God's word says to us, blessed be the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to his abundant mercy has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. To an incorruptible and undefiled inheritance that does not fade away, kept in heaven for you, who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this, you greatly rejoice, even though now, if for a little while, you have had to suffer various trials, in order that the genuineness of your faith, which is more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tried by fire, may be found to resolve in praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ, whom, having not seen, you love. and in whom, though you do not see him now, you believe and you rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory, receiving as the result of your faith the salvation of your souls. The grass withers and the flower fades, but the word of God stands forever. What various trials are you facing? Yes, we all see and know the large one right now, the pandemic, the self-quarantining, the lockdown, the stay at home, but maybe it's also within that, the struggling relationship that now you cannot escape, the isolation which numbs your soul, the abuse that cannot be hidden from. the fear of insufficiency of food or provision that nags constantly at your soul. We all face all kinds of trials. How do we handle those? How do we face up to them? How do we accept their presence in our lives without either granting them the status of ruler of our souls or demeaning ourselves into worthless sufferers. That's what we're looking at today. I just want to encourage you brothers and sisters to rejoice greatly in the face of suffering, knowing that your faith is being proven and your soul is being saved. That sounds antithetical, doesn't it? To rejoice greatly in the face of suffering, but we're able to do so knowing that our faith is being proven and our souls are being saved. I want to remind ourselves of a few things from this passage today. First, the suffering is short. The suffering is short. Now, it doesn't seem like that in the moment. It doesn't seem like that necessarily in the hour of suffering. But in light of eternity, the suffering really is short. Paul said it this way in Romans 8, a passage that, a chapter that we keep getting driven back to and are looking at 1 Peter But Paul said it this way, for I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed to us. The eager expectation of the creation waits for the appearance of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but by the will of him who subjected it in hope that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery corruption into the glorious freedom of the children of God. Here we hear that suffering and that future hope and that future redemption that we've heard from Peter. But what is this craziness that Paul speaks? For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed to us. Now, as we look back and we have the completed word of God, and we might think, well, that's the apostle Paul. He was looked up to, he was respected. He was that great apostle who, by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, gave us so much of the New Testament. But let's look at 2 Corinthians 11, where we find Paul's suffering resume. What qualifications? did Paul have to make this statement that the sufferings of this present time aren't worthy to be compared to the glory which shall be revealed to us? This is that great passage where Paul begins, you think you're a Hebrew? I'm a Hebrew, I'm a real Hebrew, right? And he goes on, starting in verse 23, are they servants of Christ? I speak as a fool. I am more in labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequently, in deaths often. Now, I'm not a medical expert, but I think we can only really die once, but this shows the gravity threatening of death that seemed to always be at his door. And he goes on, five times I received from the Jews 40 lashes minus one. Remember that the thought was that 40 lashes would kill you. And so they would be kind and only give 39. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep, in journeys often in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by my own countrymen, in perils by the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brothers, in weariness and painfulness, in sleeplessness often in hunger and thirst, in fastings often and in cold and nakedness. Beside the external things, the care of all the churches pressures me daily. who is weak and I am not weak, who is led into sin and I am not distressed. If I must boast, I will boast of the things which concern my weakness. The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying. In Damascus, the governor under King Eratos secured the city of the Damascenes with a garrison desiring to arrest me, but I was let down by the wall through a window in a basket and escaped his hands." Brothers and sisters, I believe we would probably be tempted to think, you know, this really isn't worth it. I'm not sure that this is God's will for my life because at every turn, I am frustrated. I think of those who struggle in the country, and they think, if only I could get to the city, or they are struggling in the city, and they think, if only I could get to the country. Paul goes through every kind of place, struggling on land, go to sea, struggling in sea, go to land, it doesn't matter. Everywhere he went, there was frustration and trial and suffering. That is his resume. And he says, I don't consider these things worthy to be compared. We shouldn't even talk about them in light of the glory that is to be revealed. The suffering, though it may be great, though it may seem unbearable, though it may seem like there is no end in sight or no hope to come, the suffering really is short especially compared to the eternity of glory to come. Secondly, the rejoicing is great. The rejoicing is great. Paul begins this section starting in verse six. In this, you greatly rejoice. In this, In what? In the God he just mentioned? In the faith and the revelation of it? In the new birth? The pronoun here seems to point to the whole package, all that's being discussed. Remember we said last time, it's almost as if Peter is standing on a mountaintop and what's swirling all about him in the atmosphere are all these glories of salvation, of redemption purchased by Christ. And in this, it seems to point to the whole package, but I believe it focuses within that previous section on this reality, the new birth by faith, that that is the thing in which we greatly rejoice. Why is this? Well, because of the emphasis on the love and belief in the Lord, which comes at the end of this section, which is only the fruit of the new birth. We cannot love the Lord, we cannot believe in the Lord unless we have been regenerated, unless we've been given new hearts. And so that's one reason I believe the emphasis here is on rejoicing greatly in the new birth by faith. But also secondly, the emphasis is on not seeing him. yet experiencing these new realities, which come by faith. We remember in Hebrews 11 verse one, now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. And when we are walking by faith, we are walking in spiritual realities that we cannot see. The 14th chapter of the Westminster Confession of Faith deals with saving faith. And in the first paragraph, it says, the grace of faith, whereby the elect are enabled to believe to the saving of their souls is the work of the Spirit of Christ in their hearts, and is ordinarily wrought by the ministry of the word, by which also, and by the administration of the sacraments and prayer, it is increased and strengthened. In Hebrews 10, we read, we are not of those who draw back to destruction, but of those who have faith to the saving of the soul. That is the end of this faith, is seeing with our own eyes that we are saved. In 2 Corinthians 4, 13, we have the same spirit of faith as it is written, I believed and therefore I have spoken. So we also believe and therefore Ephesians 1, 17 through 19, so that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation and the knowledge of Him, the hope of His calling, and what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance among the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe according to the working of His mighty power. Or in the next chapter, for by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not of yourselves. It is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast. That great statement by the Apostle Paul in Romans 1, for I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it, the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith as it is written, the just shall live by faith. This faith is a gift of God. It is saving our souls as the spirit of Christ works this in our hearts ordinarily by the ministry of the word and strengthened by the sacraments and prayer. In the second paragraph of the confession, it shows our changing of our hearts toward the Word of God, that we believe that whatever is given us in the Word of God is true because of the authority of God who speaks it, and we act appropriately according to each passage of Scripture. yielding obedience to the commands, trembling at the threatenings, and embracing the promises of God for this life and that which is to come. It finishes this way, but the principal acts of saving faith are accepting, receiving, and resting upon Christ alone for justification, sanctification, and eternal life by virtue of the covenant of grace. 1 Thessalonians 2, Paul talks about this unending thankfulness because the Thessalonians received the word of God, not as the word of men, but as Paul and others preached it, they received it as the word of God, which effectively works also in you who believe. Hebrews 11 talks about those who died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them from afar, were assured of them, embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. They received it and they rested in it, knowing that there was not just this life, but the life to come. That there's a fundamental shift in this life, as we read in Galatians 2. I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. In the life I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me. There is a fundamental change that happens when faith is given to us. And in the third paragraph, we see that the faith is different in degrees, weak or strong. And this faith may be often and many ways assailed and weakened, but gets the victory, growing up in many to the attainment of a full assurance through Christ, who is both the author and finisher of our faith. There's much that can be said about this paragraph, including the use of the word many, who have full assurance of salvation. Many are plagued by doubts and struggling with a faith that is being assailed and might not be the strongest faith. Taking that as a sign that you have no faith is an improper response to it. This paragraph speaks to the folks that Peter is speaking to in this text. They are having their faith that's different in degrees. Some have a weak faith, some have a strong faith, but it is assailed. It is harassed. And that is why Peter is writing to these folks, to encourage them in the assailing of their faith, these various trials that they are suffering. In Hebrews 5, we read of those who some, some like the milk of the word, some have moved on to the meat, there's a weaker faith, a stronger faith. Romans 4, reading of Abraham and not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body to be dead when he was about a hundred years old, nor yet the deadness of Sarah's womb. He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strong in faith, giving glory to God. And you know, the missteps of Abraham, that's with a strong faith. In Matthew 6, therefore, if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is here and tomorrow is thrown in the oven, will he not much more clothe you? Oh, you of little faith. God will care for you. God will clothe you. God will meet your needs, even in the context of a weak faith, a small faith. And Matthew 8, which is a parallel passage to what was read earlier in Luke 7, speaking of the faith of the centurion, truly I say to you, I have not found such great faith, no, not in Israel. The Lord prayed for Simon, for Peter, that his faith would not fail, that after he had fallen in that temptation, that his soul would be restored. And so we see these, these various faiths that some are weak, some are strong, but they are harassed. They are assailed. So all of this is to emphasize that the rejoicing is great. We will see why the rejoicing is so great and should be great and why we must pause and question if we don't see great rejoicing in our lives or especially if we don't see any rejoicing? Joel, does this mean you expect everybody to be happy all the time? Well, yes, on a certain level. How can one be rejoicing greatly at, spoiler alert, the salvation of their souls on that last great day, and be overwhelmed and downtrodden constantly with worry, regret, fear, bitterness, narcissism, control, gossip. We should be rejoicing and rejoicing greatly, not out of the power of positive thinking, not from a sense that we're really not that bad. The problem really isn't that great. No, out of a sense of understanding our final destination without him and the radical redirect that comes from his saving work in our lives. And we see this thirdly, through the faith that is tested and refined. The faith that is tested and refined. Proverbs 17 verse three, we're reminded the refining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold, but the Lord tries the hearts. We've seen that faith can be weak or strong, but how is it strengthened? It's strengthened through the word and the sacraments, through the Lord's Supper and baptism. It's strengthened through prayer. But how is that strength that is brought through the word and the sacraments and prayer, how is that strength tested? The strength of that faith various trials. These trials, we've highlighted this over the past few weeks, come in all shapes and sizes. They tempt us to believe that God no longer loves us. They tempt us to think that we've been abandoned. However, as we live faithfully through the trial, we see three things proven. We see the Lord's love proven for us as he sustains us through the trial. It's proven that our faith has been strengthened. Sometimes you don't know what you can do until you have to do it. And sometimes we don't know the strength of our faith until God sends a trial. Trials of various kinds. And as we live in that, as we respond to that, as we walk in that, we are encouraged. that the strength of the faith that God has given us. And that's the third thing that's proven, that all this is a gift from a God that we cannot see. And you must remember that, that the faith is a gift. This is not a testing that, you know, whether we are the kind of person who can muster this up within ourselves. It's not testing if we can figure this out so that God must reward us with salvation. Remember, it wouldn't be a real reward, it would be a wage, and the only wage that we've earned is death. It's acknowledging our nothingness, our brokenness with that age-old question, what do I have that I have not been given? Fourthly, we need to remind ourselves from this passage that the unseen Savior is loved and believed in. When we say that this is a gift from a God we cannot see, in speaking of the unseeableness of the Lord, and if that wasn't a word, it is now, we mean that in two ways. And those two ways are the spiritual reality and the physical reality. The spiritual reality that God is holy. Remember, there was no one ever in the history of man on the face of the earth who walked with God the way Moses did. He knew God, he spoke to God face to face as it were. And yet Moses wanted more, or so he thought. In Exodus 33, it said, then Moses said, I pray, show me your glory. Then he, the Lord said, I will make all my goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. He said, you cannot see my face for no man can see me and live. Then the Lord said, indeed, there is a place by me. You must stand on the rock. While my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft of the rock and will cover you with my hand while I pass by. Then I will take away my hand and you will see my back, but my face. You may not see. Now, the big fancy word for what's being conveyed here is anthropomorphism, where God is speaking of himself in certain ways so that Moses could understand. We say Moses spoke with God face to face, but God is a spirit. He does not have a face. He covers him with his hand, which is Very often in scripture, a reference to the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, speaking of the protection and the guidance of God. And you'll see my back, but my face may not be seen. You'll see kind of the after effects of the glory of God, but not the fullness of the glory of God. And how do we know this? Well, because of this second reality, this physical reality, which then we also mean in two ways. That firstly, we cannot see God in this physical reality because God is a spirit. He does not have a body like men. We cannot see him, only the manifestations of himself that he chooses for us to see as we saw in Exodus 33. But then secondly, now God the Son, the second person of the Trinity became incarnate. Christ the Son of God became man by taking to himself a true body and a reasonable soul being conceived by the power of the Holy Ghost in the womb of the Virgin Mary of her substance and born of her yet without sin. But, He is now ascended. Therefore, those who are now believing from the time of the ascension until now cannot see him. It's physically impossible. Jesus himself spoke of this when he said to the apostle Thomas, Thomas, because you have seen me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and have yet believed. Christ to us is unseen. We cannot see him with our own eyes. We see him by faith. Yet we love him. Yet we believe in him. And so we long for his appearing. Paul said to Timothy from now on, crown of righteousness is laid up for me, which the Lord, the righteous judge will give me on that day, and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing. We desire for His praise and His glory and His honor and His appearing, His full and final revelation that last day, the judgment day, when all the secrets are revealed And yet, we will stand. And we will see with our very eyes on that day, fifthly, that the faith is saving your soul. faith, that substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen, that faith in Jesus Christ, which is that saving grace whereby we receive and rest upon Him alone for salvation as He has offered to us in the gospel, that faith that causes us not to draw back to destruction, but to press on, that faith that gives us the power to become the sons of God. That faith that gives us trust in the Lord forever, that keeps us in perfect peace and stays our mind on Him. That faith that gives us His righteousness and covers our own sense of righteousness, which is, in reality, sin. That faith that knows that salvation will be revealed, that we will be persevered, that we will be brought to that last great day, that faith that is persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, neither things present nor things to come, neither height nor depth, nor any other created thing shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. In this section, Peter mentions this, Again, this revelation of Jesus Christ. Think of this, when we stand before him on the last great day, faith, that thing so disdained in this life, will receive her reward. There will be praise, glory, and honor appropriately rendered in the lives of those who believe, and we will bask in the revelation of Jesus Christ. All will be known, and we will not fear, for perfect love casts out fear, and we will know that we are perfectly loved by our Savior. under whose blood our sins are covered. What a glorious salvation. What a delight for our souls. What a joy to know that these various trials, as Paul said, for this reason, we do not lose heart. even though our outward man is perishing, yet our inward man is being renewed day by day. Our light affliction, which lasts but for a moment, works for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. While we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen, for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal. What is Paul saying? Paul is saying we look at life, we look at the world, we look at our suffering, we look at the trials, we look at whatever we are facing through the eyes of faith, and we see the unseen things of God, that what he is working in us, in our inner man, even though our outer man is wasting away. Our inner man is being renewed day by day. This light affliction is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. This light momentary affliction is working in us something that is present in eternity. this glory that awaits us. John Calvin said this. His, meaning Peter's, Peter's purpose was to show that God does not thus try his people without reason. For if God afflicted us without a cause, it would be grievous to bear. Hence, Peter has taken an argument for consolation from the design of God. Not because the purpose always appears to us, but because we ought to be fully persuaded that it ought to be so, because it is God's will. Brothers and sisters, whatever you are suffering from today, whatever that, that various trial is that is working in your life right now. I may not, you may not, the elders may not be able to look at that and say, this is the exact reason, the exact thing that God is doing because of that trial and that suffering. But we can say this, that in view of glory, looked at through the eyes of faith, It is light, it is momentary, and God is preparing you for eternity with Him in a way that He has chosen otherwise not to do. This must be what must be done in order to prepare you for your eternal home with Him. So rejoice greatly. Rejoice that your heavenly father, your heavenly bridegroom, desires to perfect you, desires to make you more holy in preparation to spend eternity with him. Rejoice greatly in the face of suffering, knowing that your faith is being proven and your soul is being saved. Let's pray. Father, how glorious these truths are to us. That even as we suffer, even as frustrations come, even as our own resume of suffering is built and grown and developed, that we know there is a purpose. that is leading to our perfecting and to our saving. And that someday we will no longer walk by faith, but we will see with our very eyes that you have fulfilled your promises and you have saved us. As we spend forever face-to-face with our Savior and Lord Jesus Christ, in whose name we pray. and let's pray together. Our father, which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.