Below are some preliminary questions to assist in the study of this passage. For a comprehensive study of the passage, download the Study Guide (PDF download).
1. What does Peter inform us that God has done for the Christian? See verse 3 (printed below)
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in accordance with his great mercy has given us new birth for a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead (1 Peter 1:3)
God has given us new birth; He has fathered us. He is our spiritual Father and we have become His spiritual children (note John 1:12-13; 1 John 3:1). God has given us new birth by the resurrection of Jesus Christ. When Jesus was raised from the dead and entered into the presence of God, He brought with Him all those who believe in Him: as a Christian, your soul has become united to Jesus (note Ephesians 2:4-6; Colossians 3:3b-4). Furthermore, God has given us new birth for “a living hope.” “A living hope” is a hope that is sure and certain, as opposed to one that is dead and worthless (note Jeremiah 29:11; Romans 8:17a).
2. How does Peter describe the “living hope” (or, “inheritance”) the Christian possesses? See 1 Peter 1:4 (printed below)
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in accordance with his great mercy has given us new birth…(4) for an inheritance that is imperishable and unspoilable and permanent, reserved in heaven for you (1 Peter 1:3-4)
Peter goes on to define this living hope as being “an inheritance that is imperishable and unspoilable and permanent, reserved in heaven for you.” Here is an inheritance that is as pure and perfect and eternal as God Himself, an inheritance that shall never lose its luster or desirability. This inheritance is being reserved in heaven for us. The use of the Greek perfect tense in the verb “being reserved” emphasizes the fact that this inheritance continues to be held on reserve for us until the appointed day when it shall be bestowed upon us in full measure.
3. What assurance does Peter give the Christian in verse 5 (printed below?)
…you (5)… by the power of God are being preserved through faith for the salvation that is ready to be revealed at the last time. (1 Peter 1:5)
We are informed that “by the power of God” we are “being preserved (or, “guarded”)…for the salvation that is ready to be revealed.” Not only is our spiritual inheritance on unlimited reserve for us, but we ourselves are being guarded until the day we shall receive that divine inheritance; we are being preserved, or guarded, by nothing less than the power of God. But we must also take careful note of what else Peter says, “by the power of God you are being preserved through faith.” In the midst of all this divine certainty, and encouraged by it, comes the call for Christian responsibility: we are to exercise an active faith in (devotion to) the Lord Jesus Christ (note John 10:27-30).
4. What contrasts does Peter present in this passage? Note verses 5-6 (printed below)
…you (5)… by the power of God are being preserved through faith for the salvation that is ready to be revealed at the last time. (6) In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, since it is necessary, you have been brought to grief by all kinds of trials. (1 Peter 1:5-6)
In verse 5 Peter looks to the future and speaks of the salvation that is ready to be revealed “at the last time.” In verse 6 he turns to the present and speaks of these Christians as “now” (in the present) being subjected to various trials. Then, too, there is the contrast between the great joy (verse 6a) experienced by the Christian as he fellowships with Christ and the grief (verse 6b) that he experiences, a grief brought about by the various trials he must endure.
5. What does Peter tell us is the purpose of the trials we as Christians must encounter in this present world? See 1 Peter 1:7 (printed below)
This has happened so that the genuineness of your faith—being of greater value than gold which perishes—having been tested by fire, may be verified, resulting in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. (1 Peter 1:7)
It is God’s prerogative to prove the genuineness of our Christian faith—and He does so by means of exposing us to a variety of trials. Furthermore, it is God’s purpose to purify our Christian faith—His objective is to purify our faith for “praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” “Praise and glory” to God for creating a being who is voluntarily true to Him no matter what God sees fit to bring into his life; and “honor” to us as the reward for being true to God no matter what He has ordained to be the experiences of our present earthly life. It is a great comfort to know not only the divine purpose being accomplished by means of trial, but also to know that the duration of these manifold earthly trials is only “for a little while” (literally, “for the brief present.”)
