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NORTH PINE BAPTIST CHURCH
Sunday 6th July 2025
1 Peter 1:3-12
“Getting The Attention of Angels”
We saw last week, when we looked at the first two verses of 1 Peter, that Peter has written his letters to the elect foreigners
… elect foreigners are disciples of Jesus who now have a totally different worldview to those who don’t know Jesus.
… elect foreigners are those who are scattered among the provinces – and all the nations and peoples and languages right through history.
Peter writes to these elect foreigners who are scattered among the provinces so that they can be equipped to stand firm in a world that is tempting them to just fit in.
Which is not easy to do.
It isn’t easy to avoid the temptation to not just fit in.
It isn’t easy to know that such a response to the world will bring suffering and persecution.
It isn’t easy to stand firm on the declaration that Jesus is the only way of salvation.
It isn’t easy and keep doing this in the face of calls for “tolerance”, and “acceptance”, and “let’s all agree that we all have different truths”.
Peter knows it isn’t easy. And we may even find ourselves asking, “why?” Why would we want to put ourselves through such difficulties?
Peter gives us some of the reasons why in 1 Peter 1:3-12
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, 5 who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.
6 In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 7 These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honour when Jesus Christ is revealed.
8 Though you have not seen Him, you love Him; and even though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9 for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
10 Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, 11 trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of the Messiah and the glories that would follow. 12 It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.
Why would you want to choose to have a worldview which you know will put you in the firing line?
It is a worldview that gives us a new birth into a living hope.
The word used by Peter is a word that relates to the concept of adoption. When a child was a adopted their connection with their biological parents comes to a close … and through their “new birth” they are given new parents – and also a new family.
That is what God the Father gives us through the death and resurrection of Jesus.
A new family.
A new way of life.
A new future.
A spiritual rebirth that replaces spiritual death with spiritual life.
It’s the very reason we are no longer citizens of this world. For we are no longer tied by a spiritual relationship to the world.
The spiritual DNA of Jesus, becomes our spiritual DNA.
And the outcome of this transformation is a living hope.
In our day and age hope is a word that comes with inbuilt uncertainty.
I hope a get a job.
I hope I passed my test.
In the NT hope is much more positive. It is an expression of expectation that the promise is already fulfilled.
The living hope is the certain and guaranteed expectation that the resurrection of Jesus has secured our resurrection. The resurrection is not just an event in history—it’s the power that gives life to our hope today. Because Jesus conquered death, we too are promised life beyond the grave, purpose in the present, and confidence in God's promises.
Our future life … even after we have died … is secured.
Through Jesus. Only through Jesus.
When we have such a hope … such an expectation … we can’t just fit in.
… …
Why else would you want to choose to have a worldview which you know will put you in the firing line?
It is also a worldview that gives an eternal inheritance
In the Old Testament, God promised His people an inheritance—the land of Canaan, a place of blessing and provision. But that inheritance could be lost, taken, or defiled. Peter now reveals that, through Jesus Christ, we are heirs to something far greater
… an inheritance which goes beyond the grave into eternity.
… an inheritance of having the unbroken joy of being in the very presence of God.
This inheritance will never perish—it cannot be destroyed by time, circumstance, or any spiritual enemy.
This inheritance will never spoil—it is untouched by corruption or decay, and it remains perfectly pure.
This inheritance will never fade—it doesn’t lose value, beauty, or power. It is as vibrant and sure today as when it was first promised.
And it is an inheritance that is already in place – it is kept in heaven because it is already there. God Himself is guarding your inheritance. It is not up to your strength, your performance, or your ability to hold on. God is the keeper.
This eternal inheritance gives us daily strength and conviction. When the world says, “Just fit in,” we say, “Why?”
Why would we want to fit into a world that is full of uncertainty, losses, and broken promises?
Why would we want to want such emptiness?
We have an eternal inheritance that God Himself is keeping for us.
That is where we fix our eyes, because that is where we belong. We are anchored to heaven and our lives need to be shaped by that glorious promise.
… …
Why else would you want to choose to have a worldview which you know will put you in the firing line?
It is a worldview that keeps shielding us, as we look towards our inheritance.
There is comfort in knowing that our eternity is sorted.
But there could be many decades between the time when we come to faith, and the time we enter eternity … and in that time we can go through many trials and difficulties. We live in a world where everything seems fragile—our health, relationships, economy, and even peace of mind—it’s easy to wonder if we’re truly safe. But Peter gives believers a profound promise; through faith, we are shielded by God’s power.
Shielding, or guarding, is a military term, describing a garrison or a fortress. The Romans built these structures into cities and towns to keep the city and town safe. It was a defensive mechanism to provide protection.
As we wait for our inheritance to be revealed God Himself continues to guard and shield us as we journey towards eternity. That doesn’t mean we won’t experience hardship or pain in this life. Peter is writing to Christians who were suffering greatly. But it does mean that God guards what truly matters—our salvation, our souls, and our eternal inheritance.
Nothing this world has to offer can give us that eternal hope. Nothing.
So when the world says, “Hey, just fit in” we say, “why would we?”
Why would we want to fit into a worldview of hopelessness?
Why world we take the scraps when we have the feast?
Why sit in the dust, when we have the eternal riches of heaven.
So we don’t just fit in.
Why would you want to choose to have a worldview which you know will put you in the firing line?
We have been given a new birth into a saving relationship with Jesus who promises to shield until we are given the eternal inheritance which God Himself has been keeping for us.
Yes … having such a worldview may put us at odds with the world but
… to be brutally frank
… so what?
When the world says, “just fit in” it is saying, “Just trade this worldview for a life which comes empty, and broken, and pitiful, and without eternal meaning”
NO THANK YOU
What Peter is describing here is a life that ought to cause us to sit up and take notice.
But sometimes we don’t really take notice do we.
Sometimes we kind of take it for granted.
Especially perhaps when we have known Jesus as our Saviour for some time.
But we shouldn’t take it for granted – especially when we see the wider group who have taken notice, and whose attention has been drawn, by the salvation Gospel.
One group who have taken notice and whose attention was grabbed by the Gospel are the prophets.
Here Peter is referring to that group of people from the Old Testament era who were looking ahead for the coming Messiah.
Moses.
Elijah.
Zechariah.
Jeremiah.
Malachi.
And many others.
They were searching intently. The prophets deeply studied and eagerly sought to understand God's plan of salvation and the coming Messiah they were inspired to speak about.
They took the greatest care. The prophets didn’t want to mislead, or make false conclusions, or inadvertently say something false. They were careful and precise.
They did this with the singular goal of knowing when the Messiah would be revelled. Even though some of the prophets spoke centuries, some more than 1000 years, before Jesus—these same prophets already knew that the coming of the Messiah was central for salvation.
In the days of Peter these prophetic words were the basis on which the Gospel was preached.
Remember the early church … the church which was 30-40 years old … they didn’t have the Bible as we have it today. So, when a New Testament author talks about Scripture, often they are referring to the Old Testament.
Regularly, when the early Apostles and teachers were writing, they would refer to the Old Testament and the words of the prophets.
The prophets, centuries before the coming of Jesus, spoke words that were used to preach the Gospel.
And the churches attention was draw to the prophets who spoke the Gospel, the message of salvation that
We have been given a new birth into a saving relationship with Jesus who promises to shield until we are given the eternal inheritance which God Himself has been keeping for us.
That message is so significant it grabs the attention of the prophets.
But the prophets aren’t the only ones whose attention was grabbed.
Even angels long to look into these things.
The angels!
Right now the angels see God in all His fullness and glory. And they see the full glories of heaven.
And that has been their reality from the moment when God created the angels.
The angels who have not fallen to follow Satan.
They see the heavenly realm in all its power and glory … and they worship.
Listen to these words from Revelation 5
5 One of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.”
6 Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing at the centre of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders.
This is what the angels see.
The Lion … the Lamb … the Risen and ascended Jesus who is on the throne.
They see Him as the Son of Man whose eyes are like blazing fire, and whose voice was like the sound of rushing waters.
The King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.
The One who has all things under His feet.
What we can only imagine – the angels see.
They see Jesus … in the heavenly realms.
They see all the power and the glory and the majesty.
The see the Triune God.
Yet – despite all that the see – the angels still have a longing.
This ongoing longing which causes them to bend and stoop down and have a closer look – at the message of the Gospel.
They see so much.
But it is not enough.
They long to know what this Gospel is all about.
For all that they see that which grabs their attention … and keeps grabbing their attention … is the message of the Gospel.
Even angels long … keep longing … to look into these things.
They long to look into the message of salvation which tells us that we have been given a new birth into a saving relationship with Jesus who promises to shield until we are given the eternal inheritance which God Himself has been keeping for us.
The Gospel got the attention of the prophets.
The Gospel keeps getting the longing attention of the angels.
The Gospel should keep getting our attention as well.
Especially when the world is saying “Just fit in.”
For, in comparison to what the gospel promises, what could possibly be the attraction of this pitiful, broken, pathetic call of the world to “just fit in?”
I’m not saying it is easy to do.
It isn’t easy to avoid the temptation to not just fit in.
It isn’t easy to stand firm on a worldview where we declare that Jesus is the only way of salvation.
There will be trials and suffering. There will also be days where we get distracted, or we become complacent, or we just go with the flow.
I know it isn’t easy.
Peter knows it as well. Peter … indeed no Bible author … ever says that living the Gospel life would be easy.
In those days when it is not easy
That is especially when we come back to the power, and strength, and expectant hope, and security, and joy, and mercy, and grace, and passion, and commitment of the Gospel.
The message that angels long to look into … is the message that we have as the foundation of our eternal life.
When we have, and rely on, and pray into, and sacrificially serve for that message … you won’t even hear the world saying “Just Fit In” … because you will be too focussed following the Saviour. Too busy fitting in as a disciple of Jesus.
Who gave you a new birth into a saving relationship and who promises to shield you until you are given the eternal inheritance which God Himself has been keeping for you.
Prayer
