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Be Holy. But How?

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Scripture: 1 Peter 1:14-16

14As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, 15but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”
Observation:

Vs. 14 — Peter gives us a contrast with a way of life when we were not redeemed and regenerated by Jesus.  “As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance.”

Now we are children of God, born of the Spirit and the Father’s will.

Now we have a capacity for obedience that we lacked before.

This capacity for obedience in our behaviour is enlarged as we experience the relationship with God that the Gospel now makes possible:  we are called into relationship with the Holy God.    vs. 15

For now by the Gospel we have been made holy.  vs. 16  “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”

Application:  Be holy, but how?

Holiness has to do with relationships.  It is a quality of God that is reflected in His relationships.  He is without fault, uncleanness, or imperfection.  God is holy.

To be brought into relationship with God required the work of Jesus expressed in the Gospel.  Through this Gospel we are forgiven, cleansed, declared righteous, and brought into relationship with God through the work of Jesus Christ at the cross.

To be holy in my conduct, means that in my conduct in relationships begins to reflect the character of God.  The Law is helpful to let me see God’s vision for relationships.  However, the rules do not accomplish holiness in me.  It is the grace of God through Jesus’ love and power that establishes holiness.  Now “being” holy, is a product of relationship with God.

What He has worked into me, I must now work out.  The Spirit is empowering us to pushing back against the conforming mold of our sinful passions.

Prayer:     Oh Heavenly Father, Yes I agree with you! I know my sin and I am far from your holiness in my own strength.  Lord have mercy on me and continue your transforming work.  Without the Gospel of Jesus, I would be consumed by your holiness.  Instead you have forgiven me, and cleansed me.  Now by your power, let me BE holy!  Show me my relational patterns that are not holy and lead me in the way of Jesus.  AMEN.

Thinking Grace

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Scripture:   1 Peter 1:13-14

13Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 14As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, 15but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”

 

Observation:  

Peter recognizes that the Christian life is inclined toward action.  vs 13.

But, we must prepare our minds for action.  And we must be concerned about what kind of action we are giving ourselves to.

Sober-minded:  A kind of clarity and rationality.  NOT — drunk, unclear, foggy, or acting without wisdom.  We know what we are doing and we have considered the implications.

Our preparation consists on a kind of “Gospel-thinking” that considers the grace that is ours by the revealing of Jesus Christ.

Application:

Habits come in all shapes and sizes in our lives:  emotional, physical, mental, and social.  Their impact can be life-giving or deathly.  Habits by definition become “automated.”  In our life before receiving Jesus’ life-giving Spirit we may have lived without thought about the impact of some habits; they were our passions and we just responded without thought.

A new kind of thinking discipline is required.  Gospel-thinking moves us into a contemplation of our relationships informed by God.  We are realistic about the brokenness we experience in this world, but we are also extraordinarily hopeful because of the entrance of Jesus into our relationships–His humble birth, His ministry, His redemptive work on the cross, and His victory over death in the Resurrection.  Now by the power of His Spirit we glorify the Father by living through the perspective of the Cross in all our relationships.

This kind of thinking prepares us for action.  Action with Jesus is a grace-gift we live in now.  The Scripture proclaims “Be transformed by the renewal of your mind…” (See Romans 12:1-3.

Prayer:   Heavenly Father train me for action by guiding me with your Spirit to meditate on the glory of the Gospel of your Son.  Thank you for loving me.  Now by the grace given me may I act with love for you and for people.  AMEN.

Why bother reading the Old Testament?

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Scripture:  1 Peter 1:9-12

9obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

10Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, 11inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. 12It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look.

 

 

Observations:  The Gospel of Jesus is connected to the Old Testament.  Peter, writes of the “prophets” and their desire to see into God’s salvation plans — to reveal Jesus Christ and bring us into the Kingdom of God.

The prophets of the Old Testament were not serving themselves, they were serving the church– the people– that Jesus would call to Himself through the Gospel when they wrote about the salvation that was to come through Christ.

The prophets prophesied about the grace that is ours through Jesus Christ.

Applications:  How to read the Old Testament?  Peter had the OT as his Scripture.  We get the benefit of the whole cannon — New Testament and Old Testament.  But how to read the Old Testament?  Why “should” we read the OT?

 

Peter gives us a clue:  the Old Testament is preparing people to recognize Jesus Christ and receive His grace.  Understanding who Jesus is and why Jesus suffered on the cross comes through the OT.  When the Apostles began to write about the life of Jesus they linked the history of Jesus to what they learned from the OT.  Not only that, Jesus Himself used the OT as the reference for teaching the Disciples why the Messiah must suffer.  (Luke 24:25-27)

The OT shows us what God is up to in the sufferings of Christ and then the glories Jesus had after the Crucifixion and Resurrection.  The OT provides us with confirmation about the identify of Jesus.  It also shows us why God has acted through the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus to bring salvation to us.

Prayer:  Thank you Heavenly Father for letting me experience today what the prophets longed to see and even angels long to know about.  Thank you for the salvation you have brought to us.  Through Jesus’ suffering and His glory you have forgiven my sin.  You have overwhelmed me with grace.  Thank you for your Holy Spirit who brings me into your family and makes the reality of salvation an experience I have today.  May I not neglect your Word… show me the glory of Jesus as I read it.  AMEN.

Faith in the age of “unless I see”

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Scripture:  Read 1 Peter 1:3-5

3All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, 4and we have a priceless inheritance—an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay. 5And through your faith, God is protecting you by his power until you receive this salvation, which is ready to be revealed on the last day for all to see.

Observation:  Peter writes to the church the reason for our praise and worship of God through Jesus Christ:  We have been born again — given new life-  through His mercy toward us.  Just as Jesus was raised again from the dead, we now have had a spiritual transformation from death to life.

This changes the way we live.  We live with great expectation.  We have hope.  We have the promises of God.  We are living looking forward to God’s triumph in the end and even now we can trust that in this life — we now belong to God.

Application:  What am I looking forward to?  What am I trusting God for in my life because of the change that Jesus is brining.  I recently met a person who said they had absolutely nothing to look forward to.  As a follower of Jesus part of our challenge is to let our faith in Christ pull us forward in each day with some kind of “Great Expectation.”  Where will I see God working in my life and the lives around me?  With whom will I get to share the life of Jesus?

Prayer:  Heavenly Father, thank you for the new life I have in Jesus.  You have been merciful to me.  Even as I know my life is secure in you and for eternity, help me by your grace to look forward today with expectation of seeing and meeting you.  I expect now that my life will honor you.  Thank you for this grace.  You give me meaning for life!  Thank you!  In Jesus name, AMEN.