Hope In A Hostile World

Daily Bible Reading – James 5:1 – 1 Peter 3:22

Peter wrote his letter to Christians who were under great persecution.  His message is one of hope for those living in a hostile world. The unsaved person is “without hope” (Eph. 2:12); yet the believer has a living hope because he has a living Savior. Christ is our Hope (1 Tim. 1:1), and we look for His soon-expected return. The Christian does not work for this hope; it is a part of his spiritual birthright. We are born again (John 3:5) into this living hope.

This hope is not only a living hope; it is a lasting hope (vv. 4–5). It is reserved in heaven, where it cannot decay (“incorruptible”), be defiled, or lose its beauty and delight. But not only is the hope reserved; the believer too is kept (guarded as by a soldier) by the Lord! We are kept by God’s power because of the faith we have placed in Him. Eternal security is not based on the faith of men, but on the faithfulness of God. The believer is saved; he is being saved daily (through sanctification); and he will be saved completely when Christ returns (Rom. 8:15–25). The end (completion, perfection) of our faith will be the complete salvation of the believer (v. 9), who will inherit a new body.

However, until Christ returns, the believer must go through testing. A faith that cannot be tested cannot be trusted. Our suffering is but “for a season” as the Lord sees; but the glory will be forever. Verse 7 compares the trial of our faith to the testing of gold. The word “trial” means “approval.” The comparison is that of a prospector bringing ore in to be tested. The assayer gives him a certificate stating that the ore contains gold. The certificate is the approval of the ore, and this paper is worth much more than the little sample of ore that was tested. In the same way our faith is tested, a “sample” at a time; and the approval of our faith means that there are more riches to follow. The suffering we endure here will result in more glory when Christ comes. Knowing this, we love Him the more.