Saturday 21 June 2008
- Bible Book:
- 1 Peter
"You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvellous light." (v.9)
Background
The first letter attributed to Peter has attracted a good dealof scholarly debate about its authorship and date. Some scholarsare happy to accept the traditional ascription of the letter toSimon Peter and to date it to the early 60s AD. Others argue forcomposition by a disciple of Peter a few years later than this.Others see the letter as a 2nd century production.
1 Peter is addressed to Christians in Asia Minor, in an arearoughly equivalent to modern Turkey. It seems that the Church inthat part of the Roman Empire is experiencing persecution, thoughthis was local opposition rather than a full-scale onslaught by theimperial government. Peter writes to encourage the Christians andto instruct them about their lifestyle.
In chapter 2 the believers are reminded of their true identity asChristians. Although drawn from diverse backgrounds, they havebecome one people in Christ. They have been chosen by God to beGod's own, called to offer praise and to proclaim the liberatingmessage of the gospel (the good news of Jesus).
Two images or motifs recur in the passage:
- The people of God, where the prerogatives and responsibilitiesassigned to Israel in the Old Testament are linked to the Church.God calls a new people into being through the gospel of JesusChrist.
- The living stone. Jesus, although rejected by many, is thefirst building block of the new people of God. In union with thisfirst 'living stone' the Christians in turn become part of aspiritual house - a temple built of human lives - where God isworshipped.
Peter weaves together verses and phrases from the OldTestament to create his motifs of the 'spiritual house' and the'chosen people'. The verses include
To Ponder
What do you think are the principalresponsibilities of the people of God?
In terms of Christian commitment, are you aliving stone or a rolling stone?
How does the reminder of our one foundation inChrist shape the way you respond to Christians who are verydifferent from you?