1 Peter 1:4 - Inheritance

1 Peter 1:4

“…and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade – kept in heaven for you,”

I have received one inheritance in my life. My dad’s parents died about 3 months apart from each other while I was in seminary. They had been in poor health for sometime – my grandmother had a stroke and was bedridden and my grandfather became too senile to care for himself. They had been in a nursing home in their hometown of Bartlesville, OK for about 8 years.

A couple of months after they had both passed, my dad pulled me aside, reached into his wallet and said, “Here is your portion of the inheritance from my folks,” and handed me $35. After paying for medical expenses, years in a nursing home, and funeral expenses – their remaining estate was pretty slim.

It was kind of sad; not because I wanted more money, but because my grandfather worked hard all his life – he came to Oklahoma in a covered wagon with his family when he was a child, labored in the oil fields of Texas and Oklahoma as a teenager, sold cars out of his driveway, and worked for public service as an electrician. He worked and saved for years, but what he put away for his family mostly perished, spoiled, and faded.

To have an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade is an amazing promise. Even if my dad had handed me $100,000 that day – that money and the things purchased with that money, would eventually disappear. But our inheritance from God will last forever because our inheritance IS God. God is eternal, so our inheritance is eternal. God is the giver of good gifts, so our inheritance will be good. God created us, so he knows exactly what inheritance would be best for us – so it will be unbelievably good!

Peter begins his letter to the persecuted church with these promises to remind them that a better reward awaits. We can put up with a lot of pain and discomfort if we know there is something good at the end. Why do we eat bean sprouts, lift weights, and run till we drop – because we know those actions will produce a healthier version of ourselves. Peter is shining a light at the end of the tunnel to give the church something to focus on beyond the persecution. That is often the only way to make it through hard times, reminding yourself that better days are coming.

While that $35 of Bartlesville green is long gone, I’m thankful that I have another inheritance. My grandparents taught me how to ride a horse, shoot a gun, swing an axe, eat large amounts of food, appreciate homemade chocolate chip cookies and cinnamon rolls, and countless other things. I remember laughing and playing and working alongside my grandmother and grandfather – and though they have been gone for many years now – I love them still.

And that inheritance will last forever – I am a grateful heir.