Great Blessings

1 Pet. 1: 3-9

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, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials,

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. 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, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

We bless God because of the great blessings He has given us. We love Him because He first loved us. We reach out to Him because He first reached out to us. Get the pattern! Everything I have in Christ is because God reached down to me first. All I have is from the top down, from His great mercy, love and grace. The blessings are manifold:

• born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead-nothing I did or initiated. All from Jesus!
•  to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you,-He has given me a future, sonship, joint heir with Christ, and an eternal inheritance kept safe for me.
• who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.-Through His grace and nothing I have done, I am guarded through the gift of faith [no faith of my own] for my complete and eternal salvation to be revealed when Jesus comes back for me. 
•  In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials,  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. -I rejoice in this salvation even though in this life I have trials, trials that test the genuineness of my faith, to ensure that I am not a fake or trying to sneak in on my own works. My end result will be praise, glory, and honor when Jesus returns. How do I endure these trials? Through His grace and strength. He gives me the trials and the means to endure and the reward at the end! It is all of Him. 
• Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.-I love Him though I don't see Him. I believe by faith, the very gift of faith from the Father. I rejoice with inexpressible joy, a joy that is unfathomable by the world. It makes no sense to them! And finally, the salvation is complete! I will see Jess as He is and be like Him, glorified and eternal. Praising Him for all eternity!

Such as this is my life! My joy! My all! Such as this has come down from the Father who has chosen me to be His own precious child. He has given me His divine nature and all things pertaining to life and godliness. He has given me His precious and very great promises that by them I might live in newness of life and in resurrection power. He has given me Jesus and His Spirit to indwell, guide, lead,and intercede for me. Such a life as this is mine!

Father,

As I read this passage this morning, my heart is blessed, and I bless You the giver of all good things. I have only a paltry 'thank you' to give in return. You have transformed my life according to Your great promises. You have been faithful and true. Help me to live for You faithfully and truly, but only through Your great grace. Make me steadfast according to Your steadfast and unfailing love. I bless You, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. I know I am elect because of the foreknowledge of God, according to the sanctification of the Spirit for obedience to Jesus Christ through the sprinkling of His blood.

In His name,

Amen