First Peter

“With the help of Silas, whom I regard as a faithful brother, I have written to you briefly, encouraging you and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Stand fast in it.”

-1 Peter 5:12


My job is to study the scriptures and pass along what I learn there to others.  It’s one of the best jobs in the world, in my opinion, and I am thankful that I get to do it.  One of the reasons I enjoy it so much is because these are words written thousands of years ago to a people, a culture and a time that is vastly different than ours today.  One pastor-friend of mine once said that it would be easier for a Martian to come to earth and understand our culture today than it would be for us to understand the cultures of biblical times.  I think there’s a lot of truth to that.  Biblical writers could never have conceived of electricity, or cars, or iPhones and iPads or a myriad of other technological advancements that have occurred since the Bible was written.

And yet, in spite of the intervening centuries, I am regularly astounded at how relevant these words are to us today.  And 1 Peter is certainly a great example of that.  While I chose this book because it best fit the summer preaching schedule in 2013, God had other plans.  As Peter says in the verse quoted above, this letter was written to encourage the saints and testify to the “true grace of God” so that the saints might stand firm in it.  Those saints were facing severe and literal persecution for claiming to follow Christ.  Confessing that they were Christian quite literally put their lives at risk.  While the saints at the church I served that year weren’t at that kind of risk, they were very much in need of hope, of assurance, of encouragement.  These words, written to a people of very different time and circumstance, were found to be profoundly relevant and true for the people who spent a summer in this book.  May the words of this letter and these sermons bring hope, encouragement and truth to you as well. 

I am thankful for the part that Victor Manuel Labrada plays in this series and the words of wisdom he shares in chapter 5.  Victor was a student at Covenant Theological Seminary that summer and also served as the worship leader at the church.  He is a gifted and wise young man, as you will see.


Rev. David Garrison

September, 2013