Missional Living | Reflecting Christ in the World | 1 Peter 1:1-2

INTRODUCTION

As followers of Christ, we are called to live out our faith in a way that transforms our lives and impacts the world around us. This is what Peter addresses in his letter, written to believers scattered across the Greco-Roman world. These were Christians living in a culture that often opposed their beliefs, yet they were called to stand firm, live holy lives, and reflect Christ even in the face of suffering.

The concept of “Missional Living” is rooted in understanding our identity as God’s chosen people—called out of darkness to declare His marvellous light. It is about more than just personal faith; it’s about aligning every aspect of our lives with God’s mission. Peter, having walked with Jesus and witnessed His life, death, and resurrection, reminds us that our faith is not passive. It compels us to action, to live as ambassadors of Christ, even in a challenging and sometimes hostile world.

1 Peter

In this sermon, we will explore how we can embrace our identity in Christ and live missionally.

1 Peter 1

This is a general letter.

Author: Peter

Peter was a disciple of Jesus. He walked with Jesus. He was an eyewitness (5:1) of the ministry of Jesus.

Audience: Both Jewish and Gentile believers in Greco-Roman world, northern Galatia in this context (modern day Turkey). They probably heard Peter and came to faith on the day of Pentecost.

Date of Writing: Around AD 62.

Main theme:

• How believers are to live in this world. This letter details the new life now and in the future. This is an instruction for ethical living, commands that describe what it means to be the elect and how election should drive the way in which they live day in and day out for Jesus in order to fulfill God’s plan.
• How believers are to live in the midst of suffering. This letter deals with how we deal with life in the midst of suffering.

A Note on Peter:

Jesus died around AD 30 and it is about 32 years since the death and resurrection of Jesus and even after 32 years, Peter is just as passionate, has just as much as faith as he did some 30 years ago.

Peter is an interesting figure: He was:

• Rebuking when he should have been listening.
• Sleeping when he should have been praying.
• Denying when he should have been affirming.
• Fishing when he should have been waiting.
• If everything fails, take your knife and attack kind of guy he was.

We call can relate to Peter.

• After Jesus, Peter is the most mentioned person in the NT.
• Peter was very instrumental in writing the first gospel, Mark.
• Simon Peter and his brother Andrew were the first ones that Jesus called by the sea of Galilee to follow him.
• By Mark 8, Simon was the first one to correctly identify exactly who Jesus was.

Moments that defined Peter’s Life:

1. Revelation of the Messiah.

Matthew 16:17-19

¹⁷Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. ¹⁸And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. ¹⁹I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

Jesus used the word church for the first time. Church means – the called out ones.

We are the called out ones. We have been called out of the world.

Peter got the revelation about Jesus.

Peter got to hear about the church.

Matthew 16:21

From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.

Now Jesus begins to talk about suffering and rejection from a hostile world. Peter calls Jesus aside and rebukes him.

Matthew 16:22-23

²²Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you!”

²³Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.”

Have you ever been rebuked before?

“You do not have in mind the concerns of God, or the mind of God.”

This rebuke of Jesus has impacted Peter all through his life and his letter some 30 years later.

The revelation Peter Received:

• First Message: Christ is the Messiah.
• Second message: Christ will suffer and die and be raised on the third day.
• Second message: Once needs to have the mind of God or your the concerns of God.

When Peter writes this letter, these words of rebuke come to him very strongly.

Mind:

1 Peter 1:13

Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming.

1 Peter 4:7

The end of all things is near. Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray.

1 Peter 5:8

⁸Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

Suffer:

1 Peter 1:11 – Messiah would suffer.

1 Peter 4:1

Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because whoever suffers in the body is done with sin.

1 Peter 4:19

So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.

Peter does not stop with suffering: But there is a glory after the suffering.

1 Peter 5:1

To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder and a witness of Christ’s sufferings who also will share in the glory to be revealed:

2. Eyewitness of Transfiguration.

In Matthew 17, Jesus takes Peter, James and John to the mountain and there Jesus was transfigured before them. There appeared Moses and Elijah talking to Jesus.

Matthew 17:4-6

⁴Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”

⁵While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”

⁶When the disciples heard this, they fell facedown to the ground, terrified. ⁷But Jesus came and touched them. “Get up,” he said. “Don’t be afraid.” ⁸When they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus.

3. Denial of Jesus.

In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus takes Peter, James and John into the Garden and says, “Would you watch and pray?” He goes a little further and comes bank and they are sleeping. He says, “Hey guys, pray.” He goes a little further and prays. This happens 3 times. Peter did not yet know how to pray.

Right after that Peter is in the courtyard when Jesus is tired. Peter denies Jesus 3 times.

4. Reinstation of Peter

After Jesus’s resurrection, Peter is so discouraged that he wants to go fishing. Peter goes fishing and the resurrected Jesus comes out to them and they have a large catch as they obeyed his command. There is fire on the shore and Jesus cooks breakfast for them. Then we have this conversation between Jesus and Peter and 3 times Jesus says, “Do you love me, feed my sheep.”

John 21:15-21

¹⁵When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?”

“Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.”

Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”

¹⁶Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”

He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”

Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”

¹⁷The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”

Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.”

Jesus said, “Feed my sheep. ¹⁸Very truly I tell you, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” ¹⁹Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, “Follow me!”

²⁰Peter turned and saw that the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them. (This was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper and had said, “Lord, who is going to betray you?”) ²¹When Peter saw him, he asked, “Lord, what about him?”

Peter turned and was bothered about someone else. Peter turned, looked at someone else and he asked about his life to Jesus.

God gives each of us a natural personality when we are born. As we come to him, he gives us spiritual gifts. He gives us tasks to do, transforms our nature and uses us.

When Peter said this, Jesus rebuked him:

John 21:22

Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me.”

5. Pentecost

He was filled with the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, there was no stop on Peter. He preached a great message on the day of Pentecost, 3000 people came to Lord. The first 7 chapters of Acts Peter preached his heart out. God took such a man and made him so powerful.

It was like Jesus was training him his whole life in a very unique way. We find Apostle Peter preaching a storm on the day of Pentecost and slowly fading away from Biblical narratives and then around 30 years later comes with a powerful letter.

Now come to 1 Peter 1:1-2. We will look at: Salutation

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.

Peter in Aramaic means ‘stone.’

Peter calls himself as an ‘apostle of Jesus Christ.’ This is the first time in the general letters that the author is addressing himself as an apostle. James did not do it. Jude does not do it. John does not do it. Peter describes himself as an apostle. Apostle means the one who is sent.

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, chosen one in this world who are strangers in this world, elect exiles.

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

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 do not 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.

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

God has called us to be missional. We are to be the light and the salt. We are to reflect God to the world around us. If that has to happen, we need to live as God’s elect and live obedient lives.

LIFE APPLICATION

1. Live as God’s Chosen Ones.

Recognize your identity as God’s elect, called to reflect Him in every sphere of life.

How does being God’s chosen ambassador shape your daily actions?

2. Focus on Obedience, not Comparison.

Stay faithful to the unique calling God has for you, rather than comparing your journey with others.

Are you obedient to God? Are you obeying God in all areas of your life?

3. Set Your Mind on God’s Kingdom.

Align yourself with God’s eternal purpose.

Where is our mind fixated on? What specific steps can you take to align your mind with God’s mission?

4. Trust in the Sanctifying work of the Spirit.

Are you allowing the Spirit to shape you for God’s purposes?

How can you allow the Holy Spirit to work in and through you?

God promises us that we are people of immense worth, chosen and loved by Him. We belong to Him, and His care and protection are constant over His people. Let us continue to live missionally, reflecting His love and grace, knowing that we are valued and safeguarded by our faithful God.