December 28, 2025 | Ptr JP Masakayan
For all of us who are followers of Jesus, let us make a commitment to live for our Heavenly Father’s pleasure this coming new year. We can do so in three simple ways:
To know what pleases God and how we may please our Heavenly Father, we must know Him more. What we learn about Christ in our passage today is that He suffered. Jesus Christ suffered though He didn’t deserve to suffer for He never sinned. He took on the mantle of suffering for our sake — to pay for our sins. His suffering had a higher purpose, to bring us to God (1 Peter 3:18). Jesus was able to bear His suffering because He also had absolute knowledge that He would rise again. We must have the same attitude when we go through suffering in this world. God allows His children to suffer not because He’s mean, but that there’s a higher purpose being accomplished through it and there is a great reward at the tail end (1 Peter 4:1). Scripture tells us that in this life, there will be trouble, but Jesus tells us to take heart because He has overcome the world. When we suffer the consequences of our wrongdoing or wrong decisions, we learn to avoid doing the same things. As believers in Christ, our conduct must change, putting aside our sinful ways (v.2). Instead, we must live in accordance with God’s will. To know God and His will, we must…
READ ABOUT GOD
God, the Author makes Himself known through His word and it is the medium through which our transformation takes place (1 Peter 1:23). Upon joining a company, you read their manual to know the benefits you can expect and to know what is expected of you (1 Peter 2:1-3). “God formed us. Sin deformed us. The Bible informs us. But Jesus transforms us.” Our lives need to go through a dark phase to turn the “negatives” into “positives”, to get a glorious result after the process is done. “Conversion without formation is fragility”, when you’ve been transferred from darkness to light, but you do not mature in the process, then it won’t take much problems, trials and persecutions for you to fall apart. This is what happens when we don’t practice what we learn from God’s word (Matthew 7:26-27). Spurgeon said, “A Bible that’s falling apart usually belongs to someone who isn’t.” You should meditate on God’s Word, read it thoughtfully and most importantly, to listen to our Master’s voice to obey Him. Much like how a loyal dog is alert to its master’s command to obey it. Application is very important because even if we know so many Bible verses but don’t apply them, God’s word will not have much effect on us. As A.W. Tozer wrote, “Let us start reading our Bibles with the thought that God means exactly what He says.”
Some people may give the excuse of busyness for not reading the Bible, but if something is important to you, you will carve out time for it. If we can watch K-dramas daily, surely, we can make time for God’s word! Others say that they can’t understand Scripture, but as St. Jerome said, “The Scriptures are shallow enough for a babe to come and drink without fear of drowning, and deep enough for a theologian to swim in without ever reaching the bottom.” Even if you’ve read the Bible daily for decades, there are fresh insights that you will glean today that you’ve never had before. As you apply God’s word, there are those who may mock you because your conduct has changed (1 Peter 4:3-4).
SHARE ABOUT GOD
It’s not just about what you say but what you do that’s important in how you live your life as a child of God (1 Peter 2:12, 15-16). “Preach the gospel at all times. When necessary, use words” (St. Francis of Assisi). What is needed for people to believe the gospel we preach is for them to see it lived out, more than just spoken. Those who mock or abuse you because of your testimony will be accountable before God for what they say and do (1 Peter 4:5-6). Many believers fear that people will fight them and be nasty towards them if they share Christ to them. We need not fight them, but with great love and concern share God’s truth with them (1 Peter 3:15). Do not be discouraged even if there are those who reject you…they are not actually rejecting you but Christ. But there are those who also have positive reactions to the gospel. They get to reflect on how they’ve been living and are given the opportunity to repent. Seize the opportunity to share the gospel while people are still on earth (1 Peter 4:5-6). God will cause the growth in the seeds of the gospel that we plant, and others will water along the way and someday, these lives will bear much fruit!
LIVE FOR GOD
Today, more than ever, we can see, hear and even feel that the end of days is near (1 Peter 4:7). The Bible has 31,102 verses; how do we begin to make sense of God’s Word? Like a huge jigsaw puzzle, start at the edges and Revelation is at the very edge of Scripture. Jesus declared, “LOOK, I AM COMING SOON! …” and we need to obey His word (Revelation 22:7). We are also promised rewards if we live properly and so we’re to emphatically agree for Jesus to come soon (Revelation 22:12, 20)! Because the end is near, we are instructed to live for God, to conduct ourselves towards others in a way that gives glory to Him and as a witness for Jesus to others (1 Peter 4:8-11). Be a “force multiplier” for God’s Army; use whatever gifts we have received from the Lord to reach souls and raise disciples this 2026! This New Year, let us all live for our Father’s pleasure!