The Faith
Overarching themes of 1 Peter are:
What a Christian’s perspective should be
How we should live
Our Sermon series as we go through 1 Peter is called, “Forged”.
God is shaping us, forging us into people like Christ.
1 Peter 1:1
Peter wanted the readers to know whether they were Jews or Gentiles, no matter where they lived, if they were Christians, they were God’s chosen people.
He also addresses the people as “Foreigners.”
They were living in a foreign land but they, and all believers, are spiritual foreigners. We belong to the Kingdom of Heaven, not this world.
1 Peter 1:3-4
Verses 3 & 4 tell us that our home is in Heaven, not here.
Our living hope – resurrection through Christ and eternal life – can’t be taken from us. This is amazing! This should be a source of incredible joy!
Peter addresses life at this time – the Church Age – and what we should expect
1 Peter 1:5
God protects us through our faith
It doesn’t say our faith protects us from trials happening, but God protects us in the trials
Our faith helps us see things differently than the world sees them
The Bible talks about faith in two different ways:
The Faith – Our belief in God that makes us a part of the Kingdom. Our general beliefs and doctrines about who God is and our relationship with him
Our Personal Faith – Our ongoing personal belief in what God desires for us
Belief goes beyond just intellectual acknowledgement
1 Peter 1:6-7
Peter was writing during a time of great persecution for the Church. There were trials for the early believers and there will be trials for us
Trials will show that our faith is genuine.
2 Corinthians 13:5 actually tells us to test to see if our faith is genuine.
And here is what you need to know – counterfeit faith can look a lot like genuine faith – at least until it’s tested.
The Bible says we are supposed to embrace trials! (Romans 5:3-4)
The only way genuine faith is verified is through trials and adversity
Going through trials does some things for us
- When hardship comes and our faith gets stronger, we know our faith is genuine
- Going through hard things gives us perspective
o The things that meant to scare us no longer do – we’ve already survived them - Sometimes God even uses trials to change the course of our life
o Very little good, lasting change comes from prosperity and ease - Genuine faith doesn’t mean perfect faith
o Almost all the heroes of the Bible fell in spectacular fashion. - When people “fall away” from the faith, it shows a lack of genuine faith
“And therein lies an important principle. Those who walk away from God in anger and disillusionment in the midst of their suffering never do so because their test was too hard. They do so because their faith was not genuine.” – Larry Osborne
1 Peter 1:8-9
Part of our faith is believing in a God that we can’t see.
God wants to grow your faith (2 Corinthians 10:15)
This week
• Remember God’s promises and his faithfulness
• Be around people that encourage you when you struggle with our faith (Romans 1:11-12)
• Read 1 Peter. It’s only 5 chapters, you can do it!
Passages to consider: 1 Peter 1:1-12; Romans 5:3-4
Ice Breaker: If you could go anywhere where would you go and how long would you stay?
Sermon Reflection – Share something from the sermon that was important to you.
Questions to discuss:
1. Read 1 Peter 1:1-5. What are key things you believe because you follow Jesus?
2. How has your set of beliefs about who God is, what it means to be human, and what is good- been built? A) What has changed in your understanding as you follow Jesus? B) What do you do to continue to grow in your understanding?
3. Read 1 Peter 1:6-7 & Romans 5:3-4 Share a time when you felt like your faith was being tested or refined/purified or pruned.
4. How does your faith – belief about God and how the world works according to Him – show up in the midst of tough times? A) In what ways have you seen tough times affect your love and joy? What about your perspective and purpose?
5. Read 1 Peter 1:8-9 What about Jesus draws you to love and trust him? What encourages you to have his perspective and hope?
6. Walking out a set of beliefs with trust, hope, love and joy can be challenging. How is your relationship with Jesus impacting your relationships with people? Think about both your home and those you engage with outside of your home.
Preparation for Next week: Read through 1 Peter at least once – try a chapter a day. Focus for next week is 1 Peter 1:13-2:12.