1st Peter chapter 1. Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus and Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father through sanctification of the Spirit unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ's grace unto you and peace be multiplied. Peter begins his letter by describing God's children as scattered. It denotes, the word denotes forces at work that have forced them to be dispersed throughout the civilized world and beyond. Whenever and wherever God's children are on the earth, we will encounter forces that seek our ruin and many believers today are under physical oppression at this very moment. And all of us are under the attacks of spiritual evil that influences the whole world all the time. The adjective that he uses here, that he gives to describe us, says a lot. We are, as long as we live in this present evil world, we are strangers in this world. And so Peter is reminding us that this world is not our home. We are passing through a very dangerous world, a world that is structured and developed to oppose anyone and anything that aligns with God. A world under the influence of the devil and his demons. And every believer passing through this world on their way to the celestial city is going through, at this very moment, hostile territory. God the Father has graciously provided for us all that we need to face the forces of evil, to withstand or stand up against the evil in the world, and to even overcome. In fact, this is a trademark of God's children. We're not perfect and at times we will struggle and fail to do what is right. But as the wise man said, the righteous falleth seven times and riseth up again. All the true children of God will be identified, not as perfect people, but as overcomers against the evil that they encounter in themselves and in the world. As strangers in the world, we are being opposed by the world around us, our own flesh, and the devil. But with all of these forces at work, God has equipped us and empowered us to become overcomers. God's children learn to grow through what we go through. We get stronger from the conflicts. We are not sheltered from the common things that all humans experience. We will be tested and tried and experience suffering just like all humans. And we all feel the tug of this vain world attempting to entangle us with its many enticements. It is very helpful for us to know and understand and to accept our identity as strangers. This description of our life, praise God, is for a limited time. We are strangers on the earth from the moment of our salvation until we leave this world. And Peter will have more to say about that throughout his letter. But he adds another term to describe the children of God. Not only are we strangers, and we need to understand fully what that means, but he also adds the term that identifies us here in verse 2. We are identified as elect. One term, strangers, is confined to a few years that we live on this earth. Calling us elect spans beyond time, before creation, into eternity past. And when time ceases to exist, it carries us into eternity future, the elect. This description identifies us as God's elect. And it gives us a right perspective of our temporary life on this earth as a stranger. I'm glad we're not just taught to identify ourselves as strangers, but we are encouraged to identify ourselves by Peter as the elect. And for a book that is written focused primarily on the subject of suffering, these two terms that identify us, that Peter gives us, are very important. The word elect is important to remember as we journey through this world. But we are also a people, according to this term, that God has selected, he has chosen to be his family. The Greek word eclektos stresses this idea. We are elect by the action of God, not ourselves. God is the first cause, not the responder. We are the responder to the decision that God has made. To grasp this reality, and you've heard this already said, in a small way, if we grasp the reality, we are forever humbled by these truths. And not only humbled, we are inspired to worship God in greater ways. So we ought to be a people who are always ready to offer the sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving, a people who are quick to confess and repent so that our fellowship with God is not interrupted, a people who are willing to serve him and his children all the days of our life, because we have been called his elect. Peter takes us into the background, deeper into the mystery of eternity past. He reminds the elect that our election is downstream from God's foreknowledge. And we spent two times searching out this word foreknowledge as it is used in the New Testament, this particular Greek word. That is translated foreknowledge is often misunderstood to mean God's passive knowledge of all things. But sure, God is God, he knows all things, but foreknowledge is bigger than that. Included in his foreknowledge are his own works, his own decrees, his own ordaining, his own predestinating. It's found in that word as we studied it in the New Testament. His foreknowledge embodies everything, including his own works, which includes our election. And Peter is telling us, the elect, that we were in God's mind before election. When we consider eternity past, we cannot grasp the knowledge, understanding, and wisdom of God, and the plan devised to have a family. These are mysteries to us. But we are told that they, those whom he foreknew as Paul describes them, were placed in Christ before creation, which would guarantee their safe arrival to be with God as his children and dwell with him forever. Peter is writing to encourage the suffering strangers who now live in time and are experiencing many trials when he writes this letter. At some point in time, he's moving us through a process here. At some point in time, the elect are revealed. All will hear the gospel calling them to repent and believe the good news concerning their salvation. Peter doesn't get into the weeds of the process like Paul does. But he declares the elect are made the elect because of God's foreknowledge. And the elect are set apart in time, in time, and are continuing to be set apart through sanctification of the Spirit. The entire process of being made a sacred vessel that now belongs to God, that is designated for sacred use. This process of sanctification is carried out, executed by the Spirit of God. The elect are not identified until they are sanctified. Meaning, there is a point in time where every elect child is regenerated through the Word and Spirit. They hear, they believe the gospel, and they will continue to live a life of obedience. And that's where he goes here. That's what this is all about, unto obedience. So Paul brings all the mysteries to this point. Elect according to the foreknowledge of God. Elect through sanctification of the Spirit. Elect unto obedience. Throughout Peter's letter, he focuses on the progressive sanctification work that is going on, which began when we were born again, and it will show itself in our life, ultimately, through obedience. So no matter how far back you go into the mind of God, at some point in time, it is going to be manifested in every elect person the same way. The desire, the commitment to obey. This is what it produces. In the end, the result, the outcome is obedience. The scriptures are clear on this subject, the good works of the elect. Paul says in chapter 2 of Ephesians, verse 10, the good works of the elect of God were foreordained that we should walk in them. You cannot be an elect child of God and ignore the foreordained works that he predetermined you would walk in. Obedience manifests our election. There's no other way that it shows itself. Whether we understand the mysteries and to what degree we understand the mysteries is really not the point Peter's making here. The point he is making is if you are a child of God, by his own design, it will show itself in obedience. That's the point he is making. Paul said in that verse, Ephesians 2.10, that the elect are his workmanship. What a beautiful phrase that he uses. Our life is a story that is designed to reveal God through our good works. God ordained that. That's his plan for us. Paul also says in Romans 8.29, whom he foreknew, uses the same exact word that Peter uses in 1 Peter 1.2, that he also did predestinate them whom he foreknew to be conformed to the image of his Son. Conformed, shaped, molded into the likeness of his Son. There is no elect person on this earth that does not resemble Christ in some manner. You may be growing in it, learning about it, but if you are one of God's, you are predestined to bear the image of his Son. Now it's beginning to get worked out in your life is what Paul is teaching. This conformity being advanced in us. How does that happen? It's through sanctification of the Spirit. That's how all of this gets advanced and developed in our life. The elect are always being sanctified. There is both an initial and a progressive form of sanctification. It had a beginning when we were set apart by the Spirit of God through the ministry of Word and Spirit. When we were called by the Gospel, we repented, we believed, all of those things occurred in our life. We were at that moment by the Spirit of God set apart for God. But that, here's the thing, God does not set apart people to let them continue to live the way they once lived. He sets us apart to be brought into conformity to his Son. And so we're always being sanctified. And the means that God uses is his Word and Spirit as these operate in our life. You hear the stress made through the services that we are attentive, that we are submissive, that we are ready to obey the things that God shows to us because that is how the Spirit works. Unto. You see it here? I mean, the flow is so beautiful. It's so natural. Unto obedience. There's another phrase there that we'll pick up next Sunday, but this unto obedience is important to consider. We have this preposition unto, kind of an old expression, preposition, in some cases even obsolete in some writings, some translations of the Bible, you kind of skip over this word and make it say to obedience or until obedience. However, unto, the Greek word behind this that's translated here, unto, embodies all of these ideas but says much more. The Greek word is conveying a fusion of all that's said about the elect. All the elect, everything about the elect comes to this place and you cannot separate the foreknowledge, election, sanctifying of the Spirit from obedience. It's all together is the emphasis that Peter is making. Look a little bit later, we'll get to this in chapter 1, but look for a moment at verses 14 through 16. He's talking about our salvation, suffering, testing, some beautiful things that we'll explore in the study of this in the coming weeks, but look at verses right now because it ties into what Peter is saying in this statement unto obedience. So he says, wherefore, after all these things that he has been telling them, gird up the loins of your mind. This is a call to, I hate to use the word manliness because it can be misunderstood, but it's a call to show courage. It's a call to step up. Wherefore, gird up the loins of your mind. Take control of your mind. Be serious, sober-minded about these things and hope to the end for the grace that shall be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ as obedient children. This is how we conduct our life now waiting for meeting Christ, whether His return or our being taken away. Either case, we want to live as obedient children now, not fashioning ourselves according to the former lusts when we were ignorant, but as He which has called you is holy, so be you holy in all manner of your conversation because it is written, be ye holy for I am holy. You think Peter is just throwing out words that have no value and meaning to us here. These are important words. He uses that old word conversation at the end of verse 15. Be holy in all manner of conversation. This particular word refers to the administration of our life, how we manage and use our life. So we are told to be a sacred vessel in all manner, all areas of our life. We are to manage and use our life for God, recognizing we have been designated for sacred use. Holy, be holy as obedient children. Negatively stated, that means not fashioning yourselves like you once lived before you were converted, but positively stating, he tells us to bring our whole life under the management of the Spirit of God and His word in every area. I have found that the word obedience is uncomfortable for some Christians in our culture today. They would prefer to talk about God's grace, but not good works. God's elect must not shun nor ignore the subject of obedience. A word that conveys, when you hear this word, it means to hearken and submit. That's what the word means. How do you identify the elect? They hear the word. They have like ears to hear. They are the sheep of God who know His voice. They hear, they hearken, and they submit. That's what Peter is saying here. It comes to this point of unto obedience. The challenge for those who profess to be the children of God, the elect, is do we give the evidence this morning that we are the elect of God? Peter's raising the question. He's going to drive it home. This is his application, and he's going to work this out on several occasions in his letter. Does our life reveal the sanctification, the process of the Spirit actively working in our life? Fruitfulness of the Spirit is the result of living an obedient life. You can't have the fruit of the Spirit and not living obediently in your response to God's Word. The evidence, obedience, being carried out in all manner, all areas. And by this we are showing the power of Christ's resurrection, exerting its influence and management over all areas of our life. It's what Paul said in Ephesians 5, 18, be filled with the Spirit. Same idea. He is to have dominance and rule over all areas and parts of our life. We are not to keep him out, close doors where he cannot enter. He is to fill all areas of our life, showing his management of our life. And just like he said Paul did in chapter 2, verse 10, we're preordained to do these good works. And again, he says in Romans 12, that we are to present our bodies a living sacrifice unto him, and that we are not to be conformed to the things of this world, but rather transformed. This is the process of sanctification. Why is it important? He then says, so that we might prove what is that good, acceptable and perfect will of God. To what end, I ask? To obey. If you discover the perfect will of God in his Word, what are you going to do with it, right? But obey. And not to obey brings about, as we understand from Paul's teaching in Ephesians chapter 4, about the grieving of the Spirit of God is when we hear the truth and we resist the truth. We grieve the Spirit who ministers the truth. That's a dangerous journey. It's a long, cold walk away from God, and only God can intervene to refresh and recover so that we can hear again and be attentive as we ought. When we think of the subject of obedience, you know, when I contemplate it, I mean, right from the very beginning of the Bible it's found, right? You're in the Garden of Eden. What's required? Obedience. Oh, what do you think the law's promoting? Obedience. Obey me, things will go well, don't, it's not going to go so well. Obedience. Jesus taught it thoroughly. The apostles picked up on it and developed it as well. Look at 1 John, just a couple of his statements in 1 John chapter 2. Remember, before I read this, remember what Jesus said in Matthew 7. The men are working through the Sermon on the Mount, and it's been a wonderful study, not only for their lives, but for everyone who's been in attendance. We've all been blessed by the study of the Sermon on the Mount right now. Eventually they'll get to chapter 7, and eventually we will hear what Jesus said about how you know real faith. And it's not going to be because you profess, made a profession of faith. It's not going to be because you have a list of good things you've done that you define as righteous works. It's going to be determined by whether or not Jesus said, you have done the will of your Father in heaven. So that means we need to be acquainted with his will for us. And when we acquaint ourself with his will, what does that mean? Now we have the burden of responsibility to obey. You know what? That's okay with the elect. The elect don't find that burdensome. They don't find that grievous. They find it something that is appealing and they desire to be in conformity to their Father. John writes in 1 John chapter 2, beginning in verse 3, he says, and hereby, remember, 1 John is written so that we can know and have confidence that we truly are the children of God. It's not one thing just to say it, but how do you know that you are God's children? John wrote this epistle to give us a list of ways to know. And he starts right here as one of them. And hereby we do know that we know him. How do you know you know him? It's a good question, isn't it? Isn't it a simple answer? If we keep his commandments, how do I know that I'm the elect of God? I have interest in obeying the will of my God. He then says, he that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments. What does he call them? Liars. You're not afraid to say it. Liars. They're dishonest. Maybe they're self-deceived, but they're deceived and they're speaking untruth. The truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth his word, here's what he's talking about his commandments. We hear his word and we apply it, we work it out in our life. But whoso keepeth his word in him truly is the love of God perfected, and hereby know we that we are in him. So it's not complicated. Obedience is an identifier of being the elect of God. And then verse 6, he that saith, he abideth in him, ought himself also to walk even as he walked. Look at chapter 5 in 1 John, just a couple of references here. Chapter 5 in 1 John, beginning in verse 1, first few verses, whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, the anointed one sent into the world as promised, is born of God. And everyone that loveth him that begat, the one who gives life to others, loveth him also that is begotten of him. And so what he is saying, if you really are a child of God and you've been born again, you're going to love those who are born again. The elect of God love God's people. And by this we know that we love the children of God when we love God and keep his commandments. For this is the love of God that we keep his commandment. To work out the love of God in your life is stated here very simply, is that you keep his commandments. You have an interest in his word to obey him. And then he makes this statement, and his commandments are not grievous. They overwhelm us because the reality is we're flawed people. We're broken. A lot of sin tendencies still remain in us. We've got to carry this body of flesh all the way to the grave. It's not easy at times. What we don't want to do is to begin to make excuses for our behavior why we're not obeying. Confess it. Acknowledge it. He says his commandments are not grievous. They're not burdensome. They shouldn't be when we think of all the benefits that are applied to what he has provided for us. You've heard that stated. What amazing benefits come our way. There are a lot of references on this subject. I don't have time to read them all. I'll comment on one of them out of Titus chapter 2. Look at that quickly. I don't have time to develop it, but I'm sure we'll come back to it. Titus chapter 2, he tells us that God's grace that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men. And what he means here in the context of the way it's written here, right? Who's he talking about? Old men that are believers in the church. Old women that are believers in the church. Young men that are believers. Young women that are believers. Servants. It doesn't matter. God's grace that brings salvation hath appeared to all of us and taught us. Verse 12. We're all being taught the same thing. No matter where you go in the world, where God's grace is teaching his people, they're similar. Have you noticed that? They're similar. Teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts that we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world, keeping our eyes looking for the blessed hope and the glorious appearing of the God in our Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us. He died for us that he might redeem us from out of the control and the grasp of all iniquity and that he would purify unto himself for his own pleasure. We are his vessels that belong to him, that he would purify unto himself a peculiar people, very odd and strange indeed, because they are zealous of good works. They're excited about doing what is right. The last verse I'll read is from Revelation. Let's jettison forward to entering into eternity future. Revelation chapter 22. Jesus' words are stated here by the Apostle John. They're highlighted red in my Bible. I'm assuming most of you probably have that, but these are the words of Christ being spoken. And behold, he says, I come quickly, suddenly, unexpectedly, I am going to come, and my reward is with me. Well, that deserves attention and thought, doesn't it? To give every man, every person, according to his works shall be. I am Alpha, Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. Listen closely. Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life and may enter in through the gates into the city. You heard those words, right? Blessed, here's a blessing pronounced, the last one in the Scriptures. The blessing is pronounced upon whom? All those who do his commandments. Do you remember, do you remember this song? I don't know. We taught our children the song obedience. Do you remember that song? I'm going to start singing it, and you sing it with me, right? Obedience is the very best way to show that you believe, doing exactly what the Lord commands, doing it cheerfully. Action is the key, do it immediately, joy you will receive. Obedience is the very best way to show that you believe. Do you believe that? Do you believe that? Nod your head, say something to me. Do you believe that? Okay, good. Then we're not a people who are afraid of obeying. We're not a people who are afraid to hear the commandments of what we need to do in all areas of our life, all manner of our living. Wherever life is, where we are engaged, be it marriage, be it work, be it body life, wherever it is, you are busy bringing all those areas into the management under the authority of God's will. May that be the spirit that remains among you. Our Father, we thank you for this morning, the privilege of reflecting upon your Word, being reminded clearly that all of your eternal purposes flow out to this very end concerning your people, your elect, your chosen ones, that we would be obedient. May we show the world, our Father, through the way that we live. May we encourage our brethren by the way we live, because we are managing our life, we are filling every part of our being with the authority and the rule of the Spirit and Word. Accomplish these things, Father, we pray for the glory of your own name and the exaltation of your Son, in whose name we pray. Amen.