Since you call on a Father who judges each person’s work impartially, live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear. For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God.
Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from the heart. For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. For,
“All people are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord endures forever.”
And this is the word that was preached to you. (1 Peter 1:17-25 NIV)
Over 100 years ago, a Canadian government official met with an old native chief. That official wanted to buy the chief’s tribal lands in Alberta, Canada. So the government official spread a huge pile of dollar bills on the ground and said, “This is what we trade with. This money is worth so much. This is what we will pay for your land.” Without saying a word, the chief took some dirt, packed it into a ball, and put it in the fire. That ball of earth baked, but it didn’t crack or burn. Then the chief turned to the government official and said, “Now put your money in the fire and see if it lasts as long as the dirt.” The man said, “No, I can’t do that! My money will burn!”
The chief said, “I guess your money isn’t as good as our land, is it? Fire can burn your money up. The wind can blow it away. Water will make it rot. But none of those things can harm our land. Not the fire or the wind or the water. You don’t make a very good trade. Why would I and my people want to trade away our land for your paper money?” The official had no response.
That story really made me think. What is my life focused on? Would what’s important to me pass that test? Would what’s important to you survive fire and wind and rain? If not, maybe it’s not as valuable as you think. Is it money? It burns in fire. Or when the bank collapses. It is your house? All it takes is one tornado. It is your job? All it takes is one boss’ change of mind. I bet that government official was surprised by that conversation. Money seems so valuable, until it isn’t. What’s your life focused on? More specifically: Is your life focused on things that are perishable? Peter calls that “the empty way of life handed down to you by your ancestors.”
I know we’re all different, but I bet we all have to admit the same thing: We so often build our lives on perishable things. You know what “perishable” means? When I first arrived here two years ago, I peaked in the cupboard in the kitchen and found some cans of Diet Dr. Pepper. If I find food around the church, it’s fair game. I drank a can. It was awful. Absolutely awful. A few days later, I tried another can. You’d think I would have learned my lesson, right? It was awful too. Absolutely awful. A while later, I grabbed a third can, but before I opened it, I noticed the date on it. Best by November 2017. It was July 2021. Four years expired. I can tell you for a fact that Diet Dr. Pepper is perishable. It doesn’t last forever! Not even four years. Does anything?
There’s a whole book of the Bible about this. A whole book about how perishable life on earth is. Know which book? Ecclesiastes. I know that’s a funny name, but Ecclesiastes is one of the most practical books in the Bible. In Ecclesiastes, King Solomon looks for meaning in all sorts of things. Wisdom: “I’m going to learn everything!” Pleasure: “I’m not going to deny myself anything I want.” Work: “I am going to accomplish as much as I can.” Know what he realized about everything? It’s meaningless. It’s all meaningless. Why? It all passes away. It all ends. Too soon. Have you noticed that? This empty way of life handed down by our ancestors? Perishable.
God wants you to base your life on something completely different. Listen: “You know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors…” God has redeemed you—he has saved you—from this empty way of life. God has redeemed you, but not with something perishable like silver or gold. That’s ironic, because silver and gold seem so lasting to us. Way better than our paper money! When someone gives you a gold ring, you think, “This person must really love me!” When someone gives you a diamond, you think, “This person must really love me!”
God says, “That’s nothing! All the gold in the world, all the biggest diamonds in the world, that’s nothing! Do you know how much I love you? It was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed…, but with the precious blood of Christ.” God values you so much more than any diamond. God values you so much more than gold or silver. What did God pay to redeem you? “The precious blood of Christ.” This is what we just heard about on Good Friday and Easter. Jesus gave his own life to save you from the sin and emptiness of this world.
The more you learn about Jesus’ sacrifice, the more amazing it is. “He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake.” When did Jesus know he was going to have to die to save us? Even before the creation of the world. Even before God made the world, he knew how we would sin. So what could God have done? Not made us. Not do any of it. But God did. Knowing full well what it would cost him. Knowing full well what he would have to give up. He carried out his plan. For you. He loves you that much!
Here’s what that means: “Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God.” If you’re a Christian, “your faith and hope are in God.” What doesn’t ever wear out? God. He’s imperishable. What has power over death? God. He’s imperishable. What will never rot or decay or be destroyed in a tornado? God. He’s imperishable. God passes the test: Fire, wind, rain… Put your faith and hope in the imperishable.
I bet you’re thinking, “Yeah, yeah. This is nothing new. Jesus offers me real blessings in heaven. Got it. See you next week!” No. That’s not it. This is meant to change how you live. This is meant to change how you think. Peter quotes a verse from back in the Old Testament: “All people are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord endures forever.” People—and their glory!—are nothing but grass. Even the best things we accomplish don’t endure. Who won the World Series in 1930? The Philadelphia Athletics. Who was the president in 1879? Rutherford Hayes. Even the greatest glory of human beings quickly fades. What lasts? “The word of the Lord endures forever.”
Is that what you focus on? At my ministry retreat a week ago, one of the topics was how to judge success in ministry. When is a pastor successful? How can a pastor know if he’s doing the right things? The easiest thing is to look at numbers. How big is your church? How many people come on Sundays? But the presenter suggested this: How often are his church members in God’s Word? It’s not rocket science, but I hadn’t thought of that. If it’s truly the Word of God that endures forever… If it’s truly the Word of God that changes our hearts and lives… If it’s truly the Word of God that gives faith and hope in Jesus… How can you judge whether a church’s ministry is successful? It’s not the numbers. How often are its members in God’s Word?
Because everything else is going to pass away. Everything else. Even our beautiful church building… It’s going to get old. Even the newest music we hear today… It’s going to get outdated. The nice clothes you’re wearing today… In twenty years, you’ll look back and think, “People wore that?” The way you did your hair… Twenty years from now, you’ll see a picture of yourself and think, “I can’t believe I did that.” It’s all passing away! What remains? What is the one thing that has stayed the same from the days of Jesus until now? The Word! It passes the test: No fire or wind or rain can destroy God’s Word. “The word of the Lord endures forever.”
So let’s be honest: I bet some of us can quote the scores from the NBA playoffs yesterday. Can you quote the Word? I bet some of us can sing the lyrics to every song on the radio. Can you quote the Word? I bet some of us can recite the political agenda of your favorite party. Can you quote the Word? I bet some of us can rattle off the best performing stocks over the past week. Can you quote the Word? All the rest is grass. It’s nice. It’s pretty. I like grass! It serves a purpose for a while. But it’s passing away, sooner than we think. You can’t take it with you.
Actually, there is one more thing. There is one thing from this world that you can take with you. Beyond the imperishable blood of Jesus and the imperishable Word of God, there is one more imperishable thing. Know what it is? You. “For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.” You are imperishable. Now, don’t get me wrong: On our own, we’re grass. We come and go. We’re born and then we die. But through the word of God, through faith in Jesus, God makes you imperishable. You are going to live forever. The person next to you is going to live forever. You’re imperishable.
So, “love one another deeply, from the heart.” People matter! If you have faith in Christ’s blood, if you focus your life on the Word of God, that doesn’t separate you from people. Actually, when you believe in Jesus and love his Word, it makes you more in tune to the people around you than you ever could have been before. Why? Of what you see with your eyes today, the only thing that’s going to endure are the people. As wise as that old chief was, even the land is going to pass away. People are what matters. Whoever that person is, they are worth the blood of Jesus. Whoever that person is, they are made for eternity in heaven or hell. Everything else passes away, but the people are going to live forever. So, “love one another deeply, from the heart.”
What does that change for you? I need to hear this again and again. I love sports. I love to check the scores. Know what. It doesn’t matter. It really doesn’t! But my family does. My wife and kids. They deserve my attention. I like food. Ever notice something? It’s gone. I can’t wait to eat ______, then 20 minutes later, “Now what?” But to eat food with people, that’s special. That’s what makes the meal special. Money. We’re blessed. You have been so generous to us. But I notice something: The more money I make, the more I have to spend. Do you notice that? But the relationships? The time spent with people? That lasts forever. What is God calling you to do? It was not with perishable things that you were redeemed. Focus on the imperishable!
Every day, the devil comes to you and me like that government official and lays out all he has to offer: “Look at all this… Don’t you want all this…?” Remember this: It’s all paper. It’s all going to burn. Except Jesus: You are worth more than gold to him. He shed his blood for you on the cross. Except God’s Word: It will endure forever. It will remain true forever. Except people: They are the only things you can take with you. “It was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed…, but with the precious blood of Christ.” Don’t ever trade the imperishable blessings of God for the perishable things of this world. Focus on the imperishable!
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