1 Peter 1:22-25

1 Peter 1:22-25

Having purified your souls in the obedience of the truth into genuine brotherly love, out of a cleansed heart love one another constantly – having been born again not out of a perishable seed but an imperishable one through a word of God that lives and remains.  For this reason: all flesh is like grass, and all of its glory is like the flowers of grass; the grass withers and the flower falls off but the word of the Lord remains into the age.  And this is the word that was being proclaimed into you all.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

We’ve talked about the need for God to purify us, cleanse us, and save us.  What Peter does really well in the first verse of this section is to remind us why.  Remember, salvation isn’t the goal here.  We’re not purified so we can be saved.  Purification is the result of our salvation.  We are purified because Christ saved us.  So why are we purified?  We are purified so that we can live into brotherly love.  We are purified for the sake of community.  As we grow closer to God, we should be able to grow closer to one another as well.

Do you feel more prepared for genuine community as you grow closer to God?  How does this look and feel like for you?

Second Thought:

At the end of this section we get a very familiar quote from Isaiah 40:6-8.  Isaiah compares humanity to like grass.  He compares our achievements and accomplishments to the flowers of grass.  In other words, Isaiah is saying that all that we do is temporary.  He’s not saying that we’re not worth anything!  I have many flowers that bloom beautiful blossoms and I think they are worth quite a bit of joy and happiness!  Rather, what Isaiah is saying that we as human beings can only do things that fade after a time.  We cannot do anything permanent.  We can do neat things, but the glory of our things cannot last forever.  Yet the word of God and His promises remain forever.

Have you experienced a moment of your glory that faded after a time?  What do you think the glory of God is that doesn’t fade?  Do you look upon the Word of God as a treasure that never fades?

Third Thought:

Peter ends with a reminder that the Word of the Lord is that which has been preached to us.  Human beings are sinful.  Human beings cannot save ourselves.  God solved the problem by sending Jesus Christ to die for our sake.  Through His sacrifice, our sin is atoned.  Because our sin is atoned, we can be saved.  That is the Word that lasts forever and allows us to be purified so that we can be in community with Him and with others around us.

How does the Word impact your life on a daily basis?  How does the Word enable you to live out your brotherly love in community?

Passage for Tomorrow: 1 Peter 2:1-3