Encouragement to Endure, 1 Peter 1:1-2

Why study this book at this time?

We need to be reminded that this world is not our home.

It’s something that many of us have heard said, but as a whole it’s a missing truth in the way that we order our lives.

Salvation comes with a change in identity… and that change in identity is everything to us. It shapes who we are and what we do…

We need to see the contradiction between the foundation of our lives and the foundation of the world.

The world, meaning those who are lost, and the kingdom of God- the church- Christians are contradictory in their foundation which means they are contradictory in their direction.

There is a blurring of lines in the lives of too many Christians. For many Christians there is no discernible difference in their motivations, actions, and lifestyle… and that is problematic for many reasons.

The book of 1 Peter will be instrumental in clarifying what it means to be a believer, but also how we as Christians are to live in relationship with one another and with the world and its many systems and personalities around us.

We need to rekindle the desires, direction, and way of life God gives to those He saves.

As we will see in 1 Peter 2, God saves, or calls us “out of darkness into his marvelous light.” As followers of Christ we are set free from the power of sin and from the time of our salvation we have the power of God working in and through us to do what the Lord wants.

And, according to Psalm 37:4 when we delight in the Lord he gives us the desires of our heart… meaning that to delight in God is to be captivated, satisfied, even thrilled in our relationship with God. And, when our hearts and minds are captivated by the Lord, we want new things… godly things.

But, we still have the desires of the flesh that are contrary to the desires of the Spirit. And Peter instructs us that we are to abstain from the passions of the flesh and live in a way that is honoring to God and results in His glory. James tells us in chapter 4 that if we resist the devil he will flee… and Romans 6 teaches us that we are dead to sin and now alive to God in Jesus Christ.

So, the life we live now is one that we live by faith in the Son of God… a life that has a completely different foundation than those in the world around us.

A life where we should find unity and commonality with other Christians in being different than the world.

A life where when we gather with Christians we should have more and more in common because the foundation of our lives is the same- Jesus Christ.

One of my greatest hopes is this… that God will rekindle a desire in your heart to really live for Him.

4. We need to look truthfully at the condition of our hearts, and if necessary, admit that we are not actually citizens of God’s kingdom.

I don’t want to camp here… but at some point one of three things will need to happen for some of us:

Admit that you disagree with how God’s Word describes the Christian life and go on living with little difference. Admit that you agree with God’s Word, and repent of ignoring what it means to follow Christ and live like He is your delight! Admit that you have never found your delight in the Lord and that you are not actually saved, that you have never felt the desires God wants or a passion for living for Him and surrender your life to be saved by faith in Jesus Christ.

I believe that as we work our way through the book of 1 Peter the Lord is going to do an amazing work in your life… so, as we begin this journey I want to challenge you with a few things:

I want to challenge you to be here.

Most church goers in our country today attend between 10 and 24 times a year.

A sad trend is that if you attend around 10-12 times a year, you are in a category of people who are in the process of fading from the church.

If you are in the group that is attending a couple of times a month, you are moving away from faithfulness.

And if you are in the group that attends 75% or more, you are a part of the Core group to the church.

When you think about your relationship with God and how He works, gathering to worship and be led through Word is a keystone to most of your Christian life. It is here the Lord guides us as a group, it is through these people the Lord gives you people who bear with you, encourage you, and love you in community.

I don’t believe the Lord wants our church to be one that follows the national trends, where 70% of our people are here 24 times or less. But, for us to be different you have to be committed

I want to challenge you to be engaged

Preaching is like playing catch… and if you are watching for the ball you won’t catch it when it comes your direction.

I want to challenge you to bring someone with you.

The gospel came to you on its way to someone else… and what the Lord is doing in your life right now is also for the benefit of someone else. So, look around you, we have some room for more people… and God is building something special here, and I invite you to be a part of that by bringing someone with you.

Let’s look at the first two verses of 1 Peter…

“Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood: May grace and peace be multiplied to you.” 1 Peter 1:1–2 (ESV)

“Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ”

This letter was most likely written in the early 60’s AD, when he was in Rome, and likely near the end of Peter’s life, but before the persecution of Christians by Nero began.

Peter is one of Jesus’ 12 disciples. Luke records when Jesus called Peter in Luke 5:1–11 (ESV),

“On one occasion, while the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret, 2 and he saw two boats by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. 3 Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, he asked him to put out a little from the land. And he sat down and taught the people from the boat. 4 And when he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” 5 And Simon answered, “Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.” 6 And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking. 7 They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. 8 But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” 9 For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish that they had taken, 10 and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.” 11 And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him.”

But, Peter is not just one of Jesus’ followers or a messenger. Peter has a special role to play in the Kingdom of God. He is an apostle…Mark 3:13–19 (ESV) records the establishment of 12 men to carry out this special role and exercise unique authority, “13 And he went up on the mountain and called to him those whom he desired, and they came to him. 14 And he appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach 15 and have authority to cast out demons. 16 He appointed the twelve: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter); 17 James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James (to whom he gave the name Boanerges, that is, Sons of Thunder); 18 Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Zealot, 19 and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.”

Peter is an apostle, which means “messenger, or one who is sent.” The authority of the messenger is determined by the one who sends.

As a result, Jesus’ apostles are sent with an authority that is unique and unrepeatable. The apostles of Jesus are more than ambassadors or representatives. They carry an authority that stands as the foundation of the NT. The apostles give us Christ and the Word of Christ to the world. They speak with his delegated authority, their teaching is His teaching. It is the deposit given to the church or entrusted to the church.

The teaching of a pastor, missionary, evangelist, etc is not the same as an apostle. There are no apostles today… the apostles gave us the full revelation of Christ, everyone else is established on their foundation (along with the prophets). The apostles are authoritative in all they say, even the interpretations in their writings. Today, we exercise the authority of the Word in the church, but we are not the same… and we should never attempt to be the same.

This means that Peter’s message is more than regular correspondence. His letter is binding and authoritative as the rest of Scripture… it is the Word of God.

"To those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia,”

The regions listed represent a circular route that a courier would have taken in delivering the message from Rome through the area. The recipients were facing persecution for their faith, and that is one of the primary reasons for the letter.

Peter intends to encourage believers to stand firm and to stay faithful in the face of suffering and difficulty.

Peter grounds his encouragement in their identity and God’s sovereignty.

To do this he refers to them as the “Elect Exiles”

Peter reminds them that their identity and status is the result of God’s grace.

“Those who understand themselves as God’s elect have the ammunition to resist the norms and culture of the society they inhabit.” - Thomas Schreiner

The truth of God’s grace serves as fuel for living contrary to the ways of the world and in the face of suffering.

“2 according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood”

“ according to the foreknowledge of God the Father”

The word foreknowledge in the NT means more than simply looking down the corridors of time. The word foreknowledge is consistently used in reference to God’s ordained plan. For example:

The book of Acts uses the word foreknowledge to describe Gods plan and timing of Jesus crucifixion.

Acts 2:23 (ESV)

23 this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men.

The book of Romans tells us that God does not reject those he chooses when it uses the word foreknew.

Romans 11:2 (ESV)

2 God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. Do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he appeals to God against Israel?

Later in 1 Peter 1:20, foreknown is used in reference to the specific timing of the coming of Christ.

1 Peter 1:20 (ESV)

20 He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you

The phrase, according to the foreknowledge of God the Father is the first in a series of phrases that highlight each member of the Trinity in the work of salvation. Peter is referring back to the reality of their salvation or election and emphasizing God’s work in their salvation… because He is also emphasizing God’s hand in their current situation.

In reminding his readers that they belong to the Lord, Peter emphasizes God’s initiating work in salvation, but He never discounts their faith and repentance in the process.

The focus of Peter’s introduction is God, because in the midst of suffering and persecution Christians need their attention drawn to the foundation that their lives are built on, and that foundation is the work of Christ and His righteousness, not their works and their righteousness.

Peter reminds them that they have entered into a covenant relationship with God when they obeyed the gospel (faith) and through the blood (sacrifice) of Jesus Christ.

The next two phrases undergird this point.

“in the sanctification of the Spirit”

Conversion is a work of the Holy Spirit

“for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood”

Conversion is the result of Christ’s forgiveness and cleansing of our sin through his blood, and conversion involves obedience and submission to the gospel.

According to Romans 1 and 16, faith is obedience. So, what Peter says here is that Salvation is the work of God, in the power of the Spirit, by the blood of Christ, and involves the obedience of faith.

Once we understand the significance of what Peter has said in the first few verses, we are able to make sense of how the last part of his greeting is even possible.

“May grace and peace be multiplied to you.”

Remember, they are persecuted, they are dispersed, and they are a minority living very differently than the people around them. And in the midst of that Peter says…

Grace and peace accompany our salvation and identity

The gospel message is one of grace, like Peter has already pointed out- salvation is the result of God’s work, it is by His grace that we are saved.

Peace is the result of God’s grace, and it belongs to those who have a right relationship with God. Colossians 1:19–20 (ESV) says, “19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.”

The peace that Peter is speaking of is related to being forgiven and being right with God through Christ.

Grace and peace are not conditional to our surroundings and circumstances

Peter wishes them an increasing sense of God’s grace and peace in their hearts as they undergo very difficult circumstances.

This truth would serve all of us well to remember and to hold on too. It is the world that tells you that peace is on the other side of your surroundings. But, it is the gospel that tells you that peace is on the other side of grace, and that you walk in that grace and live in that peace with God wherever you go and whatever you go through.

Grace and peace can multiply in any and every situation

In the midst of difficulty you can lean into the grace and peace of God, or you can push against what He is doing and seek to find your own peace and make your own grace. But, if grace and peace can multiply in their lives, it can in ours as well. But, multiplication requires trusting God in your circumstance and also sharing the gospel (grace) with others.

And, when we lean into the grace of God through our difficulties, we experience a resounding peace as we trust the Lord and learn to trust Him more and more.

Grace and peace are the way of the Christian life

I mentioned at the beginning of our sermon that the foundation of Christianity and the foundation of the world are contrary to one another.

Our way is the way of grace

Our way is the way of peace

Our testimony in the face of all we are experiencing in our country should be grace and peace. We belong to God, and that reality undergirds and carries us through everything and everywhere.

Your encouragement to endure is found in your identity and God’s sovereignty.

Questions to help understand and move forward:

Where do you find your strength and your encouragement to live for God?

My salvation My desire to make God happy I don’t have any strength or encouragement

How do you think about the difficulties and struggles of your life?

Frustrated God let me go through them Trusting God that He has a plan bigger than me I don’t really know what to think about God or my struggles

When you think about your relationship with God

I know that I belong to God, and I trust that it is by His grace and through my obedience in faith in Jesus. I am not sure that I belong to Him. I have never really obeyed the gospel by trusting in the work of Christ for my forgiveness and salvation, and haven’t really ever desired to live for God regardless of what other people do. I am not sure what to think. This seems clear, I think I am moving in God’s direction, but I still have some questions.

Quotes & Notes

Jesus Christ designated Peter as an authoritative messenger and interpreter of the gospel. The letter does not represent good advice but a binding apostolic word for the church

Thomas R. Schreiner, 1, 2 Peter, Jude, vol. 37, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2003), 49.

Divine election reminds the readers that they have status, not because they are so worthy or noble but because God has bestowed his grace upon them.8 Hence, they have the energy to counter accepted cultural norms and to live in accord with God’s purpose

Thomas R. Schreiner, 1, 2 Peter, Jude, vol. 37, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2003), 51.

Therefore, when Peter said that believers are elect “according to the foreknowledge of God the Father,” he emphasized God’s sovereignty and initiative in salvation.23 Believers are elect because God the Father has set his covenantal affection upon them.24 The words “according to” (kata) may designate “result” or “cause.”

Thomas R. Schreiner, 1, 2 Peter, Jude, vol. 37, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2003), 54.