My theme is about traveling, and I want to share these true stories from Travel agents:
* A request for an aisle seat on their airplane so that their hair wouldn’t get messed up by being near the window.”
* One person asked “Would it be cheaper to fly to California and then take the train to Hawaii?”
* A woman wanted to go to Cape Town and the agent explained to the length of the flight to Africa and the passport information when she interrupted saying: “I’m not trying to make you look stupid, but Cape Town is in Massachusetts.” He explained, “Cape COD is in Massachusetts, Capetown is in South Africa.”
* One man was furious about his Orlando, Florida package. The agent asked what was wrong. The man responded that he was expecting an ocean-view room. The agent tried to explain that wasn’t possible – Orlando is in the middle of the state. The man replied, “Don’t lie to me. I looked on the map and Florida is a very thin state.”
* A customer wanted to know how it was possible that her flight from Detroit left at 8:20am and got into Chicago at 8:33am. The agent tried to tell her that Michigan was an hour ahead of Illinois but she could not understand the concept of Time zones. Finally he told her the plane went very fast, and she bought that!
* A man had a question about the kinds of documents he needed in order to fly to China. After a lengthy discussion, then agent reminded him he needed a visa. “Oh no I don’t, I’ve got friends that have been to China many times and never needed one.” The travel agent double-checked and he told the man his stay required a visa. The man scoffed: “Look, my friends told me that they accept Master Card.”
Well, those are some poor travelers. The Bible refers to Christians as travelers and we need to be great at it. The Bible calls believers’ pilgrims, sojourners, exiles, aliens, strangers and foreigners because our citizenship is in Heaven. The Bible also tells traveling believers that we carry tremendously valuable documentation.
For example when we as Americans visit other countries, we take a passport that tells others we are protected citizens of a powerful country.
As citizens, we use our freedom to travel to other countries.
We are documented US citizens; no country has the right to take away our freedom.Some places try!
We know that as a citizen any hostility toward us is in effect hostility to the USA.
And this is what Peter is telling the believers in 1Peter.
You and I are CHRISTIANS – a free people.
Christians are part of THE most powerful Kingdom known to man.
Nothing in this world that can threaten our status or remove the blessings of that freedom.
Therefore every believer traveling in this world should have our “Hope Fully” understood! Let’s look at 1 Peter together.
1 Peter 1:1-2 “Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To God’s elect, exiles scattered throughout the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to be obedient to Jesus Christ and sprinkled with his blood: Grace and peace be yours in abundance.”
The Apostle Peter is writing to believers who were ‘travelers’ throughout all of Asia Minor, in what is now Northern Turkey. These believers are encouraged to live by faith as they sojourn as God’s people.
As Peter starts out, he declares his relationship to Jesus as an apostle but notice how he encourages the believers and their relationship to Jesus. These are the credentials of a believer in Christ.
They are addressed as; “God’s elect.”
God’s elect means every believeris an object of deepest interest to God. Through Jesus Christ a believer is bought with a costly price. Christians are elect by His Word, His choice. It is important to realize that our election never came about because we’ve made a PLEDGE but we are elect because God has made a PROMISE to us. And as God’s elect, we are kept by His Word that is eternal and unchangeable.
They are addressed as “scattered.”
The Greek word for “scattered” was generally used of the Jews who were separated from Israel. Some translations say, “pilgrims of the dispersion.” Here, “scattered” is used of Christians both Jews and Gentiles. However, they are not just traveling and away from their home town. They needed to be reminded that there will not be too many places on earth that will truly feel like home. Most times they will feel like strangers since their real home is in heaven.
(Verse 2), They are “chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father.”
This phrase means God chose every believer to be citizens of Heaven. And that means every believer is a foreigner on the earth. However, we are people who turned to Christ in faith. It is absolutely no surprise to God when a person turns to Him, or doesn’t turn to Him. And it’s really more than just fore knowledge, it is God’s sovereign knowledge. Someone said, “Did it ever occur to you that nothing ever occurred to God?” What do I mean?
I’ll explain using this illustration. A couple couldn’t have children, so they adopted a baby boy. As sometimes happens, in a very short time after that, she became pregnant and birthed another little boy. As these two boys grew, one day the younger boy reminded the older by that he was adopted. Well, the adopted boy was pretty sharp. He told his brother, “When you were born, mom and dad had to take whatever they got, but they came and picked me out, I’m special.”
We are special because God chose to love us.
Sarah was transporting two foster children, a brother and sister in her car. While driving to their next drop off, the three-year old girl asked, Sarah do you love me? That little girl doesn’t really know someone loves her.
This passage is telling us that no believer has to ask this question. We own the greatest confidence and assurance because we are elect and chosen. God declares that He loves us and on top of that we have an eternal home! Everyone who is saved should rejoice in the fact that we are special. No matter what our circumstances or where we are.
They are being “sanctified by work of the Spirit.”
One purpose of this statement is to announce that every believer is set apart from the rest of the world because we are made holy. The Holy Spirit is working a miracle inside of us. That means a believer is being changed while we live on earth. The work of the Holy Spirit will make us more like heavenly citizens. And as the rest of the verse states “to be obedient to Jesus Christ,” we are now able to obey. We possess the power to be righteous in our actions and life.
A second purpose of the work of the Holy Spirit is that a believer is indwelled by the Holy Spirit and that declares that we are God’s property. Peter is comforting believers that the Holy Spirit is a gift from God who has restored our freedom to live righteously. The Holy Spirit guides us with power to obey and the Holy Spirit is proof of our citizenship while we travel this world.
A fourth statement Peter wrote…
They are people that are “sprinkled in the blood of Jesus Christ.”
This strange phrase conveys the way Israel was pardoned from their sin at the Jewish annual atonement. During the annual Atonement after the high priest exited the Holy of Holies he would sprinkle the people waiting for the annual blessing. This once-a-year act of the high Priest would suffice and represent the whole nation of Israel as “sprinkled.” This act signified that both individual and national corporate sins, known and unknown, were pardoned. In the book of Exodus 3:8, Moses sprinkled the people with the blood of the sacrifice that was sprinkled on the altar. It was a vivid reminder that they were connected with the sacrifice that had been offered for their sin and it was forgiven.
However, more than that once-a-year activity, the efficacy of the blood of Christ, is once for all (Hebrews 9:12). That means that in God’s eyes Christians are always under the Blood of Christ. This means believers are forever forgiven.
When traveling sometimes people realize they left some important things home. Spiritually that is never a reality.
The point is that no matter where a believer will go on earth, a believer no longer needs a temple, high priest, or a sacrifice.
Yet, as tradition goes for Jews, when they set out to travel they would often send a greeting and use the word Shalom, “peace be with you.”
Notice Peter’s word at the end of verse 2,
The believers are addressed in terms of “Grace and peace.”
The word “Grace” is an expression commonly used in the Greek culture, and it refers to God’s unconditional gift of love. On the other hand, the word “Peace”, (shalom) is used in the Jewish culture. When combining these two terms it denotes total health, total well-being, total care. In other words, the sum of what God bestows upon His people in order for them to find joy no matter where they are in life and in all circumstances.
Finally, Peter reminds them that God has given believers a “living hope.”
He reminds them that it’s all about living eternal life from now on. Every Believer has been made alive forevermore through faith in Christ. Our eternal life began when we believed. The word “hope” is not used in the Bible as a way to say that it is our desire, or that it may or may not happen. It refers to a sure thing to which we have now and forever by a guarantee of God. Let’s look at verse 3 with this in mind!
1 Peter 1:3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In His great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
The resurrection of Christ not only reminds us of the power of God, it also gave us a “living hope.” It’s the knowledge that the same power will restore us unto eternal life. A sure hope, a certain hope, a life-changing hope. It means once a believer becomes a child of God, we can live in any circumstance with confidence because nothing on earth can stop that power. They tried to stop Jesus and they will try to stop a believer but we will rise and live forever.
The message to Christians is that we can be sure, God chose us, God loves us, we have the Holy Spirit in us, we are forever forgiven, and we have an eternal home. All these freedoms can never be taken away.
Peter writes to believers so they know how to “Hope Fully.” Every believer needs to know for certain of their standing and citizenship no matter where we go on earth.
As I close, now think of this, the apostle Peter penned these very words and understood his need for God’s power to protect him. Remember on the eve before Jesus’ crucifixion, Peter had boasted that he would never forsake or deny his Lord. He was strong. He was able to follow the Lord to the death, or so he thought. But that very night, when a servant suspected that he was one of Jesus’ followers, he denied knowing Jesus, not once, not twice, but three times.
His own strength had failed him, but God’s forgiveness and the Holy Spirit gave him the power to avoid falling into any situation like that again. After the resurrection of Jesus, Peter was restored and went on to boldly encourage others through God’s resurrection power. That’s what the resurrected Christ can do for you, as well!
A man named Timothy, who was a pastor of Church was about to fly out of the airport. Along with everyone else, he went through security screening, where a security screener asked him to step back as the screener inspected his carry-on bag. As the screener poked, unloaded things, unzipped pockets, and felt the linings of Pastor Tim’s bag, Tim noticed the screener had a silver chain with a cross on it. Tim mentioned it.
Then, as the screener continued searching Tim’s bag, he said something like this: “Yeah, the cross, it means I’m a follower of Jesus. You know, in my job, one of the things we worry about is dynamite. But do you know where that word comes from? It’s from the Greek word dunamis, which means ‘power.’ As a Christian, I know that all of the power belongs to God. So while I’m doing my job, I know that He is doing His job. That’s where I put all of my trust. It all belongs to Him, and He’s in us. Then he said, “Well, have a great trip” and he moved on to the next person. (Timothy Johnson, Bowie, Maryland; www.PreachingToday.com)
That security screener trusted the Christ with his life which made him a witness for Christ. Every believer is do the same no matter where they are. To “Hope Fully” means we trust the power of the resurrected Christ as we journey through this life. We depend on Him who died and rose again. Right now every day and for every day of our eternity with God.
For someone that doesn’t have this power of a freed citizen of heaven, the message of 1 Peter is to call upon Him and trust in His sacrifice to forgive your sins and begin having eternal life with God right now!
Then, like Peter and like many millions of people around the world, you’ll be able to live for the Lord with confidence because…
1. We are “elect” – God has chosen us out of this world to be His people. (vs. 1)
2. We are being sanctified by the Spirit – and set apart from the world. (vs. 2)
3. We are saved by the blood of Jesus. (vs. 2)
4. We have a living hope through the power of the resurrection of Christ. (vs. 3)
We have some great documentation for our journey on earth. Let’s go in “grace and peace” and be brave as we embrace the challenges and journeys of life.