Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! 1 Peter 1:3
Praise Be to God
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to His great mercy, He has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith - more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire - may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 1:3-7
Peter calls us to praise God for the reality of being saved. To receive an eternal inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading that can never be taken away, and to receive a faith that holds on to it by God's power, is something to praise God for every day. To be given a faith in Jesus that endures and perseveres through every trial, so that no matter how difficult the trial, it becomes the evidence of our faith and not the destruction of it. This is a most precious thing to see when our faith endures through our trials because it's evidence of our salvation. Trials reveal our faith, and enduring faith reveals salvation has truly taken place. And that reality ought to result in praise, glory, and honor to God every day. This is why James tells us to count it all joy when facing trials of many kinds (James 1:2)
A Loving & Saving God
Every day in this New Year, let us praise God for who He is. Scripture tells us that He is a loving God and a saving God by nature. He is a God who loves sinners and is able and willing to save them. He demonstrates His love toward us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8). In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent His only Son into the world, so that we might live through Him. In this love, not that we have loved God but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins (1 John 4:9-10). The Lord desires all people to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Tim 2:4), and He’s not willing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). He takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked (Ezek 18:23). Our Lord is a loving Savior by nature. Let us praise Him for who He is!
Salvation Belongs to the Lord
Every day in this New Year, let us praise God for what He’s freely given us, namely our salvation in Christ. Scripture tells us that salvation belongs to the Lord (Psalm 3:8) and that we were loved and chosen before the foundation of the world to be saved according to His will, to the praise of His grace (Eph 1:4-6, 11-12). Salvation is from God, by God, and for God, as we receive the immense benefits of it!
Salvation is a free gift. There’s nothing we can do to earn our salvation. By the deeds of the Law no one will be justified before God (Romans 3:20, Gal 2:16). We are saved by grace alone through faith alone. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast (Eph 2:8-9). Even our repentance and faith in Jesus is a gift by God's grace. No saved sinner can ever boast that he achieved salvation by his own good works or intellect. We could never be wise enough to choose eternal life on our own. That wisdom can only come from above and bestowed on us by God's grace. We are only able to choose Jesus because He first chose us. (John 15:16) We are only able to love Him because He first loved us (1 John 4:19).
Apart from God, we can't do anything to obtain our salvation. And once we're saved there’s nothing we can do to lose it either (John 10:28, 18:9, 6:37, 1 Pet 1:5, Phil 1:6, Heb 7:25). As much as we are saved by God’s grace, we are also kept by God’s grace (John 10:28, Phil 1:6). Salvation is truly all of grace and belongs to the Lord (Psalm 3:8).
Every day in this New Year, let us praise the Lord for the countless blessings He bestows on us. But above and beyond all else, let us praise Him for our salvation. Let us praise Him for the deliverance He has provided us from sin, death, judgment, and hell through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, our Lord and Savior. He died on the cross for our sins, paid the penalty in full as our Perfect Substitute, and He rose again from the dead, so that by grace through faith in Him, we may have eternal life. Let us praise God every single day here on earth, knowing that one day we will spend all eternity praising Him for who He is and for our salvation. Proclaim the good tidings of His salvation day to day (Psalm 96:2).
Dear Heavenly Father,
Every day in this New Year and beyond, may I give You thanks and praise for who You are and what You’ve given me through Your Son, Jesus. You've given me eternal life, not because You saw anything good or deserving in me but because of who You are. You are good, kind, and rich in mercy, and for whatever reason, You chose me because You loved me. For whatever Your reason, it was pleasing to You to give me eternal life through faith in Jesus. Talk about winning the lottery! The eternal riches in Christ, You chose to give to me! How could I ever let a day go by without giving You praise for Your grace? You've given me a heavenly inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, unfading, kept in heaven by You, and I am being guarded by Your power through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time (1 Peter 1:4-5). These are the things that You want me to set my mind on as I go about my day. Lord, Help me to set my mind on these glorious things! Please help me set my mind on things above where Christ is seated and not on earthly things (Colossians 3:2).
Lord, just as You did for me, I ask that You work Your divine grace in the hearts of those who need You as their loving Savior. I ask that You have mercy on them like you did me and save them from their sins, gifting them with eternal life in Christ Jesus. Help me speak confidently and boldly about Jesus to others. Give me an earnestness and a burden to reach the lost. Help me to be a faithful message carrier of Your salvation to everyone as You do the choosing and the saving.
All glory belongs to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. In His Name I pray Amen.
2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. If any of you lacks faith, let him ask of God who gives to you generously and without reproach and it will be given to you. James 1:2-4
If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. 3 For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Colossians 3:1-4