New Year Meditation: His Presence, Protection, Power and Provision...

(Excerpts from the message shared by Bro. Prakash Rao during the Watch-night service 2008-'09)

The year 2008 will be etched in our memories as one of the worst years in history. It was a year where Christians faced persecution in different parts of the country; it was a year where we saw a downward spiral in the economy all over the world; it was a year where we saw hundreds of people killed in various parts of our country by terrorist attacks. The world is entering this New Year with fear and apprehension over continued news of recession. How do we as Christians respond to these challenges?

We can find some answers in the first letter of Peter, where the church was facing persecution and uncertainty in AD 60 due to the persecution unleashed by Emperor Nero. These words will be appropriate for our context too. In I Peter 1:1-10, the Apostle encourages them by reminding them of three important reasons due to which Christians can have hope & cheer while facing a crisis:

1. Deliverance in the past: Firstly, the Apostle reminds them of how they were the elect (1:2) or the chosen people of God. God said to them that they were his special people whom he had delivered from slavery to sin and given them “new birth” (salvation) and a “living hope”- a live relationship with the living Christ himself. Hence, in times of crises we as followers of Christ have to take strength in our identity in Christ and his love for us and find strength by communing with him.
2. Protection in the Present: Secondly, the Apostle reminded them that they were “kept (shielded) by the power of God (1:5) through faith. In times of crises, we need to remember that God who created the whole universe by his Word and upholding it is also the one who is upholding and keeping us by his power. However God expects us to exercise faith and trust in him so that we can appropriate His protection. Thus, when we face different kinds of trials (v 6), we need to remember that God allows these trials in our lives so as to refine or purify our faith and to prove the genuineness of our faith. But these trials will not be forever, as God will put an end to them (1 Pet 5:10).
3. Hope for the Future: Thirdly and finally, the Apostle reminds them of their “inheritance in heaven” (v.4). Many times when economic liberalization happens, we forget about heaven and begin to establish our personal heavens on this earth! Peter reminds them that they were “foreigners and exiles” (2:11), and that they were citizens of heaven and that they needed to set their “hope fully on the grace to be given … when Jesus Christ is revealed” (1:13). In other words Peter wanted to remind them that they were citizens of heaven and that they need not worry too much about their loses on this earth as they had an “inheritance in heaven” that would “never perish, spoil or fade.”(1:4).
   

May God help us experience his presence, protection, power and provisions abundantly in this New Year 2009!