The book of 1 Peter was written around 64 a.d., when a man by the name of Nero become Emperor in Rome, and Rome pretty much ruled the civilized world. There are two things about Nero that stand out: He was crazy (there’s a better medical name for his condition, but his thinking was totally warped;) He hated Christians, and he saw to it that they were severely persecuted. In addition to many having been put to death, Christians had their property seized by this hostile Roman government; and, at the time this was written, the worse had not yet occurred.
I’ve heard people say, “The more I try to serve the Lord, the more trouble I seem to have.” That’s exactly where these Christians were, and whether you are talking about Christians today, or these Christians back in the 1st century, the reason is the same. When a person is lost or lukewarm and backslidden, that person is no threat to the devil’s agenda; but, when someone gets serious about being a follower and a disciple of Christ, that person becomes a problem to the devil’s plan. So, we should ask ourselves if we are having any trouble with the devil.”
For a long time, we have lived in relative comfort in the Western world, but things are now changing. It is likely that we are not too far away from some really serious Christian persecution.
The political arena is different than it has ever been before. Used to, the difference in the major political parties was mostly a matter of which economic approach is best for the country. Now, these two parties are divided by their positions same sex marriage, abortion, the future of our constitution, and role of government in our lives. The book of 1 Peter is very relevant to our present day situation.
Let’s look first at the salutation, the introduction to this letter:
The very first word identifies the writer as Peter, and apostle of Jesus Christ. The word apostle is used in two ways: Someone who is sent by another with a message. That’s in the general sense. Then, there is the usage of the word that Peter uses here: Someone who is sent out by Christ with new revelation.
Now, there are some groups who believe that the Bible is not the complete revelation of God’s word to man. I see preachers on TV giving long dissertations about what God told them. At the end of the book of Revelation, there is a warning against adding to, or taking away, from the prophecy of this book.
God speaks to us today, through the Holy Spirit to illuminate the word that He has already revealed. But Peter identifies himself as one whom Christ had given new revelation.
This is addressed to “strangers scattered.” Some of the newer translations say, “pilgrims of the dispersion.” We are strangers and pilgrims in this world, because heaven is our eternal home, but the more immediate context of this is that they are strangers in these places that are named in v1.
Now, we need to understand why these people were scattered to these places. They had left their beloved homeland because of persecution.
But, I want you to see the hand of God in all this. Jesus had said in Acts 1:8, “After the Holy Ghost is come upon you, you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost parts of the earth.” In Matthew 28:19-20, Jesus said to make disciples of all people from all nations, but after more than 20 years had gone by they were still huddled up in Jerusalem. God allowed persecution to drive them out and get them jump started in doing what he said do. Most of us can identify with that. When we look back on our lives, we see things that we certainly would not have chosen, yet we realize now that the thing we thought was bad opened the door to something very good.
They are called “elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father,” in verse 2. The truth is, God knows everything past, present, and future. Someone said, “Did it ever occur to you that nothing ever occurred to God?” The elect are the “whosoever wills,” who turn to Christ in faith, but it is absolutely no surprise to God when a person turns to Him, or doesn’t turn to Him. But it’s really more than just fore knowledge, it is God’s sovereign choice. I heard about a a couple who thought they couldn’t have children, so they adopted a baby boy. As sometimes happens, in a very short time after that, they realized that they could have children and they had one on the way. They had another little boy and as these two boys grew, one day the younger one reminded the older one that he was adopted. Well, the little adopted boy was pretty sharp. He told his brother, “When you were born, mom and dad had to take whatever they got, but they came and picked me out special.” Each of us who are saved can rejoice in the fact that we have been chosen.
Notice the next phrase: it is the Holy Spirit who sanctifies us, or sets us apart from the rest of the world that we may obey the Lord. It is nothing less than a miracle inside of us that so changes us that we are able to say, “Not my will, by Thine be done.”
The last part of v2 speaks of the “sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ.” This is not a reference to sprinkling for baptism, though I can see how one might think that it is. In the Old Testament, Exodus 3:8, Moses sprinkled the people with the same blood of the sacrifice that was sprinkled on the altar. It was a vivid reminder that they were connected with the sacrifice that had been offered for them. This is Peter telling these persecuted Christians that they are under the Blood of Christ. The word “sprinkling” here, literally means being put under. Peter is saying, “Be obedient to the Lord and live like who you are: one who has been placed under the Blood of Christ.
V2 ends with the often used words in the New Testament letters, “Grace and peace.” It has been noticed by many that these words always come in this order. It never says, “peace and grace,” but always “grace and peace.” The significance of that is that you will never really know the peace of God, until you’ve experienced the grace of God.
Then Peter tells us that God has given us a “living hope.” It’s all about living as opposed to dying. We were dead in trespasses and sins, but now we’ve been made alive forevermore through faith in Christ. This word hope is not used in such a way to say that it is our desire, but it may or may not happen. It refers to a sure thing to which we look forward by faith.
In verse 4, we are told that we have an inheritance. We begin living in eternal life the instant we are saved, and we have heaven and all that it holds waiting for us when the pilgrimage of this life is over. Peter uses three negative terms in a positive way to speak of our inheritance. First, he says that it cannot be destroyed. Most everything in this life that we would call an asset can be destroyed, but not this inheritance. Secondly, it cannot be defiled. This old world in which we now live has been raped, wrecked and ruined by sin, but this inheritance is fully shielded from all that. Nothing sinful will ever enter in. The only way any of us can enter in is by the fact that we have been placed our faith in the finished work of Christ, and He has accounted to us for righteousness. It is also revealed to us that before we step on heaven’s bright shore, we will be changed in a moment, in a twinkling of an eye, and all sinful thoughts and ways will be left far behind us. We will see Jesus, and we will be like Him, for we will see Him as He is. Hallelujah! Thirdly, it can never be decayed. One might buy a new car or a new house, but as the years go by the decay comes. We look at our picture from years past and we see something much different from the reflection we now see in the mirror. The outward man is perishing! We are in the process of decay, like it or not. Heaven will not decay. No maintenance will ever be required there. There is no sin there, and it is the effects of sin that cause things to decay. When we’ve been there ten thousand years bright shining as the sun, we’ve no less days to sing God’s praise, than when we first begun! Wouldn’t that make a good song?
Verse 5 says we are kept by the power of God. A man was walking down the street with his little boy, and the boy was holding on to his dad’s finger. When they came to a busy street crossing, the man opened his hand and griped the boys complete hand and wrist. We may think we are holding on to His unchanging hand, but the reality is, He is holding us. Most of us have messed a lot of things up in our life time, but we can’t mess our soul salvation up. John 5:24 says that we have eternal life and shall not come into condemnation, but that we have passed from death unto life. That makes me “Amen” myself!
