Top 5: Explaining the 1 Peter List
Leftovers from the 1 Peter sermon series "God and His Elect Exiles"
Earlier this week I made a list of 1 Peter’s five most important passages. Today I want to briefly share my rationale for why I chose these verses.
1 Peter 2:11–12 is the big idea of the whole book. This passage succinctly summarizes Peter’s main message. Verse 11 begins with three key words that remind readers of the statements he just made (see 1:1, 17-18; 2:4-10) about a Christian’s identity: we are “beloved,” we are “sojourners,” and we are “exiles.” Deeply rooted in the truths of the gospel, Peter urges Christian exiles to fight against the passions of their flesh. I think Peter’s plea is a very good summary of what he already wrote in 1 Peter 1:13-2:3. Then, in verse 12 Peter provides an apt preview of what he is going to say in the rest of the book (2:13-5:14). If you try to write a 1-2 sentence summary of 1 Peter as a whole, I do not think you will be able to improve upon the two sentences in 1 Peter 2:11-12.
1 Peter 1:10–12 provides an interpretive key that unlocks the whole book of 1 Peter and a whole bunch of Old Testament passages. This interpretive key can be summarized in four words: suffering first, then glories. Peter amazingly states that the Old Testament prophets were led by, none other than, the Spirit of Jesus Christ! For example, Isaiah, filled by the Spirit of Jesus, predicted over 500 years before Jesus was born that the Messiah and all of his followers would experience suffering first and then they would be glorified. Next time you read 1 Peter, sit down and read through the whole letter and underline every verse that mentions suffering. After you finish, make note of all the times that Peter makes a contrast between suffering and the reward of future glory. It will not take long to realize that 1 Peter 1:10-12 provides a key that helps us interpret the whole book and all of the other Old Testament passages that Peter quotes throughout the book.
1 Peter 2:21–25 makes it simple and spells it out for us. In this passage Peter get’s elementary. You can almost imagine him in a kids classroom saying “Listen up children! Pay attention…Jesus suffered for our sins so that we can suffer for Jesus.” This classroom illustration comes directly from a Greek word that Peter uses in verse 21 when he explains that Christ’s sufferings are “an example” for us to follow. Hypogrammon was a Greek word that was used to describe the process of children tracing over letters of the alphabet when they were learning how to write. In other words, Peter is making it simple and he is spelling it out for his readers. If you signed up to follow Jesus, then you should not be surprised when the fiery trials come (see 1 Peter 1:6 and 4:12). When we trace the steps of Jesus, it necessarily leads us to a cross that crucifies our sin, but it also takes us to an empty tomb that gives us a living hope. 1 Peter 2:21-25 is easily one of the most important passages of the whole book because it reveals Jesus’ fulfillment of Isaiah 53, it instructs Christians how to follow Christ, and it spells out what Peter implies in the surrounding paragraphs when he instructs Christians to submit to unjust government officials (2:13-17) or wives to submit to their unbelieving husbands (3:1-6).
1 Peter 1:1–2 reveals the identities of the author and the audience. Try to imagine studying the book of 1 Peter without these first two verses. I hope it is fairly obvious, without these verses it would be difficult to know who wrote this letter, when it was written, and who it was written to. Furthermore, this densely packed theological greeting offers insight into some of the weightiest doctrines in the Christian tradition: the trinity, election, foreknowledge, sanctification, and substitutionary atonement. For these reasons I think it deserves a place in the top five most important passages in 1 Peter.
1 Peter 4:1–5 might not be that important, but it was very important for my studies. Here are three reasons why I kept coming back to this passage while studying 1 Peter. First, I think verses three and four provide the clearest description of the suffering that these early Christians were experiencing. That is, they were “maligned” for not joining Gentile drinking parties, orgies, and idolatrous worship practices. All the other descriptions of suffering in the letter are vague compared to this one. So, I found it helpful to imagine someone getting teased for declining invitations to a sin-filled pagan party. Second, there are good arguments made by various scholars that this list of vices in 4:3 is specifically related to the worship practices of the Roman Empire. This meant that allegiance to Jesus was in direct opposition to allegiance to Caesar. It is one thing to be made fun of by your friends because you are not getting drunk at their New Year’s Eve party, but it is a lot more pressure and persecution to be told that you are an unfaithful citizen for not participating in the worship of the Emperor. The third and final reason I kept coming back to 1 Peter 4:1-5 is because of the way it clarifies the main point of the most difficult passage in this letter (1 Peter is 3:18-22). The main point of 1 Peter 3:18-22 is not about the “spirits in prison,” rather it is that suffering in the flesh was the pathway to Jesus’ victory over sin and Satan. Therefore, as 1 Peter 4:1 commands, we need to willingly adopt the mindset of Christ and be willing to serve and suffer in the flesh like he did (1 Peter 3:18 and 4:1). Jesus willingly endured excruciating suffering because he knew that he would be vindicated and victorious over his persecutors. In the same way, Peter teaches us to have this mindset: we must be willing to serve and to suffer. When we live with this mindset, then we will stop sinning and live a life that honors God (1 Peter. 4:1). Even if this passage does not belong on your top five list, I think it is a very encouraging passage and it really helped me make sense of the whole book.