1Peter Lesson #04

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RETURN TO THE LIST OF LESSONS

1PETER 2
Lesson #04
SUBMITTING YOURSELF TO GOD’S ETERNAL PLAN IN CHRIST

• Memory Verse: 1Pet 2:11

 

• Peter began to talk about suffering in the life of the believer in chapter 1. He further develops this theme in chapter 2.
• In the Christian life there is a necessary cooperation between man and God. In chapter 1 we learned about some very important things God did for us through Christ. Now we need to learn what God expects us to do to cooperate with the Holy Spirit who is sanctifying us.

 

• Read 1Pet 2:1-3
• Because the New Testament believer in Jesus Christ is chosen by God, set apart by the Holy Spirit, made part of the covenant and family of God by the blood of Christ, he can now concentrate on some important things.
  • The word “wherefore” in verse 1 conveys this idea of a transition between chapter 1 and chapter 2.
  • Peter tells us the things to set aside that would hinder us from having proper spiritual priorities. (1)

 

• “laying aside all malice, and all guile”

 

Peter uses the words “laying aside” to mean removing them from your life.	1Pet 2:1
Paul uses the words “put off” like taking off a garment.	Eph 4:22,25
Paul uses the words “purge out” to mean get rid of something.	1Cot 5:7-8

 

• What is malice?
• Malice is congealed anger. It is an anger that develops over time gradually to become set firmly in place. This kind of anger comes from an unforgiving spirit where a root of bitterness is allowed to grow.
• What is guile?

• Guile is a deception that misrepresents one’s character.
  • Ananias and Sapphira are good examples in the book of Acts. They sold land and kept the money for themselves. In this way they lied pretending they were generous believers.

 

• “hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speaking”

 

(1)
• Hypocrisy is attempting to be what you are not while envy is discontent with who you are and what you have.

• The believer must set aside these evil attitudes that corrupt the heart and replace the believer’s focus on man with a focus on Christ. Then he is ready to let the Holy Spirit work in his life to produce something good for God.

 

• “…desire the sincere milk of the word…”

 

(2)
• The Holy Spirit gives the believer a hunger for the Word of God, but the believer must desire to submit himself to fulfilling that hunger.
  • Without submitting to the Word of God, there is no spiritual growth.
    • The sincere milk of the word is the complete Word of God. Only believers who study the full context of the Bible grow spiritually to become mature believers who grow beyond the milk of the word to the strong meat of the word. (Heb 5:11-14)

• “If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.”

(3)

• Since the believer in Jesus Christ has experienced everything Peter discussed in chapter 1:
  • Chosen, salvation, forgiveness, and set apart for the work of the Holy Spirit, he will recognize that it is all by God’s grace in his life that these things have come to reality.
  • Because the Holy Spirit has set the believer apart for His special work of sanctification, we need to understand exactly what that means. There is a double aspect to separation:
    • =1= Set apart from the world:
      • The believer is separated from the world system by the fact that he is born again.
        • The minute the believer receives Jesus Christ in his heart, the Holy Spirit separates him from Satan’s kingdom of darkness and puts him into Christ’s kingdom of light.
        • The flesh-nature is cut away from his heart so that the new believer does not need to respond to sin. He now has a choice not to sin. This aspect is called “circumcision of the heart”.
          • Read Rom 2:29
        • The world system is under the control of Satan, called the god of this world, but the believer is now taken out of Satan’s family and placed in the family of God.
    • =2= Set apart unto God:
      • The believer, taken from the world system controlled by Satan, is placed into the family of God where he now enjoys a close relationship with the Holy Trinity.
        • With this new relationship in the family of God, the believer receives the light of God, the mind of Christ, and the conviction of sin by the Holy Spirit.
        • The Holy Spirit is given permission to do a special work in the heart of the believer to make that person more like Christ. This is a gradual process that is called “sanctification”. Sanctification means = to set apart to make holy.
          • The Holy Spirit will convict the heart of the believer when he gives in to the temptation to sin.
          • The Holy Spirit will reveal to the believer what sin is in conjunction with the Word of God.
          • The Holy Spirit will enable the believer to understand the Word of God so as to be able to use it in his life.
            • The combination of the actions of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God is what causes spiritual growth and sanctification in the life of the believer.

• Read 1Pet 2:4-9
  • The Rock, the living stone:

1Peter	Title	Significance	Other Scriptures	Added Significance
1Pet 2:4	A living stone disallowed of men	Jesus Christ is alive, raised from the dead. He is the rock rejected by men.	1Cor 10:4	Christ is identified as the rock all through scripture and specifically the rock Moses struck in the wilderness.
1Pet 2:6Isa 28:16	A chief cornerstone, elect and precious	Even though man rejected Him, God chose Him to be the cornerstone of His kingdom on earth.	Mat 21:42Psa 118	God took the rejected Messiah, Jesus Christ, and made him the cornerstone and foundation of the church.
1Pet 2:7	the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner,	The church is established on Jesus Christ, the head of the church and the corner stone of God’s kingdom on earth.	Mat 16:15-19	Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is the rock on which is constructed the church. Peter, the small stone, is given the keys of leadership authority in the kingdom of God because of His confession of faith in Jesus as the Son of God. Therefore, Jesus Christ is the foundation of the church.
1Pet 2:8Psa118:22	a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence	Many people are offended by Christ and Christians simply because they do not want to face the truth of their own spiritual condition. They stumble over who Jesus really is.	Mat 21:44        Dan 2:34	The person that humbles himself in remorse over his sins will have his pride broken so as to be ready to receive forgiveness and a new life. The person that does not humble himself to Christ will be crushed in the final judgment when Christ comes a second time. At the second coming of Christ, He will come to judge the nations and establish his own kingdom on earth.
1Pet 2:5	Lively stones are built up a spiritual house	Believers in Jesus Christ are the lively stones (resurrected in Christ) just as Simon Peter. We make up the spiritual kingdom where we will rule with Him.

• All of these verses about Christ as the rock or stone are the basis for our position in Christ in verse 9.

 

• “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light”

 

(9)
• The believer in Jesus Christ is not a lone-ranger Christian. He is part of a bigger plan.
  • He is chosen to be part of God’s kingdom.
  • In the generations of time, God chose you to be part of Christ’s church.
  • All believers are priests.
    • This means that the believer in Christ has a calling to represent God to be an intermediary between God and non-believers.
  • All believers are part of a holy nation.
    • This means we have an identity one with another.
  • All believers are a peculiar people (a people that belong to Him)
    • This means we are different because we have a new nature and set apart for God.
    • We are the children of light.
• Because the New Testament believer is considered by God to be a priest, he does not need a human priest to bring him into a relationship with God. He has immediate access to God through Jesus Christ.

• Read 1Pet 2:10-18

 

• “Which in time past were not a people…”

 

(10)
• Before the believer comes to Christ, he does not have this special position in conjunction with other believers. He is like an orphan with no one to care for him.
• The non-believer does not experience the mercy of God.

 

• “Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul.”

 

(11)
• Peter has come full circle in his discussion. He brings us back to the fact that we are separated from the world and chosen to be part of the family of God. Therefore, because we are part of this great plan of God we should not act like strangers or pilgrims.
  • We should be part of a church demonstrating the love of the family of God. (Heb 10:24-25)
  • We should be demonstrating a separated life by renouncing the sins of the flesh and living in holiness.

 

• “Having your conversation honest among the Gentiles…”

 

(12)
• The word “conversation” refers to our whole lifestyle. A holy lifestyle is our witness among non-believers, a lifestyle of living honestly before others without hypocrisy.
• Submission and authority:

 

• “Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake:…”

 

(13)
• The lone ranger Christian is rebellious against authority. It is the will of God that we be submitted to authority inside the church and outside the church.
  • Authorities outside the church are put in authority by God to restrain evil and promote good. (13-14) (Rom 13:1-7)
• Liberty in Jesus Christ (16)
  • The believer in Jesus Christ has liberty and freedom in Christ which gives us a certain level of authority. However, that does not mean we can do anything we want. As we submit ourselves to authority, we are to be servants of all.
    • This apparent contradiction of lifestyle between having authority and yet not using it but instead being a servant is the testimony of the believer to the non-believer.
  • Love other Christians (17)
    • Notice that love is commanded for fellow Christians.
  • Honor is commanded for all men as the believer must respect every person.
  • Fear means to have an awesome respect for God.
  • Honor is due to all government authorities.
    • The respect and honor are given to the office and not necessarily because the person holding that office deserves it.
  • Servants (or employees) should be submissive to their masters (employers).
• Read 1Pet 2:19-25
  • The return to the theme of suffering.
    • Peter returns to the theme of suffering for one basic reason. Sometimes we cause our own suffering.
      • Sometimes we suffer as a consequence of our own sin.
      • Sometimes we suffer because we violate God’s principles in His Word.
      • Sometimes we suffer because we are disobedient to God’s commands.
      • Peter has just finished telling believers how to live their Christian lives conforming to God’s plan inside and outside of the Christian community. If we violate these principles, it may bring suffering into our lives as a consequence. (19-20)
      • There is no great reward from God for enduring suffering that you yourself caused.
      • The recompense of reward from God is for suffering when you are totally innocent.
        • Read Mat 5:11-12
          • This is the suffering that God rewards, a suffering for Christ’s sake.
  • Christ is the example of suffering that God rewards: (21-22)
    • Christ’s suffering is of two kinds:
      • =1= Suffering for righteousness.
        • Christ did not cause his suffering by his own sin for He had no sin. It is His suffering for righteousness that is the example to us.
        • He suffered ridicule and misunderstanding, but He did not retaliate.(23)
      • =2= Suffering vicariously for man’s sins on the cross.
        • This kind of suffering we cannot emulate for this is our redemption.(24)
          • Verse 24 is quoted from Isa 53:5. However, 1Pet 2:24 emphasizes the healing from sin.
          • Verse 25 is quoted from Isa 53:6 to indicate why we need this redemption from sin. Without Christ’s redemption we are lost.

HOMEWORK
1PETER 3
This is a self study. Please do not send homework answers to the teacher forcoreection.

• Application of 1Pet 2
  • If you are currently going through a time of suffering, you need to discern the source of that suffering, as to whether it is self-inflicted or if it is for righteousness sake.
    • Ask the Holy Spirit to help you discern this. He will give you wisdom.
    • If your suffering is the result of sin, you need to repent and ask God for forgiveness.

 

• Preparation for 1Pet 3
• Read 1Pet 3:1-22
  • What is the key to winning a non-believing spouse to the Lord?

 

• How do you explain verse 21?

Memory verse: 1Pet 3:12