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• Even though Peter talks about suffering and persecution, he talks much more about faithfulness, holiness, about what it means to belong to be God’s people, and how we are to live in this fallen world.
• It takes courage to face your problems, it takes courage to strive for holiness, it takes courage to live for God—especially in a culture that is increasingly non-Christian.
• Big Idea: As believers, we have an unfair advantage in facing trials.

• 1 Peter 1:3
• If Jesus has power over death, he certainly has power over your life.
• If we believe what the Bible says about Jesus Christ and the future of this world, optimism is our only option. We must be people of hope.
• Every believer can live with the assurance that the best is yet to come.
• 1 Peter 1:4-5,10,13
• 1 Corinthians 2:9
• 1 Peter 1:6

• Peter was talking about not only persecution but health problems, relationship problems, job problems, money problems, and on and on.
• 1 Peter 1:7
• God doesn’t need to test you for his own benefit; the test reveals to you the areas of your Christian life that are lacking, the areas that need improvement.
• Illustration: May confesses an anecdote of a minor trial he suffered while on a missions trip that revealed to him the selfishness of his heart.
• 1 Peter 1:7
• Trials will bring you much praise and glory and honor.
• Every time you go through the fire, every time you pass the test, Jesus is there on the other side, waiting to say, “Good job! Well done!”

• 1 Peter 1:5
• The connotation is not just that God helps you endure the problem as much as it is that God helps you defeat the problem.

• Everybody’s got problems, but people who are born again have an unfair advantage.