1 Peter 1:1-2 (Bible Class)

This recording is from a Bible class. The outline below was used by the teacher.

Intro
1. Written by Peter in early to mid-60’s AD
2. Written to Christians in regions found in modern Turkey
3. Exhortation to a Church facing pressure from a society to which it doesn’t belong
4. The Church did not fit in because:
  1. It promotes a strict morality based on God’s law
    1. Roman society was full of debauchery (“lewdness, lusts, drunkenness, revelries, drinking parties, and abominable idolatries” 1 Peter 4:3)
  2. It is exclusive, as opposed to the pluralism of paganism
    1. The general rule of Paganism was mutual acknowledgment: you may have your preferred god, but all gods were accepted as such
      1. “To the unknown god”
    2. While pagans would be able to add Caesar as one more demigod, Christians would never declare Caesar to be lord
5. The Church still does not fit in today
  1. Has always been exclusive (at least when faithful to God)
  2. The church is rapidly being ostracized by society
    1. The common morality in the West has evaporated
  3. We have very rapidly regressed to a pluralistic society
    1. Anything is acceptable as long as you accept everything
    2. Generic “spiritualism” and religions like Buddhism are perfectly acceptable because they are not exclusive
  4. How are we to respond to this rejection by society?
    1. Option A (The Country Club): Relax our morality and exclusivism
    2. Option B (The Pilgrims): Hold fast to the Bible’s teaching and embrace our status as “not of this world” (don’t pout, embrace)
Pilgrims / Sojourners / Aliens / Strangers / Exiles
1. We are in the world, but not of this world; we are citizens of the kingdom of God
  1. God’s people have never been at home in the world: Noah, Abraham, Elijah, the faithful remnant of Jews, Christians
2. We do not live as those who think this world is all there is
  1. If there’s no resurrection then “let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die”
  2. We must not become overly attached to this world
  3. While we live, we seek God’s glory and lay up treasure in heaven
3. We should not expect to fit in with the world, nor should we desire to
  1. We will seem strange to the world at times
  2. By following the laws of God’s kingdom, we will at times be at odds with the practices and laws of the kingdoms of men
    1. We abide by law as much as possible, but God’s law is superior
  3. Why do some Christians think that assimilation is the way to make disciples?
4. Nor do we die as those who have no hope
  1. When we die, we look forward to the resurrection and the glory of the new heaven and new earth
  2. Our pilgrimage only ends at death or Jesus’ return
The Dispersion
1. The “Dispersion” is often used technically of Jews scattered outside of Palestine
2. Peter describes the Christians spread throughout the land as the Dispersion
  1. Identifies the Church with Israel
    1. The Church does not replace Israel, rather believing Gentiles are grafted into the tree of God’s people (true Israel) and together this one tree of believing Jews/Gentiles is called the Church
  2. Describes Christian communities: scattered physically, united spiritually
    1. Though we are scattered we form one body that’s united by Spirit
    2. While we act locally, we must think globally. America, China, India, Africa: we are all one Church
The Triune God In Action
1. God the Father: Elect according to foreknowledge
2. The Spirit: Sanctification
3. Jesus Christ: Sprinkling with blood
Elect (pilgrims) according to the foreknowledge of God
1. We are God’s elect, His chosen people
  1. We are chosen according to God’s foreknowledge, not picked randomly
  2. The Bible affirms man’s freewill, and so must we. But the Bible also affirms God’s foreknowledge and the fact that he has chosen a people for himself based on that foreknowledge
2. Significance of being chosen according to God’s foreknowledge
  1. Knowing that we are chosen by God gives us the strength and confidence to stand against the world
  2. Why should we care if the world does not accept us – we are God’s chosen people, adopted into his family
  3. God has chosen us to be his people and we should embrace our status as God’s chosen people
    1. This is where our identity rest, more than country, work, or family
    2. We do not require acceptance by our classmates, or coworkers, or government, or even family
  4. Because our election is according to foreknowledge, we have confidence that any suffering we face for being a Christian is not a surprise to God
    1. We can know that God can use every circumstance, even suffering, for our sanctification and his glory
In Sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience
1. Sanctification = made holy
  1. Holy, saint, sanctification
2. When we are baptized we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit
  1. We are sealed as children of God (Rom 8:12-17, 1 John 4:14, Eph 4:30)
3. The Spirit dwells within us and acts in our lives to lead us toward increasingly holy living (sanctification)
  1. Saved by grace, through faith, at baptism, for good works (Eph 2:8-10)
  2. The sanctifying work of the Spirit is to drive us to obedience and produce the fruit of the Spirit
  3. To love God is to believe in Jesus and obey his commands
4. It is this obedience that puts us at odds with the world
  1. Obedience makes it obvious to us and others that we are pilgrims
  2. If we are at home in the world, and our actions never put us at odds with society, we should assess our level of obedience
And sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ
1. Three uses of sprinkling with blood in the OT
  1. Purification (of leprosy Lev 14:6-7, of tabernacle Lev 16)
    1. We are purified from sin by Christ’s blood (Hebrews 9)
  2. Priesthood (Exod 29:21)
    1. We are made into a holy nation, a kingdom of priests (1 Peter 2:9)
    2. We are all priests and their is one High Priest: Jesus
  3. Covenant (Exod 24:3-8)
    1. With Jesus’ blood a new covenant is established (Matt 26:27-28)
    2. Those who have put on Christ in baptism enter into covenant with God: He is our God, and we are His people
Grace to you and peace be multiplied
1. Amen

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