Posts with the category “first-peter”

"But the end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers." - 1 Peter 4:7 (NKJV)I love the Summer Olympics, especially track and field, since I used to run track. What's the most exciting moment of any race? The last 20, 40, 50 yards toward the end. The athletes are at full stride, pushing themselves to the limit with everything they have, finishing with complete pur...  Read More

"As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God... that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belong the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen." - 1 Peter 4:10-11 (NKJV)With the end in mind, we must serve where God has gifted us. We can't do everything, but we must use what God has given us. Peter says G...  Read More

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new." - 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NKJV)C.H. Spurgeon would personally interview new converts or those interested in membership. Instead of just coming forward like people do today, he would talk to each person individually during the week, ask questions, and decide whether to accept or r...  Read More

"Who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, angels and authorities and powers having been made subject to Him." - 1 Peter 3:22 (NKJV)There's a story about one of our presidents who would bring in future ambassadors to certain countries. He would go over to a globe and ask, "Now, where is your country?" That ambassador sometimes would point out the country he was being sent to. Each ...  Read More

"But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear." (1 Peter 3:15)The prepared answer starts with allegiance to Jesus—not just as Savior, but as Lord. The word "Lord" involves Christ's ownership and being master of our lives. Romans 10:13 doesn't say "whoever calls on the name of th...  Read More

"But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you are blessed. And do not be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled." (1 Peter 3:14)It's interesting that Peter himself was less than bold initially. On the night of Jesus' betrayal, when a little girl said, "Hey, that's one of His followers," Peter responded, "I don't know the man." Three times he denied knowing Christ. But something hap...  Read More

"But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear. Having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed." (1 Peter 3:15-16)Peter emphasizes "having a good conscience", meaning your walk matches your talk, your ...  Read More

"But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear." (1 Peter 3:15)"The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork." (Psalm 19:1)There was a famous atheist, Anthony Flew, who wrote over 40 books on atheism, defending his belief that there was no God. Then...  Read More

"I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith." - Romans 12:3 (NKJV)When Peter calls us to be "courteous," (1 Peter 3:8), the Greek word actually means "humble-minded." It calls for an honest estimate of yourself. Humility doesn't mean thinking le...  Read More

"Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous;" - 1 Peter 3:8Having compassion means sympathy - the ability to feel another's pain in your own heart. Romans 12:15 says, "Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep." When was the last time you truly wept with someone who was weeping? When did you last feel g...  Read More

In 1 Peter 3:1-6, we see God’s guidance for how a godly wife can influence her husband for Christ. Someone once described marriage as being like a dance. In a dance, there is a leader and a follower. The leader guides and sets the direction, and the follower complements that leadership, creating beauty and harmony in motion. There was a story about a championship dance team - a man and a woman - w...  Read More

Christians today are living in a culture that is moving in a completely different direction than the one God calls us to. The culture says to go one way, but we, as God’s people, live under the lordship of Jesus Christ, following the truths found in His Word. If Jesus Christ is truly Lord, that truth should be demonstrated in how we treat His Word and how we live our lives. As Christians, we are g...  Read More

1 Peter 2:11 says “…abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul.” The word “war”, in the Greek language, implies an ongoing engagement, not a single battle. The fleshly lusts will maintain an ongoing war inside of your mind, emotions and will that no one can see. It is invisible, but significant.We come to church and smile at one another. Someone asks, "How's it going?" We say, “Great!” ...  Read More

1 Peter 2:11 says, “Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul.” “Sojourners” and “pilgrims” enforces the idea that Christians are to be different from the people of this world. This world is not a Christian’s permanent home. It is temporary, and our true citizenship is in heaven. “Fleshly lusts” points to the fact that this world, empowere...  Read More

In God’s church, one’s ministry is discovered through one’s identity. 1 Peter 2:9 explains that identity in four ways: “a chosen generation,” “a royal priesthood,” “a holy nation,” and “His own special people.” This is how Jesus describes His followers.1 Peter 2:9 says, “you are a chosen generation.” The word “generation” literally means “the elect offspring.” It is describing when life begins cre...  Read More

Perhaps you do not feel as though you are significant. However, God has a special place for you in His church. Martin Luther once said, “God creates out of nothing. Therefore, until a man is nothing, God can make nothing out of him.“[1] Positively speaking, when I understand that I, too, am nothing, perhaps God can make something out of me. We need to realize that God wants to make something speci...  Read More

1 Peter 2:4–5 says, “Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” In John 6:51, Jesus refers to Himself as the “living bread.” In John 4:13-14 and John 7:37-39, Jesus says He is the Source of “l...  Read More

Jesus, as this cornerstone, was rejected by men. After saying Jesus is a chief cornerstone, Peter says in 1 Peter 2:6-8, “Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient, ‘The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone,’ and ‘A stone of stumbling And a rock of offense.’ They stumble, being disobedient to the word, to which they also were appo...  Read More

In 1501, world-renowned artist Michelangelo was going back from Rome to his home of Florence for three different reasons. First, he was a little homesick. Second, his family needed him. In the third place, there was a giant slab of flawless, white Carrara marble which was more than 18-feet high that was being given to him. Agostino di Duccio in 1464 tried to work with it, but ultimately rejected i...  Read More

1 Peter 2:1-3 (NKJV) - "Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, as newborn babes desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious." In verse 3, Peter says, “if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious.” That word “if”, in the Greek, can be translated “since,” and that’s what is i...  Read More

1 Peter 2:1-3 (NKJV) - "Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, as newborn babes desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious." The desire of an ever-growing Christian is like that of newborn babes. We should have a childlike, even infant-like, attitude. What is this desire? It begin...  Read More

You are what you eat. I was reading this comic book, and it had a little squirrel lying on a psychiatrist's couch and he was just trying to talk to the psychiatrist, and he said, "When I realized that 'you are what you eat,' that's when I knew I was nuts." Well, our spiritual nutrition is so important. It helps set the stage for being a healthy Christian.We live in a world obsessed with diets, fad...  Read More