Hope seems to be in short supply today. No one will admit it to you, but you just have to listen to what they say and how they act. People are so angry because they lack hope. They yell and scream for others to change, so their life will be better. It never gets better, so they sink lower. You have the opportunity to give others hope when they ask you about your faith.
1 Peter 3:15
“But sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence;”
Be Gentle
Peter tells his readers that they need to be ready to defend their faith if someone asks them. Now before you get worried about debating and knowing apologetics, let me put your anxiety at rest. This is addressed to those who have people who ask them about their faith, not to those looking for an argument. You need to tell people about Jesus with gentleness and reverence because He is the hope in you. You have an opportunity to give others hope that is in short supply today.
Sanctify Your Heart
Peter tells us the key to all of this. He tells you to sanctify Jesus as Lord in your heart. Sanctify means to set apart. You need to set Jesus at the center of your life and let everything else be a far second to that. When you crowd Jesus out of your life, it’s hard to see others, especially lost people, as He does.
Give Others Hope
When you explain your faith, look at it as a chance to give others hope. When you do, you will look at your hope in a different light. We have hope because the death sentence of sin has been removed, we’ve been promised eternal life with Jesus, and the Holy Spirit lives in us. Those who don’t know Jesus don’t have that hope. Yet, if God can put that hope in you, He can put it in anyone. Don’t shy away from defending your faith when asked.