95 Peter 1 and 2

1 Peter

This time, we hear from Peter, Jesus' right-hand man in the gospels. Yep, that Peter. He pretty much agrees with James on a bunch of things. Here are his thoughts:
*Suffering can be good. It's all part of God's plan, so no worries.
*Whatever you do, don't start sinning just because times get tough. God will not be amused.
*Christians should act like the newborn little babies they are (metaphorically speaking, of course).
*They also need to keep their behavior in line. That means listening to authority figures (anarchy is out). Slaves should obey their masters . And wives? Well, you know your husband is in charge? It's important for everyone to stay in line because Jesus will be coming back to judge everyone very shortly. For real this time.

2 Peter

Peter again with a couple more reminders for Christians before he bites the dust. Watch out for false teachers. These are folks who claim to follow Jesus but spread all kinds of lies about him instead. Mainly, they've been saying that the world isn't gonna end so it doesn't really matter how we act. Well, that is just nonsense, says Peter. God may be a little slow getting this plan off the ground, but rest assure, Jesus will come again and judge all the baddies. So keep your eyes peeled for anyone descending from Heaven on a cloud of glory.

This letter's from Peter. He's an apostle of Jesus Christ, Peter's writing to believers. There's probably a mix of Jewish-Christians and Gentile-Christians in those parts. In any case, it's a pretty diverse group. Now, what does Peter have to tell us? Well, for starters—everything is awesome! God gave the world Jesus and anyone who believes in him is gonna get some rewards. That's the good news. The bad news is that some people are gonna have to suffer for their faith. Yeah, it's a not good, but some good things can come of it. Namely, those who stay strong will show how amazing Jesus is and how much they love him. They're proving it all night. If they do this, they'll be saved.
So, actually, this is good news. According to Peter, Jewish scriptures talk about the coming of Jesus, what he would do, and how he would save the people. Now Christians are reaping the benefits. Even angels don't get these sweet perks. That means it's time to get ready. Change your ways. Don't fall back and start living like you did before you found out about Jesus. Keep the faith and good things will happen, says Peter. God judges everyone by what they do. So don't get sloppy now. You escaped from the crazy, pagan worship of your ancestors. You figured out that idols made of silver and gold could never save you—only the blood of Jesus could. Now that you know the truth, he says, your souls are good to go. So, love your fellow believers. You're all like newborn babies who get a new chance at living life with God as your father. Peter quotes the prophet Isaiah and compares people to grass and flowers. Stay with us. Grass and flowers grow, but eventually, all plants wither and die. Just like human beings. God, on the other hand, keeps going forever.

Peter has plenty more to say: if you're on God's team, act like it. Don't be hateful or bitter or insecure or envious or a liar. Act the newborn Christian you are. Drink nothing but spiritual milk and you'll grow up big and strong and holy. Or be like a stone. There are some stones that people didn't think were good enough for building houses. Jesus was one of those. Believers are the others. But these rejected stones will be used to build up a spiritual house, says Peter Again, Peter quotes Isaiah's thoughts on stones. He tells us that the stone that everyone hated will become the cornerstone—the most important piece in the whole building. That same stone will trip up those haters and make them fall. Fall into sin, that is. They've turned their backs on God and they'll get their’s one day. But believers are special. They're God's new people. And he's gonna be merciful with them. Other people? Not so much. Okay, so if you're a believer in Jesus, how should you be acting? Well, first of all, don't sin. Also, you should try to behave yourself when you're dealing with non-believers. They may think Christians are a little wacky, but if everyone keeps their behavior on the up and up, it could change their mind. Hey, it's worth a shot. Also, don't go around challenging authority figures on purpose. Be respectful to the emperor and his governors. Peter doesn't want anyone thinking Christians are anti-social anarchists. Honor everyone you meet.

Okay, how about slaves? Well, says Peter, you guys should also be totally accepting of your masters. Even if they're hard on you. After all, if you do something wrong and get trouble for it, then that's on you. But if you haven't done anything at all and still get in trouble by your owner? Well, that time God is on your side. Actually, this makes you just like Jesus. He didn't do anything wrong and the powers that beat and crucified him. He never even retaliated—he just trusted that God would sort it all out. More Peter, more not-21st-century-friendly advice: ladies, obey your husbands. Even if your man is an unbeliever, just keep being loving and kind. Hey, maybe one day you'll win him over with your feminine charms and Christian piety. Maybe.

Also, girls, don't spend too much time on your image. Just say no to braiding your hair, wearing gold, or putting on fancy clothes. It's overkill. Instead of worrying about what you look like on the outside, show off your beautiful inside. There's nothing hotter than a "gentle and quiet spirit." Try to be like Sarah. She listened to her husband, Abraham, and nothing weird ever happened to them. Okay, so we've heard about wives. How about the men? Well, Peter thinks that husbands should be considerate to their wives, too. And some advice for everyone: just love one another. If someone does something bad to you, don't try to get even by seeking revenge. Bless them instead. It's the only way you're gonna inherit that kingdom of Heaven everyone keeps talking about. Just say no to evil. After all, if you're trying to be good, who could fault you for that? And even if someone does attack you while you're doing the right thing, God totally has your back. Not literally. Don't be afraid if someone asks you what you believe. Tell them politely. If you're a good person, it'll be tougher for naysayers to attack you. Peter keeps going: you've got nothing to worry about because Jesus suffered and died so that everyone could be saved. Even those naysayers. Remember when Noah built that ark and God saved only eight people after cleansing the world with water? Now he wants to save everyone through water—the water of baptism, to be exact. By being baptized, believers ask God to help them do what's right. All this is possible because of Jesus, says Peter.
Here's what Peter thinks: Jesus suffered and died, and that means that you've got to be ready to suffer a little, too. You've already lived your life as Godless pagans, he tells them. Now it's time to start living for Christ alone. Those Gentiles out there don't have moral or sexual restraint. They're huge drunks who worship a bunch of silly idols, and they think you're becoming a bit of a buzzkill since your conversion. But you've already given your lives over to God. You know what's right—and it's not drunken parties. Our time is short, he says. This world is coming to an end. Very, very soon. That means you've got to keep on the straight and narrow path. Be serious and disciplined. Pray. Love each other. Don't complain. Help everyone. He continues: We all have different gifts. We should use them to make the world a better place. Well, at least until Jesus comes back and ends life as we know it. More warnings: don't be surprised if things start getting a little hot around here. Not everyone likes Christians, and occasionally someone will get arrested or hauled into court or maybe even put to death. It's all part of God's plan. If you've got to suffer—be happy about it. Remember how Jesus suffered? Well, you're getting a share in that, says Peter. If some Roman official hates on your because you love Jesus, that's great news. But if you get hauled into court because you've murdered someone or stole something or even just stirred up trouble in town? Well, that's bad news. Those who suffer as Christians will be blessed by God, says Peter. In any case, it's better just to keep the faith and get your reward at the end of the game. After all, if this is what believers are gonna go through, just think what God has in store for anyone who rejects him. Peter speaks here as an elder in the community. That is, an important and respected guy in the flock. He wants other elders to know that they've got a big responsibly. They're the shepherds guiding God's little sheep. They shouldn't be looking to get something for themselves or lording their authority over everyone. They should just be in it for the love of God. On the other hand, new believers need to recognize that the elders are the guys in charge. But both the elders and the new believers should be nice and respectful to each other. God loves it when you're humble, so try that out for a change.

The end is near, so submit to God totally and completely. He cares about you, so tell him your troubles and he'll help. But don't forget to be disciplined and stay on guard. Sure, you may be suffering right now—Christians all over the world are—but this is only a temporary situation. Give it some time, says Peter. Jesus will be back soon and everything will be awesome. Peter closes the letter by saying that he's sending it on with his friend, Silvanus. The church in Rome sends greetings. Peter calls it by the code name "Babylon" because he considers the Romans as wicked as the Babylonians—those baddies who destroyed Jerusalem back in the Hebrew Bible. He's also got some good news: God has given Christians everything they need to live good lives now and in the coming world. Christians have the smarts to escape the trappings of "the world" and to live as one with God. But Christians have to keep up their end of the faith bargain. They have to do good deeds and be smart and control themselves and preserve and be holy. Oh, and be loving, too. If anyone doesn't do these things, well, it's not gonna work out so well for them in the end. And if you stay on the path to goodness, everything will be alright.

Peter knows that Christians already get this stuff. But he wants to keep giving refreshers as long as he's around to do it. See, he's not long for this world—death is knocking. It's hard out there for an apostle. Now, some folks have accused Peter of making up all this stuff about Jesus. Peter saw all of Jesus' goodness with his own two eyes. Remember that time he went up to a mountain with Jesus? All this great stuff that Peter's been telling the world about actually happened. Not to mention, he adds, that the Hebrew Bible totally predicted that how Jesus' life would go down. Just in case you're thinking that Peter is selectively interpreting the Bible—he's not. Those interpretations come straight from God.
There are teachers and then there are false teachers. False teachers teach people to believe things that are completely wrong—like that the world isn't going to end and God isn't going to judge everyone. They're just ignoring stuff that Jesus said, and God won't be pleased when he gets a hold of them. The worst part is that tons of people fall for it. Don't let these guys drag you down with them, says Peter. They'll try to trick you with their lies about the end times, but don't believe it for a minute. God has judged them and he's going to annihilate them in the end. Look, when a bunch of angels disobeyed God, he didn't just shrug it off. He cast them down into Hell. When God saw the world was wicked, he flooded it and killed everyone. Well, everyone except Noah and his family. And when he saw those sinners behaving badly in Sodom and Gomorrah, he burned their town to the ground. Luckily, Lot was able to escape in time. The moral of the story? God does not play. He will bring an end to this world and judge people. Bottom line. But like he did with Noah and Lot, God will show mercy to anyone who does what's right and follows him. These false teachers though? They're sinners. They want things they shouldn't have. They hate the people in charge. And they're also not beneath telling lies. They're kind of like stupid animals in a slaughterhouse. They're on a conveyer belt to their death and they don't even know it. And the hating continues: false teachers are like a cancer that eats away at the Christian community. They're adulterous and sinful. They lead the faithful astray. Oh, and they're greedy. They're kind of like Balaam (donkey), this guy from the Hebrew Bible. He loved money so much that he went against God. Bad move. God has reserved a dark corner in Hell just for these people. They spit out all kinds of nonsense and try to lure people in with the promise of "freedom." People can only really be free if they give themselves over to God. These false teachers want Christians to tie themselves to the world and keep on sinning. They might promise freedom, but they're actually slaves to sin. They won't be able to deliver on that promise. The worst part about this all is that these guys know what is right. They were sinful pagans before they started following Jesus. Now they're going back to their evil ways even though they know it's wrong. They might as well have never heard of Jesus. At least then they could plead ignorance when God came knocking. Peter reminds his readers that this is the second letter he's sent to them. He's writing again to let them know that Jesus is going to come back. Naysayers will pop up and start trash-talking the second coming. We thought he'd be here already. You keep telling us he's on his way, but everything's the same as it always was. Look, scoffers, says Peter, God destroyed the world once with water. Remember the flood? And Noah's ark? So, why wouldn't he take the whole place out again? This time he's going to do it with fire, though. Also, you're forgetting that God doesn't keep time like humans do. He'll get here, but it won't be by our clocks, says Peter. Besides, God might be waiting for more people to come around on this whole Jesus thing. After all, if he gives us some more time, more people will be saved from those fires of destruction. See, that's just sensible. Trust me, he says. The end of the world will come when we all least expect it. Everything's going to crumble and die, and only the faithful will be left standing. That means keep the faith, guys. Stay strong, be good, and fight the good fight, and you totally won't be scorched alive as God burns the Earth to rubble. Paul also mentioned this stuff in his letters. Of course, some folks don't know how to properly interpret a letter, so they're claiming that Paul's writing supports them. Paul's on Peter's side all the way…says Peter. Right, so stay on the good path. Don't stumble and fall as you're walking along. Love Jesus and everything's gonna come up roses.