1 Peter

It is always bittersweet to end a book of the Bible, and we are approaching our final sermon in our series on 1 Peter. You may understand what I mean by "bittersweet" – reflecting on these words that God inspired to be written, delivered to us through a faithful brother named Peter so many years ago, words that Christians have reflected on for centuries upon centuries… it is a special thing to dwe...

We conclude our section in 1 Peter 5:5-11, and we're specifically looking at verses 8-11. This is one of those passages that I love because it reminds us that there is far more to this world than we see. There are spiritual forces at work that we're not always aware of, and we are called to be on guard against and even resist those forces of evil. It is a potent reminder that behind the songs we s...

This Sunday we're in 1 Peter 5:5-7, as I had to slow down a bit on our normal sermon schedule and take two weeks on a passage I planned to do in one Sunday (5:5-11). There are two themes that fit quite well for our church in this passage: clothing ourselves with humility, and finding comfort in the mighty hand of God.

This Sunday's passage is a bit of encouragement to elders, but I hope no one thinks that means this passage "doesn't apply" to them if they are not an elder! Elder leadership is an important biblical principle for Christians to understand. Our church is an elder-led church, which means we are led by elders who exercise spiritual oversight, and also led by deacons who serve the body. Our elders she...

This week we turn back to 1 Peter 4, where the focus is once again on suffering. If that sounds familiar, you're not mistaken—Peter returns to this theme quite repeatedly. But he does so deliberately, because the threads that are woven throughout this letter are meant to bring us to a place where we can find joy even in the midst of suffering. This will be an encouraging passage.

This Sunday we're picking back up in our study of 1 Peter—which is a fitting moment to jump into a Bible reading plan for 2026 and begin the year grounded in God's Word!

It has been a tremendous joy to have several baptisms this month, and we are looking forward to more next month as well! I love seeing baptisms in our church, and it is the sort of thing we should look forward to and pray expectantly for (including for adult converts, which should be our constant prayer!). But it is also a great time for us to be reminded of who we are as baptized Christians. I wi...

One of Peter's admonitions to us in this passage is to always be prepared to "make a defense" to anyone who asks us for a reason for the hope that is in us. This word for "defense" (apologia) is where we get the word for "apologetics," which is the study of how to defend the Christian faith. I find it fascinating that Peter – a man who knew all too well the feeling of being unprepared to defend th...

In the aftermath of the Protestant Reformation, the city of Geneva (where John Calvin ministered) adopted the city motto post tenebras lux, meaning "out of darkness, light." There are good biblical roots for this phrase (Isa 9:2; John 1:5), but this was how those Christians viewed what God had done during the Reformation—it was a time of great darkness, yet God used faithful Christians to shine a...

This week we are in a section of 1 Peter that discusses unity, which should make a lot of sense if you consider where we have been thus far in our text. Peter has gone through several categories of submission, and he now leads into a passage about unity. When we do not submit to the authorities that God has placed over us, we will not find unity. Unity is something that is so precious to the Churc...

We are tackling one of the more controversial passages in Scripture: 1 Peter 3:1-7. But notice that it's not a controversial passage because of the history of interpretation or the nuances of the original languages… in fact, this passage is actually pretty straightforward. Rather, this passage is controversial for the same reason passages like Romans 9 or John 6 are controversial at times—we simpl...

This Sunday we have something truly unique on the calendar—an event that none of us will want to miss or take for granted. It's the sort of significant moment that we should be preparing ourselves (even now) to celebrate together. This Sunday, the Pittsburgh Steelers will be playing against the Minnesota Vikings in Dublin, Ireland. I'm also told that this is the first NFL game to be played in Irel...

This Sunday, our series in Peter begins hitting some of the application that flows from what has come before. Specifically, we will be told to "submit" in the coming passages, which is a word many of us probably don't like very much. Peter calls us to submit to authorities who rule and govern over us (which we will cover on Sunday), we will discuss servants submitting to their masters, wives submi...

As we are settling into the Fall, and you're breaking out your plaid shirts and crock pots, I want to encourage you all to make fellowship a priority in your home this year. I don't say this because I think we're deficient in that area; I say this because I am constantly reminded of how vital it is that churches encourage fellowship with one another. For one thing, it's important to obey the bibli...

We are beginning our time in 1 Peter this Sunday, and I am greatly excited to begin this series with you all. Each series through a book of the Bible is a journey we get to share together, and let me plead with you to read along with us as we take that journey! As with everything in worship, preaching is not a "passive" activity; the sermon is a time where we are called to "prepare" ourselves for...

Church life is about more than what we do on Sundays at 10:15am, and that's a good thing. Much of what knits us together as a church happens in those other times of the week—inviting other families over for a meal, gathering for activities that we can enjoy together, praying with our children and in our homes, and those quick calls or texts of encouragement from others... those "little" things are...

This Sunday, we will take a look at a second key theme that will shape our series in 1 Peter, and that is the theme of exile. Peter opens his letter by addressing "those who are elect exiles," and to understand this well, we need to root it in its Old Testament background. So, we will turn to Exodus 19 and ask some important questions about the origin and nature of exile. C.S. Lewis once wrote a p...

We are on the verge of starting our series in First Peter, but we will be taking two or three sermons to set up a couple of key themes that will emerge in Peter's letters (I once heard a friend describe these thematic sermons as something a bit like M&M's: they are great when needed, you just don't want to make them your whole diet!). This will help us walk into Peter with better footing. This wee...