A Living Hope – 1 Peter 1:3-9

We don’t have a lot of written documents from the Apostle Peter. In fact most of what we know of Peter comes from the Gospel record and his activities as recorded in the Book of the Acts of the Apostles. Known as Simon before meeting Jesus, this fisherman received a new name that was Greek in origin: Petras – the Rock. Jesus saw something in Peter that spoke of strength, endurance, and stability. Those are interesting ways to describe the character of Peter when we reflect on the many times that he was weak, prone to slip and certainly not stable.

But he was one of the most passionate of the disciples about the message that Jesus was preaching, and he was always ready to jump in – literally! Peter was one of the disciples closest to Jesus, accompanying him on many of Jesus’ encounters with people, who was first to acknowledge Jesus as the Son of God, who went to the mountain and witnessed Jesus with Moses and Elijah, who asked to be completely made clean by Jesus at the Last Supper, who was present when Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, who sought to defend Jesus from being arrested, who followed Jesus to the courtyard of the High Priest, who denied him three times, and was one of the first to witness the empty tomb.

Peter was the one whose faith in Jesus appeared greater than all the rest and he was the one whose faith appeared to be the weakest.  His desire to follow Jesus to the end was so strong that he declared he would never desert him; but then he became the one who denied ever knowing him.

Probably more than any other disciple, we can identify with Peter – his great faith, his great fear, his determination to live for his Lord and his failure to speak the truth in a time of crisis. And yet in spite of his weakness, in spite of his failure, he learns that Jesus knows that Peter still loves his Lord and that his Lord still loves him.   From the depths of the despair and hopelessness that must have filled his heart and mind, Peter finds restoration from Jesus who never doubted the heart and soul, the strength, endurance, and stability that was Peter and that would truly make him the Rock. And so Jesus, the Good Shepherd, gives Peter a command to be the shepherd of the people: Feed my sheep, tend my lambs, feed my sheep. And Peter fulfils that command serving faithfully until the end of his life on this earth.

Peter was no theologian. He was no person of great education but he was a person of faith who understood what God had accomplished through Jesus and so he encourages the people in this letter to remember that the grace and mercy of God has given each of them a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. No matter what trials or sufferings they may be experiencing, they have a living hope!

The resurrection of Jesus from the dead is a reality that cannot be denied or dismissed.  That resurrection is an assurance that those who believe will experience a new birth.  And while this new birth is not one that can be realized in this time, the time will come when the truth of their hope will be revealed.

Peter tells them that this hope that is theirs is one that was carefully and wisely interpreted by the prophets and that should be for them the assurance that they are to be faithful in this life and not allow their faith in God’s promises to waver.

The people are encouraged to not let anything overwhelm them or dissuade them from their faith in the kingdom of God.

Peter himself would struggle and suffer throughout his life. It is believed that he died in Rome around 64 AD during the persecution of Christians under emperor Nero. He remained a figure of strength, endurance, and stability for all believers until the end – he lived and died as the Rock that Jesus knew he was.

Peter overcame his fears and his doubts, and he held firmly to that living hope that had come to birth in him. It is to that hope that we are encouraged today! And so we can be assured that those who have gone before us are not lost to us. They are waiting with all who have passed from this life with this living hope! May we be faithful to this hope in our lives!

AMEN