Salvation

Reading Amount: 1 Peter 1:1-12

Central Verse:

By his great mercy he has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who are being protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. - 1 Peter 1:3b-5

Central Truth:

The hope that we have in Christ comes not from forgiveness of sins or from his death on the cross, but from the resurrection. The Resurrection has brought us into a relationship with God with eternal rewards.

Food for Thought (Questions about the text):

As in the case of most letters in the New Testament Peter sets up the general themes that we will see reoccurring throughout the letter.

In verse two Peter writes "May Grace and peace be yours in abundance." (1 Peter 1:2 NRSV). The greeting of grace is a traditional greeting in the Roman world, the addition of the word peace is a Christian addition coming to us from our Jewish ancestor of saying Shalom.

The final two verses are often very uncomfortable for modern students of biblical interpretation. Peter actually practices bad interpretation from our stand point by taking ancient prophecies and making them about Jesus. This is a question we must wrestle with and make decisions based on how we will use the Old Testament prophecies.

Connections: (Time with our Society)

I grew up in the church and I remember being taught on many occasions that our salvation comes to us through the death of Christ. It wasn't until I was in seminary that I learned of other ways of interpreting the saving work of Christ and I began to look more deeply at what is truly happening in his work. What I found repeatedly is what is expressed here in the theme verses of this lesson. That salvation, and our eternal inheritance occurs not with the events of Good Friday and the death of Christ, but by his resurrection and ultimate defeat of the powers of sin, death and Satan.

What we see here at the beginning of the letter of 1 Peter is that Peter is reminding the people where their salvation comes from, and will proceed to build upon that foundation. Peter reminds the people "Although you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy, for you are receiving the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls." (1 Peter 1:8-9, NRSV) Their salvation is linked to receiving the good news of Christ's resurrection and there are benefits that others cannot see taking place.

None of us have seen Jesus with our own eyes, just as the people Peter was writing to didn't. We learn and grow in our understanding of what Jesus has done for us and can see the fruits of salvation being worked out in our lives.

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