Scripture: 1 Peter 1:3-7 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, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 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.
Devotional: You have likely heard a story before about a little boy who grew up in the church. He was baptized as an infant and went to Sunday School every Sunday morning. In his elementary years, he accepted Jesus as his Savior. He loved Jesus and surrendered his life to Him. When he was in middle school, he went to middle school programming and summer camps. When he was in high school, he went to high school programming. He checked all of the boxes, he knew the basic beliefs of the faith, and he would state that he was a Christian. But the pivotal moment in his life and his walk with Jesus came sometime in college or in his young adulthood. He had started to drink and party, leading to a whole plethora of bad decisions. He hit an all-time low, struggling with severe depression and questioning his worth. At that point, he knew that he needed to start pursuing Jesus wholeheartedly. He needed to make his faith his own and put Jesus on the throne of his heart. And Jesus set him free. From then on, though it has not always been easy, he has been in full pursuit of a life lived for Jesus.
This is just an example; it is not based off of a real person. But you have likely heard a story similar to this before, right? Someone who has faith and relationship with God, but until they have gone through a trial, it is rather surface level. Or even if their faith wasn’t just surface level, it is significantly deeper after that trial.
Our passage from today tells us, “In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 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.” Times of trial bring out a genuineness in our faith. When we cling to Jesus throughout those times, we become much stronger because of them. And, when we cling to Jesus throughout those times, people notice. They notice how we respond. They notice how we feel and how we are navigating it. When Jesus is at the helm of our life in these seasons, our response is much different than the world’s. And it will bring Jesus praise, honor, and glory.
So, as you go through a season of suffering or difficulty, know that you have the opportunity to show the genuineness of your faith. You have the opportunity to be a light in the dark, bringing all honor and glory to Jesus for sustaining you and getting you through.
Reflect:
- Think of some examples of people that have a stronger faith because of the trials they have been through.
- How can you learn from their response in the midst of them?