From Fall to Glory

Text: 1 Peter 1:24-25
For
‘All flesh is like grass
   and all its glory like the flower of grass.
The grass withers,
   and the flower falls,
but the word of the Lord endures for ever.’
That word is the good news that was announced to you. (NRSV)

Ever since the fall of Adam and Eve, life has been hard.  Adam and Eve were born into paradise and in intimate relationship with God.  But when they turned their back on God, they were cursed with the responsibility of literally scratching a living out of dirt from which they had been formed.  And to that earth we all must return, dust to dust (see Genesis 3:19).

At least that was the way it was before Jesus, the Word of God, came to the world that he had created.  Jesus brought with him the news of eternal life through the forgiveness of sins.  This is the good news that has been announced to us.  Although our physical life may be like the grass of the field which flourishes today and is gone tomorrow, through Jesus our spirit lives forever.

The new birth that we have through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, is a transformation from what was perishable to that which is imperishable.  Through the Word of God that endures for ever, we have again been brought into an intimate relationship with God as was intended for us from the beginning of creation.

Even though life in this broken world continues to be hard, our hope is not found in our own strength but in the strength of God.  And not only does God give us the strength to endure, but God also gives us the promise of the glory that is to come when we find ourselves once again in the everlasting presence of God.

Pray with Me:

God of creation and God of redemption, strengthen me as I live in this broken world.  Through your Word that endures forever, grant me eternal life lived in your glory.  AMEN.