1 Peter 1:24, 25

For, “All people are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord endures forever.” And this is the word that was preached to you ~ 1 Peter 1:24, 25

Peter is speaking to a people new to the worship of the Judaic God, for he is speaking to Gentiles and reminding them of the living hope they now have as members of God’s enlarging family. This hope is a new gift to them, for no longer are they destined to a death which leads nowhere, but their destiny lies with God who has redeemed them along with their Hebrew brothers and sisters. It is a new birth, Peter states, an inheritance which will never perish, unlike the grass and flowers of the field. Through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, Peter’s listeners are born again into an imperishable seed. This is drastically different teaching for the Gentile people of the first century who had never contemplated eternal life. We are all born frail and mortal. When we are young our whole life seems ahead of us, and death is far away. As we grow and age, we wonder where our years went as we look back through them. They seemed to fly by like withering grass and falling flowers. Strange as it sounds, I take a daily walk through a graveyard, as it sits alongside my home. I look at the names and the dates, and I wonder who remembers them, and not only that, but that every one of us has a history which will be forgotten. But there is a remembering in the heavenly realm, an everlasting life promised to those who love the Lord God. Jesus died and rose again! That is an unforgotten history, and it leaves us with the promise that though this world will forget us, God never will. Our life here on earth may be fleeting, but in heaven with God it is an ever-blooming flower garden, and a continual grassy meadow; it is an everlasting time for us to praise. 

Pastor Julia