Praise be

Praise be

Colossians 1 verses 1 to 23, Peter 1 verses 3 to 5
Suppose you were standing in an underground train and you were grabbed by a friend and dragged onto the platform, you complained to the friend that you were bruised and your clothes torn. But later you discover later than a terrorist had taken over the train. You would be grateful for rescue form a terrible end. This is an image of believers, we have no concept of how terrible it is to be lost or wonderful to be saved. We have been saved from God’s wrath and to a glorious inheritance. We easily get things out of perspective now – the trials and temptations.
Praise for the Blessings of salvation.
New Testament writers often did this – see Ephesians 1 verse 3. The letters begin this way, by being thrilled for what God has done for us. Bless is the same as ‘eulogy’. We should eulogise God for what he has done for us. The end of Bible teaching is the transformation of our hearts and minds. He reminds the readers of the intimate relationship we have with our saviour. In the Church of God when it is healthy, there should be an under current of praise. It should be the key note of our lives Peter says blessed be God who has done great things for us. He wants us to praise God because there is no one else to turn to and no hope beyond the Living God. Today we’ve got away from the eternal perspective. People have no concept of how terrible it is to be lost, nor any excitement about the prospect of heaven.

(i) The source of our blessings is God’s mercy.
We need God’s mercy because we have no hope without it. Without God’s mercy, the bottom line for mankind is eternal death. God was merciful to the people of Israel when they were in bondage and when they were wandering in the desert. It was the mercy of God extended to these were saved. Our only hope because we are helpless, is God’s mercy. 1 Peter 2 verse 10 – we had once not received it but have received it now.
(ii) The means of these blessings is the new birth.
He has given is new birth. Peter says we are new people because we have had new birth. A Jewish proselyte was considered a new creature. Hope is defined as looking for some future good with the expectation of obtaining it. Hope is faith as it looks forward. Sometimes we talk about ‘born-again’ Christians but the adjective is unnecessary. There is no such thing as a ‘non-born-again’ Christian. If you aren’t born-again, you aren’t a Christian at all. We can rejoice in this because he has caused us to be born again. We have a birth certificate but they can be forged, we have photos of us as a baby, these can be false. There is only one way to know we are born because we are here. I know I’m born-again because I am alive to God. I listen to God, I talk to him, I praise him, I need him and I know his family. We know we are born again because we have a living relationship with him.
(iii) The evidence of this is our living hope.
Historians tell us there was a great cloud of hopelessness over the ancient world – their philosophy was empty and unable to help people face death. It is so today. There are a lot of suicides in Northern Ireland among young people, why? The young have a great feeling of hopelessness. They live for today because of hopelessness. Among those who were sent to concentration camps, those who survived were those who had a hope to cling to. Hope is the anchor of the soul that keeps it safe and secure. We can go on a boat and feel great instability due to the swell of the sea. Hope is the stability we need for the soul. It is alive and pulsating. If we are born again we have a bright hope to look forward to. We do not place our hope in anything or anyone save God.
(iv) The guarantee is Christ’s resurrection.
Everything Jesus said and did was confirmed by his resurrection. Romans 1 verse 4 and 1 Corinthians 15 verse17. It is foundational and fundamental. It is absolutely essential for the living hope. Peter became a transformed man when he grasped this.

(v) The goal of the blessing is our inheritance.
It is especially relevant to Jews. The inheritance was a plot of land, it was very precious and was kept safe. The Christians claimed their country was Heaven, it was still to come. Jesus is our inheritance – we are enriched and we live by him. Christ is our life. When people get married they share everything. We are joint heirs with Christ. Everything he has, he shares with us forever. The happiness, the peace with God. It makes millions look like nothing. We cannot take anything when we die. The thing of value is Christ.
a) It is ‘imperishable’ – untouched by death. It is a country unravaged by invading armies. It is untouched by death or decay. It can never be destroyed.
b) It is ‘undefiled’ – unstained by evil. Sometimes an inheritance causes division or despair – as human ones do.
c) It is ‘unfading’ – unimpaired by time. It is always fresh. It means a flower that does not fade. Flowers usually fade. 1 Peter 5 verse 4 – the crown will not perish.
d) It is ‘undisclosed’ – as yet – it is being preserved for us. John 14. It is preserved for us. When we make a will we make clear what we want to happen to our estates, the courts will not usually alter it. Nothing can cut us out of God’s will. It is a legally binding contract. We cannot guarantee anything in the way God does.
How do you value an inheritance? It has to be something better than what you already have got. Some people leave only memories, they are so poor. Some people outlive their heirs. Some leave something of little value to their children. What is in our inheritance from God is so much better than anything in this world. However good life is in this World and by God’s mercy it can be good, death opens the door to something far better to go to. Revelations 21 verse 4. We have a hope of a better body and a renewed cosmos. No more struggling with sin. Only peace and satisfaction. Surely that’s an inheritance worth dying for. Is there anything netter than an inheritance in Jesus Christ? Peter is full of praise for this. Do we have a hope beyond this world? Life is so uncertain, we do not know what awaits us here. Heaven is waiting for us when we die.