Purified by Trials - I Peter 1:7

I Peter 1:7 – Purified by Trials

These trials are only to test your faith, to show that it is strong and pure. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold -- and your faith is far more precious to God than mere gold. So if your faith remains strong after being tried by fiery trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world. (NLT)

These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. (NIV)

In order for our faith to grow, we must face trials. Only as we trust God to see us through our tribulations is our faith made stronger. Through fiery trials we are purified, becoming more and more like the Son of God, Jesus Christ. (CDC)

There are three reasons we go through trials: 1) to keep us humble; 2) to help our faith grow; and 3) to teach us compassion. We are being refined as we go through the firey trials of life, for God is in the business of purifying us. The purpose of purification is so we begin to have a glowing likeness to Jesus Christ.

Sometimes in our times of troubles we feel like we are being pulled downstream by a rapid current. However, God knows exactly where we are. When He delivers us out of the raging waters, in His timing, we are turned back around to face the river. As we see others going through their distresses and disappointments, God gives us compassion to reach out to them. When we do, we bring glory and honor to Him.  Somehow He uses these experiences to make us stronger...to make us more in the image of His Son.

Other New Testament authors have written letters that reinforce what Peter has written:

• Paul writes in Romans 5:3: We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. (NIV)

• James 1:2-4 Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. (NLT)

Our faith is much more precious to God than gold. Gold is purified by fire, but our faith is refined and made pure by going through fiery trials and tests. When we come through those times in our our lives, we are made stronger in our faith, and our character is shaped more into the character of Christ. God loves us so much He wants to make us in the image of His Son...He wants to perfect us.

I don't know about you, but I am one who needs perfecting. God is the only One I can trust with that process. I don't need to fear, because He is going through this process of life with me. Meanwhile, He is preparing a place for me in heaven where there will be no more testing, no more trials, no tears, no heartaches, no sorrow. All will be peace forever more! (John 14:1-3).

Where Our Joy Comes From - I Peter 1:6

I Peter 1:6 – Where Our Joy Comes From

So be truly glad! There is wonderful joy ahead, even though it is necessary for you to endure many trials for a while. (NLT)

In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. (NIV)

This life will have many obstacles to overcome, but because God has promised to be with us, we can look beyond our current circumstance and keep our focus on the prize before us...the Hope of Heaven. That hope is where our joy comes from. (CDC)

I am sure that believers in Christ realize what a privilege we have, knowing that God is watching over us. Also, we truly believe that we have an eternal home in heaven someday. We experience hope in God's provisions and protection here and now, plus we have the assurance that our future is going to be a blessed event, beyond our comprehension. Still, because we are human, there are times that we get discouraged and feel the burden of our pain and sorrow in the trials we go through. God created our emotions...He totally understands our grief. That's why He wants us to read His word, His love letter to us, on a regular basis. His Holy Spirit inspired the authors of each of the 66 books of the Bible to write so that we might gain insight and encouragement from the Word of God.

Peter is specifically writing to encourage believers. He is telling us to remember our trials are only for a season. Comedian Mark Lowry's favorite verse is “And it came to pass.” No matter what we are going through, it will pass. Life has a rhythm to it, just like a heartbeat. There are ups and downs in the pattern. We are sometimes on mountain tops and sometimes in the valley. That's the way God designed the mountains...to have valleys in between. If life was the same every day, we would become bored and discontent. If we read a book where there is no mystery, no dilemma to catch our attention, would we keep reading? No...we want to see how the problems are resolved and how the story turns out. That's the way life is. Only...if we keep the faith...we already know the ending is nothing but good...full of unbelievable blessings and rewards. Our trials are the means by which our faith is strengthened, and they cause us to look forward to Christ's return and our eternal hope...a time when there will be no more sorrow, no more pain, no more grief.

Even when we are going through the valleys, the storms of life, we know deep down inside that as a child of God, He is with us. If we are in a right relationship with Him, we have an inner sense of peace and well-being. There is no reason to stay up at night worrying. God wants us to go to sleep and leave the problem with Him. Our joy is not dependent up on our current circumstances, for we know that God will work all things out in His time. When we compare our current circumstances to our new birth, our living hope, and our inheritance in heaven, we find reason to keep our head up, our eyes focused on Jesus, and moving forward, even if only one baby step at a time.

The pain of failure is one reason we grieve. Peter very well remembers the time when he failed Jesus, and the pain it caused him. On the night Jesus was betrayed in the garden by the kiss of Judas, Peter denied even knowing Him three times. Then the rooster crowed and his eyes met the eyes of Jesus. He knew he had utterly failed his Best Friend. How could he have done such a thing? How could Jesus ever forgive him? He had behaved just as Jesus had said he would, and now here he was...at the bottom. But Peter accepted Christ's forgiveness, and refocused, making his life count for God's Kingdom. We, too, have to let go of the pain of our past, and fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith (Hebrews 12:1-2).

The pain of loss is another reason we grieve. Jesus himself also experienced deep sorrow. At the tomb of His close friend Lazarus, He wept. Tears, which God collects in bottles, is His way of bringing inner healing. Because Jesus felt the same emotions we feel, He promised to be with us to guide us through the maze of sorrow and grief. Peter tells us later on in this letter to “Cast all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.” (I Peter 5:7) And the Psalmist reminds us that: "Those who sow with tears will reap with songs of joy." (Psalms 126:5) May it be an encouragement to us that God is indeed watching over us! He knows exactly what we are going through, and what our future holds. He wants us to trust Him.  


"God of the Mountain" by Lynda Randal:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V65EPF2S-s0

A Living Hope - I Peter 1:3

I Peter 1:3

3 All honor to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, for it is by his boundless mercy that God has given us the privilege of being born again. Now we live with a wonderful expectation because Jesus Christ rose again from the dead. (NLT)

3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, (NIV)

Our hope is in Jesus Christ. Because He rose from the dead, we who place our faith in Him live with the privilege of being born anew. This privilege stems from the mercy of God, who deserves all of our honor and praise. (my personal translation [CDC version] of verse 3)

Apostle Peter penned his first letter to Christians who were undergoing persecution. In the midst of their suffering, he wanted to encourage them by sending them words of HOPE. Hope, to him, was a firm conviction of something that is true, not just wishful thinking.

When Peter writes “our” Lord Jesus Christ, he reminds them and us that they/we have a personal, intimate relationship with Jesus because of God's mercy. God granted that relationship through the cross. Even though the cross meant the sacrificial death of God's Son, the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the reality of Jesus triumphing over death, is our guarantee that we have a living hope.

This hope is alive and dynamic, and it does not depend on our circumstances. Everyone experiences the pain of suffering, for it is a universal language. Peter, however, gives us a prescription to relieve that pain. He reminds us that just as God brought Jesus through the horrible death by crucifixion, He will see us through, no matter what we are currently experiencing. We can be assured that there is not an earthly problem too big for God to fix. We experience His deliverance from sin and death as we are born anew by placing our faith and trust in Jesus Christ and allowing His Spirit to live in us. This, however, is not the end of the Christian experience, it is only the beginning. God's grace and peace are available to us as we journey through this life, even when things are not pleasant or going the way we wish they would.

If you want to feel the presence of God in your life, you begin the same way Peter began this letter...by giving God all the praise and honor and respect that is due Him. We have been chosen by God, and we are being made more and more in the likeness of Jesus Christ. Jesus was raised from the dead, and as we place our faith in Him, we can know beyond the shadow of a doubt that we will one day overcome the disappointments of this world. 

Our living hope gives us a reason to smile at whatever storm we are facing now, because there is coming a day when we will be moving to our eternal home in heaven, to reign with Jesus! There will be no more sorrow or pain, only everlasting JOY! On that day our LIVING HOPE will be fully realized and the trials of this life will seem so insignificant compared to the Glory that awaits us!