Living Hope | 1 Peter 1:1-9

INTRODUCTION

Life’s uncertainties and trials often challenge our faith, yet 1 Peter calls us to anchor our hope in Christ. As God’s chosen people, we are not abandoned but empowered to live with purpose, reflecting His glory even as exiles in this world. Through His great mercy, we have a living hope, an eternal inheritance, and a promise of salvation. Let us explore how these truths transform our perspective and strengthen our faith journey.

Praises to God for the Living Hope in calling Christians to a truly great and complete salvation, salvation that will be revealed at the coming of Jesus.

1 Peter:1-2

¹Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,

To God’s elect, exiles scattered throughout the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, ²who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to be obedient to Jesus Christ and sprinkled with his blood:

Grace and peace be yours in abundance.

WE ARE GOD’S CHOSEN ONES.

To God’s elect: Believers are God’s elect or God’s chosen ones.

This is coming from his encounter with Jesus and his revelation of Jesus as the Messiah. Jesus talked about the church – called out ones. Now Peter mentions that the church is the elect, believer are chosen one in this world who are strangers in this world, elect exiles.

• Christ was chosen by God, rejected by People; 1 Peter 2:4
• We (believers) have been chosen before the creation of this world; 1 Peter 1:20
• We are the chosen people; 1 Peter 2:9
• The church is the chosen one; 1 Peter 4:13

WE ARE EXILES IN THE WORLD.

Exiles scattered: The idea of resident aliens. Peter says that though you may be living in the Greco-Roman world, we are just sojourners in this world. They are living in various places dispersed throughout northern Galatia (modern Turkey today).

Some of the recipients may have come to faith when Peter preached his great sermon at Pentecost (Acts 2:9- 11). They would then have returned to these regions, while others may have fled there when persecution arose (Acts 8:1). Whatever the reason for their being there, Peter’s description of them as exiles and scattered implies that they no longer feel at home in the society in which they live (1:17; 2:11). They felt as rootless and despised as refugees.

Peter assures them that they are not worthless! They are God’s elect, that is, those who have been chosen by the Father (1:2a; see 2:9). This honour originally belonged only to the Israelites (Deut. 7:6) and brings with it a promise of God’s care and protection during exile (Isa. 43:1-7).

• As exiles we are to abstain from sinful desires of the world: 1 Peter 2:11
• We stay in this world but we are not to get corrupted by the world.
• He also recognizes that these people live as chosen or elected ones.
• The elect has been chosen according to God’s foreknowledge; 1 Peter 1:2a

It is not that God chooses some to be his elect. God has given all mankind the free choice to receive the Gospel. But God is omniscient, all knowing. He knows the elect even before laying the foundation of this world.

God has elected us through the sanctifying work of the Spirit; 1 Peter 1:2b.

This last is a reference to the way the Israelites were brought into a covenant with God and indicates the believers’ inclusion in the new covenant (Ex. 24:4-8; Heb. 9:19-21). In their suffering, they must not lose sight of the truth about who they are before God.

It is the Holy Spirit that sanctifies. The sprinkled blood of Jesus that gives us forgiveness. God has a grand plan to redeem the earth. God has established the KOG by sending Jesus and now calling people into his Kingdom and sanctifying them by the Spirit. Trinity is mentioned here.

WE ARE CALLED TO OBEY JESUS.

Purpose of our calling: To be obedient to Christ.

• Obedient to Jesus; 1:2
• Obedient living; 1 Peter 1:14
• Obedient to the truth; 1 Peter 1:22. The world disobeys the truth; 2:8

Section of Praise: 1 Peter 1:3-12

WE ARE CALLED TO PRAISE GOD.

Peter gives praise to God.

Things Peter Praises God for:

a. God’s Great Mercy.

b. The Joy of Believers. The inexpressible joy Christians now have because of their knowledge of Jesus who is Messiah.

c. Messianic Salvation. God is praised for the greatness of the Messianic salvation that these followers of Jesus are now experiencing.

We will start with ‘Praising God for the Messianic Salvation.’

Praise God for the Messianic Salvation.

Praise God for the greatness of the Messianic salvation. V10-12

1 Peter 1:10-12

¹⁰Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, ¹¹trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of the Messiah and the glories that would follow. ¹²It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.

Salvation was prophesied in advance, years ago in the OT.

There is a progress of revelation that exists between the OT and the NT. It is not that the NT writers are creating something totally different out of sync of what the OT is, but there are ambiguities in the OT prophets about things that are yet to come, as God fills in the blanks as times goes on. So, the prophets spoke about things in the future though not all things were known to the prophets at that time. God reveals his progressive program concerning us and our relationship with him and how fits into his kingdom program and redeeming of people to enter into that kingdom.

So Peter wants his readers to remember that salvation included suffering of the Messiah as well as glory, that the grace that God promised would come to them. Grace that God promised to believers generally included gentiles.

Peter is writing to a mixed audience. It was always in God’s preview that salvation be extended to gentiles in the OT. We see that in the building of the temple. Solomon’s prayer of dedication, this idea that God may this temple draw people to Him. “May they come to know you and worship you at this temple. That they might be a people that would live in a way that would draw people to one want to know the one true God.” Then, we have stories like Jonah who does not want to go to the gentiles but God sent him and they repent. God has always had a concern for the gentiles.

So Peter is bringing in the fact that salvation is not just limited to the Jew but was extended and meant to be for all people and has come to fruition through Jesus.

The prophets fully understand how this was to work but they did understand that not all of their inspired revelations will be filled in their own day. So though they saw things and God told them things in their day, they did not always necessarily see the full complete fulfilment of those things.

So we have this God being praised for the great Messianic salvation message that was foretold in the prophets and fulfilled in the Messianic Son of promise, Jesus.

Praise God for His great mercy.

1 Peter 1:3-5

³Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, ⁴and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, ⁵who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.

God’s Mercy has Given Us:

• Living Hope; 1:3
• Inheritance; 1:4.
• Final salvation; 1:5.

Hope in this context:

1 Peter 1:3b In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead..

In the book of Hebrews, Jesus is our Hope.

The author of Hebrews talk of hope which is beyond or on the other side veil, in the holy of holies. Hope becomes personified into that which resided on that other side of the veil. Jesus is also seen as entering the other side of the veil. Merging the two ideas, Jesus is our hope. It is objective, we can count on it. Jesus is the man through whom God has completed his program.

Hebrews 6:17-20

¹⁷Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. ¹⁸God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged. ¹⁹We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, ²⁰where our forerunner, Jesus, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.

In Hebrews: Hope is through Jesus.

The hope in 1 Peter is also through Jesus:

1 Peter 1:3

³Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead…

• We have a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus.
• We praise God for that living hope through the resurrection of Jesus.
• We also praise God because we have entered into an imperishable and unfading inheritance. – Imperishable and unfading inheritance.

Unlike the inheritance that Jewish people experienced with regard to entering in the land which was just temporal and fleeting, this inheritance that we experience is not fleeting. It is eternal. This hope will be preserved until we receive our inheritance.

God’s mercy has given us the final salvation.

1 Peter 1:5

…who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.

God is to be praised for his great mercy for brining followers of Jesus into this new life, this living hope, this secure inherence which culminates in a final salvation at the coming of Jesus.

The living hope, secure inheritance, and final salvation is because of God’s mercy.

2. Praise God for the Joy of Believers.

Praise God for the inexpressible Joy that we have. V6-9

1 Peter 1:6-9

⁶In all this you greatly rejoice, (What brings you great joy? He has already told us: Things that God has blessed us with, hope through Jesus’s resurrection, the inheritance and the future salvation. These three things bring us, bring believers great joy.) though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. ⁷These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. ⁸Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, ⁹for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

Praise God for the inexpressible joy.

V6 – Peter talks about trials.

The author of Hebrews in Heb. 12 talks about the importance of discipline to help us mature, to grow up. God bringing things into our lives that enable us to help us advance in our maturity as a family member in God’s community.

In 1 Peter, Peter talks of the idea of trials that believers face and God uses them to prefect us. This idea of trials is also seen in James as well as being a way of perfecting.

But trials can rob us of Joy if we do not keep the right perspective. Peter wants to remind them that the trials that they are experiencing, keep them in perspective. They may suffer distress in various kinds of trials but it is with an intention. The intention is for the genuineness of our faith, the faith of the believer might rise to the surface. Trials do to faith what fire does to gold, it purifies.

So we have got this expectation of trials purifying us, to show our proven character, faith.

These trials are for the praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus.

1 Peter 1:7

These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.

Ultimately, we are going to obtain full salvation of our souls as we work through these trials.

It is easy to go through life if everything is fine and going well and we do not have any experience our character does not come through. It is when those tough times come, those pressures are there and those tensions are there that our character is proven.

How do we respond to those times?

Do we have the mind of Jesus?

Do we have that wherewithal in the heat of the moment to manifest Christian character

Conclusion & Recap:

We are God’s chosen ones.

We are exiles in this world.

We are called to obey Jesus.

We are called to Praise God.

• Praise God for His: Living Hope, Mercy, Joy, and Salvation.

Let this truth encourage and embolden you: Jesus is our living hope. He has secured our future and walks with us in the present. No matter the trials or uncertainties, we can rejoice in the certainty of His promises. Let us live as people of hope, reflecting His light in a dark world, confident in His love and purpose for us.

Let our hearts be filled with gratitude, lives surrendered in obedience, and faith anchored in the hope we have in Jesus Christ. To Him be the praise, glory, and honor forever. Amen.

Life Application

Embrace Your Identity as God’s Chosen Ones

Recognize that you are God’s elect, called to live with purpose and reflect His glory in the world. How does knowing that you are chosen by God influence the way you view yourself and live your daily life?

Find Joy in Trials

Trust that God uses trials to refine and strengthen your faith, making it more precious than gold

What trials are you facing today, and how can you shift your perspective to see them as opportunities for spiritual growth?

Live with Eternal Perspective

Set your mind on the imperishable inheritance awaiting you in heaven, rather than the fleeting concerns of this world. Are your priorities and decisions reflecting a focus on eternity or the temporary things of life?

Be a Witness to God’s Great Mercy

Share the message of salvation with others, living as a testimony to God’s grace and mercy in your life. How can you use your life and story to reflect the hope and joy of the gospel to those around you?