Living Hope
Sermon Recording
Sermon Outline
Speaker: Rev. Scott Strickman
Sermon Series: Faith, Hope & Love
1 Peter 1:3-9 (ESV)
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
Sermon Outline
Hope – necessary for facing the harsh aspects of life – looks ahead with confident anticipation to the particulars of a remarkable future.
1. Again
v3 “he has caused us to be born again” (or “given us new birth”)
v3 “according to his great mercy”
2. Living
v3 “to a living hope”
v3 “through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead”
3. Kept
v4 “to an inheritance… kept in heaven for you”
v4 “that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading”
v5 “who by God’s power are being guarded”
Questions for Reflection
Are you generally an optimist or a pessimist? Why?
Compare and contrast optimism and hope.
Why is it merciful of God that he causes us to be born again? What can assumed about us in characterizing this as mercy? What can be assumed about God?
How often do you use the word (or idea) “again” pessimistically (e.g. “of course I will fail again”)? In what ways does grasping that you have been born again create the possibility of hope for every situation you face?
Who or what are your deepest hopes set on? Do you have confidence that what you hope in will bring a true fulfillment of what you truly need? Does your hope meet the criteria of being a “living hope”?
How can hope in a great inheritance kept for you (to be revealed in the future) help you now? How can it help you make good choices? How can it sustain you in challenges? How can it reverse the downward spiral of hopelessness?
When you are hopeless, how can you rest on God’s power to guard you? What role does faith play?
Is there a relationship between faith, hope and love in 1 Peter 3:1-9? What role does each of the three play in this passage, and how do they work together?
Peter expects the church will have hope that is strong enough that they can praise God even though their circumstances are very hard. What role can praise to God play in increasing your hope? Should you praise God when you feel hopeless? If so, how would you do it?
Prayer of Confession
Blessed are you, God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. You have caused us to be born again to a living hope. With honesty, regret and confusion, we acknowledge our hope is weak. We have hoped in things that are not imperishable, undefiled and unfading. We have not hoped in you as we ought. Our weak hope has meant diminished faith and obedience. Amidst testing, the inauthentic components of our faith have been revealed. We confess our fear, our joylessness, our boredom, our resentments, and all of the problems that spring from our hopeless hearts. Forgive us, and renew in us a sense of the greatness of the salvation granted to us in Christ. Amen.