As Jesus walked and talked with people, he shared how the love of God was for everyone - poor and rich, sick and well, unclean and clean - regardless of race, religion, gender, and/or abilities. Jesus did everything he could to help everyone he met to understand that God's love is universal and given without expectations.
God's love never ends and is unconditional. Or, as in the words of Peter, God's love "is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading," and is our "inheritance" It is ours to have simply because we exist. Such is the message of Jesus' life, and such is the message of Christ as he lives on in us.
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