Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you. These words from Peter come on the heels of his call for us to humble ourselves (1 Peter 5:5-7). In the act of humbling ourselves, we submit to God and place ourselves under “His mighty hand.” We commit ourselves to looking at life fromContinue reading “He Cares For You”
Category Archives: Opening the Bible
The End of All Things?
What does Peter mean when he says that “The end of all things is near?” (1 Peter 4:7). Is he talking about the return of Jesus? Does he mean something to the effect of, “The end of the world (i.e., the return of Christ) could take place at any time?” I suppose that’s a possibilityContinue reading “The End of All Things?”
Trust God and Put Your Name On It
If you think about the time you spent in school, nearly everyone would agree that they didn’t look forward to test day. Even if you were good at tests, it wasn’t a day you circled on your calendar and anticipated with eagerness and enthusiasm. Even though the nicest of teachers would try to calm ourContinue reading “Trust God and Put Your Name On It”
Too Wonderful for Words
When Peter wrote to the Jewish disciples dispersed in the five Roman provinces of Asia Minor (present day Turkey), he told them that even though they hadn’t seen Jesus (as he had), they loved and believed in Him. As a result, they were filled with an “inexpressible and glorious joy” (1:8). It’s that word “inexpressible”Continue reading “Too Wonderful for Words”
Thinking about Reverence
There’s something about Jesus’ cleansing of the temple that is startling. It seems out of character with Him, but it’s not. It’s simply out of character with the Jesus we have created—the One who accepts everybody and everything and makes no demands on anyone. Let me suggest if Jesus was really like that no oneContinue reading “Thinking about Reverence”
Living as Exiles
Peter wrote to “exiles scattered throughout” five Roman provinces that served as a land bridge between Europe and Asia known to us today as Turkey. They were Jewish communities who had been displaced from their homeland of Israel and were referred to as the diaspora (lit., “scattered”). The Assyrians, Babylonians, and Romans all had a part inContinue reading “Living as Exiles”
Preparing for PRAYER
1 Peter is packed with practical instruction for living out the story of Jesus. One thing he gives quite a bit of attention to is our mindset and attitude. In 1:13 we are told to have “minds that are alert and fully sober.” In 5:8 it is “Be alert and of sober mind.” And inContinue reading “Preparing for PRAYER”
Making Sense of 1 Peter
There are a lot of moving parts in 1 Peter; so that as you make your way through the letter it can seem like a hodgepodge of loosely related discussions rather than a single, cohesive message. After all, he moves from “inexpressible and glorious joy” (1:8), to submitting to the civil authorities (2:13), to ChristContinue reading “Making Sense of 1 Peter”
Dinner for 13
With less than twenty-four hours remaining in His life, Jesus holds a meeting with His twelve apostles in an upper room. Luke tells us He “eagerly desired” to do this (22:15). Though He has next to nothing in terms of worldly possessions, He very much wants to leave them with something to mark the moment—somethingContinue reading “Dinner for 13”
We Have Seen His Glory
After Israel had completed construction of the tabernacle, “the glory of the Lord” filled it (Ex. 40:34), providing the nation the occasion to once again witness the greatness of God. So majestic was the Lord’s glory that Moses was unable to enter the tabernacle (v. 35)! Wherever Israel went, God’s glory went with them (v.Continue reading “We Have Seen His Glory”
