When Trials Feel Heavy God Refines Faith

Heaviness is real, and Scripture does not hide it. We open 1 Peter 1:6-9 and talk plainly about the weight that settles on the heart when trials press in, whether it’s sickness, loss, rejection, or the daily pressure of living as a Christian in a world that does not understand your hope. Peter’s words meet us right there, then lift our eyes back to what God has promised: an eternal inheritance reserved in heaven and a salvation God is determined to finish. 

We follow Peter’s phrasing closely and linger on two stabilizing truths: “for a season” and “if need be.” That means trials are temporary, and they are not random. Using Job as a vivid example of God’s limits and purpose, we explore how the Lord refines faith like gold in the fire, not to shame us, but to strengthen dependence on Christ and to prepare praise, honor, and glory for Jesus at His appearing. This is Christian encouragement for suffering, sanctification, perseverance, and assurance, rooted in the resurrection and the keeping power of God. 

Then the passage turns tender: “Whom having not seen, ye love.” We talk about loving an unseen Christ, faith that sees what eyes cannot, and the “joy unspeakable and full of glory” that the Holy Spirit sustains even when circumstances hurt. We close with the goal that anchors everything: “receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls,” plus a direct invitation to repent and trust in Christ alone. If this strengthens you, subscribe, share it with someone in a hard season, and leave a review so more people can find it.

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Transcript

Inheritance Hope And Coming Trials

SPEAKER_00 0:22

Hello, welcome back to this another edition of Words from the Word of God as we continue our examination of 1 Peter chapter 1, verse the first 12 verses, where we've been working our way through, and we have come as far as verse 6, and we'll be working our way through verse 6 through 9 today. But as we continue in this sacred passage, the Lord gently turns our heart from the inheritance reserved in heaven to the reality we walk through on the way home. He has lifted our eyes to see what awaits us an inheritance incorruptible, undefiled, unfading, reserved in heaven for us, who are kept for those who are kept by the power of God there in verse four. But now he brings before us the journey that we must travel between the promise and the possession, a journey marked by trials, pressures, sorrows, and seasons of heaviness. The word of God does not hide this fact from us that we deal with trials and tribulations. In fact, Scripture consistently affirms that the Christian life is not free from difficulty. Nowhere in the Lord's revelation in his word are we told that salvation removes us from the pressures or the curse that rest upon this fallen world. Instead, the Holy Spirit speaks to us openly, honestly, and tenderly with a compassion of a shepherd who knows the path that sheep must walk. Through these verses the Lord opens our eyes and hearts to the experience of salvation in the suffering world. He makes known why trials come, why what they accomplish and how they refine our faith, how they deepen our love for Christ, and how they lead us to joy unspeakable and full of glory. And as we come to the end of this passage today, verses six through nine, we will find out the truth that unfolds, where he steadies our heart in the trials and tribulations, letting us remind us that the trials are temporary and they're purposeful and precious in his sight, and that the end of our faith is the salvation of our souls. Read with me if you will, verses one through twelve. Peter, beginning here in verse one, says, Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, the stranger scattered throughout Pontius, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, Bithynia, elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father through sanctification of the Spirit unto the obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ. Grace unto you and peace be multiplied. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy has begotten us again to a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation, ready to be revealed in the last day or in the last time. Now here's our scripture for today verses six through nine, so I want you to pay particular attention, but we'll come back to these verses, wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations, that the trial of your faith being much more precious than gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto the praise and glory and excuse me, the praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ, whom having not seen ye love, and whom, though now ye see him not yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls, of which salvation the prophets have inquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you, searching what or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ, which was in them, did signify when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glory that should follow, unto whom it was revealed that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven, which things the angels desire to look into. Praise the Lord and may he bless the reading of his word to our hearts today. Let's go back to verse six and read that verse again, wherein we greatly rejoice, though in now for a season if need be ye are in the heaviness through manifold temptations. The Spirit begins here in verse six with a word that touches every believer's life heaviness. These believers in that Peter is writing to were scattered as it says there in verse one through Pontius, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bethenia, they were misunderstood and marginalized and pressured for their faith. They lived as strangers and pilgrims in a world that did not understand their hope, their holiness, or their allegiance to Christ. They faced social rejection, economic hardship because of their faith and their declaration of Christ as their Savior and Lord, it was hard for them to find employment, or if not impossible. Not only that, they faced hardships because in many cases they were ostracized from their own family, and their family would have no relation with them. Therefore, they lived in an open rising hostility in a culture that viewed them as outsiders. Into this setting the Word of God brings this truth. Ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations. Heaviness speaks of the weight that settles in the heart when trials press in. And when I'm saying trials, that means sicknesses or anything that we may face that's adverse to us here in this life. Heaviness speaks of that that weight, that heavy weight that settles in our hearts and in their hearts at that time that we can only imagine and sometimes we all experience. But then it says manifold temptations. Manifold speaks of the many colored, may I say, or pressures that come in different forms at different times and from different directions. The early church knew this heaviness well as we read the history of the apostles in the Acts of the Apostles, the book of Acts of the Apostles. We see Stephen who felt it as he stood before the council in Acts chapter 7. Peter, we see, felt it when he was imprisoned in Acts chapter 12. And Paul, the Apostle Paul, felt it when he listed to us his sufferings for the cause of Christ there in 2 Corinthians chapter 11, where he mentions the stripes, imprisonments, beatings and stoning, shipwreck, hunger, thirst, cold, and care for all the churches. And believers today still walk through seasons of heaviness, grief, sickness, loss, pressure, uncertainty, spiritual warfare and burdens of this fallen world. Yet the Lord sets before us a phrase that steadies the heart, steadies our heart in the midst of all circumstances, though now for a season, he tells us. This speaks to us that trials are temporary. Heaviness is seasonal, if you will notice right there, he said, Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye're in the heaviness through manifold temptations. That tells us that the trials are temporary, the heaviness is seasonal, and sorrow is not forever. Our inheritance that was spoken of there in verse 4 is eternal, and that's in Christ. The heaviness that we experience here in life is not. He adds another phrase that comforts the soul here, if need be. This reveals to us that trials are not random, they are not accidental, they are not meaningless. This affirms that there is a divine necessity behind every trial. If you do not believe me, read the book of Job, the first two chapters, and then read what follows after those first two chapters. God had a purpose in bringing Job into that circumstance. And we see that the enemy came, the devil came before him, and uh God said, Have you considered my servant Job, a righteous and upright man, one that feareth the Lord and eskeweth evil, he hates evil. And then of course the devil said, Well, if you touch everything he owns, you've hedged him in, you've given him great wealth, but if you take everything he's got, he'll curse you to your face. And we found out that of course God allowed Satan to do that to it. Well, then when that didn't work, the Lord he came before the Lord again and he said, Have you considered my servant Job? You have touched him, yet he still fears the Lord and excuses evil. Well, the devil said, skin for skin, if you touch his health, if if you touch his health, he'll curse you to your face. So the Lord said, Well, you can go and do that. Now I'm not quoting the scripture. I I'm I'm I'm kind of paraphrasing here, but for the sake of time, we don't have time to read both chapters, but just Job chapter 1 and verse chapter 2. But uh the Lord said, Okay, you can touch his health, but you can't take his life. So we see that the Lord allowed certain things to come in Job's life, but in the end, Job was given a portion, a double portion of everything that he began with that the devil ever took away from him. So we see that through that and through what the Lord's telling us here in the scripture is where he says, if need be, he said what he's saying is to us that he allows what he uses, and he uses what he allows. The Lord now opens before us the purpose behind the heaviness in verse seven, that the trial of your faith being much more precious than gold, than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found into the praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ. Let's look at that first part, that the trial of your faith. The Lord is not testing faith to expose weakness, and he never does that. He never tests our faith to expose our weaknesses. No, it tells us here he is refining faith to strengthen it. Just as gold is taken through the refiner's fire to remove all the impurities, faith is not strengthened in ease. Faith is strengthened in dependence, faith is purified in the fire of many different types of trials that we all experience along the way as we travel through this journey set before us. You know, it's not we find out in many ways that it was not until we give our life to Christ and we declared Him to be Lord of our life that we truly found out the purposes God has set for our lives. And now that we walk that journey, these trials come. They come to refine us like a refiner's fire. That all the impurities that are possibly we're putting something before him that needs to be moved out of the way, or perhaps our eyes have drifted from him and his screw. And he allows us these things to come into our life that we could do nothing more than to turn to him as Job did. But you know, he doesn't do it to show our weaknesses. No, he does it to make us stronger. Uh here he sets faith beside gold, not to diminish gold, but to elevate faith. Gold is valuable, but it perishes, as the scripture says here. Gold is refined by fire, but it remains earthly. Gold is precious in many eyes, but it does not endure into eternity. Faith, however, our faith that is in Christ is eternal. Faith is not bound, it is it is not bound by weakness, it is the bond that unites us with Christ. Faith is the hand that receives grace. Faith is the anchor that holds our soul. Faith is the evidence of things not seen, and faith is the substance of things hoped for, as Hebrews, the author of Hebrews would tell us in the Word of God. Chapter 11. We'll get to that in a few moments. But and then here we go on, the the word of God declares, your faith is much more precious than gold. It's much more precious than gold. The early church saw this refining work in Stephen, whose face shone like an angel as he testified of Christ in front of the council in Acts chapter seven. They saw it in Peter and John who rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer the shame for his namesake. They saw it in Paul, who spoke of tribulation working patience, and patience experience and experience hope. Believers through the ages have seen this refining work in their lives, in martyrs who sang as they faced death, in saints who held fast under persecution, in missionaries who endured hardship for the sake of Christ, and in ordinary believers who walked through grief, sickness, and loss and pressure with a faith strengthened by the Lord. Notice I said that faith strengthened by the Lord, not by our own effort, not by our circumstances, but by the Lord who has given us this faith in the beginning. He has given us this faith that we might trust in him, no matter what the circumstance may be, that our heart would not be moved. And that is a lot of the reason Peter is writing to these very believers scattered out through Pontius, Galatia, Cappadocia, and Asia and Bethenia. Their faith is being tried to draw them closer, to make them more appreciative of what the Lord has done and strengthened, therefore it's strengthened by the Lord, not by their own effort, is strengthened by the Lord. And believers today, as we walk through this life, we still see this refining work and trials that draw us nearer to Christ. How many times have you been taking your eyes off the Lord and you get caught up in the circumstances of this life and you put him on the back burner, and then a trial comes into your life and you draw nearer to him than you were? You get again into the word of God prayerfully, and the Holy Spirit directs you back into that path that you're set for and the purpose that you are made for in this world. In pressures that that teach us to pray, in sorrows that deepen our love for the Lord, and in seasons of heaviness that anchor our hope in the inheritance that we have reserved in heaven, that we've been promised there in the last verses we covered in the last messages, to the inheritance that we have, this incorruptible, the sun defiled, and it fadeth not away reserved in heaven for us. It strengthens us in that, that no matter what happens here, no matter where we end up here, we know that our Lord has our hearts. We know that he has anchored us, he's gone as a forerunner before us through the veil that was his flesh, that he laid down his life to open up that new and living way that we could have that inheritance, that eternal inheritance reserved in heaven for us. Now, as we go on, the Lord now directs our eyes beyond the trial. He says right here in the latter part of verse 7, read with me if you will, that with fire you might be found unto the praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ. The refining faith is not wasted. That's what it's telling us here. The heaviness is not forgotten, the sorrow is not overlooked by the Lord. Every tear that we cry is kept in a bottle. Every sorrow that we have, every prayer that we utter is recorded in heaven. The Lord sees every tear, he remembers every burden, and he honors every step of our faith closer to Him. He honors that. And when Christ appears, when Christ appears and we stand in his presence, the faith he refined will shine to the praise of his praise, his honor and his glory, not ours, but his. I look at the scripture there in John 17 where Jesus prays first for the disciples, his eleven disciples, then he praised for us. And then he says, Lord, I will, Father, I will, that those you have given me will be with me where I am, that they may behold my glory. One day all of what we suffer here is going to be fulfilled in the glory of Christ, that every knee shall bow, and every tongue will confess that he is Lord to the glory of God. You know, this is the same hope the Spirit gave Paul when he wrote, Our light affliction, which is but for a moment, works for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. That glory of Of Jesus Christ when we are finally home with him. This is that same hope that James spoke of when he said that the trying of our faith works patience. It is the same hope of the writer of Hebrews spoke of when he said the Father disciplines his children for their prophet, that they may be partakers of his holiness. Many times again tells us that many times we start to drift down another road that we're not supposed to go. Trials will come in to direct us back to that path he set for our lives here on earth, serving his purpose here, serving his will here as Jesus came to fulfill the Father's will that we might too to fulfill his will in our lives. And it is this same hope the Spirit gives us today that the refining of our faith will be found to the praise and glory and honor of Christ at His appearing. Now the Lord brings before us a truth that touches the heart of every believer. Our love for Christ. Read with me if you will in verse eight. Whom having not seen speaking of Christ, ye love, and whom, though now ye see him not yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory. Whom having not seen ye love. You know, the early believers had not seen Christ with their own eyes, yet they loved him. Stephen saw him only in a vision when he was being stoned to death there in chapter Acts. That that was the in in the Acts chapter 7, excuse me. That was the final vision as he was being stoned to death. He looked up and saw Christ standing before the beside the throne, and he saw the Son of God, and he said, Lord, lay not this sin against them. Even then he asked in his dying words as he saw the Lord in glory, he knew he was it would not be long that he would be in his Lord's presence, and that brought peace in the midst of that circumstance. Peter saw him in his earthly ministry as he walked with him and talked to him, saw his miracles, saw his crucifixion and his resurrection. But the believers he wrote to had not seen Christ at all, but yet they believed in no love. Paul saw him on the road to Damascus, as he had papers in his hands to go persecute more Christians and bring them to prison for their fate. He saw him on the road to Damascus. And when the scales were lifted from his eyes, he knew who he was when on that road to Damascus. He said, Lord, what will you have me to do? He said, Lord, what will you have me to do? So he met Christ on the road to Damascus, but many believers never saw the him physically that Paul wrote to. And as he writes to us, no, we've never seen him. You know, and I want to mention this, Peter, of all people, knew of this love in the deeply personal way, because though he denied the Lord three times while he hung on the cross, he was restored by the risen Christ and commissioned to strengthen the brethren and to feed the Lord's sheep. His failure did not end his story, no, the grace of Christ did. That restoration made the mercy of God precious to him. And it gives a whole new meaning if you consider that in him writing this very scripture that we've been covering for some time now in these first 12 verses. And if you read on through his epistles, the grace that was restored unto him, even though he had denied the very Lord three times while he hung on the cross. But when Jesus on the cross, it says their eyes met that third time when the cock crowed, he looked and Jesus was looking down in him. He was looking into his eyes, but he was looking into his soul later on to be restored by the risen Lord and commissioned to feed the brother and to strengthen the brethren and to feed his sheep. This is the grace of Christ that he felt. And that registr that restoration made the mercy of God precious to him. And it is that mercy that he is speaking of to us here in the scripture. And it shaped every word he writes in this passage. Peter speaks as a man who has tasted forgiveness, walked in repentance, and been restored by the shepherd of his soul. And believers today still love him. We still love Jesus, who in our worst state, in the weakest part that we could be in, in the worst place we could be when He came to where we were and He lifted us out of that muck and that mire, and He washed us clean in His blood. But because the Spirit has opened our hearts to see His glory in the gospel, we have formed a deep love for Him. Trials that we experience deepen this love. Sorrows that we experience draw us nearer to Him. Heaviness of those manifold temptations makes Christ more precious than ever. Pressures teach us to lean on Him. Suffering reveals His nearness because that's when we look up and we find out He's been right with us the whole time. And the horrors of His cross, the horrors of Christ's cross remind us when we look upon the cross of whom stripes we were healed. When we look at those stripes that He suffered for us and all that He endured on the cross for us, the sufferings that we endure for His sake can ever compare to what He endured for us. And that right there strengthens us in Him as we consider that. We move on to the latter part of verse 8 where it says, In whom though now ye see Him not, yet believing, reminding us that faith sees what eyes cannot. Faith holds what hands cannot hold, and faith embraces what the world cannot understand. They don't understand us because they don't understand that faith that we have. They don't understand the one whom we have faith in. This is the very faith that the Holy Spirit brings before us in Hebrews chapter 11, where he tells us in God's word that faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen, affirming that faith gives present substance to the future promises. Faith treats the unseen Christ as real, the unseen inheritance as certain, and the unseen glory as already secured, thank God. Praise God for that. And Hebrews chapter 11, verse 2 reminds us that this is the faith by which the elders, speaking of the Old Testament saints, obtained a good report, not because they saw the fulfillment of what was promised, but because they trusted the God who had promised it. Their lives testify that faith rests on not on sight, but on the character of God Himself. Then we looked at verse 3 of chapter 11 of Hebrews, where it lifts our eyes even higher, showing that faith understands what the natural mind cannot, that the world were formed by framed by the word of God. If God, and we must consider this no matter what our circumstances are, if God can speak creation into existence, surely he can sustain our soul, keep our inheritance, and fulfill every promise he has ever made to us in Christ. Folks, I tell you it's wonderful. Then we uh we must look at the the latter portion here. He says in verse 8, uh, let's read that. He says, Ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory. We are told in these verses here two times that we've looked at that we rejoice. There in verse 6 he says, wherein ye greatly rejoice, wherein ye greatly rejoice. And then here in verse 8 he says, We rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory. Notice that in not we don't rejoice because of the heaviness, we don't rejoice, rejoice because of the trial or the circumstance, the adverse circumstances we deal with. No, we rejoice in them because we know the one who walks with us through them all and carries us through them many times when we lose our strength to be carried. We carry ourselves, he carries us on through. This is the joy uh the early church knew when they rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer for his name. And many times we want to gripe and complain about the least little thing. These people, their whole lives were destroyed, their whole lives were turned upside down for the sake of Christ, for proclaiming his name. Their families would have nothing to do with them. Now, I know in certain ways we we suffer that same persecution, but we know nothing of what, I mean, as they were burnt at the stake, boiled in oil, I mean, crucified by wrong. I mean, it was on and on and on, considered criminals for their faith. But it is the joy. This is the joy, that's what it's talking about. Joy in those circumstances. Not because of those circumstances, it's the joy Paul and Silas knew when they sang in prison. It's the joy Stephen knew when he saw the glory of the Lord. It is the joy believers through the ages have known in persecution, hardship, and loss. And it is the joy believers today still know. And you know what I'm talking about. A joy that does not deny sorrow, but rises above it. It's a joy that does not erase heaviness but shines through it. It's a joy that does not depend on circumstances, but rests in Christ and Christ alone. This joy is unspeakable. That means it's beyond words. Our finite words cannot describe this kind of joy. Our finite words cannot tell others about how to explain the joy we have no matter what the circumstances may be. The joy we stand in in Christ and Christ alone. This joy is full of glory. It's touched by heaven. That's what that means, is touched by heaven. This joy is rooted in Christ, not in the world. And then this joy, this joy, this Christ is Christ given. Do you understand that? This joy that I'm talking about, the scripture's telling us about, and you know as well as I do, the joy that you have is because it's Christ given, and it's sustained by the Holy Spirit, and it's heaven-touched joy. It's not the end of our experience, no, by no means. You see, we must look at it as a joy that we experience now, a joy that rises in trials, a joy that flows from loving and believing an unseen Christ. It is not the final experience of our our belief here on earth. It is the beginning. It is not early evidence of salvation that will one day be revealed in its fullness. And with that joy set before us, the Lord now directs our attention to the ultimate outcome. Oh, and I love this. The ultimate outcome of our faith. The ultimate outcome of our joy that He Himself has given and sustained. Read with me if you will, and I can't help but just smile and laugh a little bit as I read this verse, because this is what we've been building to from verse 1 all the way through. Receiving verse 9. Now I want you to read it with me and let's praise the Lord here together. Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your soul. That right there brings all the joy in the world, no matter what the circumstances is, that we can receive the end of our faith. See, the trial is in, is like it's it's just carrying us through. We're carried through those trials because we know that the end of our faith, the end of our faith in Christ, in Christ alone, is the salvation of our souls. Our identity here in Him, it's what it's speaking of. It's to the highest point. Everything in verses 1 through 8 has been moving us toward this truth, where we have seen our identity in Him here, the new birth, the living hope, the heavenly inheritance, the keeping of by the power of God, the love of Christ, the faith in Christ, the joy in Christ. All of it leads to this final reality, the completed salvation of every believer. When Peter speaks of the end of your faith, he is describing the goal, the completion, the full realization of everything God has promised. Faith is not an end of itself. Faith is the God-given means by which we were joined to Christ now. And it is through this same faith that we still will one day receive the fullness of what Christ has secured. Praise God for that. Praise God for that. What has he secured for us? Let's look at verse 4 again. In the inheritance, incorruptible, undefiled, and it fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, us who are kept. This is powerful right here. They are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation, ready to be revealed in the last time. Praise God when Christ appears, everything will be complete. We will finally see what salvation of our souls truly means. Salvation of our souls does not refer to a partial salvation, but to a complete deliverance of the whole person, the inner life, the true self, the eternal being. Salvation begins the moment we believe, and we all know this. It continues as the Spirit continually sanctifies us as we strive each day to be more conformed to the image of Christ. And well, one day, it will, it will, and I say it will, not maybe. This is not a maybe. This is not, well, we hope it's going to be so. No, we know that one day it will be completed when we stand in the presence of Jesus Christ Himself. This is the salvation the Lord is pointing to, the final, perfected, glorified state of every believer in eternity. This future salvation is certain because it rests entirely on the purpose of God, the work of Christ, the power of the Spirit. The God who began the work in you and I will finish it. The Christ who purchased salvation will bring his people into it, and the Spirit who sustains faith will carry that faith to its appointed end and perfection. Praise God for that. This is the believer's assurance. The end of faith is not uncertainty, it is salvation. The end of faith that we have is not loss. It is fullness. The end of our faith is not darkness, it is glory. And whose glory am I talking about? Not our glory, but the glory of Christ when we're finally brought home to be with Him. Not because of anything in us, but because of everything in Christ. Through these verses, the Spirit comforts his us with steady, enduring truth. Through these verses, every verse that we have read has been building upon that enduring truth, the salvation of our souls. He reminds us, dear born-again believers, brothers and sisters in Christ, this reminds us that trials we face are not random. They are not wasted. They are not without purpose. God uses them to strengthen faith, deepen love, produce joy, and prepare us for the glory that awaits. He teaches us that we are strangers and pilgrims in this world, that our lives, our true home, our true home, our eternal home is with Christ, and that every step of our journey is under the Father's watchful care. He ensures us through these verses that Christ walks with us in every trial, that the Spirit strengthens us in every weakness, and that the inheritance reserved for us is untouched by anything we face here in this life. To every true born again believer, your trial is not unnoticed, your sorrow is not forgotten, your faith is not unsupported, your future is not uncertain. The Lord is completing his work in you, and he will bring you safely to the end of your faith, the salvation of your soul. Praise God. Through these verses, and I'm speaking to the unbeliever, those that have not yet received Christ as our Lord and Savior. There's something the Spirit is speaking to you right now, every soul that has not yet come to Christ. He shows you that life in this world is marked by trials, pressures, and sorrows. But without Christ, these experiences have no lasting purpose, no eternal meaning, and no true comfort. You can fool yourself, you can fool man, but you can't fool God. You're the one that has laid down at night, and you go through that emptiness day in and day out in your heart, and I know where you're at because I've been there. That's why I'm so passionate for Christ, because I know what He brought me from, to what He's brought me to today, and that's that living hope that I have, that eternal inheritance, and praise God, that joy in the midst of any circumstance. But He's calling you to come to Christ today to experience that. He's calling you to the one who died for your sins, the one who rose again, the one who offers forgiveness. The one who gives eternal life, the one who walks with his people through every trial, the one who alone can save your soul. You too can have that experience, that eternal experience, the salvation of your soul, the end of your faith. But that faith must come. That faith must begin somewhere, and that's where we go back to where you're at now. You're in a world of sin. You're in the sinful world. You're full of sin now. You're full of emptiness now. And that's something to be full of is emptiness. But there's something to be had, and that it comes through repentance. Repentance is where you turn from the world of sin that you're in right now. You turn from the person you are right now, and you turn fully to God by placing your faith solely in Christ Jesus the Lord and his finished redemptive work on Calvary's cross. You believe that his blood as the risen Son of God can cleanse you completely from all of your sin. And you repent of those sins. You turn from them and you turn to God by placing all of your trust in him, in him alone. Only Christ can save. He said, I am the way, I am the truth, and I am the life. No man cometh to the Father but by me. There's no other name given among men, given under heaven among men, whereby we must be saved. Notice that's an emphatic. We must be saved through Christ and Christ alone. There's no other way. Don't let man lead you astray. Listen to what the Lord is saying to you today. And if you hear that voice in you drawing you today, that's the Holy Spirit using what's been said from the Word of God today, this scripture, to be drawing you from that world you're in, drawing you, saying that change that you need to make. You need to make this change today. He's drawing you. You're hearing that voice tell you, you need to change. You need to be transformed. And the only way you can truly transform is to repent and ask Christ, the risen Lord, to be Lord of your life. And that is the only way you can be saved. And that's biblical now. It's not what Jeff Thomas is saying to you. I can take you through the scriptures. If you need somebody to pray with you, if you want somebody to talk to about this, I can lead you further in the scriptures. My number is 864-309-9087. Or you can reach me by email at Jeff ThomasTheNumber4 Christ at Yahoo.com. I'll be glad to pray with you. I'll be glad to take you through the scriptures and answer any questions that you might have. I'm not saying I know everything, but I do believe I know enough of the word of God that I can lead you, uh, that I can show you that will lead you into faith. A faith that cannot be shaken by any circumstance here in this life. And that's what scripture is telling you today. Everything you experience now, you can experience with him, but you can also have him to carry you through it instead of trying to go through it by yourself. So once you give your heart to Christ today, I thank you so much for joining me today for this blessed word from the Word of God. And I look forward to the next time that we can join together. Well, we'll look at, Lord willing, we'll look at verses 10 and 12, and we'll 10 through 12, and we'll finish out this study here in 1 Peter. May the Lord bless you and strengthen you and strengthen every believer and draw every unbeliever to his son. I look forward to the next time that we can share in a word from the Word of God. God bless you all.