Regeneration multiplied.

1Pe 1:1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the elect sojourners of the Dispersion of Pontus, of Galatia, of Cappadocia, of Asia, and of Bithynia, 2 according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, to obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ. May grace and peace be multiplied to you. 3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has regenerated us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, and unfading, reserved in Heaven for you 5 by the power of God, having been kept through faith to a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time;

Wow, what an opening statement, such revelation, if only we can grasp it and put it in our spirit:

“grace and peace be multiplied to you”

Not just a `single` helping of grace and peace, but a multiplication of grace and peace! And even better, a continuation of the multiplication: exponential growth of peace and grace.

Two times two equals four, four times four equals sixteen and sixteen times sixteen equals two hundred and fifty six and on and on.

Not only did we absolutely not regenerate ourselves (I can’t even save myself out of a wet paper packet) the Creator of everything, regenerates us, not according to our capabilities, but according to His great mercy.

We were not just regenerated, we were regenerated to “to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, and unfading, reserved in Heaven for you 5 by the power of God,”

Nothing on earth or anywhere else for that matter, can touch my inheritance, it can not spoil or be spoilt, it can not be damaged or diminished because the dunamis power of God, protects it.

But, there is a condition:

Faith!

I have to maintain my faith. I cannot afford for one minute of one hour of one day, to let go and slip. I have to nurture and keep my faith.

Heb 10:22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies having been washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering (for He is faithful who promised),

And

Heb 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

I will continue to believe, unwaveringly, that I have an inheritance waiting for me.

Life may throw it`s curve balls at me, sickness and disease may want to continue it’s attack, poverty may desire to take a chunk out of me, but: my reward awaits me.

Nothing can take that away. Nothing can spoil it, because God, my God said so. Selah.

A Story of Faith

Pete had become lost in the desert and had been chasing mirages. He thought to himself, I'll follow this last one. It was a deserted town with a well in the very center. His mouth parched from the intense heat, he ran to the well with his last ounce of energy.

He vigorously pumped the handle only to find that no water came forth. Then, he looked up to a note nailed to the post. It instructed its readers to "look behind the rock where a five-gallon container of water will be found" and warned against drinking or using it for anything besides priming the pump. Every ounce was needed, and not even a drop could be spared, the note emphasized.

"After pouring the water down the pump, pump the handle vigorously and all the water you desire will come forth," the note said. One last instruction was to please fill the water can and place it behind the rock for the next weary soul who might happen to come along.

How hard it is for people to give up a "sure thing" for something they cannot see at the time. Pete had a sure thing in the bucket of water and yet was instructed to pour it "all" down the pump.

Faith is a daily necessity whether one is getting married, taking a job, struggling with an illness, or overcoming a handicap. And faith in God is the cornerstone of all other faiths. As one psychiatrist says, "When I learn a patient has no faith in God, I dismiss the case. There is nothing to build on."