Some introductory notes to the letter:

1. This is known as one of the ‘general epistles’ – written to the church in general, rather than to a person (Timothy, Titus) or a city (Corinth, Philippi).
2. Peter is one of the ‘big three’ in the inner circle (Peter, James & John), and was the first to step up to lead after Christ’s death. His letters would have been considered very authoritative/important. No other disciple is quoted more often in the Gospels. He was both rebuked and praised more than any other disciple. He was impetuous and bold.
3. He speaks of the Christians in this letter as ‘pilgrims’ or ‘sojourners’, suggesting that they have a different home (Heaven) and are travelling toward it through a foreign land controlled by someone who doesn’t think as they do (Satan).
4. (v 2) Obedience – note that we see this word 3 times in this chapter – in vv 2, 14 & 22. Christians are ‘elect’ (pre-chosen – v 1) and ‘sanctified’ (made holy – v 2) for the express purpose of being obedient to Jesus Christ.
5. (v 2) Sprinkling of the blood of Jesus – Guzik notes that there are 3 times in the OT when blood was sprinkled: (1) at the establishment of the covenant on Mt Sinai (Ex 24:5-8), (2) at ordination (Ex 29:21) and (3) at the purification ceremony for a leper (Lev 14:6-7). Christ’s blood has bound us to Him, ordained us and cleansed us.
6. (v 3) A living hope – Christians are born again to a hope that never ends, thanks to Jesus being raised from the dead.
7. (v 4) inheritance – our inheritance is guaranteed safe; kept imperishable for us in Heaven.
8. (v 5) guarded – we are being guarded by God’s power – Heaven awaits!
9. (v 6-7) trials – we rejoice in what awaits, although we may well have trials initially. Those trials are to test the genuineness of our faith – (do we fall away? Then that faith wasn’t real). This testing will show it to us.
• NOTE – Part of the value of gold lies in its permanence – it doesn’t rust and is difficult to dissolve. Peter here calls gold ‘perishable’ when compared to our faith.
10. (v 10) The OT prophets knew OF the Messiah, but didn’t know who or when, although they searched diligently.
11. (v 11) The angels – who watch us (1 Cor 4:9) – wanted to know too! It must have been hidden from them as well (Mk 13:32, Eph 3:10-11).
• NOTE: At this point, Peter switches over to speak about how we should live:
12. (v 13) Action – prepare your minds for it! God’s plan is one of action, not passivity.
13. (v 13) Sober – get focused; get serious.
14. (v 13) Hope on the Grace – Grace is on its way when Christ reveals it to us.
15. (v 14) obedient – oh dear – here it is again. It only works when we are obedient. He’ll do the planning, we do the follow-through.
16. (v 14) passions – don’t stop half-way over the fence; don’t hang on to your old ways.
17. (v 15-16) holy – we are set apart by God as holy. We need to keep ourselves that way. (Lev 11:44, 19:2)
18. (v 17) fear – Peter isn’t suggesting we should have a cowardly, craven cringing fear, but an attitude of awe at God’s power revealed.
19. (v 18-19) ransomed – awe about being ransomed. The closer we come to Jesus, the more we can see how little we deserve His ransom.
20. (v 18-19) gold is perishable; His blood is not.
21. (v 21) Put your FAITH and HOPE in God
22. (v 22) obedience – purifies your so your love can be sincere and earnest.
23. (v 23) the Word – God’s Word caused for you to be born again, this time an immortal.
24. (v 24-25) the Word will abide forever.

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Here are the supporting Scriptures from the message on ‘How Then Should We Live?’, May 2, 2010 – they are all from the ESV. You can listen to the audio message here:

The Hardest ‘Q’ Ever

… and the slides are here:

Download (PPT, 794KB)

Further readings on ‘our way’:
Ps 36:1-2 - Sin whispers to the wicked
Matt 7:21 - Not everyone who says ‘Lord, Lord’ will enter Heaven
2 Tim 3:1-5a - They have the appearance of godliness, but deny its power
Amos 6:1 - They say, “I don’t need anything”
1 Peter 4:4 - They are surprised that you do not join them
Rev 3:15-17 - The cost of being lukewarm

Further readings on ‘His way’:
Rev 3:20 - Open the door
James 1:2-4 - Count it all joy,…
Matt 22:37-38 - Peter’s epistle summed up

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Here are the supporting Scriptures from the message on Forgiveness, April 25, 2010 – they are all from the ESV. You can listen to the audio message here:

How Good Is ‘Good Enough’?

… and the slides are here:

Download (PPT, 265.5KB)

1. Step up to your wrongdoing – own it.
   • “If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” – 2 Chronicles 7:14
2. Repent of it & confess it.
   • I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,” and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. – Psalms 32:5
   • If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. – 1 John 1:8-9
3. Trust in God for forgiving and forgetting.
   • I have blotted out your transgressions like a cloud and your sins like mist; return to me, for I have redeemed you. – Isaiah 44:22
   • The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. – Psa 34:18
   • “For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.” – Hebrews 8:12
   • as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. – Psalms 103:12
   • For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. – Romans 6:23
4. Stop bringing it up – start living. You’re free of it.
   • There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. – Rom 8:1-2
   • Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. – Romans 5:1
5. Make sure you do your bit too – forgiving others is essential.
   • “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” – Matt 6:14-15
   • Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” (22) Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven. – Matthew 18:21-22
   • “So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.” – Matthew 18:35
6. Why forgive?
   • Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. – Ephesians 5:1
   • But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. – 1 Peter 2:9
   • See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. – 1 John 3:1
   • Applying to temptation resisted, sin confessed and life lived in Christ Jesus:
     Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. – 1 John 4:4
7. Summary.
   • Your best is never so good that you can redeem yourself; your worst is never so bad that God won’t redeem you.
   • The devil wants us to stay focused on our sin so we don’t focus on God.
   • If we are truly children of God, then we are princes and princesses of His family for all eternity – immortal. Isn’t it time we acted like it?

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Something just popped into my head.

When you go to an evangelical-minded church, occasionally (or frequently or every Sunday) the preacher there will have an altar call. And how does he conduct it? He says the old ritual lines – ‘every head bowed, every eye closed. This is nobody else’s business – just between you and the Lord – yes, I see those hands…’ and so on.

And what I want to know all of a sudden is, WHY? Why are all the heads bowed? Why are all the eyes closed? And above all, Why is it nobody else’s business?

Shouldn’t everyone SEE who’s coming to the Lord? SEE who’s thrown off the chains? SEE who’s going to join them in Heaven? Isn’t this a time of God’s glory manifesting itself in the salvation and redemption of a sinner?

And shouldn’t those who are raising their hands want to jump up on their chairs and shout, “Woo-ha! I’m saved for all eternity by the Blood of the Lamb!!!!!” ? (Woo-ha is in the Christian dictionary, I’m sure. See the section on “speaking in tongues”.)

And shouldn’t the rest of the church be looking and seeing and clapping and rejoicing over the salvation of someone “once lost, but now found”?

The angels certainly go nuts –

What’s with the eyes closed and doing this in secret? Sure, it makes it easier for the timid to put up their hands. But I have an ugly suspicion that it’s a procedure being followed by the preacher for that very reason – so that he can gain some converts that he may otherwaise not be able to count.

I’ve always sensed that this was a silly or even childish practice. Now I think it through, I think it’s a very dangerous one as well.

We are called to tell the world about Jesus and bring them to Him. Good grief! If we can’t acknowledge Jesus as our Lord and Saviour in church of all places, how can we do it in the World?

Am I missing something here?

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List of books I’m reading now (or RSN):

• Andrew Murray. With Christ in the School of Prayer: A 31-Day Course in Christian Prayer, with Note on George Muller. Spire Books. Paperback, 1972 – with my small group.
• Various commentaries on the book of Revelation for adult Bible fellowship at church
• Mark L. Waltz. Lasting Impressions: From Visiting to Belonging. Paperback. Group, Dec. 8, 2008
• Dan B. Allender. To Be Told: God Invites You to Coauthor Your Future. Paperback. WalterBrook Press, Nov. 7, 2006
• Bob Kauflin. Worship Matters: Leading Others to Encounter the Greatness of God. Paperback. Crossway, Mar. 31, 2008
• Dan Kimball. They Like Jesus but Not the Church: Insights from Emerging Generations. Paperback. Zondervan, Mar. 1, 2007
• Jack Stack. A Stake in the Outcome: Building a Culture of Ownership for the Long-Term Success of Your Business. Hardcover. Currency/Doubleday, Mar. 19, 2002
• Francis Chan. Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God. Paperback. David C Cook, May 1, 2008
• Ronald Rolheiser. The Shattered Lantern: Rediscovering a Felt Presence of God. Paperback. Crossroad, Feb. 1, 2005
• Terry Nance. God’s Armor Bearer Volumes 1 & 2: Serving God’s Leaders. Paperback. Focus on the Harvest, Dec. 2003
• Tony Morgan. Killing Cockroaches: And Other Scattered Musings on Leadership. Paperback. B&H Books, Mar. 1, 2009
• Geoff Surratt. A Multi-Site Church Roadtrip: Exploring the New Normal (Leadership Network Innovation Series). Paperback. Zondervan, Oct. 1, 2009

I’m just finishing off the last one, Multi-site Roadtrip, and will be writing a review in a couple of days.

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I was writing a note to someone just now in Microsoft Word, and typed the words “God’s grace” which the spell check didn’t like. It wanted either “God’s graces” or “God’s Grace” instead. Very cool – and absolutely correct, but who’d a thunk?

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