1 Peter

Human beings like to be settled.  Even travelling communities want to meet up with like-minded people so that they can preserve a sense of identity and feel that they 'belong'.  Naturally we are drawn to those who are like ourselves, but we also become like the people we associate with.  Father God sees all the people we meet; who we want to be like, and those who are influencing us - more than we might choose.  He has called us to a holy life (1 Peter 1:16), and so He watches to see how we deal with the worldly people we live among.  One day, His observation will b

Peter previously encouraged us to think and live like temporary residents on earth (1 Peter 1:17-18). We are in training for heaven.  Our time should be spent learning to live according to God's values, rather than the world's.

When sin made an ugly mess of God's perfect world, it did not take Him by surprise. The Divine rescue for humanity, through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, was not an afterthought; it was all in the original plan (Titus 1:2).  Even before the world was created in all its beauty, God knew that the first man and woman would spoil everything. But even before anything went wrong, God had planned for Jesus to be the way for everything to be made new again (Revelation 21:5). His death was not an accident, but an appointment which had been made ages before (Galatians 4:4-5).

In 1969, an international soft drinks manufacturer used a new slogan, "The real thing". Its appeal was simple: the authenticity of satisfied thirst.  Of course, that can only be a pale illustration of the satisfaction that Jesus Christ brings to everyone who believes in Him. While Christ's blood cleanses us from all sin (1 John 1:7), that is only the beginning of our new relationship with Him.  If we are to honour what He has done for us, we will want to be active in rooting out the impurity from which we have been rescued. True belief should lead to real lifestyle change.

Commercialism encourages us to seize the moment and clinch the deal.  We admire the successful, who win the wealth which others lose.  Human knowledge, intelligence, business and management skills are valued in order to win a strategic advantage.  But such gains are as fragile as we are; each person’s contribution is soon replaced by another’s.  The truth is that none of us is here for very long, and few will remember us after we are gone (Psalm 103:15-16).  Much of what we work for will disintegrate, and whatever does remain will become the property of others.&nbsp

Without standards to determine the weight of a gram, the length of a kilometre and the volume of a millilitre - we would all be in a mess.  Without standards, fair trading would be impossible; medicines would be either dangerous or ineffective; and constructions would fail (Proverbs 11:1).  Every profession needs standards which enable us to trust engineers, teachers, dentists, lawyers and accountants.  In the same way, it is a great blessing that we can know where we stand with the Lord.

Babies cannot look after themselves. Without care and food, they will not survive.  Milk is a part of God's provision, naturally craved for when the new-born gets hungry. Certainly, a good drink of pure milk helps supply calories and the raw materials for building a healthy body.  But through the act of suckling, the infant also learns relationship, becoming contented and bonding to parents and family.  Peter uses this analogy for Christians who are 'born again' into God's family (John 3:3-18).

The Lord Jesus Christ is the most significant person who ever walked this earth.  He made it! (Colossians 1:15-16).  He made people to be in God’s image (Genesis 1:26) and chose to be born in a human body too, but was then rejected by the people He had called to belong to Him (John 1:10-11).  Even so, 2000 years since He was physically seen, He is still spoken about all over the world and those who believe in Him are given the right to become children of God (John 1:12-13).

When a business is called 'Incorporated' or 'Inc.' for short, it means that the organisation is bigger than any individual; it has an identity and legal structure of its own; as if it has its own b

This verse describes how important Jesus is. It is repeated in Matthew 21:42 , Mark 12:10, Luke 20:17 and Acts 4:11 - as well as by Peter here.