The GT Weekend! ~ Mission Week 3
Discover the original intent of Scripture. Make good application to our everyday lives.
Become equipped to correctly handle the Word of Truth!
1 Peter 1:10-12
Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who prophesied about the grace that would come to you, searched and carefully investigated. 11 They inquired into what time or what circumstances the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating when he testified in advance to the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. 12 It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you. These things have now been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—angels long to catch a glimpse of these things.
The Original Intent
1) Who were the “prophets who prophesied” and what is the “grace”?
After the 400 year period of slavery in Egypt, the Hebrew people were set free as God used His servant Moses to lead the people out of Egypt towards the Promised Land. At Mt. Sinai where they received the Ten Commandments as the legal outline of their covenant relationship, God became their King and Israel officially became a theocracy (nation governed by God).
As they moved into the Promised Land and chose to walk away from God, the Lord raised up judges who upheld God’s truth and reminded the people to follow after Him. When the period of the judges ended, the period of prophets became the main way for Israel to hear from the Lord.
The role of a prophet was to deliver a specific word from the Lord to His people. Most often, the Lord used the voice of the prophet to call His people into repentance and bring them back into a right relationship with Him. A prophet would foretell of coming destruction or prosperity depending on how the people chose to respond to the Lord’s invitation to turn their hearts back to Him.
Intertwined through many prophetic words is the common thread of a coming Messiah, a Redeemer, a King who would rule them with love and justice and be their ultimate Savior. The “grace” Peter refers to is the “salvation of your souls” (verse 9). This salvation, prophesied about hundreds of years before Peter’s lifetime was brought to fruition in the saving grace offered in Jesus Christ as He took the punishment for our sin.
The Everyday Application
1) Who were the “prophets who prophesied” and what is the “grace”?
It’s comforting to know that all throughout history, the Lord has been steadily weaving His story of redemption on every page. (Interested in more on this topic? Check out the Journey Theme, Woven!)
Even more comforting is the fact that His voice has always been inviting us in to partake of His grace. His consistent words of a coming Redeemer through the voice of the prophets remind us that the very same grace that offers “salvation of our souls” is available to us today in the 21st century.
The message of the Lord has not changed from the first day until now. Grace is still available in your everyday, in your moments of desperate need, and He will still faithfully point you to the solidity that is His salvation!
The Original Intent
2) What predictions are being referenced and who is the “He” doing the predicting?
The prediction, or prophesy, here is directly limited to “the suffering of Christ and subsequent glories”. Prophets spoke many prophecies from the Lord, but they were not all necessarily pointing towards the coming Messiah. Prophecies like Isaiah 53, Psalm 22:1-3, and Micah 5:1-4 are specific to the suffering of Christ and the glory that would come as a result of His suffering, which is the salvation of our souls!
It’s interesting to note that the “He” who is speaking the predictions/prophecies to the prophet is the “Spirit of Christ”, who is the Holy Spirit. This isn’t a human guess or a desperate hope that a Rescuer is coming or a vague stretch of an astrologer’s theoretical estimation.
This prophecy would come true because its origin is from the Godhead who holds all of life together, in Him all life exists, and He Himself has existed before time even began. There is no guesswork involved here, only solid truth.
The Everyday Application
2) What predictions are being referenced and who is the “He” doing the predicting?
My Sister, pause for a moment and mull over this question, “Where do you need solid hope?” Where are you aching for something to anchor you? A relationship that is spinning out of control, the everyday chaos that threatens to undo you, the little voices that demand your attention, a lonely heart that longs for intimate friendship?
Go slow and let your heart feel that need, that longing, that ache. Then sink the roots of your heart deep into the steadfast solidity of a timeless, ageless, all-seeing, all-knowing God who, though all powerful and far above our state of fallen humanity, loves us deeply right in the middle of our everyday lives. This God is trustworthy. This God is faithful. This God will never abandon. Hold tightly to truth today!
The Original Intent
3) What are the things angels long to look at?
That which was hidden, or partially revealed in the time of the ancient prophets, had become revealed and made known during the time of Peter’s writing. He is referring specifically to the mystery of the gospel and the salvation of souls. In the Old Testament, those who followed and trusted God were granted righteousness in Him, but the prophets spoke “forward” of a coming Redeemer, a Promised One, who would bring a fuller understanding of salvation.
That process was revealed in Jesus as He sacrificially took our consequence for sin upon Himself, giving us His righteousness in exchange for our sin. This mysterious process of righteousness being transferred to an undeserving sinful being is so incredibly glorious that even angels who are with God Himself long to understand it, to study it, and to marvel at its beauty.
The Everyday Application
3) What are the things angels long to look at?
How curious are you about the gospel of Jesus Christ? How precious is it to you? How deeply rooted are its truths in your heart? The invitation to preach the gospel to ourselves daily, marveling at its beauty, and searching out its deep intricacies should beckon to us with an ever-deepening desire.
If angels long to look into the precious gift of the gospel that they might know the Almighty God better, how much more so should we the very recipients of such a treasure! Take some time in the next few weeks to study the gospel, to own its truths more intimately, and to seek passionately to know the One who chases our hearts that He might grant us this very great gift of salvation!
Check out the Journey Theme, Freedom, as a great place to explore this precious Gospel!
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