LIVING IN THE REAL WORLD

REAL LIFE IS ETERNAL

1 Peter 1:17–18 NLT

17 And remember that the heavenly Father to whom you pray has no favorites. He will judge or reward you according to what you do. So you must live in reverent fear of him during your time here as “temporary residents.” 18 For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value.

Temporary Residents: A dwelling nearby, neighborhood. In the NT, a sojourning, residence in a foreign land without the right of a citizenship

Believers Are Only Strangers Scattered over the Earth.

1 Peter 1:1 (NLT)

1 This letter is from Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ. I am writing to God’s chosen people who are living as foreigners..

This is the descriptive picture being painted in verse one. Believers are only strangers on earth. The word means pilgrim, sojourner, visitor, or exile. The idea is that of a person visiting a place for a while, but he is not a permanent resident. Believers are citizens of heaven; their home is in heaven with God, not on earth with the rulers of this world.

The rulers and people of this earth may persecute believers, but believers are here on earth only temporarily—only as strangers, pilgrims, sojourners, and exiles. This is significant; it means two things:

1. It means that where we live on this earth does not matter all that much. No matter where we live, it is not our permanent home. Our home is in heaven. We may be forced to leave our homes and countries because of trouble and persecution; we may be poor and suffer great hardship in this life, but it is only for a brief time. We are only strangers and pilgrims on earth. We shall soon be called to go home—to go to our permanent home in heaven—and be there forever and ever. And there shall be no hunger or poverty or suffering or hardship in heaven.

2. It means that we should keep our eyes and minds … focused upon heaven as our permanent home. Focused upon how short life on this earth is. Focused upon how uncertain, insecure, and short-term all things upon earth really are

What attitude should believers have when persecution and suffering comes to them? To be honest, many of us are quick to complain to God when we are persecuted. Believers constantly need to be reminded that nothing comes our way without first passing through the caring hands of Christ. Listen to the story of these two optimists:

“A certain organization offer[ed] … a bounty of $5,000 for wolves captured alive. It turned Sam and Jed into fortune hunters. Day and night they scoured the mountains and forests looking for their valuable prey.“Exhausted one night, they fell asleep dreaming of their potential fortune. Suddenly, Sam awoke to see that they were surrounded by about fifty wolves with flaming eyes and bared teeth. He nudged his friend and said, ‘Jed, wake up! We’re rich!’ ”

When persecution and suffering surround you, an unshakable assurance of your salvation can turn the worst situation into an opportunity for your good and God’s glory.

How can a person be secure through suffering and persecution? There is one way and only one way: they must know that they are saved and be absolutely sure that they are under the care and love of God.

This is the discussion of the first section of First Peter. It clearly tells us how to be secure through suffering. Our security is this: knowing that we are saved, that we belong to God and are looked after by God.

1 Peter 1:2 NLT

2 God the Father knew you and chose you long ago, and his Spirit has made you holy. As a result, you have obeyed him and have been cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ. May God give you more and more grace and peace.

Peter is writing to a church that is facing severe persecution

DEFINE PERSECUTION: This was not embarrassment for sake of the gospel. It was imprisonment, flogging, ridicule, and even death.

THE WORD “Witnesses” means to be a martyr.

Three True stories modern day martyr

1 — Cyrus

Cyrus worked as a factory maintenance technician. He was married with three children. Cyrus converted from Islam to Christianity under the guidance of a local pastor. After his baptism, Cyrus began sharing the Gospel at work, which caused his colleagues to persecute him. Eventually, he was fired because of his faith.

Cyrus began receiving threats from local radicals. The threats increased in intensity and frequency so much that his family was forced to seek asylum in Turkey.

Cyrus in settling into his new home. Unfortunately, he was not able to secure asylum, and he was forced to return to his home country. Almost immediately after his return, he was beaten to death.

His bruised body was delivered to his wife and children. They were shocked and devastated but did not report the murder to the police out of fear that the same thing would be done to them.

2 — Hazine

Hazine was a 33-year-old believer. When she converted to Christianity, Hazine faced persecution in her hometown, including from her own family. She was forced to seek refuge in a neighboring city.

Enraged, her family searched everywhere for her. Eventually, one of her uncles posted a reward on social media for information leading to her whereabouts. when someone online reported that they had seen her entering a nearby church.

Hazine’s family found her and drug her back home. There, they hung her in public as a warning to other would-be converts. Her death was considered an honor killing, where family members murder any one of their own who they believe has brought dishonor on the family.

3 – Yaron

Yaron was a young Christian. He shared the Gospel with a close friend who betrayed his trust by reporting Yaron’s new-found faith to his family.

As traditional, conservative Muslims, Yaron’s family could not tolerate his conversion. They threatened him multiple times and insisted that he return to Islam.

Despite their demands, and knowing that he might be killed, Yaron remained steadfast in his faith. He refused to deny Christ as his savior. For that, his cousins dragged him to the top of a four-story building and threw him off.

We are in danger as a church in the West of becoming a church that is like the Rocky soil in Matt. 13. We receive the Word with Joy until trials come.

WE MUST UNDERSTAND OUR TRUE INHERITANCE

1 Peter 1:3–5 NLT

3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, 4 and we have a priceless inheritance—an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay. 5 And through your faith, God is protecting you by his power until you receive this salvation, which is ready to be revealed on the last day for all to see.

Through Christ’s resurrection we have access to an inheritance that never perishes or fades.

How often do we live with our eternal inheritance in mind?

We get so distracted on the temporal things of this life.

Rope

OUR FAITH IS TESTED AS WE ENDURE PERSECUTION

1 Peter 1:6–7 (NLT)

6 So be truly glad.* There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you must endure many trials for a little while. 7 These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.

1. Know the fact: life is full of trials and temptations (v.6).

2. Know the purpose for trials and temptations (v.7).

YOU MUST UNDERSTAND THE WEIGHT OF THIS SALVATION

1 Peter 1:8–12 NLT

8 You love him even though you have never seen him. Though you do not see him now, you trust him; and you rejoice with a glorious, inexpressible joy. 9 The reward for trusting him will be the salvation of your souls. 10 This salvation was something even the prophets wanted to know more about when they prophesied about this gracious salvation prepared for you. 11 They wondered what time or situation the Spirit of Christ within them was talking about when he told them in advance about Christ’s suffering and his great glory afterward. 12 They were told that their messages were not for themselves, but for you. And now this Good News has been announced to you by those who preached in the power of the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. It is all so wonderful that even the angels are eagerly watching these things happen.

3. Know how to conquer trials and temptations (v.8–9).

QUESTIONS

1. Life is full of trials and temptations. How does accepting this fact help you in your Christian walk? How does an ignorance of the fact affect you?

2. In what ways have you been persecuted for your faith? How did you respond? Given another chance, what would you do differently?

3. What is the hardest part for you in standing up to a trial or temptation? What can you do to make it easier for yourself?