I Peter 1:3-9 (page 1075, NKJV) “God Gives Us a Gold Mine of Joy” + + Easter II / April 15, 2012 + + Summerlin Evangelical Lutheran Church, Las Vegas, NV

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls.” [Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer. Amen.] In the name of our crucified and risen Lord Jesus Christ, fellow saints by His blood,

Centuries ago Christians worshiped with an order for worship quite similar to what we do today—a format that emphasizes what I would call a dialogue or conversation between God and His people.He comes to us through Word and Sacrament.We go to Him with thanks and praise. They used to begin worship by singing a psalm and offering a prayer.Today we do the same by singing an opening hymn and offering a prayer for the day called the Introit.Of course, years ago that opening psalm and prayer were in a different language. Since it set the theme for the day, the first word or two of the psalm or prayer became the title for that Sunday.For example, the second Sunday in Lent was called Reminiscere Sunday because the first word of the psalm was reminiscere, “Remember, O Lord.” The third Sunday in Lent was called Oculi Sunday because the first word of the prayer was oculi, “My eyes are ever toward the Lord.” One of the more interesting titles for a Sunday was the one for this Sunday after Easter, Quasimodogeniti.It has nothing to do with a hunchbacked bell ringer.It is the Latin for the first words of the opening prayer, “As new born babes,” although one of my Seminary professors suggested a different translation for the title of this Sunday after Easter, “Where did all the people go?”

Last Sunday was Easter.And like most other churches our attendance is always a little better on Easter. The folks showed up and everything was festive and upbeat. But now Easter Sunday is over, and we ask, “How do we keep the joy going, especially in a world that is becoming more and more hostile to the claims of Christianity?”You see, it’s one thing to let praises rip in the cozy confines of these church walls.It’s another thing altogether to do that out there.How do we sustain our Easter joy?

That question is really not new.Christians in the first century experienced great pressure to abandon their Christianity. That’s why the apostle Peter wrote this letter.He was addressing people who wondered, “How do we keep our Easter joy alive in a society that’s hostile to Christianity?”Peter gives a memorable answer, saying, God Gives Us a Gold Mine of Joy!”

What would happen if, as you walked out of church today, instead of shaking my hand, I handed you a deed to a gold mine worth millions?You might look the same as when you came in, but you’d sure feel different, right?That’s what God’s handing out today; not a mine worth millions…a Gold Mine of Joy, worth infinitely more.

Peter begins with a burst of praise, (1:3) “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!” and immediately states the reason for his praise, “…who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope.” You know what this “begotten” business is all about, right? God has eternally generated spiritual life in us and adopted us into His family of believers.

But what’s this business about a “living hope”? “…Our Lord Jesus Christ…has begotten us again to a living hope.” Well, if you want to know what it means to have a living hope, think of the opposite first—a dead hope, no hope, a situation in which you’d say, “All hope is gone!”“I hope we have a cool summer in Las Vegas this year”is the expression of a dead hope. “I hope the Minnesota TWINS win and if you know anything about them, then you know well … that’s a dead hope!

Real hope is based on the possibility of it coming true.And a living hope is better still.It’s not just a possibility; it’s a huge, bright, unmistakable spotlight at the end of the tunnel.

Our fondest dream, our greatest hope, is to live with God in perfect joy forever.That is not a dead hope.It is a living hope made possible by the death of our Substitute Jesus and certified by His resurrection.Peter wrote, [We have] a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” That hope of heaven is our goldmine of joy…treasure without comparison. Peter calls it (4) “…an inheritance…reserved in heaven for you.”

If you’re worried that it might get eaten up by taxes and disappear over time, or lose its luster, don’t sweat it!God gives us (4,5) “an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you[yes, we have reservations!], who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” It’s not the computer you excitedly unwrapped five years ago but now is so tired and tiresome that you need every bit of God’s strength to fight the temptation to curse it. It’s not the bonus money you got for work that is now spent and gone as if it never existed. It’s not the vacation you took last year only to recognize after two weeks you couldn’t wait to get back home again. No! We‘re talking a gold mine of unending joy here--with its inexhaustible mother load veins. (6) “In this you greatly rejoice,” Peter writes.

I was watching TV the other day and I heard about a man who was a hermit…he didn’t get out of his house much or talk to his neighbors. Nor did he dress well or take care of his house. But when he died his family found piles of cash stashed away. He must have hoarded every dime he ever made. He was a millionaire, but you’d never know it by looking at him. I hope he got a kick out of counting it, because he never got a chance to spend it.

Well, how are people going to know just how much inherited wealth we have stacked up if we don’t show it off a little? We know we’ve got it, but no one else will know it unless one of two things happens.Peter says, (3:15) “…Always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you.” People will know about the gold mine of joy Jesus has won for us--and them if we tell them about it and live it…especially when the pressure is on.Take the first century Christians who first received this letter, for example.The social pressure against those Christians was almost overwhelming, but still they stuck to their guns and lived their faith.

You’ve probably heard sermons in which you were reminded that troubles in life can strengthen our faith.That’s true. But there’s more. How do you really know something is real until it passes the test? Someone says to you, “Friends through thick and thin!”Well, fine!You assume that friendship is real, but you know for sure if that person stays by your side when the going gets really tough and being your friend becomes very risky.“A friend in need is a friend indeed.” Sticking with God in tough times when other people would instead be cursing God, trusting Him when troubles make it seem like He’s somehow gone fishing…that’s the powerful witness of a person who is rejoicing in a gold mine of treasure! And that’s why Peter says, (6,7) “[In this living hope and inheritance] you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”

If you became the instant owner of a gold mine, that would be nice, but you’d still need cash up front for today’s expenses and tomorrow’s bills.You’d prefer to get the deed from a banker who would go on to say, “By the way, besides the deed to this gold mine, I want to give you this month’s dividends. Since the value of your gold mine will never go down and will always stay ahead of inflation, I will be bringing you the cash dividends every month.”

That’s the incredible thing about the gold mine that God gives.It may be an inheritance kept in heaven for us, but it also pays dividends now.Peter writes, (8,9) “Though now you do not see Jesus, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls.” When Peter says that we are receiving the “end” of our faith, he was using a word which is at the root of Jesus’ cry from the cross, “It is finished”[or ended]!”In other words, we already are receiving dividends from the gold mine of joy, full payment for all our sins and the fulfillment of Jesus’ promise to be with us.

So what’s it going to take to sustain our Easter joy, especially when surrounded by a society that can be hostile and godless?The answer? Keep looking at what we’ve got.Peter knew what he was talking about from experience.He once tried to step out of a boat to walk on water to Jesus.But he looked at his inability instead of Jesus’ ability and sank.He took his eyes off of Jesus but Peter learned his lesson.When it seems difficult to keep our Easter-dobbers up, let’s spend less time looking at the high waves of trials around us and more time focusing on Him who not only walked on water but conquered the entire world early one special Sunday morning.Let’s spend less time looking at the pebbles of our problems and more time looking at the boulder of valuable inheritance God has given, the refining He does, and the dividends we receive.That’s gold that does more than glitter. It strengthens and sustains!Amen.

Nicene Creed page 4 [folder]