SFJ Bible Reading Plan

1 Peter 3

Wives and Husbands

3:1 Likewise, wives, be subject to your own husbands, so that even if some do not obey the word, they may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives, 2 when they see your respectful and pure conduct. 3 Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear—4 but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious. 5 For this is how the holy women who hoped in God used to adorn themselves, by submitting to their own husbands, 6 as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord. And you are her children, if you do good and do not fear anything that is frightening.

7 Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you¹ of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.

Suffering for Righteousness’ Sake

8 Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. 9 Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing. 10 For

  “Whoever desires to love life
    and see good days,
  let him keep his tongue from evil
    and his lips from speaking deceit;
11   let him turn away from evil and do good;
    let him seek peace and pursue it.
12   For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,
    and his ears are open to their prayer.
  But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”

13 Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good? 14 But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, 15 but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, 16 having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. 17 For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God’s will, than for doing evil.

18 For Christ also suffered² once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit, 19 in which³ he went and proclaimed⁴ to the spirits in prison, 20 because⁵ they formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water. 21 Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22 who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him.

Footnotes

[1] 3:7 Some manuscripts since you are joint heirs

[2] 3:18 Some manuscripts died

[3] 3:19 Or the Spirit, in whom

[4] 3:19 Or preached

[5] 3:20 Or when

(ESV)

Going Deeper

Exile Hope (6-27-15)

Grab your Bible and let’s go deeper into 1 Peter 1:

1 Peter 1:1-2  “Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who are elect exiles of the dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood: May grace and peace be multiplied to you.”

1> Who are the elect exiles?

Peter opens his letter by referring to his audience as elect exiles.

First Peter was written to Christians who were experiencing various forms of persecution. Both men and women whose stand for Jesus Christ made them aliens or exile strangers in the midst of a pagan society.   Let’s look into this deeper…

The Elect:

1 Peter 1:1  “Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who are elect exiles …”,

then notice in

1 Peter 3:2

2 when they see your respectful and pure conduct.

(ESV)

that He qualifies those who are chosen or elect with three phrases:

-according to the foreknowledge of God the Father,

-in the sanctification of the Spirit,

-for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood.

Do you notice that they are elect by the work of the Trinity? 

The elect are chosen by God the Father through God the Holy Spirit based on the atoning work of God the Son.

This is a meaty endorsement for Peter’s audience and for us who are the body of Christ today! 

This is also an important clarity at the opening because Peter wants to lay a strong foundation in the hearts of his Christian brothers and sisters who read this as He is about to talk about all the trials they are and will experience.  He is putting it in their minds that they are special because they are chosen by God.

It’s like he is saying, remember how significant it was when God came to Israel and said, you will be my people?  How significant it was when he came to Moses and said, you are my chosen man, my chosen mouth piece? Like when he came to Abraham and said, you are my chosen patriarch.  It’s like he is saying, you are a part of that special election now.

This is special!  It is special because not all are chosen.  Just look at…

Deuteronomy 7:6 “For you are a people holy to the LORD your God. The LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for his treasured possession, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth.”

So Peter is saying in just a few short phrases right out the door, you are special too.  As you endure hardship in this foreign land, know that you are God’s chosen people.  You are elect!   So, as I get ready to talk to you in this letter about hardship and obedience know that you are not a mistake. You are the LORD’S chosen.

You are not His by obligation nor by your merit, but solely by His predetermined plan and sovereign free will to choose whom He will.

He wants them not to wonder if their exile is all for not.  He wants them to understand in the deepest part of their mind and heart that they are His.  They are selected, secure and sent forth for his purposes.

Exiles:

He calls the church elect exiles. Other translations say aliens.

What do you think of when you think of aliens?   Big-headed, green creatures or people who are of a foreign land or kingdom.  I’ll give you a hint- it’s not the former!  It’s not the green creatures.

Christian exiles are like immigrants, foreigners, temporary residents, and refugees. We do not belong any longer to this world. Hebrews 13:14  “For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come.”

We are still aliens and exiles and sojourners.

You could say it like this…

We are citizens of God’s eternal kingdom while exile residents in this world’s temporal kingdom. 

Do you know that in your soul?  

Do you know that you, too, are an exile and sojourner in this time and place?

If not, this world makes no sense.   Because to build your LIFE in the here and now is to not understand the hope that brings endurance in anticipation for your true HOME.

Brothers:  THIS IS NOT OUR HOME!    

And because we are aliens here, because we are exiles in a foreign land, we should expect troubles and suffering.

1 Peter 4:12- “Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you.”

But, instead, we need to hold to the truth the apostle Paul gives us “…the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us…” (Romans 8:18).   This is what Peter is going to say all throughout this letter.

2> What is our living hope?

1 Peter 1:3 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.”

He says, “According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again”.

Once again, Peter says that it is God who is sovereign in our salvation.

Meaning, it is his work. He is in control.  He is the author and perfecter of our faith as Hebrews 12 describes.

Our salvation is “ACCORDING TO THE MERCY OR GRACE OF GOD ALONE”, not according to anything we offer, contribute, do, say, believe, or earn.   According to his mercy alone!

”Unwarranted confidence in human ability is a product of fallen human nature. This false confidence now fills the evangelical world; from the self-esteem gospel, to the health and wealth gospel, from those who have transformed the gospel into a product to be sold and sinners into consumers who want to buy.” – The Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals; 1996 

Deep down, human nature is convinced that there is a way for us to save ourselves or at least play our part.

Too many believe, while we may require divine assistance, perhaps God will show us the way, or even send a messenger to lead us back, but, in the end, mankind can follow the plan and/or do their part to pull it off.

In a democratic culture such as ours, we believe that our vote counts, and that by exercising our right to choose, we can actually and significantly change the world around us. We are all taught from our youth that we have it within ourselves to accomplish anything if we simply put our minds to it and give it our best efforts.

But, not according to God’s Word.  All we offer, all we contribute is sin.  We are in pursuit of selfishness and no help at all. “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all…” – John 6:63

We are desperate for God’s mercy to take what is spiritually dead and give it life!

Who has caused us to be born again?   God. 

No one takes credit for his or her own physical birth!

The baby never comes out of the womb and says, “Glad I could help”.

Our birth is something that happens TO us.

For those whom God causes to be born again, it is the same thing.

John 3:3 “Jesus answered him, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.’”

John 1:13 “…who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.”

This is the sovereign act of God to bring about new spiritual life to that which was formerly spiritually dead.

The prophecy of Ezekiel says it well,

Ezekiel 36:26 “And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.”

Regeneration is a sovereign act of God in which he imparts new spiritual life to us.

This is sometimes called “being born again”.

No one repents of their sin and believes in Jesus for conversion (salvation) until God does this in your heart.

Why? Because we don’t even see our sin.  And we don’t yet have eyes to see and savor the cross and Jesus’ atonement yet.  Not until the heart is reborn by God’s work.

Once brought to life, the new heart always responds to God’s saving grace in repentance and belief!

This is great news!  This is THE GOOD NEWS!  This is what Peter is highlighting-

that God acts according to his great mercy and causes new birth in dead and condemned hearts.

We are pitiful exiles in this land of our own understanding and we cling to the sovereign work of God to save us and set us on his path of service.  This is made light of or misunderstood.

So, Peter has said, God is due, “all praise and blessing”!  Because of his great mercy which caused his elect to be born again, we are reborn unto new life in Christ.  We are spiritually made alive.

The question that comes next is:   What are we born to?     1 Peter 1:3c  “…to a living hope through… “

Let’s break this down…

1. HOPE: First, what is the HOPE?

The definition of hope is 2 parts….

1• a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen (hope for this or that to happen).

2• a person or thing that may help or save someone  (hope in something or someone).

So, there are two ways to look at hope…

1. What we hope for… 2. What we hope in…

What or who do you hope in?

When you wake up in the morning, hope is what makes you do something.  It’s what motivates us to live! If there is no hope, why live? Why endure the hardships of this exile life?

Psalm 146:5 “Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD his God,”

We must hope in Jesus!  When we encounter hardship and our hope is in Christ we are not dashed in despair!

If we are going to endure the hardship we face, we must not lose HOPE!   We need living hope.

Have you been losing hope as the hardships come at you and things continue to not go your way?

Hear Peter’s words!   Listen to these truths!

Let them be like firm ground under your feet after being lost at sea for months.

Why is it significant that our HOPE is living?    What is this hope based on?

1 Peter 1:3  “…to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,”

It is genuine and vital HOPE in contrast to being empty and vain HOPE.

It is based on the perfect, sovereign work of God’s election, regeneration and conversion.

Peter has laid the ground work- the base.   This hope is not baseless superstition contrived in the hearts of folly men.

It is built on the work and the security of God.

But, he takes it farther here, saying it is living because Christ is LIVING!   We trust in a resurrected Savior- not a long dead and gone messiah like all the man-made religions of this world.

1 Corinthians 15:17-19  “And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.”

If Jesus did not rise from the grave- if he was not the first born of all God would redeem- then we have NO HOPE!   

Our hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness!

This a great lyric of old!   Why? Because it is our battle cry. It is our wake up alarm in the morning to get up and do another day.  Because our hope in the resurrected Jesus is living.  It is not dead!

Our HOPE is LIVING!  It is active. It is thriving in the fertile soil of Jesus’ victory.

Remember:  Jesus’ victory is not just a victory over death.  It is a victory over all this momentary suffering.  This is the basis of our living hope in the midst of the suffering and struggle of our exile.

We endure persecution, struggle, suffering, loss and even death because we know that we are secure. We are not losable, we are bound, and we are cemented in the resurrection of Jesus!

The victory of our bloodied champion who is the first born of God’s redeemed family.  The one who claimed our victory.

Peter is reminding the elect exiles that whatever you encounter in this world, it is trivial compared to the blessing of the future resurrection.

PETER SAYS IN THE REST OF

1 Peter 3:4

4 but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious.

(ESV)

& 5 THAT OUR “inheritance is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.”

THIS IS WHY WE ENDURE HARDSHIP IN OUR EXILE:

BECAUSE WE ARE CHOSEN BY GOD AND GROUNDED IN A LIVING HOPE THAT IS SECURE BY GOD’S POWER.

SOLDIERS: HOPE IN GOD as you face hardship and suffering in this exile!

Hope in our bloodied champion as you bleed.

Hope in the power of the resurrection of Jesus as this body is failing you.

May your LIVING HOPE in Christ cause you to LIVE IN HOPE!

“Christ in you the HOPE of Glory”  -COLOSSIANS 1:27

By His grace and for His glory,

-Shepherd

Soldiers for Jesus MC

National Chaplain

1 Peter 2

A Living Stone and a Holy People

2:1 So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. 2 Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation—3 if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.

4 As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, 5 you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 For it stands in Scripture:

  “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone,
    a cornerstone chosen and precious,
  and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.”

7 So the honor is for you who believe, but for those who do not believe,

  “The stone that the builders rejected
    has become the cornerstone,”¹

8 and

  “A stone of stumbling,
    and a rock of offense.”

They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do.

9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

11 Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. 12 Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.

Submission to Authority

13 Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution,² whether it be to the emperor³ as supreme, 14 or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good. 15 For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. 16 Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants⁴ of God. 17 Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.

18 Servants, be subject to your masters with all respect, not only to the good and gentle but also to the unjust. 19 For this is a gracious thing, when, mindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly. 20 For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God. 21 For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. 22 He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. 23 When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. 24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. 25 For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

Footnotes

[1] 2:7 Greek the head of the corner

[2] 2:13 Or every institution ordained for people

[3] 2:13 Or king; also verse 17

[4] 2:16 For the contextual rendering of the Greek word doulos, see Preface

(ESV)

1 Peter 1

Greeting

1:1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,

To those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood:

May grace and peace be multiplied to you.

Born Again to a Living Hope

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

10 Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, 11 inquiring what person or time¹ the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. 12 It 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.

Called to Be Holy

13 Therefore, preparing your minds for action,² and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 14 As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, 15 but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16 since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” 17 And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, 18 knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. 20 He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you 21 who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.

22 Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, 23 since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God; 24 for

  “All flesh is like grass
    and all its glory like the flower of grass.
  The grass withers,
    and the flower falls,
25   but the word of the Lord remains forever.”

And this word is the good news that was preached to you.

Footnotes

[1] 1:11 Or what time or circumstances

[2] 1:13 Greek girding up the loins of your mind

(ESV)

Titus 3

Be Ready for Every Good Work

3:1 Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, 2 to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people. 3 For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. 4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. 8 The saying is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on these things, so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works. These things are excellent and profitable for people. 9 But avoid foolish controversies, genealogies, dissensions, and quarrels about the law, for they are unprofitable and worthless. 10 As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him, 11 knowing that such a person is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned.

Final Instructions and Greetings

12 When I send Artemas or Tychicus to you, do your best to come to me at Nicopolis, for I have decided to spend the winter there. 13 Do your best to speed Zenas the lawyer and Apollos on their way; see that they lack nothing. 14 And let our people learn to devote themselves to good works, so as to help cases of urgent need, and not be unfruitful.

15 All who are with me send greetings to you. Greet those who love us in the faith.

Grace be with you all.

(ESV)