“That the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ
God is the one who does the finding here, not us. God will find whether our faith glorifies Him or not. Long after gold is gone our faith will remain. If our faith meets the test, it will redound to the glory of God.
The word “found” means to find after a search. God puts our faith to the test to approve it for the glory of God. Trials put our faith to the test. If we trust God to meet us in our need, it glorifies Him. It is not the testing of our faith that glorifies God. It is whether our faith meets the test.
The trial of our faith will produce three results: praise, honor, and glory. These results are all in the future. We are not usually on speaking terms with these qualities.
God tested Abraham’s faith. What a difficult exam he had to take. He took a number of quizzes along the way but they were nothing like the final exam of offering his son for sacrifice (Genesis 22). Most of us would have flunked that exam.
Our faith produces something for the future. If we reduce 1 Peter 1:7 down to its least common denominator it would read like this,
“That the genuineness of your faith…be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
Trials will not last forever. God furnishes the equipment to support us while we are in them.
2 Corinthians 4:17 says, “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.”
Material wealth perishes; spiritual wealth is imperishable. The person who places spiritual values above temporal values operates on genuine, eternal priorities.
PRINCIPLE:
The trial of faith is producing something for us in the future.
APPLICATION:
Jesus is coming again. When we meet Him, the character of our faith will be manifest. The greater the refining process, the brighter it will appear. Trials will disappear but the luster of the trial will proceed into eternity. This should reconcile us to our present afflictions.
Christians do not judge their life based solely on time only but on eternity as well.
