THURSDAY
The next imperative that we come to is to love one another.
1 Peter 1:22-25 22 Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, 23 since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God; 24 for “All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, 25 but the word of the Lord remains forever.” And this word is the good news that was preached to you.
This new life that we have been born again into is a life of community. There is no sense in which one can be a Christian and willingly exist in isolation. To obey Christ we must love others. The new command of Christ is to love one another as he has loved us (Jn 15:12). This love we share in Christian community is sourced in God and defined by God. The culture doesn’t define love, God does. This love must be earnest and from a pure heart—it must be genuine.
This is an intrinsic part of the born again life as v. 23 says. This new life that we have in the gospel is from imperishable seed (contrasted with our natural birth and conception process) so it is eternal. It is through the living and abiding word of God, which he later describes as the gospel that was preached to them.
He begins this section by saying that they have “purified your souls by your obedience to the truth.” This is a curious statement. Purified is in the perfect tense which means it views the action as a past action with continuing effects. Souls, remember, doesn’t just refer to the part of us that lives on in the afterlife, but our life here and now as well. Taking obedience to the truth in the context, I think it’s best to view this as the process of discipleship. As they continue to obey the truth of God and live in holiness before him, they are purifying their souls from the effects of sin. God has done this in causing them to be born again, but now, through the process of discipleship and continuing to obey the truth, their souls is becoming more and more purified (i.e., holy). This could also be referring to salvation. They have purified their souls by obeying the truth, i.e., believing the truth in the gospel of Jesus. This would be a curious way to talk about salvation, however. In the context following immediately on the heels of discussing holy, moral living, it seems best to take it as the process of discipleship.
He also quotes Isaiah 40:6-8. The broader context of this quotation is a comfort to the people of Israel who were in exile, just like Peter’s audience. It is a prophetic utterance meant to give the people of Israel hope in God’s future deliverance of all creation. This is an encouraging message for Peter’s audience here as well. It also emphasizes God’s constant character to deliver those in exile.
Reflection
Focus in on the main idea again. Do you have a genuine love for one another in the body of Christ? This is a result of your new birth in Christ. Just spend some time today praying and reflecting on your heart towards one another in your church community. Ask God to form in you an earnest and sincere love for the people he has placed you in community with.