Lesson 3 - 1 Peter Book Study

In the Spring Sunday school session this class will be looking at the book of 1 Peter using the lessons available at Reformed Forum. These lessons are also available on YouTube under the Reformed Forum account for 1 Peter. The class format is to watch the video together and then discuss the presentation.

NotebookLM generated blog content from the YouTube video:

Beyond Wishful Thinking: 5 Radical Shifts in How We View Hope and Holiness

Modern life is a masterclass in fragmentation. We are experts at "scattered living," flitting between digital distractions and shallow interests, rarely pausing to find a center of gravity. Yet for the early church, life was far from scattered; it was high-stakes. The apostle Peter wrote to a "resident alien" people—a community suffering, harassed, and threatened—not to provide a self-help guide, but to offer a series of radical "ethical exhortations" grounded in an even more radical reality.

The core of Peter’s message in 1 Peter 1:13–21 is the seamless link between the indicative—what God has already done in Christ—and the imperative—how we must now live. Having been birthed into an eschatological hope through the resurrection, the believer’s conduct is not a desperate attempt to earn favor, but a necessary response to a metaphysical anchor already cast into the future.

Takeaway 1: Gird Your Mind for "Alert Expectancy"

Peter’s first command is to "prepare your minds for action," or more literally, to "gird up the loins of your mind." In the ancient world, this meant tucking one's long garments into a belt to allow for free, vigorous movement. Metaphorically, this is a call for a state of constant preparedness. It is the opposite of "dabbling."

This preparedness requires "sobriety," which Peter defines not merely as the absence of intoxication, but as intellectual and moral self-control. This sobriety has what we might call the "coloring of the eschaton" upon it; it is a focus born from the realization that the end of all things is at hand. When the future "intrudes" into the present, it clarifies our priorities and vanishes the vaporous distractions of the world.

"The girding up of the mind that is the whole inner person, is a metaphor for the preparedness the church should have for her Lord's appearance... [It evokes] an alert expectancy, a thing which is vivid, palpable really on the pages of the New Testament. And a thing which is greatly diminished if not completely lacking among many modern Christians."

Takeaway 2: The Audacity of Setting Hope "Fully"

Perhaps the most astonishing word in Peter’s exhortation is "fully." He does not suggest we set our hope "primarily" or "mostly" on Christ. He commands us to fix it unreservedly, absolutely, and totally. This is a radical demand because we are habitually inclined to seek "earthly consolations."

However, Peter suggests that earthly victories—political triumphs, cultural advances, or career milestones—are ultimately insufficient to repair the soul. They cannot give us back our dead. They cannot undo the ravages of the past or satisfy the church’s deep thirst for the face of her Lord. Because the losses of this life are often total, our hope must be total, riveted to the resurrected order where Christ is revealed in glory.

Takeaway 3: Holiness as a Guaranteed Future, Not Just a Duty

We often treat holiness as a grueling duty, a list of "do’s and don’ts" fueled by willpower. Peter shifts this by presenting holiness as "Gospel-wrought" conformity to God. Citing Leviticus 11:44—"You shall be holy, for I am holy"—Peter reveals that God is not just the standard of holiness, but its source and guarantee.

There is a "radical simplicity" here: holiness is a promise. Because you have been born again into a living hope, your conformity to the beauty and splendor of God is a certainty. It is the Gospel, not the Law, that enables us to love God with all our strength.

"He is the source and the guarantee of your holiness. It’s a certainty. There’s a promise in this text. You shall be holy... It’s the gospel which causes us then to love the Lord our God with all our heart, with all our soul, with all our mind, with all our strength."

Takeaway 4: The "Exile Ethics" of the Resident Alien

Peter identifies the church as a body of "resident aliens" or "exiles." This isn't just poetic language; it’s a political and social reality for those who lack citizenship rights in the present order. All Christian ethics are "exile ethics" because they are driven by and from the hoped-for future.

This perspective provides a necessary critique of the church's recurring desire to become "non-exilic rulers of the realm." When we seek to dominate the present age as if it were our final home, we lose our eschatological focus. Our ethics are not shaped by a desire for cultural power, but by the "grace to be brought" at the revelation of Jesus Christ. We live in the present based on the rules of the city to come.

Takeaway 5: Balancing the Father’s Intimacy with the Judge’s Awe

Peter maintains a "lovely balance" in how we relate to the Divine. We call upon a God who is "Father," yet we must recognize Him as the "impartial Judge" of our deeds. This tension is vital: intimacy without awe becomes "casual, nonchalant, and irreverent," while judgment without fatherhood becomes "soul-destroying terror."

The result of this balance is "holy fear"—a clean, healthy dread that is actually "buoyant" and glad. This fear is deepened by the "ransom motive" found in verses 18–19. We were not redeemed with "perishable things" like silver or gold, but with the "precious blood of Christ," the spotless lamb. This high cost of our salvation is the deepest motive for holiness; we have been bought with a price, and thus our "exile" is characterized by a reverent awe of the One who redeemed us.

Conclusion: A Hope That Invades the Soul

Hope is not a static "box we check" regarding the second coming; it is a force that "invades and then pervades the soul." This eschatological focus does not lead to "useless otherworldliness." Instead, as seen in Titus 2, it acts as an inner fountain that trains us to renounce ungodliness and live as a people "zealous for good deeds."

The deeper the hope, the deeper the holiness. As you navigate your own time of exile, consider the anchors you have cast: What specific earthly consolation—a political outcome, a career milestone, or a social reputation—are you currently asking to do the work that only the revelation of Christ can perform? Turn instead to the "total hope" that does not disappoint, setting your mind fully on the grace that is coming.

Lesson 2 - 1 Peter Book Study

In the Spring Sunday school session this class will be looking at the book of 1 Peter using the lessons available at Reformed Forum. These lessons are also available on YouTube under the Reformed Forum account for 1 Peter. The class format is to watch the video together and then discuss the presentation.

NotebookLM generated blog content from the YouTube video:

Beyond the Burn: 4 Radical Takeaways on Hope from the Heart of 1 Peter

1. The Fragility of Modern Security

In the "shaky" architecture of our present world, we often mistake the scaffolding for the foundation. We build our sense of security on the perishable pillars of career stability, physical health, and social status—foundations that the first tremors of crisis prove to be tragically brittle. When these structures crack, we find ourselves exposed.

For the "elect exiles" who feel increasingly out of place in this age, the Apostle Peter offers more than mere sentiment; he prescribes "theological medicine." Writing in 1 Peter 1:3–12, Peter addresses a battered and bruised people, anchoring their identity not in their current displacement, but in a "Living Hope." This is not a fragile wish or a distant "maybe," but a life-defining reality forged in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It marks the inauguration of a new creation, providing a resilient ballast for those navigating the "interadvental period"—the specific, tension-filled epoch between Christ’s first and second comings.

2. Takeaway 1: Your Inheritance is "Unsinkable" (The Three Great Negatives)

The logic of the gospel follows a precise legal trajectory: new birth confers inheritance rights. To be born anew is to be granted the standing of an heir. Peter moves seamlessly from the "mercy" of rebirth to the certainty of an inheritance, yet he is careful to distinguish this from the typological land of Canaan. This is no earthly territory subject to borders or decay; it is a heavenly reality defined by three profound "negatives" that describe its indestructible nature:

• Imperishable: Unlike the present heavens and earth, which may be rolled up like a scroll or consumed by fire, this inheritance is of a different quality from all created things. It is not merely that it won't perish—it cannot perish.
• Undefiled: While the earthly inheritance of Israel was often defiled by idolatry and moral ruin, this reality is beyond the reach of spoil or corruption.
• Unfading: Its radiance is replete and full. Its value does not fluctuate based on cultural trends or economic shifts. It remains eternally "at peak."

For the exile, this is the best possible news. Your security is not dependent on the volatility of "this age" because it is "kept" in the immediate, visible glory of the Triune God.

"An inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you." (1 Peter 1:4)

3. Takeaway 2: Protective Custody—Being Shielded In the Fire, Not From It

Peter introduces a concept of divine protection that is bracingly counter-intuitive. He speaks of believers being "shielded by God’s power," yet he describes this protection as happening within suffering, not as an exemption from it. He uses a metaphor akin to "protective custody"—the sense of being "under arrest" or guarded by a sovereign power.

This "keeping" is most vividly seen in his illustration of the Testing of Gold. Gold is the standard of earthly value, yet Peter points out its inherent limitation: even when refined by fire to its highest purity, gold remains a "perishable item." It will eventually cease to be. Faith, however, is of a different order. Trials serve to prove the authenticity of your faith, which—unlike gold—is destined to survive the fire. This faith will endure through the "apocalypse" (the unveiling) of Jesus Christ, emerging into eternity.

This perspective dismantles the false consolations of our day—the lies that suggest trials will always lead to immediate earthly advantage or that God’s "shielding" means the fire won't be hot. God’s power keeps you for the inheritance, even while the flames of this age refine you.

4. Takeaway 3: The Secret of "Drawing Down" Joy

The Christian life is defined by a startling paradox: the ability to "greatly rejoice" while simultaneously "grieving in all kinds of trials." Peter insists that joy is not something we wait for until the trials have ceased; rather, it is accessed in the midst of them.

This is made possible through an "eschatological vision"—the ability to draw the joy of our future glory down into our present affliction. Faith serves as our current mode of "seeing" the invisible Christ. Even though we live in the "now" of his physical absence, we love him and believe in him. By laying hold of the coming glory through faith, we are filled with a joy that is "inexpressible," precisely because its source is not of this world.

"Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy." (1 Peter 1:8-9)

5. Takeaway 4: You Are the "Envy of Angels"

Perhaps the most staggering insight in this passage is the description of our unique "redemptive-historical situation." Peter reveals that the Old Testament prophets, who searched "diligently and with the greatest care" to understand the coming Messiah, were not ultimately serving themselves. They were serving us.

Crucially, it was the Spirit of Christ within them who was speaking proleptically—Christ himself testifying in advance through the types, shadows, and prophecies of the Old Testament. The prophets wrestled with the "time and circumstance" of the Messiah's sufferings and the glories to follow.

Even the angels—who have witnessed the heights of celestial glory—are described as "straining" to catch a glimpse of the grace now being preached through the Gospel. The church has become a "graduate school for angels," where the heavenly host watches the manifold wisdom of God unfold in the lives of redeemed sinners. To live on this side of the resurrection is to occupy a position of enormous privilege that the prophets studied and the angels envy.

6. Conclusion: A Perspective for the Long Haul

We often dismiss dense theology as the pursuit of the academic, but for a "threatened and troubled people," it is the only practical tool for survival. There is nothing more pragmatic than an eschatological hope that refuses to be broken by the trials of this age.

As you navigate the "little while" of your own exile, consider this: How does the knowledge of an unsinkable inheritance, kept for you while you are kept by God, change your view of your current struggles? When we understand our redemptive-historical situation—living in the era the prophets longed to see—we can adopt the only posture that makes sense: praise and wonder.

Let us join the historical community of faith in the great benediction of the exiles: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ," who has caused us to be born again into a living hope that no fire can consume.

Lesson 1 - 1 Peter Book Study

In the Spring Sunday school session this class will be looking at the book of 1 Peter using the lessons available at Reformed Forum. These lessons are also available on YouTube under the Reformed Forum account for 1 Peter. The class format is to watch the video together and then discuss the presentation.

NotebookLM generated blog content from the YouTube video:

The Vagabond Life: 5 Counter-Intuitive Truths About Finding Your Place in a Hostile World

In an age of relentless culture wars and digital tribalism, the modern soul is exhausted. We are a people perpetually "out of place," caught in a crossfire of competing agendas that demand our total allegiance but offer no true rest. Into this fray, the Apostle Peter issues a tactical manual for a community under siege.

Writing from "Babylon"—his subversive shorthand for Rome—in 63 A.D., Peter offers what has been called a "condensed resume of the faith." He speaks to those living in the "in-between," a period where salvation has been definitively accomplished by Christ but is not yet fully consummated. His message is a provocation: our greatest security is found not in reclaiming earthly dominance, but in embracing a specific, paradoxical identity. We are "Elect Exiles."

1. Your Life is "Vapor," Not Just a Residency

While modern Christians often describe themselves as "resident aliens," Peter’s opening greeting uses a linguistic nuance that is far more radical. In the original Greek, he distinguishes between the settled "resident alien" and the parepidēmos—the transient, the vagabond, the visitor passing through.

If a resident alien is someone living away from home, a transient is someone actively on the way to one. This isn't just semantics; it’s a shift in weight. Drawing on the "gritty realism" of Psalm 39, Peter views human existence as a "mere handbreadth" or a "puffy cloud of smoke."

Viewing life as "vapor" is usually seen as a recipe for despair, but for the Christian pilgrim, it is the ultimate source of freedom. If our current anxieties and cultural pressures are literally weightless puffs of smoke, they lose their power to crush us. We find a peculiar liberty in our own displacement.

"Resident alien stresses that we are living away from our true home; transient stresses that we are wayfarers sojourners on the way to our true home."

2. The "New Israel" Inherits a Landless Legacy

Peter performs a daring feat of theological rebranding. He takes the language of the diaspora—the "scattered ones" of ethnic Israel—and applies it to a predominantly Gentile audience in Turkey. By invoking the prophecy of Hosea, he declares that those who "were not a people" are now the "Israel of God."

To understand this identity, we must look at the Levites of the Old Testament. While other tribes received parcels of land, the Levites were given no territory. The Lord told them, "I am your share." The Levites dramatized the reality of all believers: they were transients even in the Promised Land.

By identifying the church as the new global diaspora, Peter reveals that we are a people whose "inheritance" is not a zip code or a nation-state, but the Person of God Himself. We are "landless" by design, reflecting the truth that no earthly border can contain our citizenship.

3. "Heaven" is the Epicenter of Gritty Realism

We often dismiss "heavenly-mindedness" as a wispy, escapist fantasy. Peter flips this on its head, arguing that heaven is the most solid, concrete reality in the cosmos.

In Peter’s framework, the Old Testament's physical anchors—the Land of Canaan, Mount Zion, the Temple, and the Davidic throne—were merely "types" or shadows. The substance of these realities is currently held in heaven, which Peter describes as the "epicenter" of the new creation.

Being "heavenly-minded" isn't about looking away from the world; it’s about recognizing that the veil between heaven and earth is temporary. When Christ appears, heaven will "transfigure" the current order. It will not destroy the world but "heavenize" it—rectifying the cosmos, healing the groaning creation, and eradicating evil. This isn't "pie in the sky"; it is a foundational reality that is more enduring than the very ground we walk on.

4. Foreknowledge is an Intimacy, Not an Algorithm

Theological terms like "election" and "foreknowledge" are frequently weaponized in dry academic debates. Peter, however, uses them as pastoral medicine.

He clarifies that God’s "foreknowledge" is not "bare cognition"—it isn't God simply looking down the corridors of time to see what happens. In the biblical idiom, "to be known" is "to be loved." When God says through the prophet Amos, "You only have I known," He isn't claiming ignorance of other nations; He is declaring a unique, covenantal intimacy.

To be "foreknown" is to be loved from all eternity. Peter presents this as the unified work of the Holy Trinity:

• The Father chooses and loves the pilgrim from eternity past.
• The Spirit makes that love operative through a "sanctification unto holiness."
• The Son redeems the pilgrim, incorporating them into the New Covenant through His blood.

5. The Antidote to the Culture War

Perhaps the most counter-intuitive truth Peter offers is that the remedy for cultural hostility is not a sociopolitical counter-offensive.

Today, secular politics consume a massive amount of "psychological bandwidth." We allow political cycles to dictate our passions, frame our friendships, and steal our peace. Peter’s "prescriptive malady" for the harassed church is a radical shift in focus: he directs our attention to an "eternal election unto holiness."

By rooting our dignity in our status as "Elect Exiles," we are dislodged from the world’s claim to be our center of gravity. Our hope is not tethered to the rise or fall of empires, but to a heavenly inheritance that remains "reserved" and "unfading."

"This and not any earthly agenda or any particular sociopolitical outcomes. This is the church's comfort, her assurance, and her hope."

Conclusion: The Gift of Displacement

The identity of an "Elect Exile" is not a burden; it is the essential foundation of Christian existence. It is a gift of displacement that allows us to live in the world without being consumed by its demands.

As you navigate the "in-between" times, audit your own heart: are your affections anchored in the "vapor" of the present world, or in the "solid reality" of the heavenly city? The Christian life is a journey of transients who find their security in the very fact that they are passing through.

To the Christian pilgrim, Peter offers the only benediction that matters: Grace and peace be yours in abundance.