Our Hope is in Him

DEVOTION

THE 1^ST LETTER OF PETER

 OUR HOPE IS IN HIM

1 Peter 1:17-21

17 Since you call on a Father who judges each man's work impartially, live your lives as strangers here in reverent fear. 18 For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. 20 He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. 21 Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God.

NIV

We do call on the Father in Heaven. So often it seems it appears that we are calling on Jesus, but the fact is that we pray to the Father, in the name of Jesus. Jesus consistently taught that we are to ask the Father and, in fact, we can ask the Father for whatever we need and ask him in the name of Jesus, and it will be given to us. So here we are told again to call on the Father, but we are also told that our Father judges each of our works impartially. This is the reason we should live our lives as strangers here in reverent fear. Perhaps we should explore just what works Peter is talking about here. That almost sounds like works have something to do with salvation, and we know that simply is not true for salvation is a free gift of God, through faith in Jesus. If we take the whole of the truth Peter is saying here, we have to come to the issue of the work in the light of our faith and hope in God. It is certain that faith and works are in opposition to each other in regard to salvation. A look at the Greek word translated as works might give us some clues. In the general sense, this word ergon means to labor, as in employment. It is also used as to anything accomplished by hand, such as art, industry, and mind. It also can mean an act or deed, something done. So then what God judges is how we live our life, how we work in our daily affairs, how we live in our walk as a believer, that is how we deal with faith, with our believing, our trust in the Father. Jesus told us the work of God is to believe in the one He sent. This work has everything to do with how we exercise our faith or belief in Jesus. Being a stranger here implies the work has nothing to do with the affairs of the world. If we live as strangers in the world than none of the work which corresponds to worldly efforts count. That would even apply to what is considered good deeds. If we do something considered good, the only reason would be so that we could bring glory to the Father. What good is any good deed if men praise us for our good acts? That is what men do in the world. They work for the praise of men, but we work for the praise of God. Our faith is in Jesus, our hope is in Jesus, and so how do we live out our faith in a manner as strangers living in reverent fear of God. If we live in the same manner as the empty way of life we were born into, then we trust in man, we trust in ourselves, our efforts, our abilities, our skills, our education, for the attainment of whatever we want. We trust in silver and gold rather than in God. That is an empty life, having no faith other than maybe for our salvation. How can we say we believe God for salvation, but for nothing else in our lives? Is that the work he judges impartially? How much do we believe? How do we work out our salvation? How do we live out our faith? How do we demonstrate we believe God for everything in our lives? All that we are, all that we have, all that we do are a result of Christ in us. It is he who works in us, and through us. All our hope is in Him.