“Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow…” -1 Peter 1:10-12

The Apostle Peter is still focused on the great Salvation that God has provided for his people. Just like the Apostle Paul, he begins with what we have in Christ before he tells us what we are to do. The indicative always precedes the imperative. Peter seeks to increase our gratitude and appreciation for our salvation in Christ.

First, we see the prophetic diligence. They searched intently and with great care to see what the Spirit of Christ was revealing to them. In other words, they were excited and in awe of the great salvation that God was bringing about. It reminds me of Matthew 13:44-46 and how the Kingdom of God is like a treasure and like a fine pearl – worthy of our effort to gain. The question for us might be, what are we passionate about? Are we simply bored with life? If so, we need to look and see, and then praise God for the gift of salvation He has given us. We need our eyes opened, and Peter wants to do that.

We then see the prophetic message. They were looking forward to the Christ - literally the Messiah - and his coming kingdom. They saw two parts to this - suffering and glory. That was the pattern that Jesus fulfilled. He suffered on the cross, but also in his life of obedience and in being tempted. (Hebrews 2:18, 4:8) And then the glory followed as Jesus rose from the dead, ascended to heaven, sits at the right hand of the father, and is someday coming again. The suffering of Christ is finished, and He is now in all of His glory.

This is the pattern for us as well. Romans 8:18 tells us that our present sufferings do not compare to the glory that will follow. There is suffering – trials, loss, and difficulties. But the glory coming will far outweigh the suffering that we experience. The pattern of Jesus is our pattern as well.

Thirdly, we see the prophetic selflessness. They were predicting what was not yet here. The Messiah has not yet come, and the Age of the Spirit had not yet begun. They were like the patriarchs as told in Hebrews 11:13 – they did not receive the things promised, but saw them and welcomed them from a distance.

We must remember that Jesus has come, and the Spirit has been given, and so we have something now that the OT prophets and OT believers did not. Romans 8:23 describes this as the ‘firstfruits of the Spirit.’ We have the beginning of the glory that is someday going to be revealed in full. Thus, we don’t look back to the ‘good ole days,’ we are in the better days. As my grandmother used to say, ‘We got it so good!’ The remarkable thing is that it doesn’t seem that way to us; by our standards she had it rough. But the truth is often seen with the eyes of faith and hope. The ‘new’ has begun in Christ. The Apostle Peter seeks to encourage us with these words because we are not in heaven yet, and there is still suffering and trials. But Jesus has come and the Prophets - and even angels - longed to see these days.

And so we praise God and give thanks for the great salvation that has been given us in Christ. The exhortations are about to begin, but Peter begins with praise. We ought to as well, because the glory that has been given - and will be given - far outweighs the suffering of the present time.

Pastor Tim, November 18, 2007