First Epistle of Peter
THE TRINITY AND OUR SALVATION
Scripture Reading: 1 Peter 1:2 (KJV)
This verse contains the work of the trinity in connection with the salvation of the sinner. We have the election of the Father, the sanctification of the Spirit, and the blood of the Son. Not often do we have the three all linked together in one verse. The word "trinity" does not appear in the Bible. It does, however, express a scriptural truth very simply. It means "three in unity." Anyone making an honest study of the Bible will not deny the Godhood of the Father, or of the Son, or of the Spirit. Yet, the Scriptures speak, too, of being only one God (see Is. 44:6). The "trinity" – God the Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit – is beyond our human ability to comprehend, much less understand. So, we have one God in three persons.
There are many illustrations that could be given of the trinity. We have one family composed of father, mother, and children. We have one tree with roots, trunk, and branches. Our federal administration is one government composed of President, Congress and Supreme Court. Each human being is made up of body, soul, and spirit. In this verse we have the three persons of the blessed trinity, working together for the salvation of poor lost sinners – us.
"Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father"
Election has been a subject greatly discussed among Christians. It has been difficult for many to reconcile it with mankind’s free will, which without question is also taught in the Word of God. Because of this difficulty, many have cast aside one or the other. Some today preach nothing but election, while others have no room for it at all. It is only in man’s mind that they are contradictory, but, even if they seem so, it is no reason to disbelieve either one. Both are certainly needed for an understanding of God, and to preach the Gospel.
In Holy Scripture, election is viewed from various angles. We are elect or chosen out of the world (John 15:19). We are elected to salvation (1 Thess. 1:4, 5). We are chosen to some special service (Acts 9:15; also see 1 Pet.2:9). We are elected to be conformed to the image of His Son (Rom. 8:29). This is all according to the counsel of His own will (Eph. 1:11). The election of God in no way lessens our responsibility to repent and obey the Gospel of Christ. We read in Acts 17:30, "And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men everywhere to repent."
Teaching election to the unsaved does not seem wise. It's a family secret, enjoyably sweet to those who are saved, but could produce a fatalistic spirit in those who are not. One with such a spirit might say, "There is nothing I can do about it; if I am one of the elect I will be saved, if not, I will not." Such a one will probably not respond to the Gospel message.
“I" am one of the elect of God," said one. "That is strange," said the other, "I didn't know you were even a candidate." The unsaved shouldn't be worried about his or her election, but coming to God as sinners, desiring salvation, pleading the work of Christ as the ground for God's forgiveness. After they are truly saved, then they can say, “Chosen in Him before the foundation of the world" (Eph. 1:4).
As in our verse, election is often linked with the foreknowledge of God. In Isaiah 46:9, 10, we read, "Remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like Me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure."
Prophetic statements already fulfilled, abundantly prove that God the Father knows the end from the beginning. It is wonderful to think that back there, before the world began, God saw us, know all about us, and chose us for Himself. This is true of every child of God.
Isn't it wonderful to know that you have a Father who knows everything beforehand? You can safely leave yourself and all your affairs in His hands. In our verse, He is officially called, Father, as the first Person of the Trinity, but in a very real sense, He is Father to every true child of God.
All of us feel sorry for poor children. Too many of them have fathers hardly worthy of the name. For the most part, fathers do try to care for their children. But none can even begin to compare with the Father of a Christian. The Apostle John, by inspiration, reveals in his Gospel what our Lord Jesus says about His Father and ours – it's well worth the reading. Everything an earthly father will do for his child, our Father does for us in a spiritual way.
"Through sanctification of the Spirit"
There is a great deal of confusion about the Spirit and His work. Some in Christendom think of the Spirit as only an influence. The Scripture speaks of Him as a Person, although He does influence both the saved and unsaved. In John 14, 15, and 16, the Lord Jesus calls the Spirit "He" or "Him" twenty times.
First, the Father elects or chooses, then, the Spirit sanctifies and then comes justification by the Son, according to our verse in this lesson. Many would change this order. They think that justification always comes first and then sanctification follows, maybe in some cases even years later. Sanctification means "set apart." First, the Father chooses one and then the Spirit sets such aside to be won for Christ.
Mankind is so perverse by nature, that apart from the Spirit's work, none would ever turn to Christ. His first work is to convince the chosen one of sin, to show him how badly he needs Christ.
He will accomplish this through the preached Word, and may also use the pressure of circumstances. Usually, He uses both in that order, but sometimes the pressure of circumstances precedes the knowledge of the Word. With some, there is first knowledge of the Word of God, then through some kind of accident or calamity the Spirit causes one to cry out, "God be merciful to me, the sinner."
With others it was the reverse. Some have no knowledge of the Word of God, but through an accident or calamity, perhaps to someone in the family, they drop to their knees and say, "O God, what an awful sinner I am." It is easy then to show such people that Christ died for them on the cross, and that they need to be born again.
"Unto obedience"
In our view, the expression "unto obedience" speaks primarily of "the obedience of faith." The Spirit helps the elect to believe and obey the Word. He causes one to see the need to put trust in the Lord Jesus Christ.
The work of the Spirit in the saved is likewise a sanctifying work, seeking to have the Christian set his life apart for God. With this, it would seem He has various degrees of success. Some Christian's lives are set apart for God far more than that of others.
The Spirit makes His abode within the Christian. 1 Corinthians 6:19 is one of many Scriptures verifying this: "What? Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?" Too many Christians do not seek to walk in the Spirit (Gal. 5:25), and often the Spirit is grieved (Eph. 4:30). As the Spirit seeks to lead the sinner into obedience of faith, so He seeks to lead the saved into obedience to the Word.
"sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ"
As sinner, we must come to this before obtaining salvation. How important the blood of Christ is. It is mentioned scores of times in the New Testament and we find it in the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament), too. In Leviticus 17:11, we read, "for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul." Then in Hebrews 9:22: "without shedding of blood is no remission."
The story is told of a preacher who preached considerably about angels and other Biblical things, but brought little or nothing in about Christ and His sacrificial work. After one of his sermons, he asked a friend what he thought. The friend replied, "I did not think much of it." Caught off guard, the preacher said, "Why not?" "Because there was no life in it." "No life in it? Didn't I speak with ardor and spirit?" "Perhaps," said the friend, "but still there was no life in it, because there was no blood in it." The preacher asked, "What do you mean?" His friend replied: "If I had no blood in my veins, what would I be?" "You'd be dead," said the preacher. "Exactly, and that's what I mean. Your sermon had nothing about the blood of Christ in it, and that's why it was dead." For this very reason, much preaching today is valueless. Let us not misunderstand; while Christ's blood was in His veins, it had no vicarious value. It was the shedding of His blood that brought death to Him, and brings life to us. Blood in the veins gives natural life; trusting in the shed blood of Jesus Christ, brings divine life.
Some think there is salvation in the sprinkling of water, but the sprinkling of water is hardly mentioned in the Word of God, while the sprinkling of blood is mentioned scores of times. Before the death angel passed over the houses of the children of Israel, prior to their departure from Egypt, the blood had to be sprinkled on the lintel and door posts. All the articles of furniture in the tabernacle and the Temple had to be sprinkled with blood, and this is not all. Read Hebrews 9:19-22. All this is, of course, typical of the blood of the Lord Jesus. Sprinkling of the blood reveals to us that the blood must be applied to each individual. Just as the children of Israel sprinkled the blood on the door posts so they would be protected from the death angel, so it's necessary for us to voluntarily seek shelter under the shed blood of Christ, to be saved from the judgment against sin. We might know much about Christ and His blood and still not be saved. But when we feel the need of salvation and are born again, then we are, as it were, sprinkled with the blood of Christ.
It is only the blood of Jesus Christ that saves – none other will do. All other human blood has been tainted by sin. When we think of our Lord's majestic holiness and the fact that He was the Son of God through eternity past; we marvel that He was willing to become man, pick up that accursed Cross, suffer and bleed, and then die in our stead.
"Grace and peace be multiplied."
What a wonderful benediction. Salvation is entirely by grace; that is, it is undeserved. Likewise, every blessing received from the Lord after salvation is by grace. We really merit nothing from God, except punishment for our sins. But Peter desires that these blessings be multiplied to Christians.
"peace"
This is true of peace, too. Before salvation, we were enemies of God, but, He "made peace through the blood of His cross" (Colossians 1:20). When we trust and obey Christ this enmity goes, and we have peace with God. Knowing that all is well between us and the Lord gives us peace of heart. As we realize that God is our Father, and watches over us night and day, this peace of heart increases. It is Peter's desire that peace of heart might be multiplied.
If grace and peace are multiplied to us, then surely it will show itself in our lives. No child of God, filled with the gracious blessings of the Lord, will be ungracious in his actions. A true Christian will never be like those of whom David spoke: "And these men, the sons of Zeruiah are too difficult for me" (2 Sam. 3:39, NASB). If the peace of God truly fills our hearts, we will not be troublemakers. "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God" (Matt. 5:9).
