Aseity
February 29th 2004, 09:32 AM
A LIVING HOPE OF THE HEREAFTER
by: D. MARTYN LLOYD-JONES—1898-1981
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Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for us, who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time (1 Peter 1:3-5; read 1:1-25).
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AT THE VERY beginning of his letter the apostle Peter bursts forth into this mighty and magnificent doxology. After a very brief salutation he suddenly breaks forth in these thrilling and powerful words. In so doing the apostle was not doing anything unique. He was doing what all the early Christians did, what all the writers of the New Testament epistles invariably do. The moment they mention the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ they burst forth into much the same thrilling ascription of praise. Take the apostle Paul, for example, in the first chapter of his Epistle to the Ephesians: 'Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ" (Eph. 1:3); and so on to the end of the fourteenth verse of that wonderful chapter.
The Characteristic of True Christians
That is the great characteristic of the true Christian always, as it is the great characteristic of the New Testament, and as it was the characteristic note of the early church. The early church was characterized by praises to God, and by a sense of joy. "Blessed be the God and Father!" That was their note, and as we have seen, it came out all at once. But that note of praise and joy was not confined to the early church. If you read the long history of Christianity you will find that the note of praise and joy has been characteristic of the church in every period of revival. At every time of reformation and renewal this original note has come back, so that the church again has been thrilled with a sense of "wonder, love, and praise." An apostle like Peter, even when he writes to people who at the time are suffering a good deal of trial and tribulation, cannot take up his pen without starting out in this mighty and magnificent manner.
Very well! Before we as Christians go any further let us ask ourselves some obvious questions. Is this the characteristic note of our Christian life and witness? Is this what we feel? Is this our response to the Gospel? Is this our actual experience in the modem world, and in spite of everything awful in the world about us? On this Easter morning, this is surely the most important thing for us to say to ourselves. We claim to be Christians. We make our public profession of faith. But in the last analysis what is the test of it all? Is there within us the spirit that was in the apostle Peter and in the people to whom he wrote?
Of those people the apostle was able to declare: "Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations" (1:6). A little later he wrote about Christ: "Whom not having seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and fall of glory" (1:8). Peter said all that about ordinary folk like ourselves. On this Easter morning we meet together claiming to believe this wondrous fact of the resurrection of the Son of God. But the important question is: What is our feeling, what is our reaction, what is our response to this mighty message that we claim to believe?
Can we say that we are like the apostle, and that contemplating it all we have nothing else to exclaim, but that we feel: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ? If that is our position, the words that we are going to consider will confirm and strengthen us, adding to our joy and assurance. But if we cannot say that honestly, then let us pay heed to what the apostle tells us. Here, fortunately, as is the custom of the inspired writers, he lets us into the secret of why he felt that way himself, why he had to burst forth into this mighty praise, adoration, and thanksgiving.
So let us follow the apostle. With him let us meditate on this wondrous fact of the living hope. In essence he tells us that the Resurrection is central and vital to the whole position of the Christian. Notice the line of thought: "Blessed," says Peter, "blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope." But how has it all been done? "By the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead." That is the center, that is the foundation, that is the thing which makes it all possible, and likewise brings it all to us. Here then is the controlling principle: apart from the resurrection there can be no Christianity. The resurrection of Christ is vital; it is absolutely essential.
Were it not for the resurrection of Christ, the apostle could never have written about the living hope. If you question that, read in the Gospel according to John the beginning of the twenty-first chapter. There after the crucifixion and death of Christ, you see the apostles, Peter among them, utterly downcast and disconsolate, despondent, and despairing, so much so that Peter turned to the others, and said, "I go a-fishing." He felt that he must do something to relieve the tension and the sense of despair. What was it then that transformed him into the "apostle of Hope," who was able to exclaim, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which hath begotten us again unto a lively hope"? It was this, the Resurrection!
This truth then is basic and foundational. If a man does not believe in the resurrection of Christ, whatever else he may believe, he has no right to call himself a Christian. The great message that the apostles preached, as you will find it in the Acts of the Apostles, was this: "Jesus and the Resurrection." But for that mighty truth, they would not have preached at all. This was ever their theme: "Jesus and the Resurrection."
The Meaning of the Lively Hope
http://www.txdirect.net/%7Etgarner/lloydjones2.htm
by: D. MARTYN LLOYD-JONES—1898-1981
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for us, who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time (1 Peter 1:3-5; read 1:1-25).
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
AT THE VERY beginning of his letter the apostle Peter bursts forth into this mighty and magnificent doxology. After a very brief salutation he suddenly breaks forth in these thrilling and powerful words. In so doing the apostle was not doing anything unique. He was doing what all the early Christians did, what all the writers of the New Testament epistles invariably do. The moment they mention the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ they burst forth into much the same thrilling ascription of praise. Take the apostle Paul, for example, in the first chapter of his Epistle to the Ephesians: 'Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ" (Eph. 1:3); and so on to the end of the fourteenth verse of that wonderful chapter.
The Characteristic of True Christians
That is the great characteristic of the true Christian always, as it is the great characteristic of the New Testament, and as it was the characteristic note of the early church. The early church was characterized by praises to God, and by a sense of joy. "Blessed be the God and Father!" That was their note, and as we have seen, it came out all at once. But that note of praise and joy was not confined to the early church. If you read the long history of Christianity you will find that the note of praise and joy has been characteristic of the church in every period of revival. At every time of reformation and renewal this original note has come back, so that the church again has been thrilled with a sense of "wonder, love, and praise." An apostle like Peter, even when he writes to people who at the time are suffering a good deal of trial and tribulation, cannot take up his pen without starting out in this mighty and magnificent manner.
Very well! Before we as Christians go any further let us ask ourselves some obvious questions. Is this the characteristic note of our Christian life and witness? Is this what we feel? Is this our response to the Gospel? Is this our actual experience in the modem world, and in spite of everything awful in the world about us? On this Easter morning, this is surely the most important thing for us to say to ourselves. We claim to be Christians. We make our public profession of faith. But in the last analysis what is the test of it all? Is there within us the spirit that was in the apostle Peter and in the people to whom he wrote?
Of those people the apostle was able to declare: "Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations" (1:6). A little later he wrote about Christ: "Whom not having seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and fall of glory" (1:8). Peter said all that about ordinary folk like ourselves. On this Easter morning we meet together claiming to believe this wondrous fact of the resurrection of the Son of God. But the important question is: What is our feeling, what is our reaction, what is our response to this mighty message that we claim to believe?
Can we say that we are like the apostle, and that contemplating it all we have nothing else to exclaim, but that we feel: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ? If that is our position, the words that we are going to consider will confirm and strengthen us, adding to our joy and assurance. But if we cannot say that honestly, then let us pay heed to what the apostle tells us. Here, fortunately, as is the custom of the inspired writers, he lets us into the secret of why he felt that way himself, why he had to burst forth into this mighty praise, adoration, and thanksgiving.
So let us follow the apostle. With him let us meditate on this wondrous fact of the living hope. In essence he tells us that the Resurrection is central and vital to the whole position of the Christian. Notice the line of thought: "Blessed," says Peter, "blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope." But how has it all been done? "By the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead." That is the center, that is the foundation, that is the thing which makes it all possible, and likewise brings it all to us. Here then is the controlling principle: apart from the resurrection there can be no Christianity. The resurrection of Christ is vital; it is absolutely essential.
Were it not for the resurrection of Christ, the apostle could never have written about the living hope. If you question that, read in the Gospel according to John the beginning of the twenty-first chapter. There after the crucifixion and death of Christ, you see the apostles, Peter among them, utterly downcast and disconsolate, despondent, and despairing, so much so that Peter turned to the others, and said, "I go a-fishing." He felt that he must do something to relieve the tension and the sense of despair. What was it then that transformed him into the "apostle of Hope," who was able to exclaim, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which hath begotten us again unto a lively hope"? It was this, the Resurrection!
This truth then is basic and foundational. If a man does not believe in the resurrection of Christ, whatever else he may believe, he has no right to call himself a Christian. The great message that the apostles preached, as you will find it in the Acts of the Apostles, was this: "Jesus and the Resurrection." But for that mighty truth, they would not have preached at all. This was ever their theme: "Jesus and the Resurrection."
The Meaning of the Lively Hope
http://www.txdirect.net/%7Etgarner/lloydjones2.htm