Devout Living in Difficult Times (1 Peter 1:3-12)

We are all familiar with circumstances that seem so difficult that we wonder what someone could say to people in them. Peter was very much aware that his readers faced problems that showed no sign of disappearing. His remarks would need to be realistic, sympathetic and encouraging at the same time. We may be surprised that he makes no attempt to minimise their troubles or by suggesting they might disappear. 

Praise of the Father (1:3-5)

Having given his greetings to the churches, Peter continues with an expression of praise to God the Father. In his expression of praise, he first refers to the relationship between the Father and Jesus. Then he describes features of the relationship between the Father and his readers.

 

The Father and Jesus

The relationship between the Father and Jesus is expressed in terms that refer to Jesus as the exalted Mediator. We see this in the way that Jesus is described. He is the Messiah (Christ) who has been highly exalted and given the supreme title (Lord). Of course, Jesus in his divine person has always been Lord. But as the mediator, he humbled himself and became a man, humbled himself again and went to the cross, after which he was highly exalted by the Father. Because he is the mediator, he can address the Father as his God as well as his Father. Jesus spoke about the Father in similar terms on the resurrection day when he told Mary Magdalene to tell the disciples that he was ascending to his Father and to his God. 

 

Why does Peter write in this way? I suspect the answer is that this is how we come to have fellowship with the Father and the Son. We know them now and will know them in the future through the activities of Jesus as the mediator and those activities have been summarised by the roles of prophet, priest and king. So we can see that Peter says a great deal in his short opening statement.

 

The Father and his people

With regard to what the Father does for his people, Peter mentions several aspects. First, whatever happens to them is always an expression of great mercy. It is important to remember that mercy by definition is undeserved. The notion that something is undeserved is disappearing rapidly from the outlook of society, mainly due to the explosion of human rights. Of course, it is important to defend human rights when dealing with one another. But not when we come to describe our relationship with God. Because we are sinners, we have no rights before him. Yet the amazing thing is that he is merciful, and the contents of his mercy far transcend what human rights can give us.

 

Second, the Father has brought them into his family. He did this through the work of regeneration performed in their hearts by the Holy Spirit when he made them alive in a spiritual sense. One obvious response to that is to ask what difference regeneration makes to us as individuals. Peter tells his readers that it makes them forward looking in the sense that they have a living hope. This confidence in a future blessing is connected to understanding the significance of the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. So we should think briefly about what his resurrection tells us.

 

First, it is proof that his sacrifice as the payment of the penalty of sin was accepted by God. If he had not paid the penalty he would not have been raised. Second, his resurrection is the proof that he is stronger than death, and that aspect of it was stressed in Old Testament predictions of the work of the Messiah. Third, his resurrection indicates that he is entitled to a great reward as the last Adam (in contrast to the first Adam who lost the inheritance). Fourth, when Jesus was raised from the dead, he did so as our representative. Much more could be said about his resurrection, but those four aspects are sufficient for the present. We have confidence about the future because Jesus is alive.

 

The next aspect of divine mercy that is given to us as part of the living hope is an inheritance that he is described in four ways. It is imperishable, undefiled and unfading, and kept in heaven. What do those terms say about the inheritance? Imperishable points to the absence of death by corruption, undefiled points to the absence of sin, and unfading points to the permanence of beauty. That certainly is a wonderful inheritance to look forward to. Peter also says that the inheritance is kept in heaven, which does not mean that heaven is the inheritance, but that it exists in the mind of God as his purpose for his people. Who can take that inheritance from the heirs?

 

The final aspect of divine mercy that Peter mentions is that God by his power guards his people. How does he do so? The answer may surprise us – he does it by maintaining our faith whatever the circumstances we go through. We are aware that Peter’s readers were going through a great deal of opposition because of their faith in Jesus. It may cross our minds that divine mercy would release them from their trials rather than take them through it. But would constant deliverance prove the reality of faith? Divine wisdom thought otherwise. What needs to be maintained is faith in Christ and quite often it has been the case that easy circumstances do not maintain faith.

 

Peter also reminds his readers that there is an aspect of salvation that is future. We know that salvation has been defined as salvation from the penalty of sin at conversion, from the power of sin through sanctification, and from the presence and effects of sin at the resurrection. The word ‘ready’ indicates that this salvation could come from heaven at any time.

 

Purpose of trials (1:6-7)

Peter enlarges on the importance of faith being tested. He acknowledges that there is a tension in the experience of believers when that occurs because there is the presence in them of both rejoicing and grieving. Grieving is a reminder that believers are not stoical in their trials. They feel the pain, but they also rejoice because spiritual gain comes from difficult experiences. How do we know that a building will withstand a storm? When it withstands a storm. How do we know that we will persevere? When we persevere.

 

Peter points out that those with gold do not object to know that the pieces they have in their possession were tested beforehand, and if they wanted to use those pieces they would not object if the other person wanted to test them by fire in order to see that they were genuine. The apostle also points out that while the trials may be severe they will also be short in comparison to the glory ahead.

 

Peter does not stop there. He urges his readers to consider or remember what their experience will be when Jesus returns. Maintaining this consideration will enable us to see how precious those trials actually are. It is good for us to be tested because such trials reveal our devotion to Christ or otherwise. The issue here probably comes down to what is our preference – an easy life now and no commendation when Jesus returns or a tested life now and great commendation when Jesus returns. What will be the outcome of sanctifying trials? There will be a great reward. The best words that we can hear will be for Jesus to say to us, ‘Well done.’ The best position that we can have is to be given a high status by Jesus not because we were great but because we were loyal to him even in times of trial. 

 

Possession of salvation (1:8-9)

What should we be our response to Jesus in the circumstances we are now in? It should be to imitate the response of Peter’s readers. Do we think it is extraordinary that Peter describes them all as possessing the same response? How did he know that they would be like this? The implication must be that this was the normal response of believers because it is how God blessed them as they remained loyal to Jesus. It certainly is a beautiful description. I suppose we need to discover why they had this response.

 

The basic reason for their response was that they had received the salvation of their souls. This means that they were assured of their salvation even although they had not yet reached the state of future glorification. Their faith in Jesus had resulted in them having warm love towards Jesus and great joy as a consequence.

 

Peter, of course, had seen Jesus and experienced his gracious dealings with him on numerous occasions, including his restoration on the day of Jesus’ resurrection. Famously he had been asked by Jesus on a later occasion if he loved Jesus more than the other disciples did, and all he could say was that he loved Jesus. He no longer wished to compare himself with others, but gladly acknowledged that believers love Jesus. 

 

Peter may have remembered how Thomas on the resurrection day had refused to believe in Jesus unless he could see Jesus alive. When he saw Jesus a week later, Jesus commented that those who would yet believe without seeing him would be blessed. We have an example here of those believers.

 

Grace was prophesied (vv. 10-12)

Peter makes a surprising comment here about the Old Testament prophets when he says that their prophecies were designed for the benefit of his readers. He points out that this purpose was revealed to them by God. It is the case that they searched and inquired about it; does ‘inquiring’ indicate that they prayed about their words, and in answer to that prayer they were informed that people in the future would be blessed by their messages. This happened when the gospel was brought to the people of the New Testament age. 

 

Perhaps one way of reflecting on the role of the prophets is to consider Isaiah’s experience. He was told on the occasion when he saw the seraphim worshipping God, and when he was called into divine service, that he would not have any converts (Isa. 6). Later, in Isaiah 53, he mentions that no one had believed his message; and in that chapter he mentions both the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would come after. It would have been very encouraging for him to know that people in the future, including us, would be blessed by what he predicted about Jesus.

 

It is not only Old Testament prophets who searched such matters. In addition, Peter says that angels desire to look into the gospel that was preached by the apostles and others. We are not often informed about the feelings of angels, although there are passages that describe their joy in praising God, their delight in serving him, and their awe at his greatness. But here we are told about their attitude to the apostolic explanation of the prophetic statements about the coming Messiah. They long to investigate those messages. There is a hint here that angels in a sense are dependent, to some extent at least, on what God has revealed through his Word about his purposes in salvation.

 

There are three ideas that we should observe about the grace mentioned here in connection with the gospel message. First, there is the content, which is the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. Of course, this is shorthand for the humiliation and exaltation of Jesus, and a great deal could be said about what happened to him in his earthly life and in his resurrection and ascension. Second, there is the source of that material, and the source is the Holy Spirit. He spoke through the prophets and the apostles, and he still speaks whenever the gospel is preached. Third, there is a challenge from observing the intensity of interest in the message shown by the prophets’ manner of searching and the angels’ manner of looking. Their response should be imitated by us.

 

Application

It is obvious from this description by Peter that in order to live the Christian life in the present we must be future orientated. 

 

It is also obvious from this description that faith in Jesus is not dependent on the visible. Sometimes we imagine that we would be happier if we had lived during the time when Jesus was here. Yet we know that thousands saw Jesus perform miracles and heard his preaching without having any love for him or joy in him.

 

It is also obvious from this passage that abundant rejoicing comes from considering spiritual realities. The source of the joy of Peter’s readers was a current salvation that they could not see, a future state that was not yet here, and a continuing focus on Jesus as the Saviour.