Thursday, July 21, 2016

Peter says in 1st Peter 1:6, we have every reason to greatly rejoice because of all the promises God gives us about our salvation, past, present and future. We’ve looked into this salvation, explained in the first 5 verses of 1st Peter: Salvation – past, present and future. There are times, however, when it doesn’t seem like everything is going just fine. Peter understands. He faced many such times himself. One day He and other apostles were put in prison. An angel opened the doors and let them out in the middle of the night. Later Peter was put in prison again, with the intent of putting him on trial, and possibly put to death as his fellow apostle James had been, but again an angel delivered him out of the prison during the night. At the end of his life he was in prison before he finally was crucified, upside down by his own request. He knew what he was writing about in verse 6, “In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.” Understanding all God has done for you is important if you want to authentically worship and serve Him. It is also important when you face opposition and persecution. Even though you might not sense God’s power and peace protecting you, He is there. As Paul said in 1st Corinthians 10:13, “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.”