1 Peter 1:10-12 The Prophetic Voice of God
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As to this salvation, the prophets who prophesied of the grace that would come to you made careful searches and inquiries, seeking to know what person or time the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating as He predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow. It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you, in these things which now have been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things into which angels long to look.
Introduction:
Introduction:
Up until this point, the Apostle Peter, under the inspiration of God, has been discipling the Christians living in the Roman empire, about their role in God’s plan. We know that they must have a certain level of maturity in Christ, since they are a persecuted minority and have persevered in the faith. Of course they did not choose to be persecuted, any more than they chose to be Christians - they were drawn to the Christian faith by the Holy Spirit and the sovereign election of the Father, through the sacrifice and mediation of His only begotten Son, Jesus the Christ. They were drawn kindly, gently, firmly. We characterize their situation in this way, because it is very different than the current, popular view of how and why we become Christians. This text is clear: these Christians did not choose Christ - He chose them, and He chose them for a life not of the world, but in the world, for a specific purpose. The life he has led them into is not, and will not be an easy one, this side of heaven. They live in the Roman empire, led by a tyrant who considered himself a god and expected his subjects to treat him as such, on pain of death. Moreover, he had all the instruments of government, to include an Army and constabulary (police force) to take care of any rebels that did not see things his way. These Christians already understood and embraced, through the work of the Holy Spirit and from the teaching and preaching of the apostles, that they were subject to a higher power, Yahweh, the almighty God, who deserved and commanded their faith and obedience, and that He had sent His Son, as a sacrifice, to restore a right relationship with them. How did Peter and the Apostles know all this? Their experience and the teaching of the Lord Jesus Christ. Why did they believe Jesus? Because the Holy Spirit led them to faith and because Jesus’ ministry had been foretold since the beginning of time, through the inspired word of Moses and the prophets. God sent many messages to His people, pointing to the coming of Christ in the fullness of time. Theirs, and ours, is not a blind faith or belief. God has been gracious to reveal Himself to us systematically, through the agency of Moses and the Prophets.
This is the lesson Peter brings to us today. He is teaching about the process God used to reveal His Word, and that process is truly amazing, in fact glorious! He teaches us in this text that God is revealing His plan for us, to us.
Key Question: How can we know our role in God’s plan?
Key Question: How can we know our role in God’s plan?
Answer: God has revealed His will for us through His word, and through biblical preaching and exegesis and circumstances.
Answer: God has revealed His will for us through His word, and through biblical preaching and exegesis and circumstances.
Transition: In the text today, we will learn about the result of our faith, which is salvation, and the wonderful method that God has used to reveal our role and our instructions for fulfilling that role. Peter is working toward fleshing out the outlines of our duties as Christians, which we will examine in later texts.
First Point: What is salvation? (1 Peter 1:10)
First Point: What is salvation? (1 Peter 1:10)
As to this salvation, the prophets who prophesied of the grace that would come to you made careful searches and inquiries,
Explanation:
What salvation is he referring too? He is referring to the salvation God gives His elect. Salvation from what? Hell. Salvation for what? Heaven - for an eternal relationship with the Father. Why is Peter writing this? Because the concepts of heaven and hell were very scantily developed in the OT. Unless these Jews had read or been taught the last chapter of Isaiah and/or the 12th Chapter of Daniel, they would have only had a faint impression of what, if anything, happened to them in the afterlife.
“For just as the new heavens and the new earth Which I make will endure before Me,” declares the Lord, “So your offspring and your name will endure. “And it shall be from new moon to new moon And from sabbath to sabbath, All mankind will come to bow down before Me,” says the Lord. “Then they will go forth and look On the corpses of the men Who have transgressed against Me. For their worm will not die And their fire will not be quenched; And they will be an abhorrence to all mankind.”
“Now at that time Michael, the great prince who stands guard over the sons of your people, will arise. And there will be a time of distress such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time; and at that time your people, everyone who is found written in the book, will be rescued. “Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt. “Those who have insight will shine brightly like the brightness of the expanse of heaven, and those who lead the many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.
In addition to these prophesies, David and the Psalmists spoke of the pit and the place of the dead, but they had only an inkling of the terrifying, disgusting nature of hell or its alternative. Jesus came from heaven, and through His actions and teaching opened heaven to men.
Prophesied of the grace: Grace: charis in Greek, Chesed in Hebrew. To find favor with. Noah found favor with God. Jacob found favor with Esau. The people of Egypt found favor with Joseph, who saved their lives. Jeremiah, Daniel, Isaiah - virtually all the prophets prophesied of God's grace coming to His people. By God's grace the Jews were spared from annihilation. By God's grace they were able to return to Jerusalem and rebuild it and the Temple. God gives grace because He is merciful - we don't deserve His grace, since our first parents rejected Him and turned on Him as soon as they got the chance, even though He had blessed them mightily. Sadly, we inherit their sin tendency and act on it. Our sin puts us in rebellion.
If it were not for the Prophets, then God's people would have been clueless about what was happening in the world and why. The prophets explained that everything was a providence of God, either difficult or pleasant, and that these providences, without exception were for the purpose of bringing glory to God and benefiting God's people (and chastising those who rejected the Lord). Christ died for the sins of the ungodly, that they might be redeemed and restored to a right relationship to Him and glorify Him. This was a key message of virtually all the prophets - that although God's people had fallen into sin and were destined for damnation, God would redeem them through the offices of His only begotten Son, the Messiah, who would bless them a prophet, priest and king. These folks to whom Peter was writing were incredibly blessed, because they were chosen to be the first to be blessed through Christ's ministry and sacrifice.
Illustration: When I came on board at my last job, I had to go through what we called an onboarding process. In that process, I learned the mission, goals and objectives of our leadership, how we interacted with each other, and how we set about accomplishing our mission, goals and objectives. Various experts from our organization came and explained to us how we would accomplish the bosses vision and goals, from their standpoint. They were professionals, experts who briefed us on the environment we were operating in, who our potential adversaries were, and how we competed with them. In this text, Peter is explaining how God accomplishes this onboarding with His people.
Argumentation: There are those out there, like Andy Stanley, and many like him that say that to be relevant in society today, we need to divorce ourselves from the Old Testament. This is a heresy, and that heresy is very old, in reality: Gnosticism and specifically, Marcionism. Marcion was a 1st Century theologian who taught that there were two gods, an evil and a good god, and that Jesus Christ had abolished the evil god. He therefore rejected the Old Testament writings completely.
Application: All God’s word is applicable to our lives. In the NT, Christ and the apostles, along with the Holy Spirit, illuminated and explained the OT for us, but they did not ever reject its teachings.
Exhortation: Immerse yourself in God’s word. Biblical teaching, preaching, study and meditation on God’s word will inform your decision making and keep you on the right track. Neglect God’s word, in all its form will take you off track, and badly.
Second Point: Seeking God’s will and His truth (1 Peter 1:11)
Second Point: Seeking God’s will and His truth (1 Peter 1:11)
seeking to know what person or time the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating as He predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow.
Explanation: Peter here teaches of the Holy Spirit, which is the Spirit of Christ. He was sent from Christ in His pre-incarnate form, schooling them through the prophets, on the sufferings and death He would experience when He came into the world, after taking on human form. The most specific of these prophesies came from Isaiah 53, from a prophet who prophesied some 700 years before Christ.
School of prophets. First mention of this school is in 1 Samuel 19, where Saul found David among them. They are also mentioned in 1st and 2d Kings and Chronicles. Obadiah hid 100 or so from slaughter by the evil Queen Jezebel. They are also mentioned in relation to Elisha and Elijah. Although not specifically articulated in the Bible, it is likely that these formed guilds of prophets, and the guild would develop and provide men who would serve as the prophetic voice of God in society. As such, they would function as a seminary or bible college. They would be engaged in the study and interpretation of God's word and delivering it to the society around them. These prophets, who appear throughout the OT record, would have rigorously studied the prophetic record and learned that a redeemer was coming for certain, what He would do, where He would come from and so forth. Some of these prophets, like Samuel, Elijah and Elisha, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Amos and others, received a special revelation directly from God, which became a part of the biblical record. In an evil, wicked and ungodly world, this would be a Godly providence, but not a popular vocation - hence their persecution. Nehemiah and Ezra make mention of them too. There were also competing schools of ungodly prophets as well, that are mentioned in a couple of places in the Bible, the most notorious being the 450 Prophets of Baal 1 Kings 18, that Elijah called out and executed them after they failed and proved they were false. The prophets of Yahweh, all of them, foretold the redemption of God's elect, which will be remnant of mankind. God told through them of the coming of Christ, some of His characteristics, but not where, or when He would arrive precisely. He did not reveal everything to each of them, but some clues to some and others to others.
Illustration: In a way, schools of prophets abound today as well, in Bible Colleges, Institutes, and seminaries. Indian Bible College is one example. LRBS is another, Greenville Seminary another. Men, called of God, join with these institutions to become modern day, forth telling (as opposed to foretelling) prophets for the evangelism and building up of God’s people. These prophets are called forth from their churches.
c. Argumentation: Not like Mullah’s and other types of self-proclaimed holy men. Not ignorant or uneducated. In the charismatic movement there are many who proclaim themselves prophets because they have a “word from the Lord”, which is not consistent with Scripture. God wanted us to understand Him, He provided us His revelation through His word, which was delivered by apostles, prophets (who are preachers and teachers). He instituted this system to ensure we received His revelation. God’s schools of prophets in Judah were founded by an anointed prophet and they diligently researched, analyzed and exegeted God’s word under the direction of the Holy Spirit. They were accountable to God and to each other. Simultaneously, the enemy founded similar schools.
d. Application: Understand the difference between godly and ungodly prophets. Heed what the word of God says about identifying them (they must be right 100% of the time). Beware of the false teachers – they are a sure way to hell. How did the teacher learn His craft? What is his statement of faith? What creeds does He subscribe to? Is his teaching consistent with the word of God? Does he redefine the word to promote an alien gospel?
Third Point: The role of the Prophets (1 Peter 1:12)
Third Point: The role of the Prophets (1 Peter 1:12)
It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you, in these things which now have been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things into which angels long to look.
Explanation: What was the role of the prophets? here Peter refers to the anointed prophets (those who's writings are part of Scripture). God revealed to them that their prophesy was not only to the society in which they lived (in Israel, Judah, Babylon), but to future generations, which is why they wrote down and left their prophesies for us. The prophets were ordained to reveal God’s word to all people, but especially His elect. It can really only be understood and appreciated through the agency of the Holy Spirit. The implication here is that God revealed to the prophets, and therefore to us, information that He had not disclosed to angels. Angels, in God's economy, are less important to Him than we are. Hebrews 1:14
Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out to render service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?
God places more trust in us than the angels, since under the leadership of Lucifer, the “Day Star” a company of them rebelled against God and He ejected them from heaven. This is the interpretation of Isaiah 14:12-23. For this reason, God may no longer trust His angels the way He trusts His elect. It is important to know remember that the angels, and Satan’s demons do not understand all that God has revealed to us. Like the lost, God has blinded Satan and his demons to His revelation.
Illustration: Angels serve us at God’s command. They minister to us, to help us and protect us. We are helpers which God provides to support us in our ministry and service to others. Demons are fallen angels that serve Satan. They also help Satan in his attempts to destroy God’s children. The prophets existed, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, to explain to us how God would unfold His plan and what our role would be.
Argumentation: Unbelievers, Atheists and those Christians who deny the truth of God’s word seek to construct an alternate explanation of God’s reality to legitimate their sin. There is an old saying that the Bible will keep you from sin, and sin will keep you from the Bible. Those who doubt or reject God’s word are in rebellion and lack the illumination of the Holy Spirit. The HS doesn’t operate in those who reject Christ, Christ sent Him only to His followers, according to His high priestly prayer in John 17. Application: We are all condemned unless we are redeemed by Christ. This is what the prophets taught. They taught about sin, rebellion, condemnation, redemption and salvation. It is God who opens the eyes of His people to these truths.
Exhortation: If you are a follower of Christ, the prophets, Christ, the Holy Spirit and the apostles assure you of your glorious future, here and eternally in God’s kingdom. This is all in God’s Word, the Bible. If not a follower of Christ, you are in terrible straits. But there is a way out of hell.
Conclusions:
Conclusions:
Lessons for Christians:
Lessons for Christians:
Christian, you are chosen by God and you are not your own. He has shown favor on you out of His sovereign will and though you will suffer a little, you will persevere into eternal Glory with Jesus Christ. His word, passed down to us by Moses, the Prophets, Christ Himself and the Apostles is both an instruction and a love letter. Study it, read it, listen to it preached, meditate and pray on it. Immerse yourself in it, and you will be able to resist sin and the devil, and follow God’s will in your life.
Gospel appeal: Friends, our faith is exclusive, but Christ’s message for you is not. If you have not trusted in Christ, turn from your sin and believe the Gospel. Then He will save you. God promises this in Romans 10. What is the Gospel? It is embodied in 1 Cor 15:3,4. Repent and believe.
Let us pray.
[1] New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). (1 Pe 1:10). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[2] New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). (1 Pe 1:12). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[3] New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). (Heb 1:13–14). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.