Read 1 Peter 1:10-13.

Introduction⤒🔗

Let us suppose that you plan a summer vacation trip to Disney World. You are looking forward to visiting “the Magic Kingdom” and all the wonders and adventures it offers.

Your summer vacation arrives; you pack up the car, and head south from Wisconsin to Florida and Disney World. The trip goes smoothly until you hit the traffic of Chicago, then the monotonous cornfields of Indiana. By the time you get to Georgia you are feeling the effects of the southern summer heat. By now you are beginning to wonder if it’s worth it: the distance is so long, the weather is so hot, the road can be so monotonous. You are seriously tempted to say, “Let’s forget about Disney World and go back home!”

When you cross the Georgia/Florida border, you need to stop for gas. You decide to take a short break. The kids discover a terrific video arcade. They are having so much fun playing video games that they don’t want to leave. You are enjoying an icy, refreshing soft drink in the air-conditioned restaurant. Across the street you see a luxurious hotel with a spacious pool. You are seriously tempted to say, “Let’s forget about Disney World and spend our vacation right here!”

The Christian’s journey to the kingdom of heaven can be much like that trip to Disney World. In hard times there is the temptation to abandon that spiritual journey to heaven and abandon our great salvation. In good times there is the temptation to forget about our spiritual journey to heaven and neglect our great salvation.

Because we are so often tempted to either abandon or neglect our salvation, we need to hear the exhortation to appreciate that great salvation.

Appreciate Your Salvation, As Something for Which the Prophets Longed←⤒🔗

The great salvation that has been the subject of verses 3-9, a salvation that stands complete and ready to be revealed at the last time, a salvation that is to some extent presently experienced by the Christian as he trusts in Christ and thus shares in the divine communion and fellowship of the age to come, this is the very salvation that was the object of the Old Testament prophets’ keen interest. Peter tells us that concerning this salvation, “the prophets...searched diligently and with the greatest care.”

What were they seeking to discover? Peter tells us, “[They were] trying to find out the time and circumstances the Spirit of Christ...was indicating when he foretold the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow” (vs. 11). The Old Testament prophets were eager to find out at what time and under what circumstances this salvation revealed to them by God would be accomplished. They wanted to know when and how this great salvation would be accomplished and bestowed upon God’s people.

According to verse eleven, the Holy Spirit had revealed this much to the Old Testament prophets: First, this divine salvation would be accomplished by the Christ, the promised Messiah. Second, in order to gain this salvation for His people, the Christ would have to undergo a great deal of suffering, Peter uses the plural, “the sufferings of Christ.” (In the previous verses, Peter had acknowledged the manifold trials to which the Christian is subjected; now he assures us that for our salvation Christ underwent the same, and so much more.) Third, the faithful endurance of those sufferings by the Christ would be followed by an abundance of glory.

In response to the prophets’ intense interest and inquiry concerning these things, “it was revealed...that they were not ministering these things to themselves, but to you, these things that now have been proclaimed to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit” (vs. 12). That is to say, the prophets were informed that they themselves would not see the fulfillment of these things in their own day. On the contrary, they were prophesying of events that would happen in the relatively distant future from their time in history; note, for example, the Lord’s testimony to Daniel:

⁸I heard, but I did not understand. So I asked, My lord, what will be the outcome of all these things? ⁹But he said, Go your way, Daniel; for the words are preserved and sealed until the time of the end... ¹³But go your way until the end comes; for you shall rest and shall rise [again] to receive your allotted inheritance at the end [of the age]. Dan. 12:8-9,13

Daniel is informed that although the Old Testament prophets would not see the fulfillment of this great salvation in their day, they would share in it at the end of the age. That is to say, when Christ returns in glory at the end of the age, they will share in the fullness of the kingdom, and to be sure, following Christ’s resurrection, they would join the N. T. believers, whose souls enter into glory upon their physical death, while their bodies await the final resurrection.

Consider this: The very things that had been revealed to the Old Testament prophets as mysterious future events, (which events they longed to behold), have been proclaimed to us as accomplished facts, the spiritual benefits of which we experience when we exercise faith in Jesus the Messiah. May God cause us to appreciate the wonder of the time and the position into which He has placed us as New Testament believers.

Let us appreciate our salvation, as something for which the Old Testament prophets longed. Referring to believers who lived during the Old Testament dispensation, the writer to the Hebrews declares,

¹³All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth... ³⁹These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. ⁴⁰God had planned some better thing for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.Heb. 11:13,39-40

The “better thing” is that the O.T. believers would not precede us into glory; on the contrary, all believers will experience the fullness of the kingdom together. However, this means that the O.T. believers would have to wait to receive the full inheritance until the full number of the redeemed have been brought to saving faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, then all believers will receive the full inheritance together.

Appreciate Your Salvation, As Something That the Angels Desire←⤒🔗

Peter tells us that this great salvation we possess as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ is something that the angels desire to examine and experience: “angels desire to look into these things.” The Greek word translated, “to look into,” (παρακυπτω) has the meaning, “to gaze at with an outstretched neck.”¹ By way of illustration: A young giraffe cranes his neck to peer over the fence at the zoo, having a great interest in the children at play and a great desire to taste the treats in their picnic basket, as they enjoy their lunch in the park.

The LORD has granted to His angels very great and awesome privileges. He has granted them to stand before His presence, beholding His glory and praising His Name:

¹In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train [of his robe] filled the temple. ²Above him stood the seraphs, each one having six wings: with two wings they covered their faces, with two wings they covered their feet, and with two wings they flew. ³They were calling out to one another, 'Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts. The whole earth is full of his glory.' Isa. 6:1-3

The LORD granted to His angels the privilege of announcing the Messiah’s birth:

⁸And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. ⁹An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. ¹⁰But the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. ¹¹Today, in the town of David, a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.' Lk. 2:8-11

The LORD granted to His angels the privilege of announcing the Messiah’s resurrection:

The angel said to the women, 'Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. ⁶He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.' Matt. 28:5-6

The LORD has granted to His angels the privilege of heralding the Messiah’s return in glory at the end of the age:

...the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.1 Thess. 4:16

The LORD has granted to His angels the privilege of accompanying Him when He comes on that occasion to judge the world:

When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. ³²All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. Matt. 25:31-32

But there is one thing to which the angels have not been permitted access: the blessing of sonship; the very blessing that is ours by means of the great salvation that has been accomplished by Jesus the Messiah. It is the Christian’s adoption and sonship in Christ to which the Apostle Peter is referring when he writes, “angels desire to look into these things.”

The angels long to understand and experience such things as these:

• What is it like to be one of those to whom the Savior utters the words, “I ascend to my Father and your Father” (Jn. 20:17)?
   
• What is it like to be one of those on whose behalf the Holy Spirit cries out, “Abba, Father,” as the Apostle Paul reports in Galatians 4:6, “Now because you are sons, God sent forth the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, and he is crying out [to God], ‘Abba, Father’”?
   
• What is it like to be one of those whom the Holy Spirit inspires to utter with confidence the very words by which the eternal Son of God Himself addresses His Father, the words “Abba, Father”? In Romans 8:15, Paul speaks of the Christian’s privilege of addressing God as our Father: “you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, ‘Abba, Father.’” This term by which the Christian confidently addresses God is the same term by which the eternal Son of God addresses His Father; in the Garden of Gethsemane, we hear the Lord Jesus pray, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Take this cup away from me. However, not as I will, but as you will” (Mk. 14:36).
   
• The angels desire to know, What is it like to receive the blessed assurance, “Beloved, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is” (1 Jn. 3:2)?

Consider this: As Christians, there is given to us the privilege to which the angels of God are not granted access: the privilege of adoption and sonship through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Let us appreciate our great salvation, as something the angels desire. By way of illustration: A Christian watches a famous soccer player score a goal, and he expresses his desire to be in the place of that player so as to be able to do what he can do and experience what he experiences in terms of athletic ability and the fame that is derived from it. As the Christian expresses such desire, the angels of God seated behind him turn to one another and sigh, “We wish we were in this Christian’s position and that we could experience all that he experiences as a child of God!”

Appreciate Your Salvation, By Setting Your Hope on the Grace to Come←⤒🔗

As a Christian, you are instructed to “set your hope squarely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (vs. 13).

The Christian life is fundamentally a life of hope; not only in the sense of future orientation as opposed to immediate gratification, but even more, in the sense of confidence as opposed to despair. The Apostle Paul reminds the Ephesian Christians of their condition prior to their conversion: “you were at that time without Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, without hope and without God in the world” (Eph. 2:12). In contrast to the condition of the unbeliever, consider the condition of the Christian, as described, for instance, in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14,16-18,

¹³Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep [i.e. Christians who die before Christ’s return in glory], or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. ¹⁴We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him... ¹⁶the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first, ¹⁷after that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. ¹⁸Therefore, encourage each other with these words.

The Christian’s hope is set upon “the grace to be brought...at the revelation of Jesus Christ;” (i.e. the gracious gift of salvation to be revealed in full measure at the last time). As Christians, ours is a hope that is focused upon the divine, the transcendent, the gracious gift of God; as opposed to being focused on what is of this world: temporal, humanistic, and self-achieved. The writer to the Hebrews stresses that this was precisely the hope that motivated Abraham to a life of faithfulness to the LORD:

By faith, [Abraham] made his home in the Promised Land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. ¹⁰[He did so] because he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose architect and builder is God. Heb. 11:9-10

The city “that has foundations,” is the city/kingdom that is permanent and eternal, as opposed to the transient cities/kingdoms of this present world.

The way we carry out this directive of setting our hope squarely upon the grace to be brought to us at the revelation of Jesus Christ is by “focusing your mind;” literally, “by girding up the loins of your mind.” The illustration Peter employs is from everyday life in first-century Palestine: the loose flowing robe commonly worn by the men would be bound up at the waist with a belt in preparation for such physical activity as walking or working.

Likewise, as a Christian you are being instructed to “gird up your mind.” Do not allow your mind to be left like an automobile “idling in neutral,” a situation where it can be stolen. A mind left “idling in neutral,” not focused upon Christ and informed by the Word of God, can be “stolen” by the philosophies and perspectives of this present world. Do not allow your mind to be left like an unmanned sail, for in such a state the "sailboat" can be carried along by the prevailing “breeze” of the surrounding culture, or swept away by a sudden, unexpected “gale” posed by unanticipated events or challenges to our faith. If you do not have your mind under control, (that is to say, informed and guided by a biblical perspective), you will either become distracted by the pleasures and adventures of this life or overwhelmed by the anxieties, tribulations, and challenges of this world.

How does the Christian “gird up his mind”? He does so with conscious decision and determination; he must make the kingdom of God and its standard the number one priority in his life. Our Lord Jesus instructs us: “seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things [i.e. the necessities of daily life] will be given to you as well” (Matt. 6:33). The Christian must cultivate an outlook and orientation that transcends this present world and focuses on the divine and eternal realities of God and His kingdom:

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. ²Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things; ³for you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. ⁴When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Col. 3:1-4

The Apostle Paul instructs us as Christians, “set your hearts on things above,” and “set your minds on things above.” The “heart” is the center of our being and our affections, the “mind” is the center of our rational, conscious intellectual life. The object of our deepest affections as well as the orientation for all our decision-making must be the kingdom of God, with the Lord Himself being the supreme love of our life. What Paul writes to the church at Colossae is a variation of the Great Commandment: “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind” (Matt. 22:37).

The Christian must focus his mind and heart upon Christ as the goal, the prize, the “finish line” of our present earthly existence: “Let us focus our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Heb. 12:2).

Let us appreciate our great salvation, by setting our hope on the grace to come. May the Apostle Paul’s personal testimony also be our testimony:

It is not that I have already obtained this or have already been made perfect; rather, I press on so that I may take hold of that for which also I have been taken hold of by Christ. ¹³Brothers, I do not regard myself as having [already] taken hold of these things; rather, I do this one thing: forgetting the things that are behind and reaching for the things that lie ahead, ¹⁴I press on to the goal for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Phil. 3:12-14

Conclusion←⤒🔗

Because we are so often tempted to either abandon or neglect our salvation, we need to hear the exhortation to appreciate this great salvation. Let us realize that this great salvation we experience in Christ Jesus is something for which the prophets longed, and it is something the angels desire. Let us all the more appreciate our great salvation, and set our hope squarely upon the grace to be brought to us at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

Discussion Questions←⤒🔗

1. What does the Apostle Peter tell us about the ministry of the O.T. prophets; of what did they prophesy? See 1 Pet. 1:10. What does the Lord Jesus tell us about the entire O.T. Scripture? See Jn. 5:39. Can we rightly interpret the O.T. apart from its N.T. fulfillment? How does the Lord Jesus summarize the message of the O.T.? See Lk. 24:45-47. In light of our Lord’s statement, can we possibly view the O.T. law as presenting a means of salvation by the works; must it not be seen in the context of the gospel message of salvation by grace, with both forgiveness and righteousness being received by faith in Jesus the Messiah?

With regard to this salvation, the prophets, who prophesied about the grace that has come to you, searched diligently and with the greatest care. 1 Pet. 1:10

The Lord Jesus said to the Jews,

You study the Scriptures diligently, because you think that eternal life is [found] in them. Now these are the ones that testify about me... Jn. 5:39

Then he said to them, 'These are the words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled that were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning me.' ⁴⁵And he opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures. ⁴⁶Then he said to them, 'Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, ⁴⁷and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.' Lk. 24:44-47

2. As they diligently studied the prophecies imparted to them, what were the O.T. prophets trying to discover? See 1 Pet. 1:11. But what was revealed to them? See 1 Pet. 1:12a. Does this mean that they would not partake of the blessing? Note, for instance, Dan. 12:13 Christian, do you appreciate that you have the privilege of living in the dispensation of prophetic fulfillment; that in the gospel there is presented to you the Messiah whom the prophets only observed indistinctly and from a distance? Do you thank the Lord for the unique privilege you enjoy, one the prophets longed to experience in their lifetime?

[They were] trying to find out the time and circumstances the Spirit of Christ, who was in them, was indicating when he foretold the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. ¹²[But] it was revealed to them that they were not ministering these things to themselves, but to you, these things that now have been proclaimed to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit who was sent from heaven. 1 Pet. 1:11-12a

The LORD instructs Daniel,

But go your way until the end comes; for you shall rest and shall rise [again to receive] your allotted inheritance at the end of the [age]. Dan. 12:13

3. Who imparted the divine revelations to the O.T. prophets (cf. 1 Pet. 1:11), and who proclaims the gospel, doing so through the first-century apostles and the twenty-first-century preachers? See 1 Pet. 1:12b. Do you appreciate the fact that the Holy Spirit, in His capacity as “the Spirit of Christ,” is the Author of the whole of Scripture? Given this fact, can anyone dismiss the O.T. as “primitive” or “barbaric,” no longer relevant, and only accepting the teaching of Jesus? Note 2 Tim. 3:16-17,

[The prophets] trying to find out the time and circumstances the Spirit of Christ, who was in them, was indicating when he foretold the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. ¹²[But] it was revealed to them that they were not ministering these things to themselves, but to you, these things that now have been proclaimed to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit who was sent from heaven. 1 Pet. 1:11-12a

All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, ¹⁷so that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. 2 Tim. 3:16-17

4. What does Peter tell us about the angels? See 1 Pet. 1:12b. What great privileges have been given to the angels? See Lk. 2:8-11; Matt. 28:5-6; 1 Thess. 4:16. But what far greater privilege has been given to you as one who has put their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ? See 1 Jn. 3:2,

[But] it was revealed to them that they were not ministering these things to themselves, but to you, these things that now have been proclaimed to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit who was sent from heaven. [Indeed], angels desire to look into these things. 1 Pet. 1:12

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. ⁹An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. ¹⁰But the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. ¹¹Today, in the town of David, a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.' Lk. 2:8-11

The angel said to the women, 'Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. ⁶He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.' Matt. 28:5-6

...the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 1 Thess. 4:16

Beloved, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. 1 Jn. 3:2

5. In view of the fact that we as Christians are the recipients of prophetic fulfillment and possess a far greater privilege than the angels, how are we to conduct our lives in this present world, what must be our outlook? See 1 Pet. 1:13. Are you complying with this apostolic exhortation; or are you too preoccupied with both the pleasures as well as the problems that belong to this present world? How can you develop a more transcendent perspective? In contrast to the Christian’s hope, what is the futile hope of secular mankind?

Therefore, focusing your mind and being [spiritually] sober, set your hope squarely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 1 Pet. 1:13