Today at Movement NYC, the preaching was on 1 Peter verses 3-5. Because I spend a good deal of time communicating with unbelievers, listening to their many objections, I tend to notice things in scripture that might have explanatory power for a skeptical audience. I noticed one such thing in the introductory sentences of Peter's letter.
The introduction to 1 Peter (verses 1 and 2), contain a clear declaration of the concept of the Trinity. All three members of the Godhead are present in this passage, as well as their distinct roles in the salvation of men. The Father "foreknows and elects", the Spirit "sanctifies", and the Son atones. In non-christian circles such as Jehovah's Witnesses or Mormonism, often the criticism is levied that the Bible does not teach the Trinity. The opening of 1 Peter stands in direct contradiction to that idea.
One particularly interesting point brought up during the sermon was that in verse 3, Peter says "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!" (Emphasis added) He specifies that God is the Father of Jesus, and not some other god. This is important today, because the word "god" has so many different connotations that unless it is defined, it is meaningless. If someone came up to you at Union Square and told you they knew how to get closer to god, what would they be saying to you? They could be quoting that Nine Inch Nails song referring to some kind of sex, they could be trying to sell you drugs, or they could be talking about some pseudo-spiritual, new age, cosmic "force" of some kind. In our pluralistic, "whats true for you is true" type of culture, this vague idea of god is acceptable, perhaps even preferable. After all, isn't it arrogant to think that one concept of God is true and all others false? Our culture tells us that all religions tell us truth about God. This attitude, however, MUST and DOES exclude the religion established by the resurrection Jesus Christ.
This is because the resurrection proved that Jesus was God, just like he said he was. If he was not God, he would not have resurrected. If Jesus is God, and he is, that means that any religion that teaches he is not God, cannot be true and leads to eternal damnation. Jesus said as much; "unless you believe that I am, you shall die in your sins." (John 8:24). In order for any other religion to be true, Christianity must be false. Christianity is not false, therefore no other religion can be true. Peter makes this abundantly clear by identifying Jesus as Lord, and God as his Father.
One other interesting thing I noticed from the sermon is that verses 3-5, are actually a very early confession of the gospel message in summary form, including the specific roles of all three person of the Trinity. This is important because often times atheists and other non-Christians will claim that these doctrines came much later, and were developed over time by people who did not know the real Jesus. Peter was closer to Jesus than even Paul, and he summarizes the gospel clearly in these verses:
Regarding salvation he identifies:
the Cause: "According to his great mercy he has caused us..."
the Effect: "to be born again to a living hope through..."
the Means: "the ressurection of Jesus Christ from the dead,"
the Result: "to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled and unfading..."
our Response: "through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed..."
The Father causes us to be "born again" by the Holy Spirit, and shows us mercy by the death and ressurection of the Son, who atones for our sins, so that we are given an eternal inheritance in heaven. This is ours simply by receiving it, through our repentance and trusting God. This is the gospel. It is all right there, in the opening sentences of Peter's letter.
The truly remarkable thing about all this is that Peter was just a regular guy. He was a fisherman who had a knack for being the most hard-headed of Jesus' disciples. That he so deeply understood the implications of Jesus' life, death and ressurection, so early on, should encourage all of us. If God can powerfully use a man like Peter, he can use our meager efforts as well. I am looking forward to opening up 1 Peter even more in the coming weeks.
