Promise – Page 16 – The Gospel First

Life is often discouraging. The daily news and our own experience tell us that life can be discouraging. Loved ones die in war, of illness, and of tragic accident. What appeared to have been a happy marriage ends in divorce. Children who once brought joy bring heartache in their rebellion.

Yes, life is often full of bad news. Even though we naively expect a fairy tale ending where “everyone lives happily ever after,” to our dismay life in this world doesn’t always turn out that way. Even in those moments where you think you’re winning and getting ahead, there’s a set back. You know how it is when you’ve just been able to set a few bucks aside and “bang” the car breaks down or a major appliance goes on the blink.

How can we face discouragement while living in this fallen world? Continue reading “Words of Encouragement”

The beginning of the First Epistle of Peter assures us that though we live as exiles of the dispesion, we have been granted a new identity in Christ. In Jesus Christ, we have been granted a new identity that defines us and helps us to live faithfully. A fruit of that identity is that we become a people of a living hope, not despair -our identity thrives in knowing the value and certainty of what we possess in Christ. But not only do we have a living hope as a fruit of our identity, we have a transcendent joy.

1 Peter 1:6-9 talks about that Transcendent Joy – one that is experienced in this world but that is not dependent on this world – it comes from God the Father, on the basis of the work of Christ, through the ministry of the Holy Spirit in your life. Continue reading “The Transcendent Joy of the Gospel”