Today’s Sermon Notes: 4-12-2026
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“Living Hope”
A Sermon Series Through 1 Peter
“Hope for the Chosen Stranger”
1 Peter 1:1-12
“what the Christian life is meant to be in times of stress.”[1]
Introduction
The Author and His Audience (vv. 1-2)
Peter,
Matthew 4:18 “While walking by the Sea of Galilee, he (Jesus) saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. 19 And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.”2 20 Immediately they left their nets and followed him.” Leaving his fishing business behind, he and his brother were with Jesus all through his earthly ministry.
John 1:42 says, “Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon the son of John. You shall be called Cephas” (which means Peter).”
Matthew 16:18, “upon this rock I will build my church.”
Mark 8:31, “And he (Jesus) began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again. 32 And he said this plainly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 33 But turning and seeing his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”
John 21:17-19 “Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep. 18 Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted, but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go.” 19 (This he said to show by what kind of death he was to glorify God.) And after saying this he said to him, “Follow me.”
an apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood[3]:
Jeremiah 1:5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”
With Salvation there is the expectation of obedience.
Exodus 24:7-8 “Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it in the hearing of the people. And they said, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient.” 8 And Moses took the blood and threw it on the people and said, “Behold the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you in accordance with all these words.”
May grace and peace be multiplied to you.
What the Christian Life Means In Times of Stress (vv. 3-12)
A Living Hope (vv. 3-5)
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[10] 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.
Proverbs 4:18-19 “But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, which shines brighter and brighter until full day. 19 The way of the wicked is like deep darkness; they do not know over what they stumble.”
We Can Have Joy In the Midst of Stress Because We have Eternal Life and An Inheritance.
Joy In The Midst of Trials (vv. 6-9)
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.
1 John 3:2-3 “Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. 3 And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.”
We Experience Joy Because it is founded upon the promises of God not Our Current Life Situation.
Matthew 16:26 “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?”
We Can Have Joy In the Midst of Stress Because God Is At Work In Our Soul.
The Prophetic Witness of the Christian Hope (10-12)
10 Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, 11 inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories.
12 It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look.
Luke 15:10 “Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
We Can Have Joy in the Midst of Stress Because We Have The Complete Salvation Picture.
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[1] J. Ramsey Michaels, Word Biblical Themes, 1 Peter (Dallas, Texas; Word Publishing, 1989) x.
[2] Greg W. Forbes, Exegetical Guide to the Greek New Testament, 1 Peter (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman & Holman, 2014) 11.
[3] See also Ezekiel 36:25-27.
[4] Forbes, 12.
[5] Leonhard Goppelt, A Commentary of 1 Peter (Grand Rapids, Michigan; William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1993) 20.
[6] Not knowledge beforehand.
[7] Kenneth S. Wuest, First Peter in the Greek New Testament (Grand Rapids, Michigan; WM. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1960) 16.
[8] R. C. Sproul, An Expositional Commentary, 1-2 Peter (Sanford, Florida; Ligonier Ministries, 2019) 7.
[9] Forbes, 13.
[10] See also Matthew 6:19-21.
[11] Wuest, 20.
[12] Wuest, 22.
[13] Wuest, 25.
[14] John MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, 1 Peter (Chicago, Illinois; Moody Publishers, 2004 44.
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