Sunday
Morning Bible Study
September
29, 2019
Background to 1Peter
Where
Peter writes this letter from a place he calls “Babylon” (1Peter
5:13). Though the ancient city of
Babylon was still in existence (barely), there is no evidence from church history
or tradition that Peter ever went there.
There is however great evidence that Peter ended up in the city of Rome. Some
have suggested Peter is writing in “code” to protect the believers in Rome, and
so he refers to Rome as “Babylon”.
John will write in the Revelation of “Babylon the Great” and describe it in
a way that seems like he too is describing Rome (Rev. 17).
It would seem most likely that Peter is writing from Rome.
When
The church in Rome had been founded before either Paul or Peter ever
arrived.
AD 57 Paul writes his letter to the Romans, and the church is already in
existence.
AD 62 Paul arrives in Rome, under house arrest. He is later released.
AD 62 Peter arrives in Rome after Paul is been released
AD 64 Peter writes his first letter around the time that Nero begins his
persecution of Christians.
In AD 64, most of Rome burned, except for Nero’s palaces. Nero turned on the Christians as a scapegoat for
the fire. Nero rebuilds and expands his
palace after the fire.
Nero was known to take Christians, tie them to poles, cover them with tar,
and light them on fire.
He also had them killed in the arena for sport.
Some have suggested that Peter may have been warning his readers in Asia
Minor that persecution might be heading their way.
AD 64 Paul is rearrested and then killed by Nero.
AD 67 Peter is martyred.
AD 68 Nero commits suicide and this first Roman persecution ends.
Destination
Peter tells us he’s writing to believers in Asia Minor (1:1).
The churches in this area were made up of both Jew and Gentile believers.
Themes
Two of the main themes that Peter teaches throughout the letter are suffering
and submission.
Authorship
It was written by Peter.
For those who would question Peter’s authorship (some think the language is
too sophisticated for a Galilean fisherman) – there are parallels between the
letter and Peter’s sermons:
(1 Peter
1:20 NKJV) He indeed was foreordained before the foundation
of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you
(Acts 2:23 NKJV) Him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of
God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death;
(1 Peter 4:5 NKJV) They will give an account to Him who is ready to judge the living
and the dead.
(Acts 10:42 NKJV) And He commanded us to preach to the people, and to testify that it
is He who was ordained by God to be Judge of the living and the dead.
(1 Peter 2:7–8
NKJV) —7 Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those
who are disobedient, “The stone which the builders rejected Has become
the chief cornerstone,” 8 and “A stone of stumbling And a rock
of offense.”
They
stumble, being disobedient to the word, to which they also were appointed.
(Acts 4:10–11 NKJV)
—10 let it be known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that
by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised
from the dead, by Him this man stands here before you whole. 11 This is the ‘stone which was rejected by you builders, which has
become the chief cornerstone.’
Peter himself was present when Jesus used Psalm 118:22 to refer to His
rejection by Jewish leaders (Matt. 21:42)
(1 Peter 5:2 NKJV) Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers,
not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly;
Jesus told Peter:
(John 21:16 NKJV) He said to him again a second time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do
you love Me?” He said to
Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Tend My sheep.”
These are the only two places poimaino is used.
Church history also attests to Peter’s authorship. Polycarp, Clement, and Irenaeus all attribute
it to Peter.
Read it
Now that you have the background to the epistle, I want to give you some
homework.
Read through the book this week. Do
it in a single sitting.
You can listen to it being read to you on the YouVersion app. It’s Free.
I also like the “Word of Promise” Bible app, though it’s $40 – it’s the
only New King James audio Bible I’ve found so far, a great dramatized reading
with some famous actors reading it.
Get to learn the overall flow of the book.
1:1-2 Greetings
:1 Peter, an apostle of
Jesus Christ, To the pilgrims of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia,
Asia, and Bithynia,
:1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ
Yes this is that Peter. He
was one of the “inner three” of Jesus’ disciples, counted as one of the primary
leaders in the early church.
He was born with the name “Simon”, but it was Jesus who nicknamed him
“Peter”, or, “Cephas” (Aramaic) – both of which mean “Rock”.
We might have called him “Rocky”.
Peter was a man with two sides to him.
At times, Peter was inspired, with a heart for God, such as the time when
he gave the definitive answer when Jesus asked, “Who do you say that I am?”
(Matthew
16:16 NKJV) Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the
Christ, the Son of the living God.”
And yet Peter was flawed, often sticking his foot in his mouth, such as the
time he rebuked Jesus for saying that He was going to die in Jerusalem.
(Matthew 16:23 NKJV) But He turned and said to Peter,
“Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the
things of God, but the things of men.”
Peter was the first one to preach the gospel to the Gentiles when he responded
to the leading of the Holy Spirit and went to the Cornelius’ house, the
centurion in Caesarea.
Yet when Peter showed up in Antioch, he hypocritically withdrew from
hanging out with the Gentiles. Paul had
to publicly rebuke Peter:
(Galatians 2:11 NLT) …I had to oppose him to his face,
for what he did was very wrong.
:1 To the pilgrims of the Dispersion
pilgrims – parepidemos –
one who comes from a foreign country into a city or land to reside there by the
side of the natives; a stranger; sojourning in a strange place, a foreigner; in
the NT metaph. in reference to heaven as the native country, one who sojourns
on earth
Dispersion – diaspora – a
scattering, dispersion; of Israelites dispersed among foreign nations; of the
Christians scattered abroad among the Gentiles
The “Dispersion” or, “Diaspora” is a word still used by Jews today for
those who are living outside of Israel.
Here it also refers to the Christians who have been scattered throughout
the world.
Peter calls these people “pilgrims”.
Now I don’t know what you think about when you hear the word “pilgrim”.
Perhaps you think of John Wayne.
Video: John Wayne - Pilgrim
Perhaps you think of the first Thanksgiving.
A pilgrim is a person who is traveling through a country they don’t belong
to.
We’ll see that this is a term that can apply to all of us believers – our
home is in heaven, and we are just “passing through” this world, a place we
really don’t feel quite at home in (1Pet 2:11)
(1 Peter 2:11 NKJV) Beloved, I beg you as
sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul,
:1 Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia …
The five places listed are all in what was known as “Asia”, or “Asia Minor”
in the ancient world.
We call it “Turkey” today.
Video: Rome to Asia map video
So Peter is writing from Rome, and his letter is aimed at the people living
in Asia Minor, modern Turkey.
:2 elect according to the
foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience
and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace be
multiplied.
elect – eklektos – picked
out, chosen; chosen by God,; to obtain salvation through Christ; Christians are
called "chosen or elect" of God.
This word doesn’t appear until verse 2 in the King James translation.
foreknowledge – prognosis –
foreknowledge; forethought, pre-arrangement
sanctification – hagiasmos –
consecration, purification; the effect of consecration; sanctification of heart
and life
obedience – hupakoe –
obedience, compliance, submission; obedience rendered to anyone’s counsels, an
obedience shown in observing the requirements of Christianity
sprinkling –rhantismos – a
sprinkling (purification); blood of sprinkling; i.e. appointed for sprinkling
(serving to purify)
be multiplied – plethuno –
to increase, to multiply; to be increased, (be multiplied) multiply; to be
increased, to multiply
:2 elect according to the foreknowledge of God
“Elect” means we’ve been chosen by God.
He’s made His choice based on His foreknowledge.
Some suggest God chose us because He knew we’d choose Him.
It might also refer to His “mercy” (1:3). God knew He’d be merciful to us.
:2 in sanctification of the Spirit
The Holy Spirit wants to “sanctify” us, to make us “holy”. That happens as we learn to obey Him.
:2 for obedience
God works in our life to help us learn to be obedient.
:2 and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ:
We have been cleansed from our sin through Jesus’ sacrifice for us.
:2 Grace to you and peace
The usual greeting, but Peter likes to make it a little more powerful in
that grace and peace “be multiplied” to us.
He will do the same in 2Pet. 1:2
(2 Peter 1:2 NKJV) Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of
Jesus our Lord,
1:3-5 Heavenly Inheritance
:3 Blessed be the
God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy
has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ
from the dead,
blessed – eulogetos –
blessed, praised
abundant – polus – many,
much, large
mercy – eleos – mercy:
kindness or good will towards the miserable and the afflicted, joined with a
desire to help them
has begotten us again – anagennao
– to produce again, be born again, born anew; metaph. to have one’s mind
changed so that he lives a new life and one conformed to the will of God
Aorist active participle
hope – elpis – expectation
of evil, fear; expectation of good, hope; joyful and confident expectation of
eternal salvation
living – zao – to live,
breathe, be among the living (not lifeless, not dead); to enjoy real life; to
live i.e. pass life, in the manner of the living and acting; metaph. to be in
full vigour; to be fresh, strong, efficient,
Present active participle
:3 according to His abundant mercy
God didn’t have to work in our lives, but He did, and He did because He is
incredibly merciful.
:3 has begotten us again
The word literally means “be born again”.
When Jesus met the Jewish leader Nicodemus…
(John 3:3 NKJV) Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you,
unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
Nicodemus was confused, but Jesus explained that every man needs a
“spiritual birth”, a work of God in their life, if they wish to go to heaven.
:3 to a living hope through the resurrection
Our new birth leads to a living hope.
The Pharisees also had a hope in the resurrection, that there would one day
be life after death.
The Sadducees didn’t believe in a resurrection, they didn’t have “hope”,
and that’s why they were so Sad-you-see.
Yet Jesus said,
(John 11:25 NKJV) … “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me,
though he may die, he shall live.
Jesus didn’t just spout off cheap words, He proved that He was “the
resurrection” by rising from the dead Himself after having been dead for three
days.
When Jesus rose from the dead, He gave us a “living” hope.
We absolutely know that one day we too will rise from the dead because
Jesus rose from the dead, and He said that if we believe in Him, we too would rise
from the dead.
:4 to an inheritance
incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for
you,
inheritance – kleronomia –
an inheritance, property received (or to be received) by inheritance; what is
given to one as a possession
incorruptible – aphthartos –
uncorrupted, not liable to corruption or decay, imperishable; immortal
undefiled – amiantos – not
defiled, unsoiled; free from that by which the nature of a thing is deformed
and debased, or its force and vigor impaired
does not fade away – amarantos
(“not” + “extinguished”) – not fading away, unfading, perennial
reserved – tereo – to
attend to carefully, take care of; to guard.
Perfect passive participle
The verb is a perfect tense – action done in the past with the results
continuing on into the present.
:4 to an inheritance
Our spiritual birth by the Father comes with an “inheritance”.
It might seem exciting to be the heir to Jeff Bezos or Bill Gates, but we
have become “heirs” of God.
What’s His is yours.
:4 incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away
Nothing can change the amazing inheritance we have in heaven.
Unlike your 401K, no recession can diminish its value.
It won’t grow old or outdated.
:4 reserved in heaven for you
reserved – tereo – to
attend to carefully, take care of; to guard
This means it’s “guarded” for us.
The verb is a “perfect” tense, meaning it’s been guarded for us, and
continues to be guarded for us.
:5 who are kept by the
power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
power – dunamis –
strength, power, ability
are kept – phroureo – to
guard, protect by a military guard, either to prevent hostile invasion, or to
keep the inhabitants of a besieged city from flight; metaph. to protect by
guarding, to keep; by watching and guarding to preserve one for the attainment
of something
Present passive participle
to be revealed – apokalupto –
to uncover, lay open what has been veiled or covered up
Aorist passive infinitive
:5 who are kept by the power of God
Our relationship with God is protected by God’s own power.
Jesus said,
(John 10:29 NKJV) My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all;
and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand.
Paul wrote,
(Romans 8:38–39
NKJV) —38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor
principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to
separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
:5 through faith for salvation
It is our faith that connects us to God’s salvation.
Jesus said Nicodemus:
(John 3:16 NKJV) For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that
whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
(Ephesians 2:8a
NKJV) For by grace you have been saved through faith…
God has extended to each of us this free gift of forgiveness and eternal
life, and all we need to do is to receive it, to put our faith in Jesus Christ.
:5 ready to be revealed
It might be at our death, or it could be at the soon coming Rapture, but we
will see this salvation, this inheritance, when we get to heaven.
:3 begotten us again to a living hope
Lesson
The Power of Hope
Life can get very difficult at times, can’t it?
It might be health issues that are tearing at you.
Maybe you’re struggling with how your finances are going to work out.
Perhaps there’s a relationship that’s falling apart.
Maybe you’re worried you’re going to lose your job.
Peter’s readers were facing unprecedented persecution. Over the next several centuries, millions of
Christians would be put to death.
Peter’s answer was hope.
Illustration
I’ve told you before about the experiments done with Norwegian wharf rats.
These are the rats that live under the piers along the waterfront. One group of rats was placed in a large
container of water, in the dark, with no place to stand on, they had to keep
swimming. They all drowned within
fifteen minutes. The second group was placed in a similar container, yet every
ten minutes the lab technician would open the container, take the rats out,
stroke them a few seconds, and without giving them a chance to rest, put them
back in the water. They were given hope. These rats went on swimming for over 12
hours.
In a powerful article (2017) titled “Dying of Despair,” psychiatrist Aaron Kheriaty observes the
startling rise in deaths from suicide and drug overdoses. He points to a number
of long-term studies that have analyzed the difference between high-risk
patients who survive and those who die by suicide. Here’s his conclusion of
this research:
Over a ten-year span, it turns out that the one factor
most strongly predictive of suicide is not how sick the person is, nor how many
symptoms he exhibits, nor how much physical pain he is suffering, nor whether
he is rich or poor.
The most dangerous factor is a person’s sense of
hopelessness. The man without hope is the likeliest candidate for suicide. … We
cannot live without hope.
Hal Lindsey said,
“Man can live about forty days without food, about three days without
water, about eight minutes without air...but only for one second without hope.”
We have hope.
It’s a real, living hope because Jesus is indeed alive.
The resurrection of Jesus from the dead is one of the best
attested facts of history – those who claim otherwise have not examined the
evidence.
Because Jesus is alive, you too will have life after death.
You too have an inheritance waiting for you in heaven.
1:6-9 Trials for now
:6 In this you greatly
rejoice,
:6 though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by
various trials,
greatly rejoice – agalliao –
to exult, rejoice exceedingly, be exceeding glad
Present middle indicative
if need be – dei – it is
necessary, there is need of, it behooves, is right and proper
you have been grieved – lupeo
– to make sorrowful; to affect with sadness, cause grief, to throw into
sorrow; to grieve, offend; to make one uneasy, cause him a scruple
aorist passive participle.
various – poikilos –
a various colours, variegated; of various sorts
trials – peirasmos – an
experiment, attempt, trial, proving; the trial of man’s fidelity, integrity,
virtue, constancy; an enticement to sin, temptation, whether arising from the
desires or from the outward circumstances
:6 In this you greatly
rejoice
I wish there was a period here, or the start of a new verse.
What is it that Peter’s readers can now greatly rejoice in?
Peter is referring back to the “living hope”, our “inheritance” in heaven
(everything in vss 3-5)
For now, we rejoice in that.
James did tell us to “count it joy” when encounter various trials (Jam.
1:2), but I think it’s better to see the “this” as referring back to the
passage we just looked at.
(James 1:2–3 NKJV)
—2 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.
Before we talk about “trials”, we need to be sure our “living hope” is an
anchor to our souls. (Heb. 6:19)
(Hebrews
6:19 NKJV) This hope we have as an anchor of the
soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enters the Presence behind the
veil,
We ought to regularly “greatly rejoice” in our future in heaven.
:6 for a little while, if need be
There are going to be times when difficulty is unavoidable.
There may be some preachers who will make you think that if you follow
their three award winning steps, you will never have a trouble in your life.
But that’s not true.
We will all through difficulty, though compared to eternity, it’s
just “for a little while”
:6 you have been grieved by various trials
Difficult times do not normally make us happy.
They make us “grieve”
grieved – λυπέω
lupeo – to make sorrowful; to
affect with sadness, cause grief
Lesson
Good Grief
The death of a loved one.
The losing of a job.
Kids leave home.
Major changes like divorce, moving, or retiring.
Lucy always seems to be causing Charlie Brown grief.
Sometimes the biggest “grief”, our greatest “trials”, come from people
around us.
There are some fairly universal common stages that people go through when
it comes to grief.
1. Denial
Sometimes we protect ourselves emotionally from the pain
of loss, but as time progresses, we have to deal with reality.
2. Bargaining
We wonder what we could have done to have prevented the
problem. We might feel guilty over what
happened.
3. Depression
This might show up as trouble sleeping, poor appetite, and
crying spells.
4. Anger
We feel helpless or abandoned. We get angry with those we think should have
helped.
5. Acceptance
If we can learn to work through our feelings and not
bottle them up, we get to the place of acceptance.
Can anything “good” come from “grief”?
:7 that the genuineness
of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though
it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the
revelation of Jesus Christ,
genuineness – dokimion –
the proving; that by which something is tried or proved, a test;
from dokimos – accepted,
particularly of coins and money;
In the ancient world there was no banking system as we know it today, and
no paper money. All money was made from metal, heated until liquid, poured into
molds and allowed to cool. When the coins were cooled, it was necessary to
smooth off the uneven edges. The coins were comparatively soft and of course
many people shaved them closely. In one century, more than eighty laws were
passed in Athens, to stop the practice of shaving down the coins then in
circulation. But some money changers were men of integrity, who would accept no
counterfeit money. They were men of honor who put only genuine full weighted
money into circulation. Such men were called "dokimos" or
"approved". (Donald Barnhouse)
much – polus – many, much,
large
more precious – timios –
as of great price, precious; held in honor, esteemed, especially dear. This is the “comparative” form of the
adjective, “more precious”, “more especially dear” …
perishes – apollumi – to
destroy; to put out of the way entirely, abolish, put an end to ruin
it be tested – dokimazo
– to test, examine, prove, scrutinize (to see whether a thing is genuine or
not), as metals; to recognize as genuine after examination, to approve, deem
worthy. This is the verb form of “genuineness”
(dokimion).
may be found – heurisko –
to come upon, hit upon, to meet with; to find out by practice and experience
aorist passive subjunctive
praise – epainos –
approbation, commendation, praise
honor – time – a valuing
by which the price is fixed; of the price itself; honor which belongs or is
shown to one
glory – doxa – opinion,
judgment, view; in the NT always a good opinion concerning one, resulting in
praise, honor, and glory; splendor, brightness
the revelation – apokalupsis –
laying bear, making naked; a disclosure of truth, instruction; used of events
by which things or states or persons hitherto withdrawn from view are made
visible to all; manifestation, appearance
We’ll talk about “genuineness” and “testing by fire” in a minute…
:7 more precious than gold
We might think that “gold” is the most precious of things on the earth, but
Peter tells us that refined faith is even “more precious” than gold.
Faith, “belief” is not just about salvation, but all of life. We fail when we don’t trust Him.
:7 …glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ
We may not see the results of the refining we are going through in just a
few days, weeks, or months.
We may not see the full effect of our refined faith until we see Jesus.
:8 whom having not seen
you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with
joy inexpressible and full of glory,
seen – eido – to see; to
perceive with the eyes; to perceive by any of the senses; to know
aorist active participle
love – agapao – of persons
to welcome, to entertain, to be fond of, to love dearly
present active indicative
do not see – horao – to
see with the eyes; to see with the mind, to perceive, know; to see, i.e. become
acquainted with by experience, to experience; to see, to look to
present active participle
you rejoice – agalliao –
to exult, rejoice exceedingly, be exceeding glad
present middle indicative
joy – chara – joy,
gladness
inexpressible – aneklaletos (“not”
+ “speak out”) – unspeakable
full of glory – doxazo –
to think, suppose, be of opinion; to praise, extol, magnify, celebrate; to
honor, do honor to, hold in honor; to make glorious, adorn with luster, clothe
with splendor
perfect passive participle
:8 whom having not seen you love
This is a great picture essence of faith.
We haven’t seen Him yet, but we are learning to trust Him and even to love
Him.
God wants us to taste this “joy inexpressible and full of glory”, even in
our trials.
It flows from our faith.
:9 receiving the end of
your faith—the salvation of your souls.
receiving – komizo – to
care for, take care of, provide for; to take up or carry away in order to care
for and preserve; to carry, bear, bring to, to carry away for one’s self, to
carry off what is one’s own, to bring back; to receive, obtain: the promised
blessing
present middle participle
the end – telos – end;
termination, the limit at which a thing ceases to be (always of the end of some
act or state, but not of the end of a period of time); the end to which all
things relate, the aim, purpose
:9 faith … salvation
After all, we are saved by faith.
Jesus died for our sins, and we receive forgiveness and salvation by faith.
:7 genuineness of your faith…tested by fire
Lesson
Refining Fire
Faith is what pleases God.
(Hebrews
11:6 NKJV) But without faith it is impossible to
please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that
He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
God longs for our faith to grow.
That requires refining.
In verse 7, The words for “genuineness” and “tested” come from the same
root, and both deal with the testing and refining of metal.
God is talking about this process when He said,
(Isaiah 48:10 NLT) I have refined you, but not as
silver is refined. Rather, I have refined you in the furnace of suffering.
Gold and silver are refined by heating them up in the fire until they are
molten. The continual heat brings the
impurities to the surface, and the goldsmith will scoop off the “dross”, the
bad stuff.
Refining doesn’t happen without heat.
Our difficult times, trials, and “grief” have the potential of burning away
the impurities in our faith so that what is remaining is pure, genuine faith.
I say “potential” because some people are destroyed by the fire.
When Peter says “may be found to praise…”, it’s a “subjunctive”, it only
has the potential to do this.
Will I allow God to do the work He wants to do in my life through this
trial?
One of Peter’s great themes in his letter is “submission”. As you read the
epistle this week, you’ll see this thread over and over again.
Above all, we need to “submit” to God.
We need to “commit” ourselves to Him (4:19)
Illustration
Charles Spurgeon said: I bear willing witness that I owe more to the fire,
and the hammer, and the file, than to anything else in my Lord’s workshop. I sometimes question whether I have ever
learned anything except through the rod.
When my schoolroom is darkened, I see most.