ALL THE BAD NEWS MAY BE A GOOD TIME TO REFLECT ON OUR FAITH - As the COVID crisis prompts people to ponder over the fragility and uncertainty of life on earth, we can, as individuals and a community, give them a glimpse of how our faith in God helps us cope with fear and worry, and stand firm in unshakeable hope. As Hebrews 12:28 assures us, “we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken.” “These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith — of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire — may result in praise, glory and honour when Jesus Christ is revealed.” Day after day, the media is full of bad news. More COVID cases. More companies retrenching workers. More warnings of hard times ahead. Everything seems to be crumbling around us. What should believers make of all this? Are these signs of the end times? Is this a period of testing for all? Or is this time for us to reflect on our personal walk with God and think about how we express and practise our faith in daily life? Perhaps this is a good time for each of us to ask ourselves questions like: What does it mean to trust God when I have practical fears like being infected or losing my job? What do I depend on God for when things don’t work out the way I hope? Do I believe God is really in control of my life and sovereign over all things? It’s clear that no-one is going to escape the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak.

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All the Bad News May Be a Good Time to Reflect on Our Faith

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As the COVID crisis prompts people to ponder over the fragility and uncertainty of life on earth, we can, as individuals and a community, give them a glimpse of how our faith in God helps us cope with fear and worry, and stand firm in unshakeable hope - as Hebrews 12:28 assures us, “we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken”

Our Daily Bread

“These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith — of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire — may result in praise, glory and honour when Jesus Christ is revealed.” - 1 Peter 1:7

It’s been a little depressing reading the news of late.

Even if you’re personally not too worried about the COVID-19 outbreak itself, it’s clear that no-one is going to escape its impact.

In Singapore, we’ve been hearing repeated warnings about how the coronavirus outbreak will hit our economy, as fears and strict measures hit the travel, retail, and other industries.

Day after day, the media is full of bad news. More COVID cases. More companies retrenching workers.

More warnings of hard times ahead.

And that’s just Singapore.

Around the world, the picture is even more dismal.

And as if that’s not bad enough, nature is throwing in some flooding, locusts, and tornadoes into the mix.

Everything seems to be crumbling around us.

What should believers make of all this?

Are these signs of the end times?

Is this a period of testing for all?

Or is this a time for us to reflect on our personal walk with God and really think about how we express and practise our faith in daily life?

Already, many Christians in Singapore have had to figure out whether they should continue attending church service.

Some are tussling with the question of why all this is happening, and what they should do.

Perhaps this is a good time for each of us to ask ourselves questions like:

What does it mean to trust God when I have practical fears like being infected or losing my job?

What do I depend on God for, and how will I respond when things don’t work out the way I hope?

Do I believe God is really in control of my life and sovereign over all things?

As we reflect on such questions with honesty, however, let’s not beat ourselves up if we feel overwhelmed or weakened by fear or doubt

Rather, let’s spur ourselves on to walk closely with God and deepen our faith in Him.

I believe our Father is thrilled when a disciple in his inadequacy looks to Him for strength and help to please Him.

As 1 Peter 1:7 notes, times of testing can be times of refinement: “These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith — of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire — may result in praise, glory and honour when Jesus Christ is revealed.”

As the COVID crisis prompts people to ponder over the fragility and uncertainty of life on earth, we can, as individuals and a community, give them a glimpse of how our faith in God helps us cope with fear and worry, and stand firm in unshakeable hope.

As Hebrews 12:28 assures us, “we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken.” — Leslie Koh

Lord, teach me

to keep looking to You

and depending on You

in such a time of bad news.

I know I can trust You fully,

for You are in complete control

of my life and the world.

Our mission is to make the life-changing wisdom of the Bible understandable and accessible to all.

https://ourdailybread.org/spotlight-all-the-bad-news-may-be-a-good-time-to-reflect-on-our-faith/

REFINED IN THE FIRE - Perhaps you feel like you’re in a refiner’s fire — feeling the heat of setbacks, illness, or other challenges. But hardship is often the process by which God purifies the gold of our faith. In our pain we might beg God to quickly end the process, but He knows what’s best for us, even when life hurts. Keep connected to the Savior, seeking His comfort and peace. We can embrace by faith the record of Scripture and the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives as evidence of the truth of what we’ve not seen but believed “For we live by faith, not by sight” “These trials will show that your faith is genuine.” Twenty-four–karat gold is nearly 100 percent gold with few impurities. But that percentage is difficult to achieve. Refiners most commonly use one of two methods for the purification process. The Miller process is the quickest and least expensive, but the resulting gold is only about 99.95 percent pure. The Wohlwill process takes a little more time and costs more, but the gold produced is 99.99 percent pure. In Bible times, refiners used fire as a gold purifier. Fire caused impurities to rise to the surface for easier removal. In his first letter to believers in Jesus throughout Asia Minor (northern Turkey), the apostle Peter used the gold-refining process as a metaphor for the way trials work in the life of a believer. At that time, many believers were being persecuted by the Romans for their faith in Christ.

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Refined in the Fire

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Perhaps you feel like you’re in a refiner’s fire — feeling the heat of setbacks, illness, or other challenges. But hardship is often the process by which God purifies the gold of our faith. In our pain we might beg God to quickly end the process, but He knows what’s best for us, even when life hurts. Keep connected to the Savior, seeking His comfort and peace. We can embrace by faith the record of Scripture and the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives as evidence of the truth of what we’ve not seen but believed “For we live by faith, not by sight”

Our Daily Bread

Read: 1 Peter 1:6–9

“These trials will show that your faith is genuine.” - 1 Peter 1:7 NLT

Twenty-four–karat gold is nearly 100 percent gold with few impurities.

But that percentage is difficult to achieve.

Refiners most commonly use one of two methods for the purification process.

The Miller process is the quickest and least expensive, but the resulting gold is only about 99.95 percent pure.

The Wohlwill process takes a little more time and costs more, but the gold produced is 99.99 percent pure.

In Bible times, refiners used fire as a gold purifier.

Fire caused impurities to rise to the surface for easier removal.

In his first letter to believers in Jesus throughout Asia Minor (northern Turkey), the apostle Peter used the gold-refining process as a metaphor for the way trials work in the life of a believer.

At that time, many believers were being persecuted by the Romans for their faith in Christ.

Peter knew what that was like firsthand.

But persecution, Peter explained, brings out the “genuineness of [our] faith” (1 Peter 1:7).

Perhaps you feel like you’re in a refiner’s fire — feeling the heat of setbacks, illness, or other challenges.

But hardship is often the process by which God purifies the gold of our faith.

In our pain we might beg God to quickly end the process, but He knows what’s best for us, even when life hurts.

Keep connected to the Savior, seeking His comfort and peace.

What challenges have you faced that led to your growth? How did you respond to them?

Father God, help me see how the trials of my life bring out the gold in me.

INSIGHT

In 1 Peter 1:8, Peter is reinforcing an important idea that goes back to the gospel of John.

In John 20:29, the risen Christ said to Thomas, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

That includes all in our generation who have followed Jesus.

While we weren’t present when He was physically on this earth, we can embrace by faith the record of Scripture (1 Corinthians 15:3–4) and the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives (Romans 8:16) as evidence of the truth of what we’ve not seen but believed (John 16:13–15).

As Paul wrote, “For we live by faith, not by sight” - (2 Corinthians 5:7).

Bible in a Year: Psalms 97–99; Romans 16

Our Daily Bread

Our mission is to make the life-changing wisdom of the Bible understandable and accessible to all.

Our vision is to see people of all nations experiencing a personal relationship with Christ, growing to be more like Him, and serving in a local body of His family.

https://ourdailybread.ca/refined-in-the-fire/