1 Peter 1:13-25 Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, "You shall be holy, for I am holy."And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one's deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for your sake, who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God. Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God; for "All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever." And this word is the good news that was preached to you.
It's difficult for me to mentally and practically escape the culture of easybelievism, so ingrained in evangelical Christianity, in which the following, though often not explicitly stated, is tacitly affirmed.
1. The gospel is about regeneration and justification. Sanctification is a function of the "Christian life" or "Christian walk."
2. Holiness is an optional add-on to salvation, a sort of super-sized Christianity, which while unneccesary for final salvation, is encouraged for all Christians. It is not necessary to "see the Lord." (Heb. 12:14) It just means more lollipops (read: "crowns") in heaven.
3. Salvation is mediated through faith, while sanctification is accomplished by works.
4. For the Christian, the biblical commands to fear God are merely commands to respect Him.
5. Assurance of salvation comes by remembering a past decision.
While I know these assertions are wrong, I struggle to live contrary to them. If the above assumptions are held, the passage in 1 Peter 1 becomes utterly confusing. The text asserts:
1. Believers are to "hope fully on the grace that will be brought to...[us]...at the revelation of Jesus Christ."
2. Yet we are to "conduct...[ourselves]...with fear throughout the time of ...[our]...exile.
3. The rational basis of our fear is the knowledge that we "were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from...[our]...forefathers...with the precious blood of Christ."
4. God the Father foreknew the Son, raised Him from the dead and gave him glory, so that our "faith and hope are in God."
5. We have purified our souls by "obeying the truth through the Spirit" (KJV)
6. This obedience produces a sincere and pure love for other Christians.
7. We are to love one another, because we have been born again supernaturally by the eternal Word of God.
8. This entire message "is the good news".
So back to deconstructing my internal struggle against easybelievism...
The whole thing seems paradoxical. If I "hope fully," how can I be fearful? If my "faith and hope are in God," how have I purified my soul by obeying the truth? (yes, the believer is doing the action of purifying in v.22) How is it "good news" that I am called to spend a life of exile in fear?
How does this command to fear align with 1 John 4:18 and 2 Timothy 1:7?
"There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love."
"For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control."
Second Timothy 1:7 refers to a fear of witnessing, not a fear of God.
First John 4:18 concerns doubting the love of God. We are not to fear that God does not love us.
So why this fear in our life of exile and how does it align with a full hope in the grace of God?
I think a key lies in verse 18. "Knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers...with the precious blood of Christ." The basis of this fear is the knowledge of the imperishable ransom paid by Christ. This is completely counterintuitive to easybelievism. If Christ paid the ransom (and it is not paid by perishable things like silver or gold, but with His precious blood) then I have no need to fear. On the surface it seems as if Peter says, "Christ has forever secured your salvation, so live in fear!" But the key is there, in the nature of the ransom itself. "You were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers." The plea of the entire passage is to live a holy life: "preparing your minds...being sober-minded...set your hope fully...do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance...be holy in all your conduct...you shall be holy...conduct yourselves with fear...love one another earnestly from a pure heart." I am ransomed from my ways, not just my punishment. "This word is the good news." This is the gospel, that I am saved not merely from eternal punishment for my sins, but from enslavement to my "futile ways," that is, my own patterns of sin. Still, why the fear? Verse 17: "And if you call on him as Father (if you address the Father in prayer) who judges impartially according to each one's deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile." Why the fear?
1. God is our Father. The implication is that He lovingly cares for us and protects us, but also exercises parental authority over us.
2. God is also our Judge. Yes, God judges Christians.
3. His judgement is impartial and "according to each one's deeds." This sends up a red flag of concern for easybelievism. It sounds dangerously close to salvation by works, or at least works-based acceptance/sanctification.
Scripture teaches that salvation is through faith, apart from works. (Rom. 3:28) Yet faith without works is dead. (Jas. 2:17) The implication is that salvation is by faith, not works, but the faith that saves always works. So God judges each person's works, not to determine whether salvation has been earned, but to reveal whether salvation has been authentic. This is what Peter meant earlier in the chapter: "so that the tested genuineness of your faith...may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ."
So why fear? The ultimate answer must be Philippians 2:10-13:
"At the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure."
Why fear? Perhaps because:
1. The awesome reality of the future exaltation of Christ as Lord and Judge of all the Earth should cause me to fear and tremble.
2. My ransom from "futile ways" was purchased "with the precious blood of Christ." As a believer my sin is a tacit rejection, a tacit despising of Christ's sacrifice for sin. I should fear dishonoring Him.
3. The great mystery is that holiness is pursued by obedience, through the Spirit, (1 Pet. 1:22) and that this work of the Spirit is a manifestation of the genuiness of my faith. Assurance comes by examing fruit, not remembering decisions. (Matt. 7:20)
How does 1 Peter 1:13-25 deconstruct the five aforementioned assertions of easybelievism?
1. The gospel is as much about sanctification as regeneration and justification. They are inseperable. "Be ye holy...this word is the good news."
2. If we call the impartial Judge-God our Father, in some sense, we must live our exiled lives in fear.
3. We are purified, sanctified "in obeying the truth through the Spirit." (v.22 KJV)
4. Fearing a judge implies more than respect for the person on trial. It implies a serious thoughtful contemplation of His judgment.
5. Assurance comes through knowing the work of God in salvation (from start to finish) and recognizing the fruits of it in one's life.
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