FIRST PETER 1:23

The Bible says in First Peter 1:23, “Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.” This Bible verse emphasizes the eternal nature of salvation in contrast to the shortness of life that we know on the earth. Anything of short duration is worth much less than something else of eternal duration. The salvation that God has given to us will last forever. Therefore, nothing is more important than having your soul saved. That is exactly what Jesus Himself taught. Jesus said, “What shall it profit a man, should he gain the whole world, but lose his own soul?”

First Peter 1:23 also tells us something important concerning the means by which a person becomes born again. It says that we are born again “by the word of God.” There are several ways to look at this phrase and they are all inter-related. Jesus Christ is the Word of God. He is the living Word. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” The Bible is the written Word of God, which makes the Bible the most important of all books. The Bible is a powerful book, if it is applied to the heart of man by the Spirit of God. The Bible speaks about Jesus. Jesus is the Bible’s central theme. This is the way a person becomes born again. First the message of the Bible is presented with the proper emphasis on Jesus. Secondly, a person who has heard that message is touched by the Spirit of God and drawn to Christ. Finally, the person bows before Christ, and Christ gives that person the new birth because of the faith that was placed in Christ. Once a person has been born again, a new has been started within them that will never end because the new life is incorruptible and “liveth and abideth forever.”

First Peter 1:24 is a reminder of the brevity of life. It says, “For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away.” The worse part about human life is death. No matter how much someone succeeds or how well they are doing, they will still die. No matter how beautiful is the flower it still will wither and fall off of the vine. The grave awaits everyone of us. Life is so short. How sad that truth is, for those who have hope in this life only! But how much more wonderful is the salvation that we have been given, when we look at our eternal destiny with Christ compared to the certain end that every human life has.

In contrast to the shortness of human life, the Bible says in First Peter 1:25, “But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.” This verse is referring to the written Word of God. It says that “the word of the Lord endureth for ever”. Of course, this means that not only has God given His Word, but that God has also preserved His Word. Jesus taught the same thing about the Word. Jesus said in Mark 13:31, “Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.” This is why you can be certain the Bible is without error. God gave the truth: “Holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.” “All scripture is given by inspiration of God.” God also has preserved the truth: “the word of the Lord endureth for ever.” This means that errors did not slip into the Bible because of the translations that have been made. It also means that the truth has always been present for each generation to benefit from it. First God gave His Word through the apostles and prophets, and then God has preserved His Word for every generation. Psalm 100:5 says, “For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.”

Peter has another important thing to say about the Word of God in chapter two and verse two, but before we look at it, there is something in First Peter 2:1 to take note of. It says, “Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings.” This verse is a conclusion to what was said in chapter one because of the use of the word “wherefore.” We must attempt to find out what the word “wherefore” is there for. Because of what was said in chapter one, we need to be fulfilling the command of chapter 2 and verse 1. We have a Savior. We have eternal life. We have the Word of God. We know things that the people around us do not know. We know that this life is temporary and that what is really important are the things of the next life.

Therefore we should not have to resort to the things that other human beings resort to. We should not be bothered as much by the events of a given day, even when those events go against us. Most human beings get very upset when things do not go their way. “Malice” refers to having evil intentions towards others. When you have malice towards someone, it means that you wish to see harm come to them in some way: whether economic or personal or in regards to their career. People have malice for various reasons. One of the reasons is the revenge factor. Christians should not be taking revenge. For one thing God was merciful to us. For another thing we are supposed to value eternal spiritual things much more than the things that are happening in this life.

Christians should also not have “guile.” The word “guile” comes from a word that means “to catch with a bait,” or “to trap.” A person who uses guile is not an honest person. A person who uses guile does not have real affection. He views others as mere animals to use and to trap if necessary for his own benefit.

Of course, Christians should not practice hypocrisy either. The word “hypocrisy” means literally “one who is acting a part.” It was a word used to describe those who took part as an actor in a Greek play. In its negative sense it refers to someone who is pretending to be something that they are not. They are attempting to deceive probably because they want something from the person they wish to deceive. A Christian should be the genuine article. They believe the truth and they should be true to who they really are and what they really believe. A hypocrite plays a part and puts on an act depending upon what they are trying to get from others.

“Envy” refers to being spiteful or resentful at seeing the success or good fortune of another. How can human beings be this way? They want all of the success to come to themselves. They do not want anyone else to have success. If someone else has success, it bothers them. Of course, this is much different from the character of God. God wants human beings to do well. Jesus said, “I am come that you might have life, and that you might have it more abundantly.” Christians who are spiritually minded enjoy seeing others having success and prosperity.

The Holy Spirit tells us in First Peter 2:1 to also lay aside “all evil speakings.” “Evil speakings” means literally “speaking against” someone. Remember that the enemy of human beings is the devil. He hates human beings. One way of showing that hatred is to speak against them. He is the accuser of the brethren. The devil speaks against the crown of God’s creation, man. The word devil means “slanderer.” When you speak against another human being for whatever reason, you are more like the devil than you are like God.

First Peter 2:2 says, “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby.” The last verse of chapter one told us that the Word of God “endureth for ever.” This verse in chapter two tells us what our attitude should be toward the Word of God because it is so valuable and beneficial. Everything in this world will pass away, even our own bodies. The only things that are eternal are our souls, if we have been saved by Christ, and the Word of God. The Word of God should have the proper place in the life of a Christian. Peter told us that we should desire the Word of God just like newborn babies desire milk.

One reason that newborn babies desire milk is because milk is the only thing that can help them. Without milk they will not grow and develop. Without milk a newborn baby will die. The same is true concerning the spiritual life of any believer and the Word of God. The Word of God is our spiritual food. Jesus said, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Word of God.” This principle is true for every believer. It does not matter what is your background or how few or how many were your sins. What matters is how much you desire and feed upon the Word of God. Some people like to talk about the Christian family that they came from as if that were an important factor in their spiritual condition, but they are wrong. Such things do not make the ultimate difference. Stay in the Word and you will grow stronger as a Christian. Fail to get the spiritual nourishment that you need daily from the Word, and you will become weaker instead of stronger. Your growth in Christ will be stunted without a daily supply of God’s eternal and powerful Word. “The Word of God is alive and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”

First Peter 2:3 defines just exactly who should be reading and studying the Word of God. It says, “If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.” Who are the ones who have tasted that the Lord Jesus is gracious? These are the ones who have been saved by faith in Christ. Only they can have the kind of spiritual benefit that First Peter 2:2 is talking about. The Bible is a spiritual book. It can only be understood by those who are spiritually minded. Almost all of the cults read and study the Bible. What is wrong? Why cannot they get it right? They do not have the Spirit to enlighten their understanding of the Word of God. The Holy Spirit gave the Word to the apostles and prophets, and the same Holy Spirit gives the understanding of the Word only to those who “have tasted that the Lord is gracious.” First Corinthians 2:14 says on this subject, “But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.”

Concerning the Lord Jesus, the Bible says in First Peter 2:4, “To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God and precious.” The previous spoke of those who had “tasted that the Lord is gracious.” This verse tells how a person comes to experience the saving grace of God. They come to Christ. Whoever comes to Christ receives grace. Everyone must make a decision about Jesus Christ. If anyone does not come to Christ, it is because they have made a decision not to. There are two different decisions that are made. There are two different conclusions that one could come to concerning Jesus Christ. The first decision about Christ is the decision that comes from mankind: “disallowed.” This word refers to someone considering the evidence about a particular matter or a particular person, and then making the decision to reject and to deny. That is the typical human decision about Jesus Christ. It happened when He was on the earth, and it still happens. The other decision that can be made about Christ is the divine decision: “chosen of God and precious.” When a human being finally does choose Jesus Christ, it is because that person has finally aligned himself with the will of God.

In First Peter 2:4 Jesus is called a “living stone.” We will find out in a couple of verses that this word for Christ, “stone,” comes from the book of Isaiah in the Old Testament. There is both a negative way of looking at a great stone and a positive way of looking at it. On the positive side, there is stability and protection that can come from a great stone; such as is the case with having one for a firm foundation. The Rock of Gibraltar is used with that kind of an image. On the negative side, should a great stone fall upon you; you will be destroyed. Christ is the stone of God. He will protect those who have made the godly decision and come to Him for protection, but He will be the final Judge and the ultimate ruin of those who made the human decision to reject Him. What decision have you made? Make the decision to come to Christ while you still have time.

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