1 Peter 1:17-23 (NRSV)
Read 1 Peter 1:17-23 on biblegateway.com
Verse 17If you invoke as Father the one who judges all people impartially according to their deeds, live in reverent fear during the time of your exile. Verse 18You know that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your ancestors, not with perishable things like silver or gold, Verse 19but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without defect or blemish. Verse 20He was destined before the foundation of the world, but was revealed at the end of the ages for your sake. Verse 21Through him you have come to trust in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are set on God. Verse 22Now that you have purified your souls by your obedience to the truth so that you have genuine mutual love, love one another deeply from the heart. Verse 23You have been born anew, not of perishable but of imperishable seed, through the living and enduring word of God.
Devotion
1 Peter was written by a leader in the early church who lived in a divided society at a time when people were being persecuted. Here the author tells the readers they are called to live a holy life. "Through him you have come to trust in God...so that your faith and hope are set on God." Jesus Christ brings us to trust in God—we are called through Christ to follow and turn back to God. Through Christ—the lamb who died on the cross for the entire universe—we come to love and trust in God. This sacrifice of Jesus calls us to share and love one another deeply from our hearts. Christ cuts to the center of our hearts and inspires us to be vulnerable and risk loving our neighbors deeply—even if we disagree with them or we are different. How are you called to share God’s love with others?
Prayer
Deeply loving God, open our hearts to trust in you and share your love with all. Amen.