Free Bible Commentary
“First Peter 1:3-5”
Categories: First Peter“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.”
---End of Scripture verses---
I cannot think of a more encouraging passage in all the Bible or imagine a greater motivation to become a Christian and remain faithful to the Lord unto death. Through the exceedingly “great mercy” of our “God and Father” He has “caused us to be born again” (verse 3). When each of us was born into this world, our families were filled with wonder, excitement and hope at the prospects of the joy we would bring to them and the potential prosperity we would enjoy in our lives. But, alas, time goes swiftly by and that hope begins to “fade away” as gravity and age damage and “defile” our bodies and we draw closer to our expiration date when we perish.
But friend, the hope that we have in “our Lord Jesus Christ” cannot be tarnished by the passing of time, it cannot be diminished by the unpredictable and uncontrollable circumstances of life, and it only grows greater as we approach the hour of our departure from this world of pain and suffering. God has promised an “inheritance” “in heaven” to His children that is “imperishable and undefiled and” that “will not fade away (verse 4).
In this world, people receive inheritances when their parents or guardians die and leave their worldly estate behind for them to enjoy for a few, fleeting years. But the children of God receive their abundant, magnificent, eternal inheritance when THEY die and are carried home to heaven to dwell forever with their loving Father. In fact, as the Psalmist puts it in Psalm 16:5-6, the Lord himself is their glorious inheritance. “The LORD is the portion of my inheritance and my cup; You support my lot. The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; indeed, my heritage is beautiful to me.”
I know that none of us wants to miss out on all the wonders and splendors of heaven, and that all the money in this world would not be a fair tradeoff. But there are things that we must do to become inheritors of God’s immeasurable and inexhaustible fortune. We must be “born again” in order to obtain the “living hope” that carries on past the earthly grave. Jesus told a Pharisee named Nicodemus that people must be “born of water and the Spirit” or they “cannot enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:5). The Apostle Paul talks about the “newness of life” that is given to converts when they are “baptized into Christ” and “into His death” and arise to walk as newly born persons with a new mentality and new objectives (Romans 6:1-6).
After our sins have been “washed away” in the waters of baptism (Acts 22:16), we must remain faithful unto the Lord to the end of our lives (Revelation 2:10). Christians are “protected by the power of God THROUGH FAITH for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time” (verse 5). Our Father in heaven promises to protect us, provide for us and propel us to heaven by His unlimited “power”. But faith is our part of the covenant. We must love and trust and obey Him, even when He allows our faith to be tested and proven. But, as you can see in this remarkable passage (and will see in tomorrow’s as well), anything that we are forced to endure for our faith will be more than worth it in the end!
Please read 1 Peter 1:6-9 for tomorrow.
Stay faithful!!!
-Louie Taylor
