By Staff
The apostle Peter showcases salvation in the first epistle he wrote.
In 1 Peter, chapter 1, verse 10, he writes "of this salvation," and he continues to tell us about this great, divine contract birthed in the mind of God to glorify Himself forever.
Peter says in 1 Peter, chapter 1, verses 10-11, "Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, searching what, or what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow." God gave these prophets enough information that they could speak and write of the great salvation offered through grace, but they never experienced it in the way that we can.
Abraham was given a promise by God that was to be culminated in the future. Abraham grasped that promise by faith, believed in the hope that was to be offered, and God credited him with righteousness (Romans 4:20-22). Abraham did not have the internal witness of the Holy Spirit of God that is available to every believer in Christ today.
The apostle Paul in the epistle to the Colossians, chapter 1, verses 26-27, spoke of the great salvation God offers as "the mystery which has been hidden from ages and from generations, but now has been revealed to His saints. To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory."
Why us; why now? No determinate answer, but we have reason to be thankful to be living in such a time as this.
The prophets of old were "searching" what this great salvation was all about. There was a longing in them to experience what is freely available to us. Peter goes on to say in verse 12 of chapter 1 that even the angels desire to look into this great salvation. As the song declares, "It is amazing, so amazing that God would save sinners such as us."
This great salvation cost the blood of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. We could do nothing to extract ourselves from the huge horde plummeting to eternal destruction, but God in infinite mercy and grace offered His own Son, Jesus Christ, to pay the debt of sin we owed. When Jesus died on the cross, His death was sufficient payment for every sin ever committed.
This great salvation is not to be lightly esteemed. The writer of Hebrews warns in chapter 2, verse 3, "how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation."
There are detractors to this great salvation. It is not like the world is beating a path to church to get saved. Satan is totally dedicated to interrupting the salvation process. Satan has some allies. There is the stubbornness of the human heart, there is the deceitfulness of sin, and there is the incomprehensibility that the salvation of our soul is as important as it is, as urgent as it is, and as simple as it is.
Satan has some other allies that Peter warned us about in 2 Peter, chapter 2, verse 1: "there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction."
We need to be careful, that is, pay attention, and not let anything slip. Peter says it like this in 1 Peter, chapter 1, verse 13: "Gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ."
God has provided salvation, and He has ordained that you and I be the messengers of His salvation. Consequently, we must commit ourselves to (1) "make [our] call and election sure" (2 Peter 1:10), and (2) "proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light" (1 Peter 2:9).
All people matter to God. His salvation freely offered is the proof of His love and care.