Resurrection Hope

My name is Matthew Capone, and I'm the pastor here at Cheyenne Mountain Presbyterian Church.

And it's my joy to bring God's word to you today.

A special welcome if you're new or visiting with us.

We're glad that you're here.

And we're glad that you're here not because we are trying to fill seats,

but because we're following Jesus together as one community.

And as we follow Jesus together, we've become convinced that there's no one so good.

They don't need God's grace.

And no one's so bad that they can't have it.

Which is why we come back week after week to hear what God has to say to us in his word.

This morning, we're taking a break from our series in the book of Judges,

because believe it or not, it's Easter.

That's Resurrection Sunday, when we as a church celebrate the fact that Jesus, in fact, rose from the dead.

Now, when we talk about Jesus, it's important to remember we're not talking about an abstraction or an idea or a theory.

We are, in fact, talking about a historical figure, a real man.

Jesus was born in the town of Bethlehem, which is five to six miles south of Jerusalem.

And he grew up in Nazareth, which is 64 to 65 miles north of Jerusalem.

Jesus was one of at least seven kids.

And he had both brothers and sisters.

Real man, real time, real space.

It's also important to remember that the resurrection is not a metaphor.

When we speak about the resurrection, we are speaking about a real historical event,

an event that had numerous, many eyewitnesses.

And so every Resurrection Sunday, every Easter, we come together and we talk about what that means for us,

how, in fact, it gives us real hope and joy now.

We're going to turn this morning to the book of 1 Peter.

And the book of 1 Peter is a letter written by the Apostle Peter.

He writes it in the first century A.D. to churches in modern-day Turkey.

And these churches are feeling out of place in the world, and they're facing opposition from the world.

And so they have this temptation, the temptation with all the heat coming in against them,

to give up on Christianity.

And so Peter writes to encourage them.

Peter writes telling them why the resurrection is a better hope than any other hope,

why it is worth suffering for.

And so that's where we're headed this morning.

We're in 1 Peter 1.

We're going to look at verses 3 through 9.

Our focus will be 3 and 4, especially 4,

but we'll read 5 through 9 just so we have a larger, broader context.

And as we come to this passage, I imagine that there are a few of us who are Christians,

and for us, the resurrection is our life.

We think of it when we wake up in the morning,

and it orients the rest of our day and our weeks and our months.

I would imagine for many more of us, it is actually a constant struggle for us to remember the resurrection,

for it to be something as Christians that shapes our minds and our hearts and our lives.

Some of us are not Christians.

Perhaps you have doubts or questions or objections to Christianity.

No matter which of those three categories you fall into, we're here together this morning,

and I hope that you're here because all of us need to be reminded of the great resources,

the great hope that we have from the fact that Jesus rose from the dead.

And so it's with that I invite you to turn with me in God's Word.

You can turn in your worship guide.

You can turn on your phone.

You can turn in your Bible.

No matter where you turn, remember that this is God's Word.

God tells us that His Word is more precious than gold, even the finest gold,

and it's sweeter than honey, even honey that comes straight from the honeycomb.

And so that's why we read now 1 Peter 1, starting at verse 3.

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've 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.

I invite you to pray with me as we come to this portion of God's word.

Our Father in heaven, we do praise you and thank you again.

We did not choose you, but you chose us.

We did not figure out that we should come here this morning

because we were smart enough and skilled enough,

but instead, you've called us here.

You brought us.

And so we ask that you would remind us of your grace in that,

and you would use your word this morning to show us Jesus once again,

that you would remind us of the glory and the beauty of His resurrection,

that you strengthen us with the hope that it provides,

and that you would use this worship service to change us,

that we would look more and more like your Son and our Savior, our Lord Jesus.

It's in His name that we ask all of these things,

Amen.

A man named William Farley tells the story of many years ago

when he visited a vineyard in the Napa Valley of California.

And when he was at this vineyard,

he had a chance to speak to the foreman

who explained to him many of the dynamics of the work that they performed.

He told him that the grapevines that they grew

could reach an age of 80 to 100 years old.

And then, in fact, they were not most productive

until they hit around 30 to 50 years old.

This was a long-term process of developing these grapevines,

of growing this vineyard.

In fact, he told him that, in fact,

the taproot of many of these grapevines

could grow 30 to 40 feet deep.

Some of them grew so deep

that they actually reached the water table

far beneath the surface of the earth.

And those vines became what is called self-irrigating.

In other words, they had this resource,

this reservoir of water

that they had access to

regardless of what was happening

on the top of the earth.

Whatever was happening up top,

they could sort of be unfazed by it.

Is there a drought?

No problem.

Is there incredible intense heat?

No sweat.

Because these grapevines have these resources, right,

that transcend what's happening up above.

William Farley provides this image

because it reminds us of what, in fact,

the Christian life should be like as we live it.

We should have this deep reservoir of resources,

a separate source of hope and peace and joy.

We should have that independent

of what's happening today.

We have that as it transcends

whatever the events are of this day or week or month.

And as you hear that, you listen to that,

you might think, wow, that sounds really great.

Also, that's not really my experience as a Christian.

In fact, if we are honest,

we would have to admit

that this is more aspiration than reality for most of us.

We live lives riddled with fear and anxiety and greed.

Our hearts ride the roller coaster

of success and failure and wealth and poverty

and praise and criticism and status

and loss and recognition.

The churches in Asia Minor and Turkey

who are receiving Peter's letter

also know what it's like to be rattled

by the circumstances around them.

And so Peter writes to them

to remind them of the great reservoir

that's provided by Christ's resurrection.

He writes to remind them

that they have a source, in fact,

of hope and peace and joy

that is tied beyond this world.

He raises the question for them,

the same question that we have,

where is it that we can get unshakable hope?

Christian, how can you have

a deep reservoir untouched by this world?

How can you have a root

that goes 30 to 40 feet deep?

Well, Peter points us

to the benefits of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

And he does that here in verses 3 and 4.

He tells us, verse 3,

we've been born again to a living hope

through the resurrection of Jesus Christ

from the dead to an inheritance.

In other words, Jesus' resurrection means

that if you are a Christian,

you have a great inheritance.

There is something that is in the future for you

that you do not experience in the present.

And so Peter gives us the simple principle

that I mentioned during our confession of faith,

which is this,

whatever we believe about the future

dramatically affects how we live in the present.

Imagine, for example,

you have two people,

they're virtually identical.

Both of them are living in great poverty.

One of them has no hope

of that poverty ever ending.

The other one knows

that there is a relative

who has named them in their will.

And this relative is decades older than them.

They know the amount that's coming to them.

And so as they live in the present,

they have great hope in the future.

They don't give in to the hopelessness

and despair that the other one might have

because they know there is something different coming.

That's the encouragement that Peter is giving here.

You'll see this in page nine of your worship guide.

It's staggering how expectations can alter

how you interpret current circumstances.

Peter is reminding the Christians

in these churches of this.

No matter what's happening now,

you have a great future.

No matter what you're suffering now,

there's great hope.

No matter your loss,

the best things are yet to come.

What is this inheritance though?

What are the good things that are to come

because of Jesus' resurrection?

The apostle Paul tells us in Romans chapter eight

that we are fellow heirs with Jesus Christ,

meaning that whatever Christ's inheritance is,

whatever it is he earns and receives,

those things are true of us as well.

And what is it that Christ accomplishes

in his death and resurrection?

Well, it's the defeat of sin.

It's the defeat of death.

And so this inheritance,

it encompasses all of those things that are coming

when we see death and sin

finally put under the ground.

It means the new heavens and the new earth.

It's part of our future inheritance.

It means the death finally and fully of sin

in our own lives.

We will no longer experience tension with others

because of our words and our actions

and our selfishness.

No, instead, we're gonna experience harmony

and harmony and unity with those around us

better than we can even imagine right now.

It means that we will be at peace

with God and with ourselves.

We'll be free finally from anxiety,

from depression, from guilt, from anger.

The inheritance though is not just freedom from sin

in our own lives.

It's freedom from sin in society

and communities and nations.

There will be no more systemic injustice,

cruel and abusive leaders.

There will be no more contentious elections.

There will be no hunger,

no more poverty,

no more strife.

Our inheritance though is not just freedom from sin

in our own lives,

freedom from sin in our society.

It's also this restored creation.

In Romans chapter eight,

Paul also talks about the fact

that this world,

the natural order,

is groaning with this longing for redemption.

There is some sense

in which the mountains and the trees

cannot wait for Jesus to come back

because there will be no more sickness,

no more disease.

Your bodies will work perfectly.

The earth will be free of pollution.

You will no longer take Zyrtec

because allergies will come to an end.

Because of Jesus' resurrection,

there are better things to come

than we can even imagine.

Because of Jesus' resurrection,

there are things in this world

that no matter how rich

and powerful

and successful you are,

you cannot even come close

to experiencing.

You have an inheritance,

imperishable,

undefiled,

unfading,

kept in heaven for you.

Peter gives us a lot of words here

to try to understand

what this inheritance is like.

Now I have to confess to you this morning

two things.

One,

I buy a lot of chocolate milk.

And not only that,

I am the obnoxious person

in the grocery store

who digs around with the cartons

to find the expiration date

that is farthest off in the future.

I mean,

I'm just one man, right?

I can only drink

so much chocolate milk.

And so if I see

that the expiration date

is two days from now,

am I going to buy the big jug?

No,

of course not, right?

That would be foolish.

I'm going to drive it,

buy the small jug.

Small jug.

Why?

Because the milk

is perishable.

Right?

It is not going to last forever.

If I don't get

while the getting's good,

I'm either not going to get any

or my body is going to rebel

in a tremendous way.

Peter says,

look,

this is not what your inheritance is like.

There is no expiration date.

It is imperishable.

No matter how long you wait for it,

it will not go bad.

No matter how long you suffer

in this world,

it will still be waiting for you.

There is nothing

that can cause it to spoil.

It's imperishable.

There's no best by date.

There is no sell-by date

on the inheritance

that is yours

because of Jesus' resurrection.

Peter also tells us

it's undefiled,

which is his way of saying

this inheritance

is not going to be affected

or touched

by sin.

The very best experiences

that you have in this world,

the closest

and most intimate relationships

in your life,

even when you see creation

at its best,

sin is still there

in the background.

You are still not seeing it

for as good as it can be.

Not so, Christian,

with your inheritance.

You will experience

finally

the world

without sin.

And so he tells us

it's imperishable,

it's untainted

or undefiled.

We're also told

that it is unfading.

You may have noticed

last Sunday,

if you're a careful observer,

that my car

was not in the parking lot

of this church

because my car

was in the body shop.

I got rear-ended

last year

and I finally made it

into the schedule

many months later

so I could get

a new bumper.

I went to

Red Nolan Collision Center

here in town,

which I cannot recommend

highly enough.

And they broke

some very bad news

to me when I took

my car in.

They said,

this is the last time

we will ever help you

because we don't see cars

older than 10 years old.

So you've aged out.

Like, we're going to

let you slide in here,

we'll give you

a new bumper,

don't come back.

Why?

Because my car

is fading.

Right?

There's a sense

in which there's

a relative fading,

it's fading

in comparison

to new cars.

So for a glorious

few days,

I got to drive

around this rental car,

it was a Corolla Cross,

and I thought,

wow,

there's a lot

of wonderful things

that have been put

in cars

in the last 10 years.

This is what it's like

to drive a new car.

So it's fading

in this relative sense,

right?

My car is less

and less relevant.

It does not have

car play in it.

It does not have

all the bells and whistles.

It doesn't beep at me,

you know,

if I'm about to hit someone.

There's also

an absolute fading.

My car is not

as glorious

as it was

10 years ago.

My headlights,

they're kind of foggy.

They don't light up

the roads

like they did

back in 2013,

2014.

They're chips,

right,

from the rocks

of Colorado.

I have a cracked

windshield.

Time

has its effect

on all things.

time wears

down all things

where they become

less and less

beautiful.

Not so

with your inheritance.

It is imperishable,

undefiled,

unfading.

No matter how long

you wait,

no matter what happens

in this world,

it will be as glorious

then as it is

now.

That brings us

back to our question,

which is this,

where do we get

that unshakable

hope?

What does it look

like for our roots

to go 30

and 40 feet

into the ground

that we can access

a water table

separate from

whatever is

happening

today?

Well,

it's reminding

ourselves

of this truth.

No matter

what happens

now

in this world,

it cannot

affect

your future

with Christ.

No matter

what is shaken

temporarily,

your inheritance

is secure.

Your hope

cannot be

taken away.

Let's say

that you

get in your car

and you drive

away after the

service today

and you're

filled with

hope from

our celebration

of Easter

and you get

in a horrific

car accident

and it turns

out that you're

actually paralyzed

from the neck

down.

Your life

will change

dramatically

and the promise

of a new body

in the new heavens

and the new earth

is untouched.

Your future,

your ultimate future

changes in no way.

You still have

an inheritance

that is imperishable,

undefiled,

unfading,

kept in heaven

for you.

Let's say that you are

falsely accused

of a crime

you didn't commit

and you end up

spending the next

20 years

in prison.

That is a real

tragedy.

And

you will

still experience,

if you are

in Christ,

better things

than anyone

on this earth

has ever

seen.

your future,

your ultimate

future

remains

the same.

Your inheritance

is imperishable,

undefiled,

and unfading,

kept

in heaven

for you.

Let's say

the stock market

crashes tomorrow

and you thought

that you were

going to be able

to retire

and now

that becomes

more of a dream

than a reality.

Your financial

security

may decrease,

your ultimate

future

is unchanged.

That

is the

water table

of the Christian.

That

is the

source

of hope

and peace

and joy

no matter

what.

You'll see

this on page

nine of your

worship guide.

What many

people would

spend millions

to attain,

God has

made available

to every

believer

through the

gift of

the Holy

Spirit.

Christian,

you have

a hope.

You have

a future

future

that others

spend their

lives

trying to

secure

and never

achieve.

You are

richer

than you

can imagine.

Financial

advisors will

tell you not

to watch

your portfolio

too closely

if you want

to stay

sane

because the

ups and

the downs

of the market

are so

constant.

It's easy

for our

hearts to

become

tethered

to those

things and

lose

perspective

on the

big picture.

Peter is

telling us

the opposite

here.

Keep your

eyes on

this

portfolio.

Watch

this

portfolio

every day.

Remind

yourself

constantly

of what

cannot

be touched.

And as

life swirls

around you,

you will

have a

peace

and a

security

and a

stability

that others

can only

dream of.

For those

who are in

Christ,

nothing

and no

one

can touch

your

inheritance.

No tragedy,

no accident,

no loss.

Paul also

tells us

in Romans

Romans 8 · chapter mention

chapter 8

this,

For I

consider that

the sufferings

of this

present time

are not

worth comparing

with the

glory that

is to be

revealed to

us.

What is

the hardest

and most

discouraging

thing in

your life?

it is

not worth

being

compared

to the

glory

that is

going to

be

revealed.

If you

are in

Christ,

the best

things are

yet to

come.

And so

this raises

the piercing

question for

all of us.

What is

the glory

of your

life?

What is

the hope

that you

have above

every other

hope?

What is

the security

that you

rest your

feet on?

Anything

else,

anything

besides the

resurrection of

Jesus Christ,

which earns

you an

inheritance

that is

imperishable,

unfading,

and undefiled

will

disappoint.

Anything

else

will fail.

Health,

wealth,

relationships,

all good

things,

not

ultimate

things.

There is

one thing

that is

most worthwhile,

one thing

that is

most valuable,

one thing

that you

cannot

lose,

and that

is your

water

table.

That

is what

the roots

of the

Christian

draw water

from deep

underneath

the surface.

It's not a

pie-in-the-sky

hope.

It's not a

maybe hope.

Peter tells us

in verse 3

it's a living

hope.

It's not

based on

someone's

projection

about what

might happen

in the

future.

No,

it's based

on the

fact that

Jesus,

as a

real man

in real

time and

real space,

actually died

and actually

rose again

from the

dead.

Paul tells

us in

1 Corinthians

1 Corinthians 15 · chapter mention

chapter 15

this is not

just some

idea that

someone

created.

No,

there were

eyewitnesses

who saw

Jesus after

his resurrection.

In fact,

at one

point,

there were

500 people

who saw

him at

one time.

We're not

getting into

this this

morning,

but there

are many

and great

reasons that

Christians

believe that

Jesus did

in fact

rise from

the dead.

And so

there is

great security

in knowing

what will

happen in

the future.

God

tells us,

John chapter

John 5 · chapter mention

5,

there will

be a

resurrection,

a resurrection

to life

and a

resurrection

to judgment.

Those who

are in

Christ will

experience a

resurrection

to life.

Christian,

that is

your

unshakable

hope.

love.

That is

what gives

you joy

and peace

and hope

and confidence

no matter

what.

Because Jesus

has risen

from the

dead.

Let's

pray.

Our

Father in

heaven,

we do

thank you

that you

have made

us a

great promise

that we

do have

an inheritance

that's better

even than we

can imagine.

And that no

matter what

happens here,

it cannot

be taken

away.

We ask

that you

would grow

that hope

in our

hearts that

it would

become more

and more

real to

our minds

and our

affections

and that

it would

give us

a steady

and unshakable

a daily

peace and

joy in

you.

That as the

world swirls

around us,

we would

have calm

as we stand

on that

foundation,

the only

foundation that

cannot be

shaken.

We ask

these things

in the mighty

name of

Jesus Christ.

Amen.