The chances are very good that neither of these two will ever be below the poverty line. In fact Dutchess Catherine will not be able to have employment; she's too famous now. Our God promises that we have nothing to be afraid of. So when I say Easter Means No Fear of Poverty, that mean we don't need to fear poverty of the wallet (not having enough money) or poverty of the soul (not believing that Jesus is alive). Click here to listen to Sunday's sermon based on. Consider these discussion questions as you listen or read the manuscript listed below. Your comments and questions are welcome!
- Do you think that marrying into royalty would solve all of your problems?
- Why aren't the people with the most wealth also the same people with the most happiness?
- Why can't evidence alone fill spiritual poverty?
- What makes a Christian's hope different from anything else on the planet? On what alone does this hope rest?
- How does God fill spiritual poverty?
Peter 1:3-9
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you, 5 who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 7 These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9 for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
You may or may not know who these two newly weds are. They were married in England on Friday. No one knows exactly how much their wedding cost. Most figures have it in the millions. After the wedding she was given a title, Duchess Catherine to match her husband’s title of Duke William. Now that Catherine is royalty there are lists of how her life will be changed. One of the ways is that she won’t be able to finish eating at a family dinner. When the queen stops eating, the meal is over. Another is that Catherine will no longer be able to have a job. Royalty and common work simply don’t mix. I tell you of Catherine’s fairy tale wedding because today we continue our series on Easter means NO FEAR.
Today we will see how Easter Means: No Fear of Poverty because Easter Gives You a Lasting Inheritance.
6 In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.
Every year our federal government determines the poverty level in America. For example, if you have a family of 4, and your combined family income is less than $22,350, then you and your family would be considered below the poverty level. And the government uses that information to estimate how many people in our country are living below the poverty level – what percentage of Americans are living below the poverty level, and they can compare it to past years. According to the poverty guidelines, the there are more people below the poverty level now than there were in 2000 – in fact, the percentage of people considered below poverty has increased 3%. And they can also use that information to study various groups within society to compare them. In 2009, for example, more than 20% of children under 18 were considered to be in poverty – that’s 1 in 5 children in America.
7 These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.
On the heals of the wedding of the century, did you know that the average wedding in America cost just under $25,000? Or roughly two thousand more than people in poverty make in a whole year.
Part of our fear of poverty is that we compare ourselves to the newly crowned Duke and Duchess ignoring all that God has given us. God’s promise.
What if? – persecuted for faith, stripped of all your possessions, stripped of the home where you live, or maybe the land where you farm, and make your living.
I say this because it is not unusual in the pages of history for Christians to be persecuted for their faith. It happened to Jesus, it happened to his disciples, it has happened to thousands of Christians over the last 2000 years, it is happening today to Christians in other countries.
You remember, of course that the Christians were persecuted by the Jewish leaders really from the very beginning – starting with the stoning of Stephen, and later, James, the brother of John was put to death – he was the first of the 12 Apostles to die.
But as Christianity grew and expanded throughout the Roman empire, it faced persecution from Gentiles, too. In the year 64, the Roman Emperor Nero blamed Christians for a devastating fire that broke out in Rome – so for the first time – the emperor of Rome not only allowed Christians to be persecuted, but demanded it. Many Christians were put to death – some by crucifixion, some by ravenous dogs, and others were burned to death. According to the historian Tacitus, “mockery of every sort was added to their deaths.”
Do you think it was difficult to be a Christian in a society where Christians were considered evil? Do you think it was difficult to be a follower of Christ under a government that put to death follower of Christ?
The Apostle Peter writes a letter to his suffering brothers and sisters in the faith during that time of persecution under Emperor Nero.
8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9 for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
Last week on Easter we heard about Peter and John who found that Jesus was missing. Mary met Jesus he revealed himself to her by simply calling her name. She believed. But there was another small group of people who realized that Jesus was alive. These were the guards who “became like dead men,” the Bible tells us, when they saw the angels who rolled the stone away from the entrance of the tomb. 11 While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened. The soldiers acted like little evangelists. They told the chief priests what happened. These Jewish leaders knew without a shadow of a doubt that Jesus had risen from the dead. But they refused to believe. How? Why?
The Gospel for the Sunday after Easter is about doubt, poverty of spirit. Our lesson from 1 Peter is about removing any doubt from your minds. 3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. I asked the questions how and why do people refuse to believe the great things that God has done? One thing’s for sure it wasn’t for lack of evidence. Faith or lack thereof isn’t necessarily about logic and making sense. How and why can anyone doubt what God has accomplished? The Jewish leadership for example placed their hope in a dead Jesus. They had killed him! But he wasn’t dead. He had risen. No matter how many times they saw Jesus walking down the street they refused to believe.
Christianity isn’t the only religion that holds out hope to its followers. Most religions offer some kind of hope. But to achieve the goal usually depends on whether or not you have earned them. Kind a weak or tainted hope, isn’t it. How could a “believer” ever be certain about the future? Regardless of how sure or unsure you may be, on Judgment day any hope not founded on Christ will be a false hope, call it a dead hope. Someone once said, Life with Christ is an endless hope, without him a hopeless end.
Easter Means: No Fear of Poverty because Easter Gives You a Lasting Inheritance.
Because of Easter we have 4 an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you, 5 who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.
Our text describes this as an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you. The children of Israel were given an inheritance. The land of Canaan, flowing with milk and honey. But because they turned their back on God, they lost it. Invading armies took it away. God says in Romans that we are heirs of God, co-heirs with Christ (Romans 8:17). Friends our inheritance of eternal life is our birthright or since we’re born again, I suppose you could call it our re-birthright. Yes you have a retirement that is out of this world and you can count on it for all eternity.
Since 911 many a “nest egg” vanished in thin air. Inheritances aren’t a sure thing for us. Taxes, inflation, the untimely rise and fall of the economy and stock market all can take away our savings. God says that our inheritance can never perish, spoil, or fade. The famous hymn abide with me reminds us “Change and decay in all around I see.” Everything changes in our sinful world eventually for the worse, but our changeless God keeps our inheritance safe – untouched by sin and time. Ours is the joy in the riches of our living hope.
We’re not quite in heaven yet. No one understood that better than Peter. He had been tested – even warned about the coming test. Before the rooster crows you will deny three times that you know me. He did this and went out and wept. This was a bitter pill to swallow for Peter. But the Savior he denied was the same one to died to give him the sweet message of forgiveness.
God was not setting Peter up for failure, but success. He tells us in 1 Corinthians 10:13 13 No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.
Just because you fail doesn’t mean that God doesn’t love you. Just because you’re struggling doesn’t mean you’re not a Christian. God tells us that life will be rough to set us up for success not failure. This is the joy of the comfort we cling to in our living hope. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. (2 Corinthians 4:17)
You’ve sat down with your family for supper. An impossible scene in your house? Dream with me for a moment. You pass the corn to your son when the phone rings. The voice says, “Congratulations! You’ve won! How do you feel?” Your instant reaction at this point is to hang up. Why? It’s too good to be true. There’s always a catch. The “free” vacation that you’ve just “won” will really cost you over $500. This is not like the goal that Jesus gives us. Ours is the joy in the goal of our living hope. Jesus has paid our way in full. We don’t need to do anything more! Jesus says in the Gospel of John I tell you the truth. He who believes has everlasting life. That’s right, now. You don’t have to wait until you pass on. Congratulations you really have won.
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