1 Peter 1:3-9
Today we are going to be discussing true Christianity. What is true Christianity. Is there a false Christianity? The answer to that question is yes, there is a false Christianity that does not and cannot save. That is anything or anyone we place our faith in that is not Jesus Christ.
Nevertheless, that is not the aim of this morning’s message. Instead, we are looking at the heart of Christianity. If we were to boil it down, what is Christianity at the core? What does it mean to follow Jesus in simple terms? To answer this, we are going to go to the writings of one of the original 12 apostles of Jesus, specifically the Apostle Peter.
Peter had a very unique perspective as a believer in Christ. Peter was one of the 12 apostles of the early church with the responsibility of telling others about Jesus and guiding new believers into true Christianity. Why was Peter one of the apostles? Because Peter saw Jesus. He was an eye witness of Jesus. Peter saw Jesus, he watched Jesus, he listened to Jesus’ teachings, he watched Jesus live a perfect life. Peter walked with Jesus, talked with Him, and was captivated by Him.
Peter saw Jesus get arrested, he saw Him beaten, he saw him get whipped, shredded with a cat of nine tails, he saw him mistreated, falsely accused, and wrongly convicted. Peter saw Jesus carry His own cross, nailed to it, and then hung naked on a tree to be laughed at, made fun of, and scorned. Peter was there when Jesus died. He heard how Jesus was wrapped up and put in a tomb for the dead.
Though Peter walked with Jesus and talked with Him, through he heard Jesus say that He would die, he was still discouraged. It wasn’t enough for Peter and the apostles to see Jesus alive and to see God in the flesh. Peter went back to what he was doing before Jesus found him. He went back to his old way of life. He reverted back to what he knew best.
But then something happened. Peter saw Jesus again! Peter saw Jesus alive; He had risen from the grave!! It was because of this that Peter became a bold witness for Christ, confidently telling others about about what he saw: Jesus risen from the grave!
Not only did Peter tell others about this risen Jesus, but died for what he saw as well. According to Christian tradition, the apostle Peter was crucified upside down for his faith in Christ. Wow. Peter was clearly “all-in” on Jesus. If anyone knew what true Christianity was, if anyone knew what it meant to follow Jesus, it was Peter. For that simple fact it gives his words weight, let alone that the word of God was inspired.
With that said, let us take a look at some of the words that the Apostle Peter left with other Christians like you and me.
1
Peter 1:3-9 ESV
v3 - “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,”
• We have been born again; not because Jesus died, but that He rose from the dead!
v4-5 - “….to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time…”
•
As born again
Christians, we have an inheritance that is kept in Heaven where it is being
protected from destruction, defilement, and decay.
•
What is that
inheritance being kept for us? It is eternal life.
•
That eternal life
will be revealed to us on the day we see Jesus, either in death or in life.
• Either way, we will be stepping into true life.
v6-7 - “In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
•
Gold is tested by
being put in an intense fire (1,000 ºC/ 1,832 ºF) in order to be refined. It is
only through this intense fire that gold can be refined because it burns away
all of the impurities in order to test that it is genuine and strengthening the
gold itself. Ultimately, gold is tested & refined by fire because of it’s value.
•
As Peter says,
our faith is more precious and more valuable than gold. How much more than
should it be refined?
•
As we go through
difficulty, disappointment, and discomfort in life, it only strengthens our
faith in Christ.
• When we go through trials, we come out the other side with a more genuine faith that brings praise, honor, and glory to Jesus.
v8-9 - Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”
Peter says, “though you have not seen Him…” We must remember, Peter saw Jesus risen from the dead. However, he was speaking to people who had not. They most likely hadn't even met anyone who had even seen Jesus before.
Peter was describing the essence of Christianity: it is about the unseen Christ. I have thought before, “I wish I could have seen Jesus back then in the flesh.” I just imagined my faith would be stronger and I would never doubt. Yet, there were a lot of people who saw Jesus and didn’t believe. Not that I think about it, seeing Jesus might actually make it harder to believe. Jesus’ true identity was hidden by his flesh. Only a handful of people knew who He truly was.
Peter, who knew Christ, was reveling in the fact that these believers were following Jesus though they never had never seen Him… He describes that as true Christianity. Peter wanted them to know that as they walk through trials, difficulty, disappointments, etc, true Christianity, following the unseen Christ, was worth it.
When we face trials, let us get back to the basics.
What is true Christianity?
1.
Loving
Christ (…though you have not seen
Him)
Loving Jesus means that you are
personally invested. It means that you have a personal relationship with Jesus.
In order to have a relationship with someone, you must devote time to spend
with them. In the same way, we must have a personal devotion to Christ.
Peter knew this very well. He knew
what it meant to love Jesus. How? Because Jesus Himself told him so.
John
14:15 ESV
“If you love me, you
will keep my commandments.”
Loving Jesus is not just doing ministry, it is not just checking things off the
list. Instead, loving Jesus is devoting time to spend with Him and obeying Him.
Let us not forget our personal devotion to Jesus.
2.
Trusting Christ
John
20:29
“Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have
not seen and yet have believed.””
When we say that we believe in Christ, we are saying that we trust Him.
When we say we trust Christ, we are saying that He is reliable to fulfill His
promises.
When we face trials and we don’t know what to do, let us trust Jesus at His
word. Let us go to the word of God and get a word to hold onto. Let us trust
the character of God.
We may or may not get the exact outcome that we want, but we know that God has
us in His hands. We know that He is working our circumstances for our good. We
know He has a plan and that He is going to make things better.
3.
Finding
Joy in Christ
As we love Him and as we trust Him,
we begin to find our joy in Him. He becomes the very thing we treasure most. We
find joy in serving Him. Ultimately, the things we love are the things we enjoy. There is an authentic and sincere joy that is
available for us as believers. There is a greater joy to be found in our
relationship with Jesus.
True Christianity involves finding our inner joy, the thing which gives us
pleasure and fulfillment in this life, in Christ.
Let us get back to the basics of true Christianity.
