Daily Devotional

Living Examples of Hope

by Justin Linscheid on January 20, 2021

15 But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, 16 keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.” 1 Peter 3:15-16

At certain times in my life, 1 Peter 3:15 has convicted me. Especially the phrase “always be ready”. I’ve had conversations and opportunities that I walked away from kicking myself because I know I could have been a better witness for Jesus. I’ve had conversations that I dwelled on after the fact thinking, “why didn’t I share Christ…” or “why wasn’t I more bold in my witness” or “I should have done something.” As we think about Peter’s own blunders, we can be sure he knew the feeling. Yet, God graciously still uses people like me and Peter.

As I thought more about these 2 verses, something dawned on me. These verses aren’t primarily talking about being ready for a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it kind of opportunity. They are talking about living a lifestyle that reflects the hope that we have in Jesus Christ. In fact, this verse presupposes that it will be the non-Christian that initiates the conversation. The verse presupposes that as Christians, we will live the kind of lifestyle that exudes hope in the midst of hopelessness. The verse presupposes that people will notice something different about who we are and our outlook on life and they will inquire about our hope. Do you see the difference? In one, we are simply imposing a message onto others; in the other, we are living examples of that message first and speakers of that message second.

This verse presumes that our walk will precede our talk. As we revere Christ as Lord in our hearts, keep clear consciences, and model the gentle and respectful attitude of God, people will notice and ask us what the reason for this is. It is then that we have an open door to share the Lord with them and chances are they will be much more ready to receive the Christian message.

The Christians of Peter’s day were in the midst of great suffering and persecution. As they simply lived with their hope fixated on Christ, non-Christians around them would ask, “how in the world are you so full of hope in the midst of such suffering?” The sure hope these Christians had in Christ was like a powerful lighthouse in the midst of a dark and stormy night.

Do you fear evangelism? Is initiating conversation with strangers hard for you? Do you not have it in you to stand on the corner with a bullhorn and poster that reads “turn or burn”? No worries! We’ve all seen the message of Christ stuffed down people’s throats with anything but gentleness or respect. 1 Peter is suggesting that perhaps the kind of message that will speak the loudest is our own lives and character. Then, people will ask us the reason for such a life and we will find that we are more than ready to share that the reason is Jesus Christ.

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