Sermon Tone Analysis

| I.  Power WordsA.

SufferingB.

SubmissionII.

General ContextIII.

Brief ReviewIV.

Living HopeA.

Our Guarantee§         imperishable§         undefiled§         unfading§         reservedB.

Our safetyC.

It’s all goodV.

Point of Action |

 

 

 

 

 

\\ Chapter 5

 

 

1  Peter

 

Salvation: Our Living Hope [Part 2]

1 Peter 1:4-5[1]

 

*[Slide 2]* We are in 1 Peter 1 . . .

Last time I pointed out to that there are a number of words that Peter uses that are very strong—words such as Chosen~/Election, Mercy, Called, and the Gk word ἵνα, in English ‘so that’.

| *Bears up* (5297) (*hupophero* from *hupo* = under + *phero* = bear) means to continue to bear up (from underneath), to endure, to sustain, to put up with, to underpin (to form part of, strengthen, or replace the foundation of as of a sagging building) despite difficulty and suffering.

The principle is that we are able to get under a heavy load and carry it.

The *present tense* indicates that bearing up under is this man's lifestyle, the attitude and the habitual practice of this person.Inherent in the meaning of *hupophero* is the picture of a plant which is crushed down and trampled upon, yet keeps rising back up again.

|

 

\\ !

I.     [Slide 3] Power Words

 

!! A.     Suffering

There is another word that Peter uses that we need to be familiar with.

It is the word ‘suffering’ [παθήματα], it occurs some 15xs.[2]

In its first usage it is tied to the abuses leading up to the crucifixion—1:11ESV Prophets “inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories.”

\\ \\

The second usage comes in 2:19-21.

From the New Living Testament: 19 For God is pleased with you when you do what you know is right and patiently endure unfair treatment.20

Of course, you get no credit for being patient if you are beaten for doing wrong.

But if you suffer for doing good and endure it patiently, God is pleased with you.

21 For God called you to do good, even if it means suffering, just as Christ suffered for you.

He is your example, and you must follow in his steps.[3]

| *Submit* (*5293*) (*hupotasso* from *hupó* = under + *tássō *= arrange in orderly manner) (Click for word study on hupotasso) means literally to place under in an orderly fashion.

In the active voice *hupotássō** * means to subject, bring under firm control, subordinate as used in (Ro 8.20-note) (1Pe 3:1-note for more on "*hupotasso*").

*Hupotássō**/ /*means to submit (to yield to governance or authority), to place in subjection.

It is important to note that many of the NT uses are in the *passive* *voice *with a *middle sense *which signifies the *voluntary subjection* of oneself to the will of another.

The idea is to put oneself in an attitude of submission.Peter commands (*aorist imperative*) believers to submit.

As citizens in the world and under civil law and authority, God’s people are to live in a humble, submissive way in the midst of any hostile, godless, slandering society.

Submission involves not seeking one's own interests but rather assuming a voluntary commitment of service to others.

|

 

\\ The problem of suffering grief in the workplace, the public forum, and even the home motivates Peter to explain why suffering grief for being a Christian should not be surprising but to be expected as a normal part of Christian life.

[4]

 

!! B.    Submission

Another power word that we should take note of is the word submission.

It occurs 6xs in various forms.

It’s first usage is in 2:13ESV Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme,

\\ \\

I don’t want us to miss this . . .

For the Spirit of God, submissive acceptance of the demands of /every authority instituted among men/ is expected.

What is striking is the context of this statement.

Nero, the Roman Emperor was on the throne, and the Spirit of God still sees Rome as appointed by God for the maintenance of moral values (So Rom.

13:1–7; 1 Tim.

2:1–2).

Christians must give Caesar what is his due (Mt.

22:21) and there is no hint of any exceptions here.[5]

! II.

[Slide 4] General Context

Remember Peter is writing from a Roman prison to people who have chosen to follow Christ in the providences of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia . . .

located in modern Turkey.

* It is possible that many of these Christians have been expelled from Rome . . .

with disruptive events beyond their control, there is this sense of total helplessness and hopelessness.

* Moreover, since wealth and inheritance were most often vested in land in the first-century world, a displacement from one’s homeland meant that whatever property one stood to inherit would be of uncertain benefit, if any.

Thus, the loss of inheritance and family rights could lead directly to feelings of hopelessness.

* Just being a Christians affected social status.

It may even have jeopardized their inheritance as members of pagan families, much as some Muslim, Hindu, or Jewish families today disinherit a family member who converts to Christianity.

Such experiences may understandably result in feelings of hopelessness.

In case you missed it, There are no commandments in the first verses of this letter.

No demands or requirements or directions.

What Peter is doing here is not telling us what to do but telling us what to enjoy.

He is not exhorting, he is exulting.[6]

Peter explains to these socially alienated Christians that though they be rejected by society because of their commitment to Christ . . .

they are in fact chosen by God and fully entitled to the promise and inheritance of his kingdom.[7]

For Peter, what one believes about their salvation and their future shapes how they live in the present moment and how they relate to the world around them.[8]

And have ‘living hope’ [v3], provides incentive for persevering in faith when the attractions of the world tempt us to deny our relationship of being in Christ.

! III.  [Slide 5] Brief Review

Last time we looked at v3, and concentrated on 3 things:

 

* God’s great mercy—it is not that we earn what he is giving, but that we receive what he is giving.

* What has God giving?

We saw that he gives ‘new birth’, and he gives new birth because we are spiritually dead.

A new birth that comes as a result of God’s great mercy

* The third thing that we noted was that when one is born anew, he~/she is marked by a ‘living hope’.

This ‘living hope’ is living because Jesus is living, and is rooted in the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

! IV. [Slide 6] A Life of Confidence

At the end of his letter, Peter spells out why he wrote this letter: I have written and sent this short letter to you with the help of Silas, whom I commend to you as a faithful brother.

My purpose in writing is to encourage you and assure you that what you are experiencing is truly part of God’s grace for you.

Stand firm in this grace.

[1 Peter 5:12 (NLT)][9]

 

This morning we are going to be encouraged by three great truths:

 

§         What we have been guaranteed

§         What we have been promised

!  

!! A.     [Slide 7] | *Inheritance* (2817) (*kleronomia* from *kleros* = lot + *némo* = give or distribute) is literally that which is distributed by lot and so refers to a portion which one receives by lot in a general distribution and then, in a more general sense means to possess oneself of, to receive as one's own, to obtain.

In other words it can refer to a property already received as well as one that is expected.

Although *kleronomia* is an inheritance which one receives by lot, in the NT the idea of chance associated with the lot is not found.

|

What we have been guaranteed

That brings us to vs4-5.

In v3 we looked at “what we have

been given,” here in the v4 Peter tells us ‘what we have been guaranteed.’

We have been guaranteed . . .

an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you,

!!! 1.

Our inheritance

For starters we should realize that inheritances are not earned as much as we would like to think otherwise.

We do not earn an inheritance.

We receive it as a result of the generosity of the previous generation.

Inheritance is something that is given.

So as ‘Followers of Christ’ we are going to inherit something that will never fade.

When we think of inheritance, many of think of John 14:2, “In my Father’s house are many mansions . .