Out of This World
Read the Text: 1 Peter 1
Memorize the Text:
Like newborn infants, desire the pure milk of the word, so that you may grow up into your salvation, if you have tasted that the Lord is good.
(1 Peter 2:2, CSB)
Consider the Text: 1 Peter 1:1
Believers in the early church faced significant opposition. The presence of persecution and struggle remained a reality for followers of Christ. Peter addressed these believers to encourage them through his first letter, which centers around a life full of hope. The apostle opened by reminding believers that they do not exist as citizens of this world but that their citizenship is out of this world. In the opening verse of Peter's first letter, he addressed believers as foreigners in the land, individuals scattered from home, and the reality of the struggle for scattered foreigners. This truth remains a fact for believers today.
FOREIGNERS IN THE LAND
Followers of Christ live as citizens of heaven. As a result, we journey through this world as foreigners dwelling in a distant land. A foreigner resides in a location that does not resemble their homeland. As believers, we become foreigners because we temporarily live in a land that does not look like our true home of heaven. At the same time, as believers, we dwell in this temporary location, longing for the homeland of heaven. This longing provides genuine hope for the guaranteed future of heaven and allows encouragement to journey through the here and now. Today, we need to recognize our foreigner status and seek to find hope in the guarantee of returning home as a follower of Christ.
SCATTERED FROM HOME
Christians live by a different ethic and morality than the world's ways. Believers hold to the truth of God's Word, which provides life's base principles. As a result, the world does not like to accept God's truth and revolts against it because of sin. The people of the world desire to oppose those who follow the Lord and create a dynamic of scattering them from one another. Thus, believers are not welcome in this world. Believers live scattered because of their commitment to live for Christ. Today, when we commit to living as a child of God and live according to his will and ways, we face the reality of living as a scattered people.
THE STRUGGLE OF SCATTERED FOREIGNERS
As a scattered foreign living apart from our homeland, we face various struggles. These struggles promote the need to live with a certain hope available to those who follow Christ as Lord and Savior. A pivotal truth to understand comes from the reality that moments of struggle exists, but the believer has the hope to endure. Peter refers to the struggles of loneliness, persecution, opposition, and heartache.
Most of us have battled one or all of these struggles. However, we must remember that, as believers, we have the hope to endure and see the future. This hope provides motivation and stability amid the struggle. The believer combats each time of difficulty with the certainty of returning home because of Christ. How do you confront the difficult times in life? Do you find yourself defeated, or do you battle because of the presence of a living hope that comes from Christ alone?
This blog is part of the Coffee and Quiet Time with Jesus Devotional Series found at equippingfaith.com. Join the journey of reading through the New Testament this year. More information can be found at equippingfaith.com.
