Read I Peter 1:10-12
“…Even angels long to look into these things.” (v12)
Some Thoughts…
As Peter starts to wrap up his introduction he begins with the phrase, “Concerning this salvation…” The first few paragraphs in this letter to suffering Christ followers are filled with words of encouragement to a group of people who are undergoing pain and persecution and are attempting to continue to live within the gospel when all they seem to experience is grief and pain…
So he gives them (and us) one more note of Joy to sing…This salvation that you possess is not some weak religious experience. It is not some short-lived notion contrived by some crazy fishermen and zealots…No! This mysterious historical force has been driven by Jesus from the beginning of time…the prophets didn’t understand all of it even though the spirit of Christ was dictating the truth to their hearts…with diligence and fear, they sought to gain understanding of it all, but it has only been made clear by the very act of the “Jesus event” – His life, death, and resurrection, ascension, and eminent return…This is profound!
God’s mercy born from the dawn of time to bring the remedy for sinful man; a remedy that comes in stages – beginning often with “sufferings” and ending in “glories” (v11b). And as the life of Christ is truly lived out in the heart of every believer, we are living out the greatest story ever told! It is so great that all of heaven is straining to see it. “Angels peering, as it were, over the battlements of heaven to behold what God has done in Jesus Christ.” (Edmond Downey). Or as Eugene Peterson puts it: “Do you realize how fortunate you are? Angels would have given anything to be in on this!”
(The Message – 1:12),
(The Message – 1:12),
Oh what a great salvation! Oh what a great God! The very worst moments in our lives will shrivel and fade in the light of Jesus and the salvation that He has come to bring.
A Prayer…
Father, I don’t understand much, but I can get this…What You have done to bring salvation to the world is colossal…It is so much bigger than me and my small-minded constructs of what I assume about Your Kingdom and Your ways. This is such a great mystery that not even Angels are insiders on Your plan…this is big…real BIG…and You have allowed Your children to experience it – Salvation in Christ Jesus …Thank you for such a great salvation. Amen!