Free Bible Commentary
“First Peter 1:1-2”
Categories: First Peter“Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who reside as aliens, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, who are chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood: May grace and peace be yours in the fullest measure.”
---End of Scripture verses---
It is true of all people, but in a special sense of Christians, that we are “aliens” in this world (verse 1). None of us has been here for very long and we won’t reside upon this earth for an extended period of time. Most people realize that life on earth is just a short visit, but either do not recognize or do not care that the way they choose to live their lives has an impact on their eternity. God’s children must combine that awareness with the appropriate manner of living. “Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against the soul” (1 Peter 2:11). “Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God.” (2 Peter 3:11-12)
The Lord’s people are “chosen according to the foreknowledge of God” (Verses 1-2). This does not mean that God predetermined beforehand those who would be saved and those who would be lost. Jesus died for the sins of the whole world (John 3:16), and God wants all people to be saved (1 Timothy 2:4). The idea of “chosen” has its roots in Old Testament Judaism with reference to Israel as God’s “chosen people” (Deuteronomy 7:6). The church is God’s chosen people but He does not individually preselect who will be a part of it.
Notice that we are not passive in God’s choosing of us. He has chosen us to “obey Jesus Christ” who is the author of eternal salvation (Hebrews 5:8-9), and to allow the Holy Spirit to perform His “sanctifying work” on us through faith in His inspired word. “But we should always give thanks to God for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth. It was for this He called you through our gospel, that you may gain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. (2 Thessalonians 2:13-14)
By the Father’s foreknowledge and choosing, by the Spirit’s sanctifying work and by the “sprinkled” blood of Jesus, we can have God’s grace and know His peace “in the fullest measure”. Peter calls attention to the coequal triad of divinity in the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and how they work in perfect unison and harmony to secure salvation for the faithfully obedient. We can fully trust the words of an apostle who walked daily with the Savior, heard the Father’s utterance from the holy mountain (2 Peter 1:18), and was inspired by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:19-21) when He reveals to us the nature of the One God of heaven eternally existing in three Persons.
Please read 1 Peter 1:3-5 for tomorrow.
Have a great day!
-Louie Taylor
