Peter was not a perfect person. Though
he had received a vision showing that Gentiles would
be part of the church, he did not move to proselytize them. That is probably why we see the shift in
attention in Acts
from Peter to Paul,
the apostle to the Gentiles. Peter fell
in with the Judaizers
until Paul confronted him.
Though he had weaknesses like the rest of us, he was a bold and
passionate man. He was the first to say
aloud that Jesus
was the Christ,
the Son of God. He stepped out of a boat to walk on the water
with Jesus.
This letter is from a mature Peter.
To the passion of his youth he added gentleness and love. Love is woven throughout the three themes of
this letter to persecuted and scattered Jewish Christians:
living before God, living before the world, and suffering.
Living Before God
As Christians, we have been bought out of the world and sin by the blood of
Christ, who suffered and died to atone for our sins. Because of this, we should be thoughtful
imitators of Christ, seeking to be pure and love as He was pure and
loving. Instead of being dragged back
into the sinful ways we practiced before, we should rely on the grace of God, exhibited in
Christ, and do our best to do what is right, knowing we have help from above.
Living Before the World
Our relationship
to God in Christ does not negate the importance of other relationships. They are more important because God want to
display uprightness, mercy
and love through us. Paul especially addresses
relationships of authority
and submission. He reminds his readers to submit to
authorities in government,
work,
and family. The implication is that authorities should
conduct themselves with similar uprightness, though we should do our best even
if the authorities don’t. Husbands are
especially called out to treat their wives with understanding and honor. In general, we should relate to others with compassion
and courtesy.
Suffering
The people Peter wrote to were suffering. They fled their homes because they were
persecuted for their beliefs. Peter says
that if you must suffer, suffer for doing the right thing. In fact, if you do the right thing you
probably will suffer, because worldly people are more interested in satisfying
there lusts and they will come against anyone who doesn’t go along. In this, too, we can look to Christ as a
model. Christ endured suffering for a
purpose, to save us and to glorify His Father. Our suffering can also glorify God and purify
us if we trust Him, continue to follow Him, and remember His faithfulness, for
our suffering is temporary but our new life in Christ is forever.
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