Peter: A Messenger to the World
This short letter was written by a man we know well from the gospels, Peter. We know he was a leader in the early church. We also know for certain that he was married while the marital status of the other disciples is not definite. Peter’s name is mentioned more than anyone but Jesus in the gospels. He also spoke more than any other disciple and was spoken to by Jesus more than any of the other disciples. While he was the only disciple to have the gall to rebuke his Messiah, he was the disciple whom Jesus rebuked the most. While Peter confessed Jesus as the Messiah with a greater boldness than any of the others, his denial of Jesus was also more vehement and public than anyone else. While Jesus praised Peter more than any other, he is also the only one whom he referred to as Satan. That is quite a ‘well-rounded’ record. Perhaps, that is why so many of us identify with this often succeeding and failing disciple.
Peter addresses himself as “an apostle of Jesus Christ”. He doesn’t add any flowery words to it as some like Paul were want to do. It is just a plain statement. This tells us that Peter truly needed no introduction. He was famous enough in the early church that his name alone would have ensured people read the letter. The word apostle is more than a simple follower. Wayne Grudem explains, “The supreme importance of the apostles is suggested by the fact that the phrase of Jesus Christ is attached to no other New Testament office: we do not read of teachers of Jesus Christ, or prophets of Jesus Christ or evangelists of Jesus Christ, only of apostles of Jesus Christ.” The word ‘apostle’ means ‘a messenger, he that is sent’. Peter was more than a disciple, he was sent by Christ to spread the word.
Peter writes that his letter is “To the exiles of the Dispersion…” Some versions replace the word ‘exiles’ with ‘stranger’ or ‘pilgrim’, but all of these are synonymous with the original Greek word. One of the early Christian Church documents known as The Epistle to Diognetus, describes these people. It says: “They inhabit the lands of their birth, but as temporary residents of it; they take their share of all responsibilities as citizens, and endure all disabilities as aliens. Every foreign land is their native land, and every native land a foreign land… they pass their days upon earth, but their citizenship is in heaven.”
My prayer for us as we study this relatively short letter is that we would develop the heart of an exile, a stranger, and a pilgrim. Ephesians 1:4 reminds us, “For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight. In love He predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will-“ My husband and I have two adopted children. Both were born in places other than where we lived at the time of their birth. When they were adopted, they were no longer a son or daughter of… they were our son and our daughter. They no longer had a citizenship in the place of their birth. They resided and belonged to our city, our community. The same is true for you and me. No matter what we were before our adoption, we are now members of God’s family – citizens of heaven. Psalm 39:12 says, “Hear my prayer, O Lord, listen to my cry for help; be not deaf to my weeping. For I dwell with you as an alien, a stranger, as all my fathers were.”
This is not our home. One day we will see the land of our adoption. We will recline with our heavenly family and brush the dirt of this world off our feet. This is why scripture is so important. It prepares us for our eternity. It speaks to our soul of where we truly belong. Thank you for joining me as we listen to the words of this most famous apostle of Jesus Christ.
(Written by Keegan Harkins.)
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