1st Peter 1:13-25 • You shall be holy, for I am holy
- Steve Schott
- 7 days ago
- 6 min read
► 1st Peter is focused primarily on encouraging believers in a time of intense persecution.
• He encourages the believers to live well, love one another, leave behind all the negativity, and to become “living stones” as a part of God’s “spiritual house”.
• He also reminds them in 1st Peter 2:11 that they are “aliens and strangers”
• The current leader of the Roman Empire is Nero, and we all know what a whack-job he was.
We are to live a life of progressive holiness
1st Peter 1:13-16 → 13 Therefore, prepare your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
► Peter begins this section with "therefore", alluding to the previous passage where he dealt with the new birth provided to those who believe in Jesus, and the work on our behalf He performed through the cross and the resurrection.
• The full essence of which won't be experienced until after our death.
• But the flavor of it can, and will, be experienced in this life, albeit, in the context of the current persecution being experience amongst the believers.
► In light of those persecutions, Peter encourages them to be prepared, to be focused, and to be firm in the truth of their eventual freedom when at last they stand before God.
• He encourages them firstly to "prepare your minds for action,...", the idea carrying the weight of making sure they understand the Scriptures, and specifically so they know what to do, and how to do it.
• Then he reminds them of the need to be "sober", that is alert or focused. They should fully understand the world they live in and not be distracted by less important things.
• Lastly Peter reminds them to "fix your hope" on the future, and complete, revelation of God's grace, which will be at the end of time, when they will fully experience the freedom from sin, both their own, and that of the world which is currently hostile toward them.
14 As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance, 15 but alike the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; 16 because it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”
► Then Peter goes on to help them understand that the key to being successful is to be "obedient children,...".
• Striving to avoid returning back to their "former lusts", those they lived in before they knew the truth.
• But he goes on to give them a positive suggestion (although it is more of a command than a suggestion) that they follow the example of Jesus.
→ "like the Holy One (Jesus) who called you, be holy yourselves...".
→ "You shall be holy, for I am holy.". This is a quote from the Old Testament, found three times in Leviticus in Lev 11:44-45; 19:2; 20:7.
→ To be holy means to be set apart for something specific, in this context set apart to God.
→ I often think we need to go back to wearing the WWJD (What Would Jesus Do) bracelets as they were a constant reminder to validate everything we do compared to the actions and priorities of Jesus.
We are to live a life of positive anticipation
1st Peter 1:17-21 → 17 If you address as Father the One who impartially judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your stay on earth; 18 knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, 19 but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ. 20 For He was foreknown before the foundation of the world, but has appeared in these last times for the sake of you 21 who through Him are believers in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.
► When Peter uses the phrase "if you address as Father the One..." he's basically saying "if you are a Christian".
• He admonishes us to "conduct yourselves in fear", not meaning that we should be fearful of God, but rather that we should be reverential toward God, and not flippant. He's not just some guy we are casually trading conversation with. He is the Creator of the entire universe, so show a little respect. In fact, show a lot of respect.
• He also reminds us that we "were not redeemed with perishable things", material things that could be replaced or replicated, but we were redeemed by "the blood of Christ".
→ When Peter talks about a "lamb unblemished and spotless" he's making reference to the Old Testament requirements for the people to make atonement for their sins.
→ But unlike the OT practice that had to be repeated for every single offense, when Jesus died it was a one time event, for every sin, for every person, for all time.
► Because of what Jesus has done for us, and because we are saved, we can look forward to that time when our faith will become sight.
We are to live a life of persistent love
1st Peter 1:22-25 → 22 Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a sincere love of the brethren, fervently love one another from the heart, 23 for you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring word of God. 24 For,
► So Peter sums up this section by reminding us that the end game, for our time here on earth, is love.
• Not the intimate passion between a man and a woman.
• Not the strong desire for tacos or peppermint ice cream.
• Not even the familial attachment and fondness for family and friends.
• But rather a compassion that drives us to do whatever is necessary for the betterment of another person.
► And Peter justifies this concept with several statements that I'll work backward from...
• In verse 25, Peter reminds us, quoting Isaiah 40:8 that "the word of the Lord endures forever", meaning that God's truth, the truth "which was preached to you", is eternal.
• In verse 24, quoting Isaiah 40:6-7, he also reminds us that our physical being, as we live in it today, is NOT eternal, and will fade away just as quickly as grass or flowers.
• In verse 23, Peter exhorts us to remember that our salvation is "imperishable", i.e., eternal, and that it is totally because of the work of the "living and enduring word of God."
→ I might add here that the word "word" here in the Greek is logos, which is the same word that John uses in John 1:1-3 and John 1:14-18 to identify Jesus as the Living Word!
• In verse 22, Peter reminds them to "love one another from the heart", since their hearts are already prepared to do this through their "obedience to the truth".
So what?
► Our relationship with Jesus, this new life to which we are born again into, should lead us to a new way of living, a new way of walking, a new way of working out our lives.
► The key to this new life is a compassionate love that seeks the best for others.
► But we must continually submit ourselves to the truth, to avoid living as we have in the past.
Photo • 2026/08/03 - An egret in the Neosho River, just below Pensacola Dam, Disney, OK
Thanks to Brad McCoy, one of the co-teachers in our Sunday School class, for providing some of the thoughts I've included in this post.
“Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995
by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org”
All linked verses are from the YouVersion at www.Bible.com
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