Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away ...1 Peter 1:3-4
To these who are feeling discouraged, displaced, depressed, or in danger, Peter addresses the issue right away, saying, ‘We have a living hope based upon the resurrection of our Lord and Savior.’
Unlike living hope, human hope tends to get weaker and dimmer and finally dies altogether the further one goes down the road of life ...
I was an awesome pitcher. As I stood in the street and pitched a tennis ball against my garage door, you wouldn’t believe my split finger fastball, my curve, my sinker. I knew even Hank Aaron would strike out if he ever faced me at the plate. Oh, I might go to the full count, but I would always come through — every single time. In my imagination, I pitched perfect game after perfect game as a nine-year-old. But it finally hit me about two years ago that, in reality, I’ll never pitch for the San Francisco Giants. Even if I practice really hard, I now know it’s just not going to happen. My hope that once shone so brightly is now gone altogether.
The same is true for all of us, for as we go down the road of life, we check off more and more things we thought we would one day do or be. Regarding spiritual life, however, the opposite is true — for the further down the road we walk with Jesus, the more we realize our hope doesn’t lie in this earth, but in heaven. We don’t need to be a people who wrestle with mid-life crises because our hope is not to make the San Francisco Giants or to make ten million bucks. Our hope is in heaven. And heaven’s getting closer every day.
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