One of the emphases of Peter’s letter is unity among believers, especially within the local churches. Throughout his letters, he stresses the importance of strong relationships. This passage is the first of several such.
You can see it for yourself in 1 Peter 1:22-23.
If the church is to build strong relationships, then love must be the foundation. As Peter relates the importance of this, he doesn’t really focus on instructing us to love, or even how to love. He focuses first on why we must love. That is where he takes his readers in this passage.
As he discusses this rational, he gives two distinct reasons why we should love, with the command sandwiched in between them.
They have purified themselves by obeying the truth
This phrase calls to mind the Old Testament sacrificial system, and the cleansing and purification that went along with it. Those sacrifices resulted in sanctification for the Israelites, making them presentable to God.
In the same way, we need to be purified from sin. However, the Old Testament sacrifice is no longer in effect. Peter has something else in mind. Ultimately, that purification comes from Christ’s sacrifice on our behalf. But Peter doesn’t go that far in this statement. He instead focuses on our part of the equation: our obedience to the truth. And by that truth, Peter means the message of the Gospel, the Good News.
Peter will discuss the results of being purified in the next chapter, listing many of the things that purification eliminates. And the person who does so finds that he can develop a sincere love for others.
Love one another deeply
Peter now gives the command to love. Because of what Christ accomplished on our behalf, we are not simply encouraged to love one another, it should be a natural response, and Peter gives it the force of a command. The rest of this letter will be built upon the foundation of love, as Peter describes the relationships that believers need to have with one another. If love isn’t there, none of the rest will be able to stand either.
They have been born again, through the word of God
Peter uses the metaphor of new birth, much like Jesus spoke of to Nicodemus in John 3. And as Peter relates that concept, he shows us how we must live, which begins in chapter 2.
This new birth is very different from our own physical birth. This new birth is not perishable, just like our inheritance in verse 4, and like the blood of Christ in verses 18-19. In the same imperishable way, the word of God will last for eternity, and is the source of this new birth.
It is worth noting that both reasons that Peter gives us are based upon our need for Scripture. In the first, Peter stresses the fact that we must obey the truth, and in the second, he describes that truth as the word of God. It is evident that Peter sees Scripture as of primary importance.
We, too, must place such an emphasis upon the Word. As the church, existing two thousand years after the time of Christ, the written Word is our primary means of discovering God’s plan and purpose, not only for our own lives, but for mankind as a whole. Neglecting the study this Word will lead to a slippery slope, with the result being that we won’t have the relationship with God that we need to have.
As Peter goes on through his letter, he will stress the importance of God’s Word in our lives, and how we need it in our lives.
It is of primary importance.
Question: How primary is the Word of God in your life? What can you do to make it even more central to all that you do? You can leave a comment by clicking here.