Hope---#6

1Peter 3:15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:
In the next two devotionals I plan to take a look at the verse above. I see several things in this verse that we are to do. We are to 1.) sanctify the Lord God in our hearts 2.) be ready to give an answer for the hope that we have 3.) give that answer with meekness and fear.

If we are putting Christ first in our hearts, as this verse commands us to do, eventually others will begin to ask us why we have hope. How does my life reflect Christ to others? How do my reactions to circumstances show others that my hope is in Christ? Talk is cheap. Reactions are deep. I have failed so many times. How often does someone ask me why I have hope? Remember, if you have failed, don't give up, just get up and start where you are. “Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the LORD upholdeth him with his hand.” (Psalm 37:24)

In the last five devotions we have been exploring our hope and the reasons why we have hope. In review, one of the main reasons is that Christ gave himself for us to redeem us from the curse of sin. It was the grace of God that brought salvation through Christ. It is the grace of God that saves us, not our own righteous works. My own righteous works are as filthy rags. “But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.” (Isaiah 64:6) My own good works won't get me an inch closer to salvation. God's grace teaches us to live righteously as a result of what God does in our hearts through salvation. (Titus 2:11-14) Salvation is by grace and good works are the outward fruit of what God has already done in us. That gives me hope!

Is your hope shining through? In the next and last devotion in this series we will explore how we are to let our hope shine through.

Dear Father, We so often fail to let our hope shine through when we are in pain or circumstances are bad. Help us to not sorrow in the same way as those who have no hope, but to be able to lift our heads in hope in You in the midst of our pain.