1 Peter (Program #7) – Peter’s Well-Speaking Concerning the Triune God

The apostle Peter opens his first epistle with a long and truly marvelous blessing of the Triune God.  This blessing occupies ten of the twelves verses and these verses are full of wonderful, spiritual expressions based not on mere praise to God for His mighty works of creation and even salvation but are full of Peter’s well-speaking of all three persons of the God-head concerning what God has done and will do subjectively in all of His chosen ones.

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1 Peter (Program #6) – The Full Salvation of the Triune God and Its Issues (4)

Even though Peter’s entire contribution to the New Testament only comprises eight chapters, the scope of his writing was extremely broad.  In his first epistle he incorporates both the prophecies of the ancient Old Testament prophets and the preaching and teaching of the New Testament apostles and links both of these in the Holy Spirit’s application of God’s full salvation upon His chosen people.

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1 Peter (Program #5) – The Full Salvation of the Triune God and Its Issues (3)

In his first epistle, the apostle Peter compared the testing or proving of our faith with the refining process that purifies gold.   Gold, precious and valuable as it is,  is still a perishable commodity.  Yet our faith must stand the test even of eternity.  Surely if something temporary such as gold must pass through the fire of refinement, our faith which is a far more precious possession must also be tested, refined, purified and proved.

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1 Peter (Program #4) – The Full Salvation of the Triune God and Its Issues (2)

In his epistles the apostle Peter frequently mentions the matter of salvation.   but he does so in a context that somewhat different than how most Christians normally think of salvation.  For example  in chapter 1:5 he say “a salvation ready to be revealed at the last time.”  Of course, our common thought is that salvation was revealed to us when we believed and received Christ as our Savior.  Then in chapter 2:2, Peters says that salvation is something that we grow into.  Once again, the typical thought is that salvation is what we received once for all at the moment we believed.  Well in fact there is a real measure of truth to the salvation that we received when we first expressed our faith in the Lord Jesus.  But, and this is a crucial but,  the salvation that Peter refer to repeatedly in his writings involves much more than just our initial salvation.

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1 Peter (Program #3) – The Full Salvation of the Triune God and Its Issues (1)

In the books of 1 & 2 Peter often a single word can add much richness and meaning to what is being said.  For example, Peter begins his first epistle by pointing  us to the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus.  This word sprinkling was surely used to remind the Hebrew believers that he was writing to of how the sprinkling of the blood of goats and sheep that they were familiar with in the Old Testament Jewish religion was simply or merely a type, a foreshadowing of the real eternal offering of the blood of Christ.  His was the sprinkling that accomplished far more than the temporary atonement of the sacrifices in the Old Testament.  For this sprinkling guarantees our full possession of all the benefits and blessings of the entire new covenant from now and for eternity.

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1 Peter (Program #2) – The Operation of the Triune God Upon the Elect for Their Participation in His Full Salvation

The story of the Lord’s calling of the apostle Peter as is recorded in the gospel of John includes and intriguing unusual component; he changes his name from Simon to Cephas which literally means a stone. This is John chapter 1: 40-42
1:40 “One of the two who heard this from John and followed Him was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother.”

41 “He first found his own brother Simon and said to him, We have found the Messiah (which translated means Christ).”

42 “He led him to Jesus. Looking at him, Jesus said, You are Simon, the son of John; you shall be called Cephas (which is interpreted, Peter).”

Of course nothing of God’s genuine work is accomplished merely in name only. And so the changing of this poor Galilean fisherman’s name from Simon to something so solid and permanent, as Peter, a stone for God’s building is full of meaning. And it implies that God has much more in mind for Peter than simply saving him from his sins. For both Peter’s transformation and the accomplishment of God’s very eternal purpose is hinted at in this symbolic act.

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1 Peter (Program #1) – An Introductory Word

Of all the disciples called by the Lord Jesus in the gospels, probably the one we can most readily identify with is Peter. Simon Barjona as he was known before the Lord changed his name to Peter. In John chapter 1 was as impetuous as he was fervent and often found himself as the target of the Lord Jesus’ reprove.

Recall for example in Matthew chapter 16, Peter’s sympathetic suggestion to the Lord that He should keep Himself from the suffering of death that He knew awaited Him. “get behind Me, Satan” was the Lord’s reply. “You are a stumbling block to Me, for you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of men.” How could Peter possibly recovered from such a stinging rebuke?

And of course it was also Peter, who denied the Lord three times during the hour of trial preceding the actual crucifixion. Yet only days later it was this same Peter who stood on the day of Pentecost and usher thousands into the kingdom with his powerful and dynamic speaking.

And not only so, in his two epistles, Peter uses language and phrases so rich and full of high and profound meaning that we can’t help but marvel at the power of God’s full salvation. That this unlearned fisherman could write such thing. Listen to his word in 1 Peter,

1:18 “Knowing that it was not with corruptible things, with silver or gold, that you were redeemed from your vain manner of life handed down from your fathers,”

19 “But with precious blood, as of a Lamb without blemish and without spot, the blood of Christ;”

Welcome to our first life-study of the book of 1 Peter.

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