There are things that we hold as precious. It may be a watch presented to you on your birthday by your father, or it may be some gift article extended to you on your wedding day by your best friend. Days and years pass on, but we keep those things as secure as possible because they are priceless for us. Just think of the old black and white photographs in your family album. Are they not invaluable to you? Yes, they are, and none can replace them.
In his first epistle, the Apostle Peter reminds his audience of the preciousness of spiritual things as they might have lost the spiritual perspective of those things due to the ongoing persecution. And, this is true to our situation also. Let’s meditate on those things and gain back the lost vision.
Precious Faith (1 Peter 1:7)
Gold, when extracted from its ores, contains a variety of impurities which renders it useless. Hence, to remove impurities and unwanted elements, gold is refined by fire. Real gold is made brighter and purer by fire. As gold is made pure by fire, our faith is made pure by fiery trials and temptations. As fire cannot destroy real gold, the fiery trials cannot destroy real faith. This genuine faith is far more precious than gold because it has eternal value. It will bring us praise, glory and, honor when Jesus Christ comes again. Is your faith genuine? When the refiner tries you in the furnace of affliction, will you be able to say as Job said, “But He knows the way that I take; when He has tried me, I shall come out as gold (Job 23:10).”?
Precious Blood (1 Peter 1:19)
Bible says that the price of redeeming a soul is too high (Psalm 49:8). The sin committed by our first parents made us captive to Satan. Men with great wealth cannot purchase a human soul. All the gold and silver of this earth is never enough to redeem a soul from the clutches of Satan. But there is good news. Jesus Christ paid the ransom and purchased us with His precious blood. Now we are not slaves of Satan, but now we are free in Christ! Think of the immeasurable love of our Heavenly Father, who sent his only begotten son to this world, to be crucified and shed precious blood on the cross, to rescue us from the grip of Satan. Why God paid such a heavy price? Because you are precious in His sight.
Precious Cornerstone (1 Peter 2:6)
Jesus Christ came to His own, and His own people did not receive him (John 1:11). The Jewish people of that day rejected and delivered Jesus for crucifixion. They denied the release of Jesus and asked for Barabbas, a murderer, to be released. But God made Him both Lord and Christ (Acts 2:36). The stone they rejected has become the cornerstone (Acts 4:10-11)! It’s like the President of our country visited our house and we didn’t recognize it. Or we can say, a person whom we humiliated in the past has now become the President of our country. A cornerstone is traditionally the first stone laid for a structure, with all other stones laid in reference. The alignment of the whole building may go wrong if the cornerstone is inaccurate. But, we accepted the precious stone, Jesus Christ, and put our trust in Him. He is the cornerstone of our life. And, anyone who trusts in Him will never be disappointed.
Precious Inner Beauty (1 Peter 3:4)
It is impossible to maintain a meek and quiet spirit when pressed from all sides. When the heat of various trials builds up inside us, we lose our temper, and sometimes anger erupts out of us. But, the Holy Spirit inside us can help to change this attitude. Through Christ, we are more than conquerors. The red-hot trials cannot destroy the imperishable jewel of a gentle and quiet spirit that adorns our inner man. This inward adorning is precious in the sight of God.
May God help us to always bear in mind these precious spiritual truths, even amid unbearable sufferings. We have precious faith, precious blood, a precious cornerstone, and precious inner beauty. Hallelujah!!
