February 5, 2023: 1 Peter 1:4-5 - Our Incorruptible, Undefiled, and Eternal Inheritance

“…to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” - 1 Peter 1:4-5

Have you ever inherited something? If you did, you may have been a family member of a loved one or a close friend of someone who died. Whatever it was that you inherited, a house, a piece of land, a car, jewelry, or a complete estate, you inherited that which the person who died previously owned. However that person had come to acquire it, you may not know. They may have acquired it legally, or they may have acquired it by some other means. Whatever it was that you inherited, whether it is was in excellent or poor condition, one day, it will fade away. Every single thing we have ever owned will at one time or another fade away. Yes, with maintenance, it can delay the process of decay, but without it, it doesn’t take long for that thing to fall apart.

Have you ever driven out in the country or perhaps even in the city when a building is literally falling apart? I remember driving out in the country and seeing an old wooden home and barn, with wood once vibrant now faded and grey, having sat vacant for years, leaning to one side, just waiting for a strong wind to cause them finally to fall to the ground. As I drove by, I remember wondering what that house and barn looked like when it was first built. Perhaps a family lived there with young children, playing on the front porch and then happily walking to the barn, speaking to and petting the animals within it. There may have been beautiful flowers decorating the front yard, planted by their mother, and a fence built by their father that contained it all, their home, their little piece of heaven. And now, here it was, just an empty, decaying shell of what it used to be. All glory that it once had has now been lost.

As children of God, we who have put our trust in Jesus Christ to save us from all our sins, who have Him as our living hope, will inherit something too, but we will receive our inheritance when we are with Him. The inheritance that we will receive through faith in Jesus is everlasting life in with Him in the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God will be a new heaven, a new earth, and a new holy city - Jerusalem - that is built by God Himself, not by defiled human hands. God’s kingdom will be eternal, and will never fade away. All sin will have been removed, allowing believers in Christ to live in complete joy and peace with Jesus Christ. Our inheritance was bought by Him for us with His precious blood. It cannot be bought by us, for it is freely given by Him to all who would believe. No one can receive it by any other means except through Him, for it is incorruptible.

If you have unforgiven sin in your life when you die, you cannot inherit eternal life with Jesus but instead, your eternity will be spent in hell. Hell is a place where Jesus does not want you to go, but if you reject His free gift of salvation, you yourself will choose to go to hell, a place of eternal corruption, defilement, pain, and suffering. Any perceived glory that you had once on earth, even if you were a king or a president, a world leader, or one of the world’s most wealthy people, will all be gone, just like the old house and barn I saw in the countryside.

The Bible tells us many times that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God. The only way we can become righteous is through faith - by believing - in Jesus Christ as the only One who can save us from our sins. 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 is one such passage of scripture:

“Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.”

All of us, every single person who has ever lived on this earth, are sinners. The only way for that sin to be washed clean is to believe in Jesus Christ. He took on all our sin when He was crucified, died, resurrected, and ascended to heaven with God the Father, where He is today. And, Jesus did it once and for all, saying, “It is finished.” (John 19:30)

I leave you with the words of the apostle Paul:

“In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.” (Ephesians 1:13-14)

And I ask you this question: Is this inheritance reserved for you? ✝️