“Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to test you, as though some strange thing happened unto you.” (1 Peter 4:12 NKJV)

We can have peace during trials

Being a Christian doesn’t exempt us from problems and trials of various kinds. Jesus said we would have them because we live in this fallen world. But He said to take heart and have peace because He has overcome the world.

“I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33 ESV)

Remain steadfast during trials and be blessed

“Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.” (James 1:12 ESV)

The testing of your faith during trials produces steadfastness

“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.” (James 1:2-8 ESV)

God will restore, conform, strengthen, and establish you

“And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.” (1 Peter 5:10 ESV)

Therefore

“Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.” (Rom. 12:12 ESV)

“For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.” (Rom. 8:5-6 ESV)

We choose what we set our minds on

The above passage says we can choose to set our minds on things of the flesh (carnal things) or things of the Spirit (Spiritual things). One leads to death and one leads to life, and we personally decide which one we set our minds on.

Be transformed by renewing your mind

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” (Rom. 12:2 ESV)

Take your thoughts captive to obey Christ

“We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ.” (2 Cor. 10:5 ESV) 

Think about these things

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” (Phil. 4:8 ESV)

Therefore…

“Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.” (Prov. 4:23 ESV)

“Who has saved us, and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began.” (2 Tim. 1:9 NKJV)

The above passage lists a number of wonderful things God has done for us 

·      He saved us – “Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Rom. 10:9 ESV)

·      He called us with a holy calling – “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.” (Rom. 8:28-30 ESV)

·      Not according to our works – “He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit.” (Titus 2:5 ESV)

·      According to His purpose – “But the plans of the LORD stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations.” (Psalm 33:11 NIV)

·      According to His grace – “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Eph. 2:8-9 ESV) 

·      Given to us in Christ Jesus – “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” (John 3:16-17 ESV)

·      Before the world began – “Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes.” (Eph. 1:4 NLT)

Therefore

As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving.” (Col. 2:6-7 NKJV)

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (Jer. 29:11 NIV)

In the above passage God mentions plans three times

1.     “I know the plans I have for you” – God knows the plans He has for you even though you may not clearly see them yourself. Your faith and trust must be placed on the Word of God, what it says, and not on what you can only see. “For we walk by faith, not by sight.” (1 Cor. 5:7 KJV). “For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.” (Rom. 15:4 ESV)

2.     “Plans to prosper you” – God has plans to makes things go well for you. “And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.” (2 Cor. 9:8 ESV) “You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands; you shall be blessed, and it shall be well with you.” (Psalm 128:2 ESV)

3.     “Plans to give you hope and a future” – God has given you a living hope and inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.” (1 Peter 1:3-5 NIV)

Therefore

“And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” (Rom. 8:28)

“… visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.” (Exo. 34:7b KJV)

Crows pass on memories to future generations

I recently watched a documentary about crows and learned that they had the ability to pass down memories from generation to generation. An experiment was conducted where a man put on a unique mask and threw rocks at a bunch of crows. Afterwards, whenever anyone put on the mask, the crows the man had thrown rocks at sounded an alarm. The interesting thing is that future generations of those same crows reacted exactly the same way whenever someone wore the same mask. Even when their crow eggs were hatched in a faraway city, when the hatchlings turned into full-grown crows and were then exposed to the mask, they “remembered” and sounded the alarm. Somehow, the memories had been passed on to the next generations through DNA.

Human memories are also passed on to future generations

I saw another interesting item in the news recently that was similar in many ways to the documentary about the crows. Apparently, scientists have discovered recently that human memories are also passed down to future generations in DNA. The thing I found so fascinating about this is that the Bible states, in Exodus 34:7, that the sins of the fathers are passed down to future generations, “visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.” This could be a discouraging bit of information if it weren’t for other Bible promises that remedy this. Check out the following promises:

In Christ, the old has passed away

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation..” (2 Cor. 5:17-19 ESV)

You are free indeed

“So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” (John 8:36 ESV)

Therefore

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” (Rom. 12:2 ESV)

“Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.” (Rom. 12:10 NIV)

Honor is a noun and verb that means respect, character, reward, or fulfillment. Honor has many uses, all of them good. If you are called a man of honor, you are respected. If someone honors you, they recognize and award you for your achievements. There is also a general meaning found in the above verse as honoring others by putting them first above yourself in love.

Children show honor to your parents

“Honor your father and mother”—which is the first commandment with a promise— “so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.” (Eph. 6:2-3 NIV)

Husbands show respect to your wives

“Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.” (1 Peter 3:7 ESV)

Wives show respect to your husbands

“However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.” (Eph. 5:33 ESV)

Show honor to the elderly

“You shall stand up before the gray head and honor the face of an old man, and you shall fear your God: I am the Lord.” (Lev. 19:32 ESV)

Show respect to everyone, even to the  top leadership of your country

“Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor.” (1 Peter 2:17 NIV)

Outdo each other in showing honor

“Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.” (Rom. 12:10 ESV)

Show respect to your employers and supervisors

“We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves.” (2 Thess. 5:12-13 ESV)

Leave honoring yourself to others

“But when you are invited, go and sit in the lowest place, so that when your host comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at table with you.” (Luke 14:10 ESV)

Therefore

“But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect.” (1 Peter 3:15 ESV)

“The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.” (Gal. 5:6b NIV)

In the busy world we live in it’s easy to get caught up in the to-do lists of life. It can seem at times that we can’t get to the end of the things we need to get done. But, in all our busyness, we must remember to keep the focus on what counts the most. The above verse boils it down to faith and love. 

·      Faith: “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Heb. 11:1 NKJV)

·      Love: “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.” (1 Cor. 13:4-8 NIV)

The greatest is love 

“Three things will last forever--faith, hope, and love--and the greatest of these is love.” (1 Cor. 13:13 NLT)

Therefore…

“And do everything with love.” 2 Cor. 16:14 NLT)

“No weapon that is formed against you will prosper; And every tongue that accuses you in judgment you will condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, And their vindication is from Me," declares the LORD.” (Isa. 54:17 NASB)

Notice that the above passage doesn’t say weapons won’t form, it says they won’t prosper. Stay in faith, God will deliver you!

God delivers

“The righteous person may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all.” (Psalm 34:19 NIV)

God is the source of your strength 

“The people will declare, "The LORD is the source of all my righteousness and strength." And all who were angry with him will come to him and be ashamed.” (Isa. 45:24 NLT)

God goes with you

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.” (Deut. 31:6 NIV)

Therefore…

“Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I shall rescue you, and you will honor Me.” (Psalm 50:14 NASB)

“Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Rom. 8:1 NIV)

“Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.” (Rom. 5:2-5 ESV) 

Hope is mentioned three times in the above passage

1)    We rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

2)    Character produces hope.

3)    Hope doesn’t put us to shame.

And these three things happen “because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.” (Rom. 5:5 ESV)

Therefore

“Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Rom. 15:13 NASB)