Hope In Exile | A Future Secured Inheritance – 1 Peter 1:3-9
Jesus Christ brings us the inheritance found in Him to live in hope and faith, found only in Him alone.
Peter jumps into the body of the text, summarizing the movements he is planning to make throughout the entirety of the letter to the churches throughout Asia Minor. He begins, as is customary, with a doxology and blessing. Yet, this one is slightly different from the normal customary ones as it focuses entirely on God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. At the center of the doxology is praising God who lavishes His love on His people. For the churches in Asia Minor, this would have included a largely Gentile audience which Peter ensures that they understood that the God of the Old Covenant is the same God that now calls them to relationship with Him.
To be clear, Peter is in no way claiming that Jesus Christ is not God with the distinction of God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Peter had walked with Jesus when He frequently claimed unity and oneness with God as one God in three persons; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The wording Peter uses would have had the effect of strengthening the divinity of Jesus Christ in the eyes of the people throughout Asia Minor. With His origin being in the Father, Jesus continues the mission of the Father by representing God on the earth.
1 Peter 1:3-9 take the hearer through some deliberate moves to outline and orient the hearers to what Peter will be saying throughout the letter, even though this introduction usually had been used as a type of greeting in the context it was written. Peter sought to ensure that their audience understood their position in the faith as being full fledged members. This acceptance had been secured by the work of Jesus Christ to bring His chosen people to Himself. Now, though they may endure some kinds of difficulty and trials, the people of God would live in a hostile world by faith in Jesus Christ.
The Inheritance of Eternity
Peter sets the goal of eternity before the people of God. Through being born again, they are born into an inheritance that comes with Jesus Christ. In claiming this, Peter ensures that the people of Asia Minor understand their right standing with God. An inheritance implies adoption and belonging where once we did not belong. This adoption, through our being unified with Jesus Christ, presented a contrast to the society. Previously, the people of the churches in Asia Minor had been in a place of belonging. Now, though, they found themselves in exile, without a home in this world. Peter drives home the point, though, that this world should not be considered their permanent home and they are adopted by God and woven into the family of God, sharing in the inheritance of Jesus Christ. For those who follow Jesus, we stand with Him as our life reflects and reveals a life lived according to God.
This inheritance is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading. Nothing can diminish the richness of the inheritance as it is given fully by the work of Jesus Christ. It does not decline based on our performance. It does not weaken based on our weakness. The inheritance of basking in the presence of God forever is given fully by our being united with Jesus Christ. When we abide in Christ Jesus, we join Him in His life, death, burial, and resurrection. He testifies to our oneness with Him before the Father and welcomes us to stand before the King of Kings in all His glory, having paid the cost of our sin and defilement. Jesus cleanses the sinner and gives a path for our eternal inheritance in the fullness of Christ’s work for our sake and for His glory.
Furthermore, nothing is able to take the inheritance away. We do not hold the inheritance ourselves but it is held by the hands of God. If our works had been the things necessary to hold to the inheritance, then we certainly would have lost it long ago. In fact, in the Garden of Eden, the inheritance we had been given, we freely gave up, giving in to the temptation of sin and rejecting a life in Jesus Christ. The inheritance, though, is secured by the hands of God. He is an all powerful God who rules sovereignly over all creation, able to do all things and be in all places at all times. Nothing is able to unseat or remove people from the hands of God. No matter what our actions have displayed and no matter what weakness we have, the strength and security of God gives us the hope to follow Jesus Christ in faith.
- How does Peter describe the inheritance that comes from Jesus Christ?
Joy In The Sorrow
Peter moves on to explain that we rejoice in the security of our inheritance even though we may endure difficulties and sorrows now. As Peter juxtaposes the two, there is some intentionally extreme language. Sorrow usually carries a connotation of intense sadness rather than just a momentary situational emotional response. Deep sorrow in a person seems to strike the soul and reverberates deep within the heart of a person. Yet, while Peter clearly employs this language of a type of soul hurt, he exhorts the believers to rejoice. Moreso, Peter implies that they are rejoicing despite the momentary suffering as if the rejoicing is expected. The suffering and the sorrow is downplayed as only for a little while. The intensity of the pain gives no indicator as to the longevity of that pain.
The Churches in Asia Minor would have understood the sorrow and pain of being exiles in a foreign land. As exiles, they had likely been displaced by need or by decree. Potentially Caesar might have removed the follows of The Way from Rome as potentially inciting of rebellion against Caesar’s reign or persecution had driven the people out of their previous home. Now, throughout Asia Minor, they would have been rejected by the culture they found themselves living in. The people of Asia Minor cut off the Christians from economic activities and had generally removed them from any potential civic influence throughout the city. The elect may have had been able to own land and somewhat participate in society but never to the full extent. This only could make life difficult to buy food, be treated with any respect, and care for the basic needs of the home and family.
Followers of Christ should view suffering and sorrow in light of the eternal inheritance which they have received in Jesus Christ. The hope of the future does not downplay the severity of the pain, but it does put it into perspective. Even the most intense of cultural persecutions on account of the faith should be viewed as temporary. As elect members of the body of Christ, fully united with Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection, our sufferings should be understood as completely unable to unseat the victory of Jesus Christ. The victory of Christ is stronger than even the most intense sufferings and whatever we face, we do so in the hope that our victory is secured in Jesus Christ.
- Describe the juxtaposition of sorrow and joy in this section of 1 Peter and how the authors uses the comparison to make his point.
The Role of Faith
Peter continues to exhort the hearers of the letter to stand firm in what they know to be true. If the foundation of their hope rests in Jesus Christ, then the act of following Him must be an act of faith. They have not seen Jesus. They have not heard Jesus. Yet, the follow Him still. Unlike Peter, their experience with the Risen Lord had been from the proclamation and witness of those who had. Peter, who had walked with Jesus, seen Him, and sat at His teachings, had been one of the primary people to invest in the churches in Asia Minor bearing witness to the truth and hope of Jesus Christ. Yet, for those who heard his testimony, receiving it had to be done in faith as the Spirit within them moved to received the word that had been implanted in them since before the dawn of time.
Hope and faith work in an interconnected manner with one another. The two compliment and strengthen one another built on the foundation of love. In faith, the Christian should understand the hope of our future comes in Jesus Christ. We move and live according to the faith of knowing the truth of Christ without having seen Him or physically experienced Him. Faith drives a person to action, not just an internal belief. Faith is expressed in action according to what we know to be true towards the hope we have of the future secured by Jesus Christ on the cross. The result of this faith given to us by Jesus Christ is nothing short of the salvation of our souls. A life lived by faith given through the Holy Spirit
Discussion Questions
- What is the inheritance that comes from Jesus Christ? Describe what the believer receives being fully united with Him.
- How should the Christian view the sufferings they face as a result of their faith?
- In what way does viewing our struggles in light of eternity help us to endure the difficulty we face in the world we live in today?
- Describe the interaction between faith and hope in this passage. How do they support one another and what differences do each of them have?
- Where do you see God selecting the people of God in this passage? What does this reveal about the nature of God and
About The Author
Daniel Burton is the founder of The Gospel Outpost. He is passionate about discipleship and seeing people grow in their relationship with Jesus Christ. To find out more about him, check out his Author Page.
