Author: Kristen Kansiewicz, LMHC

“Dear friends, I warn you as ‘temporary residents and foreigners’ to keep away from worldly desires that wage war against your very souls. Be careful to live properly among your unbelieving neighbors. Then even if they accuse you of doing wrong, they will see your honorable behavior, and they will give honor to God when he judges the world.”

Have you ever met a person that you just couldn’t say anything bad about? Even if you wanted to accuse them of something, it would be so obviously a lie that no one would ever believe you. A person’s character goes a long way, and here Peter is talking about what it means to carry the character of Christ with you for all to see. And he’s reminding us just how life-or-death this spiritual war is.

We are foreigners in the kingdom of Satan here on earth. He is called the “god of this world,” and he is an authority to whom we will not bow. Our citizenship is in heaven, with Jesus as the true King. Those kingdoms will divide sharply when Satan’s kingdom is destroyed. Your spiritual passport will matter at the end of the war.

Here’s your freedom for today: you can rise above this world. You don’t have to get pulled into the mud, dragged down by the things that surround you and make your life complicated. You don’t have to give in to the lies Satan has told you throughout your life. You, as a citizen of heaven, can appeal to a higher authority and say “no” to whatever appetizer or entree the enemy is trying to feed you today. You can rise above because you can run to the presence of God at any time. He’s the safe place, the shelter in the storm. Hide in him today to stay protected from the tricks and schemes of the enemy.

“But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light. ‘Once you had no identity as a people; now you are God’s people. Once you received no mercy; now you have received God’s mercy.'”

Have you ever had someone remind you who you really are? Perhaps you have forgotten your worth or value, but a friend speaks into that place and shows you just how loved you are. In today’s passage, Peter is reminding the Jewish Christians that they have always been God’s chosen people. They have always belonged to God. Even though that is not enough to make a person right with God, it is a reminder of how much he loves his people.

Peter references Hosea 1-2, a small book in the Old Testament from the prophet Hosea. He had a strange assignment, as most of the prophets did: marry a prostitute. God was revealing through Hosea that he would continually fight for his people and reconcile them into right relationship with himself. They had been unfaithful and forgotten God, but he would never forget them. Peter is reminding his readers of this lesson once again in the midst of Jesus dramatically shifting their perspectives on salvation.

Here’s your freedom for today: God will never give up on you. Peter’s message was continually about the ways that Jesus fulfilled God’s promises. Jesus was not replacing anything that the Jewish people had received from God in the past. Rather, Jesus’ life, death, resurrection, and rescue plan was everything God had always promised his people. He never gave up on them no matter how many times they complained or turned away from him. If you are feeling far from God today, hold on to the truth that he will never, ever give up on you. You are loved.

 

Take a moment to read 1 Peter 2:4-8 along with Isaiah 28:16 and Psalm 118:19-29 before reading the devotional below. 

Peter is referencing a lot of the Old Testament scriptures well known to his Jewish audience. The writings of Isaiah, a major prophet of Israel, and the Psalms written by the famous King David were central texts in the life of a Jewish person. Connecting Jesus with these scriptures was a critical element of the development of the early church, and it created sharp dividing lines between those who believed Jesus was the promised Messiah and those who did not.

Jewish people who had understood the Scriptures very literally were having their entire worldview shaken in thinking about the law, grace, and the role of Jesus in salvation. The building blocks of the Temple were literal rocks, and the construction and later destruction of the Temple building were major Jewish historical events. Peter is urging a different view here as he says, “You are the living stones that God is building into his spiritual temple.” What a message! “You are the dwelling place of God, not a building. Jesus is the cornerstone, not a piece of limestone!” Peter warns that those who reject Jesus will fall apart.

Here’s your freedom for today: God has built his home in you. You line the walls of God’s house. You are a brick in an eternal structure that will never rot or come tumbling down. You are a part of a place much bigger than yourself. Jesus is the spiritual cornerstone on which everything else rests. If he is removed from the equation, the dwelling place of God no longer stands.

“So get rid of all evil behavior. Be done with all deceit, hypocrisy, jealousy, and all unkind speech. Like newborn babies, you must crave pure spiritual milk so that you will grow into a full experience of salvation. Cry out for this nourishment, now that you have had a taste of the Lord’s kindness.”

That word “So” at the beginning of today’s passage reminds us to glance back and re-read 1 Peter 1. Peter is building upon his opening statements in this letter, in which he emphasized the incredible worth of this salvation through Jesus. For the whole prior history of humanity, people could only dream of what it would be like for a Savior to come. They had glimpses, promises from God, but they did not have the full understanding of Jesus.

“So”… Because of the fact that you have an incredible gift of the knowledge of salvation, get rid of evil behavior. Just be done. Lying, hypocrisy, jealousy, unkind words. Just do whatever it takes to get that out of your life. And then cry like a baby. Yes, Peter tells us we should act like infants who want their milk. One taste of Jesus’ goodness will have you screaming for more.

Here’s your freedom for today: God is a Father who feeds his children. Here’s Peter, a man who spent an incredible amount of time with Jesus on earth, telling us that one tiny taste of the kindness of Jesus and you’ll never want anything else again. That tells you how kind Jesus was more than any other Gospel story. Peter devoted his entire life to telling everyone about it. The sense of desperation in these words gives us a glimpse into Peter’s heart. Is that where you are at today? Are you, like Peter, deeply connected with the kindness of God and desperate to tell others about it? Or are you just finding out about this amazing news? Wherever you are at in your spiritual journey, press in just a little bit deeper today and take a big drink of the kindness and goodness of God.

^” For you have been born again, but not to a life that will quickly end. Your new life will last forever because it comes from the eternal, living word of God. As the Scriptures say, ‘People are like grass; their beauty is like a flower in the field. The grass withers and the flower fades. But the word of the Lord remains forever.’ And that word is the Good News that was preached to you.”

The depth of this passage may not immediately jump out, but this is a good lesson in digging into Scripture to understand all that is there. Peter has been talking to us in this letter about this amazing salvation that the prophets could only dream of. He has told us about this idea of being born via the Holy Spirit into the kingdom of God. And here he brings those concepts all together with a quote from Isaiah 40. Take a moment to read that passage before you move on so that you can enter into the full breadth of Peter’s message here.

The prophet Isaiah had written these words about 700 years before Jesus arrived on earth. The message of God foretold a coming of the Lord, a time in which there would be good news delivered to his people. Peter is helping his Jewish audience understand the fulfillment of these words through Jesus. “That Good News Isaiah told us about??! This is it!!” Everything else in the world will die. Even grass (as my lawn will testify…). But Jesus’ message will remain. This is the never-ending life God has been talking about since the beginning. It’s the return to Eden.

Here’s your freedom for today: you were made to live forever. Illness and disorder of every kind are not how your body is supposed to work. Life was not supposed to be hard. Eden is the status quo to which God is returning us. And notice that Peter does not say, “You will be born again.” He says, “You have been born again.” Your eternal life has already started. Yet another reminder for us to live with eternity in mind. Clinging to Jesus’ eternal reality is the only way to escape the death and destruction we see everyday in our flowers and grass. This world is going down. Grab the Life Preserver and don’t let go.