1 Peter 1:22-2:3

I was looking for the information up on the screen. The title of the sermon is going to be new man New love and it's in first Peter chapter 1 starting in verse 22. So if you want to go ahead and turn to first Peter chapter 1 verse 22, we're gonna look through chapter 2 verse 3.

The.

The points of interest are less sermon outline that a that should be up on the screen pretty soon.

But.

They're gonna be less less sermon outline. And more points of interest to help us study as we look through first Peter chapter 1 verse 22 through chapter 2 verse 3.

You're not gonna.

Okay, it's not gonna be up there. Okay, and I don't have them written down so it's okay. Okay, cool, so when you see them up there if we can get them up there one of them. One of them was the imperishability of love and I got to thinking is that even a word?

So I looked it up on the Internet and it come up on the Internet. So rest assured because it's on the Internet. Of course, it's true, right? It's got to be true. So we could put the imperishable nests of love, but I went with the imperishability of love.

That's that's one of the points of interest. Hopefully we'll see that pretty soon. Let's go ahead and read our text together. If you're there in first Peter chapter 1 starting in verse 22. Since you have in obedience to the truth purify your souls for sincere love of the brethren.

Fervently love one another from the heart. For you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable that is. The living and abiding Word of God for all flesh is like grass and all its glory.

Like the flower of grass the grass withers and the flower falls off. But the Word of the Lord abides forever and this is the Word Which was preached to you therefore putting aside all malice and all guile and hypocrisy and envy and all slander like newborn babes long for the pure milk of the Word by That by it you may grow in respect to salvation if you have tasted the kindness of the Lord.

The Call to Study the Context Before the Application

Now before we jump into the the what and the how of this text a lot of times we want to do that and if you were with Tommy in any of the Wednesday night services earlier in the year. One of the admonitions from Tommy was to don't jump in to the application first.

We want to get to the context and learn all that. So don't jump to the application first. So that's what I had to do going into the text before we jump into the what is it saying? And how do we apply it?

I Asked myself the question. Why is why is Peter given the message that he's given to us? And I had to lay a foundation for myself and I wanted to lay a foundation for you. And I think it will will help us as we begin to study.

Study first Peter not just this passage, but the whole of first Peter laying down this this foundation of why? So what I did and you probably have done as well if you look at the introduction of Peter and you look at the commentaries for Peter.

Most of them will tell you that Peter was was writing to Christians who were persecuted Christians who were suffering so we get that information from from the introduction of the book and from commentaries and We'll look at textual evidence for those passages as well but also one of the other themes in Peter is this this idea of of urgency this this idea of Eminence or something is happening soon this timetable language that Peter uses.

So there's these two themes writing to persecuted suffering Christians and this timetable this eminence. Urgent type language that's going on and then the message that we read flowing out of those themes from first Peter kind of confused me because It doesn't fit the message that he brings doesn't fit with with those two themes.

It goes against our natural wisdom worldly wisdom worldly understanding. So what you think might flow from those themes doesn't fit with those themes and I want to cover those things so look at the let's look at those verses of suffering that we see in first Peter Chapter 2 verses 10 through 12 for once.

For once we're not a people for you once we're not a people but now you are people of God. You have not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. Beloved. I read you as foreigners as strangers to abstain from fleshly lust which wage again wage war against your soul.

Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles so that the thing in which they slander you as evildoers. They may because of your good deeds as they observe them glorify God in the day of visitation chapter 3 verse 17 and 14.

But even if you should suffer for the sake of righteousness, you are blessed and do not fear.

Their.

Intimidation and do not be in dread but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asked you to give an account for the hope that is in you but with gentleness and respect and and Keep a good conscience so that in the thing in which that you are slandered those who disparage your good behavior in Christ Will put to shame for it is better if God would should will it so that you suffer for doing what is right rather than Doing what is wrong?

Chapter 4 12 through 14 beloved do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you which comes upon you. For your testing as though something strange were happening to you. But to the degree that you will share in the sufferings of Christ keep on rejoicing said so at the revelation of his glory.

You may also rejoice and be overjoyed if you are insulted for the name of Christ. You are blessed because of the spirit of glory and the God rest upon you. Along with the suffering like I said, there's also this theme of Imminence something's happening soon this timetable language and just a few verses of scriptural evidence for that.

Chapter 1 verse 5 it says revealed in the last time verse 7 at the revelation of Jesus Christ chapter 1 verse 11 sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow chapter 1 verse 13 at the revelation of Christ.

Verse 20 in these last times for the sake of you. Chapter 2 verse 12 in the day of visitation chapter 4 verse 5 who was ready to judge the living and the dead. Chapter 4 verse 7 and you can circle this one.

This is I Think this verse and this statement is very rich and I think there's a lot to it and it's for Another time and another discussion, but chapter 4 verse 7 says the end of all things is at hand.

You hear that eminence language something's happening soon verse 13 at the revelation of his glory. You may rejoice chapter 5 verse 1 witness the sufferings of Christ and partaker of his glory. That is to be revealed.

Why Peter’s Message Turns Us Outward Instead of Inward

So we we hear this this message of to a persecuted people to a suffering people. And then you hear this this theme of a timetable this eminence something's happening soon, and it sounds. It sounds to us like a familiar message.

We hear this message all the time if you if you've listened to sermons over the years watch videos over the years. Read books articles anything that you've looked at over the years it sounds familiar to I to our ears that things are bad and things are getting wrote worse and Suffering for the Christian is coming soon.

So you should be looking for the suffering. You should be looking for other things to come it's a familiar message to us this this theme of persecuted Christian Christians and things happening soon this this theme of a timetable.

But what usually comes out for us as we hear those messages as I've observed is. When we hear a message of suffering Christians and and a timetable things happening soon. What usually happens in response to that is an inward look?

To ourselves. You'll notice that when we hear those messages Gun gun cells are up. The the ammo shells are empty some some people build bunkers. We we ask ourselves the question. Am I good? Is my family good and is my life in order we ask ourselves those questions.

We sometimes stock up with food and water a lot of people call this type of person a prepper which Preparing for emergencies is good. But that's usually our response to this message of pending doom that that's coming is to look inwardly and prepare inwardly for us and ours.

But that's not the message that that Peter gives to us. After we see this suffering Persecuted Christians suffering Christians and this this theme of time. We don't see that message flowing out that Peter doesn't tell us to look inward.

Peter's message. Here is a message that flows outward to look to look to others and It's totally contrary to natural wisdom. Natural wisdom says, you know, if something if suffering is coming if it's going to get bad and it's going to be happening soon.

We need to prepare for it. But that's not Peter's message. It's it's a message of looking outward and we see that we've already heard Three messages so far from 1st Peter chapter 1 and in 1st Peter chapter 1 Peter gives us.

Four.

Imperatives imperatives are do this and he gives us four imperatives and we've already looked at three of them in the previous three sermons. The the first one was.

Hope.

The command to hope the second one was the the command to Be holy and the third one was to conduct yourselves with fear and and Tommy pastor Tommy went through all three of those in in last Sunday sermon to to hope to be holy and conduct ourselves With fear.

And then the last one which is the one we're going to look at today is is love. And of course, like I said that that kind of contradicts our natural thinking. So wise Peter and this is the foundation that I wanted to lay to help me to understand What God is doing.

What God is saying through Peter. Why is he giving us this message that kind of contradicts our natural thinking. Wise wise Peter? Concerned about our moral behavior in Christ, and I think Peter gives us those answers and Then we'll we'll finish with that foundation.

Here's the answers from Peter. Keep your behavior. This is chapter 2 verse 12. Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles so that in the thing which they slandered you as evildoers. They may because of your good deeds as they observed them glorify God on the day of visitation.

Chapter 2 verse 15 for such is the will of God that by doing right you silence the ignorance of foolish people. Chapter 3 verse 18 and 24. Christ also suffered for sins once for all time the just for the unjust so that he might bring Us to God having having put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit verse 20 once who once were Disobedient when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah during the construction of the ark in which a few that is Eight persons were brought safely through the water.

And then lastly chapter 4 verses 8 through 11 above all keep fervent in your love for one another because love covers a multitude of sins. Be hospitable to one another without complaint as each one has received a spiritual gift employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the multifaceted grace of God.

Whoever speaks is to do so as one who is speaking actual words of God. Whoever serves is to do so as one who is serving by the strength which God supplies so that in all things in all things God may be glorified through Christ to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever.

Amen. So Peter is speaking to us as. There's this suffering and then he speaks to us as if there's a through this we're going to get through this. There's all on the other side of this. There's an endgame.

There's a That's not all there is to life. There's there's more to this life. There's a purpose. It's not meaningless. So we can think about that in our own lives in our own suffering it's not meaningless.

There's a purpose to it. There's on the other side of this that we're looking for and ultimately he says it's for Through Jesus Christ the glory of God who has glory and dominion forever and ever. So that's the why?

That we are to look outward and instead of inward when we hear this message of suffering and impending doom.

Born Again to Sincere, Fervent Love

Now let's.

Get into. Get into the text. Like I said, we've already looked at three of the four imperatives and today the last imperative or which means Something for us to be doing is love. Peter is telling us to to love one another from the heart and I think laying that foundation gives us a heart of tenderness as We move forward in obedience to God a tenderness toward obedience in Responding to this message from Peter.

Another thing that we were often tempted to do is as we study the Bible and look at the text is to pull one verse Out and kind of isolate it and say this is this is what it means. And then we make application but going back to what pastor Tommy has taught us.

We we don't want to we want to know the context of the message of the whole book and and other parts of the context. So and I think this is true, especially here in Peter in and our text that we can pull this verse out and And we can get a message out of it but we need to know the greater context of the book to help us understand what Peter is talking about and in verse 22 is A prime example and you guys can respond with with the answer to this.

Look at verse 22. It says since you have an obedience to the truth Purified your souls. So what what is that naturally telling us since since who since you? In obedience to the truth purified your souls.

So who did the purifying? Well, I mean, what does that naturally sound like?

Do what?

Yeah.

It sounds like you did it and and we can easily do that. Isolate a verse take it out and say this is something that I do. This is something that we can do. We purify ourselves the obedience to the truth.

But we as we look at the context we can see that that's not the message of Peter. Look at it says since. Since or therefore what? Since we have a faith and hope in in our God. We we are obedient to the truth or you have in obedience to the truth purified your soul.

The obedience to the truth is not obedience to the law. It's obedience to the gospel because of the word since or therefore it's pulling off of what we've already learned. It's the gospel your faith and hope in God and then as a result of that Comes out the the purified heart.

So because of our new birth We have therefore this this pure heart and It goes back to to what Peter was saying in in verse 12 this gospel that was preached to us and then in verse 3 We learned that it was God who caused us to be born again.

So we learned that all this is a result of God doing a work in us. That we when we're obedient to the truth We are putting our faith and hope in God, which is something that he works within us as we take a look at the text as we go on down and This is this is very powerful and very interesting.

You see he says for sin for a sincere the word for there is another idea of resulting in so This our salvation results in a purified heart and Then because we have a purified heart that now results in Our ability to do something else and what is that something else and it sounds like yeah.

It sounds like he's repeating himself here. But there's there's more to his message that I want to explain to you. Then more than just repetition so we have the ability therefore as a result of our salvation to Love and he says a sincere love of the brethren and then here he repeats itself fervently love one another.

The word sincere there and it was it was very interesting that.

Rob.

Chose the the verses that he did this morning because this is that ties right into this this passage right here this sincere Love. And if you remember the first verse that was read It said without a without hypocrisy and that's the word that is used here.

When you see the word sincere, it means not a hypocrite. So it's the negative form of hypocrisy and When we look at that word we remember that or we learned that it was it was for an actor who would wear a mask.

And the implication here when it says Peter wants them to have a sincere a non-hypocritical love of the brethren he wanted he wanted them to have a. The excuse me the implication When he says sincere love of the brethren there was the implication that formally they had a love of the brethren.

But it but it was a hypocritical love of the brethren. So he's telling them. I want you to have a non-hypocritical love of the brethren.

Okay.

Not only do we learn that it's a it comes from the understanding of an actor wearing a mask. But also has the implication of likeness and it doesn't mean that I Like something. I like your new car. I like your.

When I was walking in the church this morning, I saw Alvin pull up and I saw the tires on his truck. I was like, I like those tires on this truck. There's pretty cool. So it's not that kind of like. So the implication of this word sincere not hypocritical is this idea of like or or sameness?

So when they would have a hypocritical love for one another what they would have is they would. They would love you because you're like me. Does that make sense? You are the same. You're the same race as me.

So therefore I love you. You are the same Socioeconomic status as me. So therefore I love you. So that likeness is sameness and that's the kind of love and Peter touches on their their past later on in the book.

He talks about their former life as hanging out with the Gentiles and the sins that they committed with them that they once loved and Some of the love that they had this non non-hypocrite or this hypocritical non sincere love that they had was one that where they wanted to go back and hang out with their former Gentile friends that kind of sameness and That's what he was preaching against.

But the word that he uses there for love of the brethren you you may be familiar with it. In this text, it's either fillet or Philadelphian and We're probably most familiar with the word filet. Oh, right.

And this is the word that he uses and he uses a different word in the next phrase. But if you're like me if you think about the word filet. Oh and the same sentence with Peter. What does that bring you back to.

What conversation does that bring you back to that? He had in his past. Yes, Peter, do you love me the conversation with Jesus Peter? Do you love me and Jesus says Peter? Do you love or agape me and Peter says?

Yes, Lord. You know, I fillet. Oh you and that was the conversation that he had with Jesus. Now I can't help but think because Peter is using those words here and it's Peter. I can't help but think that maybe he's drawing from that conversation with Jesus.

We just don't know but it but it kind of makes sense because he uses both words here. He wants them to have a sincere or non-hypocritical Filet a love of the brethren in in other words stated more greatly.

I Want you to have an agape love? So maybe he learned from something from that conversation. He wants you to have a an agape love for the brethren and just to flesh out that last statement. Fervently means to be outstretched.

So like we were talking about before this love that we have for one another is going out. It's not inward. It's going out. So it's fervently means outstretched and Then agape love of course is the love of God and then from the heart and in in the better translation It says out of a clean heart.

Which goes back to the purification that we received? At the beginning in the beginning of verse 22 since you have purified your souls out of this clean heart Agape one another I want to take it a little bit further.

We know that this hypocritical love As stated was to love Those that were like me and this non-hypocritical love. This agape love can be taken in one of two ways and I think both of them Correct are correct and you can take it either way.

So this agape love that God wants us to have for one another Kind of looks like this one of two ways. Because Jesus is precious to me and I love Jesus and Jesus loves you. I'm going to do likewise. I'm going to love you because Jesus loves you.

You are precious to Jesus. So therefore you are precious to me. That's one way to look at this agape love and then the second way is Because you are Precious to Jesus. You are precious to me. So I hope that makes sense.

The first one is because you Jesus is precious to me I'm going to love you. Likewise or because Because you're precious to Jesus I'm going to love you and I think either one of those works and is correct.

When we look at the word agape Verse 23 as we as we move forward to verse 23 verse 23 helps us with a bit more of the context of understanding. This type of love that Peter is is wanting us to have. What does Peter say if you can remember from chapter 1.

What what does Peter say? About our inheritance and our redemption. Do you remember if you go back and look at chapter 1? What does he say about our inheritance and our redemption? It's imperishable and What does he say here that is imperishable the imperishable seed we were born of a seed that is that is not perishable and we we see that that Imperishableness the undefiled and that will not fade away that inheritance and redemption from verse 4 18 and 23.

And then what is the contrast? The contrast between this imperishable seed this imperishable faith or or inheritance and redemption. What does Peter contrast that with? His contrast is gold and silver if you look in maybe verse verse 7 and then verse Verse 18 his contrast to this imperishable Faith this imperishable Inheritance and redemption is gold and silver and it's it's our finest elements gold and silver, but yet they're still Perishable and any true true religion or true faith is going to be Imperishable any imitation of that may look good on the outside, but it's still going to be perishable.

A Hypocritical love would be like offering gold. So if I came to you any one of you and gave you some gold coins or some gold bars you would probably be happy about that because There were something it's going to increase your lifestyle just a little bit if I if I gave you some coins or some gold bars.

But those things are still perishable, even though they have worldly value and and we they would be received. Well Now what does that look like in? In relationship to loving one another if I were to offer you gold and silver.

As.

As love.

What would that look like? That would be a flattery. I would be flattering you maybe for my own sake. It would be a selfish love. It's it's good. My love's gonna look good to you. But the result is or the motivation is I want something from you or Or the sameness type love that I was talking about I'm gonna love you just because you're the same skin color.

You're the same Socio-economic status you have the same character as I do. It's gonna look good. It's gonna feel good. But underneath it's empty and it's perishable. That would be offering you gold and silver of my love.

The non hypocritical love that that God is calling us to that Peter's calling us to here is going to be Imperishable. In other words, it comes out of a clean Pure Redeemed heart and if we're going to discriminate in this world.

The only reason that we needed to discriminate is to discriminate against ourselves for the benefit of someone else. That's the only the discrimination that a Christian should have in their heart is a discrimination against their self for the benefit of another.

And I think that is what we learned here as this agape love. That God would have us to have so what else is imperishable besides this inheritance and Redemption and we've already talked about it. It's the seed.

It's the seed that those things come out of and if the reason that our redemption the reason that our inheritance is imperishable is because this seed itself is imperishable. And so what is Peter teaching us about this seed and I want to Compare verse 3 with some of the passages that we're looking at today.

So if you look at verse 3 in chapter 1, it says God calls us to be born again in verse 23. It says since you have been born again. Verse 3 it says to a living hope. Verse 21 says faith and hope in God.

Verse 3 says through the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Verse 23 says through the living and abiding Word of God and Then if you skip down to verse 25 this word and I think in the better translations includes The words good news this good news.

The word is The seed which is imperishable going back to verse 23. So the seed is is imperishable and this seed is the Word of God is the good news, which is Imperishable and then within us produces an invincible faith and a hope in Jesus Christ resulting in an imperishable love for one another and That's the goal here.

That's that's what Peter is trying to convey to us that the love that we should have for one another comes from imperishable faith. To an imperishable love for one another if you look at verse 25. It says the word preached to you and it's in reference to what we just saw or what you see in in verse 24 and 25.

This.

This quotation it may look a little different in your Bible. It may be more narrow in a different font and it's and it's telling us that it's a reference or it's it's pointing back to A quote from the Old Testament.

So why is Peter quoting the Old Testament here? What is this message that was that was preached to them were preached to us? It goes back to verse 10 and 11. It's it's a message that has been preached for a very long time from the prophets.

It's not a new message and Peter is referencing back to the Old Testament and one of the things that I've learned is that even though he calls quotes just a small portion of this Old Testament passage the quote for them for the original reader was more like a Chapter and verse it was more like a reference.

So the context when when they were to when they heard this reference. They would be recalling the whole passage and There's more there's more context that we can learn from the whole passage that helps us to understand the boundaries of the context for first Peter and if you want to I'd love for you to flip back over to Isaiah chapter 40 because that's where the reference is from and If you'll just remember as we look at Isaiah chapter 40, we're not gonna look at the whole thing.

But we're just gonna look at verses 1 through 11 just keep in mind that this this small reference to the Old Testament Peter wanted them to be recalling this passage in Isaiah chapter 40 the the greater context.

Starting in verse 1 comfort. Oh comfort. My people says your God speak kindly to Jerusalem and Call out to her that her warfare has ended that her iniquity has been removed that she has received of the Lord's hand double for her sins.

A Voice is calling clear the way of the Lord in the wilderness make smooth in the desert a highway for our God. Let every valley be lifted up in every mountain and he'll be made low and let the rough ground become plain and the rugged terrain a broad valley now who is verse 3 speaking of a Voice calling out in the wilderness John the Baptist so there's our reference that's part of our context verse 5 then the glory of the Lord will be revealed and if you want to I would Circle that part of the verse right there.

Then the glory of the Lord will be revealed because this is part of another part of first Peter that's going to be coming up later and I think it it gives us a lot of context but chapter verse 5 says then the glory of the Lord will be revealed and all Flesh will see it together for the mouth of the Lord has spoken now.

Who is this referring to after John the Baptist the glory of the Lord will be revealed? Who is this speaking of speaking of Jesus? So there's more of our context now verses 6 through 8 a Voice says call out then he answered what shall I call out and then here's our reference in 1st Peter all flesh is grass and all its Loveliness is like the flower the field the grass withers the flower fades when the breath of the Lord blows upon it.

Surely the people are grass the grass withers and the flower fades, but the Word of our God stands Forever this this message. I think this is what he is wanting us to learn from this reference. This message of Jesus is should is a sure message a promise of hope that will come to fruition.

This hope comes from outside of this world because everything that was created Wolf will wither and fall away. So everything that was created everything in this earth Will wither and fall away. So we need something outside of creation something uncreated.

To come in and rescue us, right? So I think that's the reference. I think that's the understanding here now moving on to verse 9 Get yourself up on a high mountain. Can you just can you just hear this command?

Coming from the Lord. Get yourself up on a high mountain. Oh Zion you bearer of good news. Who in here has experienced the love of Christ who has experienced the salvation of Christ? Are you a bearer of good news?

I think this is speaking to all of us you you bearer of good news. Lift up your voice Mightily. Oh Jerusalem bearer of good news. Lift it up. Do not fear say to the cities of Judah. Here is your God and then in verse 10 How are we to live in this world, but not of the world without fear?