“Praise the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. According to His great mercy, He has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and into an inheritance that is imperishable, uncorrupted, and unfading, kept in heaven for you. You are being protected by God’s power through faith for a salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.” (1 Peter 1:3-5)
First of all, 1 and 2 Peter are great letters! They are written by one of the disciples - THE leader of the disciples - who walked with Jesus, talked with Jesus, was trained by Jesus, and was personally dispatched to take the message of salvation to the ends of the earth. Peter knows what he talks about!
In verses 3-4, Peter tells us about our salvation: 1) We are made new inside, 2) Jesus' resurrection proved we can have such a salvation and guarantees we have it, 3) that salvation works on us now, but it also waits like an inheritance. We wait to receive it in full. Yes, we're saved for eternal life. However, so much more is coming to us with full intimacy with God, a resurrected and restructured body fit for eternal life (Body 2.0, for how can one have eternal life with a body that goes to pot?), and a whole new vista of existence.
This coming salvation inheritance won't perish, won't corrupt, and won't fade. It is kept for us (watched over by God). But here's the part I like!
We are also kept for this salvation. The word above in verse 5 is "protected." It means:
phrouréō (from phrousos, "a sentinel, guard") – properly, to guard (keep watch) like a military sentinel; (figuratively) to actively display whatever defensive and offensive means are necessary to guard
This means God himself guards us offensively and defensively. When under guard, a prisoner is protected from things that come at him and is protected from wandering out into danger. We are held in position. We are garrisoned for God. Protected from attack and protected from fleeing in panic out into the enemy's arms.
The encouragement today is this. God has so much invested in you and guaranteed for you, both now and in the future, that He fights against anything that threatens to harm your salvation, he also works with His mighty power, love, mercy, and forgiveness to keep you in place - in case you're prone to wander into the enemy's reach.
Listen to the Almighty Guard at your shoulder today. Stay close. Stay obedient. Then you will stand and see the (full) salvation of your God!
Pastor Jay Christianson
The Truth Barista, Frothy Thoughts