1 Peter: Confidence in a Complex WorldSýnishorn

5: Be Like God

If a friend described somebody you’ve never met before as ‘holy’, how would you picture them? An aloof and awkward killjoy? ‘Turn that music down… Cover that up… You really can’t do that!’ Hardly the kind of person you’d want to invite to a dinner party. That’s how many view holiness. 

In 1:1-12, Peter’s been showing us just how blessed Christians are. We’ve been chosen, we have a living hope, we’re shielded by God’s power, and ‘filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy’ (1:8). We are part of God’s great story, and we can be confident in it. But we’re not just bystanders – we’re called to action. To holiness.

In just 71 words (NIV) Peter tells us a lot about what holiness is, and what it isn’t. In 1:13, we see that it’s active, fuelled by the hope of Jesus coming back to put everything right. This holiness is a natural response, flowing from our identity as God’s children (1:14). Before, we stumbled around in the darkness of ‘ignorance’, damaging ourselves and wounding others. The course of our lives was set by the current of contemporary culture, and the ever-changing winds of our own impulses.

But through the gospel, we’re invited to step into the best version of life imaginable: the life of God. After God rescued the Hebrew people from the tyranny of slavery in Egypt, he commanded them: ‘Be holy, because I am holy.’ Peter picks up this language from Leviticus and applies it to Christians (1:15-16). Whatever our station, whatever our status, we are called to be like God. Not a killjoy. No way! But to be like a God who’s abounding in life, love, faithfulness, kindness, creativity, and all things good. 

The call to holiness rang out to Peter’s audience just as it had to those ancient Hebrews. It rings out to us today. Quit living according to the old pattern and become more like God. It’s a calling for everywhere and every day. ‘Be holy in all you do’ (1:15). In all you do: cutting hair, cutting grass, cutting deals. Sweeping a street or tweeting a tweet. Be like God, even at dinner parties. 

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Reflect:

What happens to your appetite for holiness when you think of it as becoming more like your heavenly Father?

Is there a particular situation you’re facing right now where you would like to be more like God?

Pray:

Thank God that through what Jesus has done, a new and better way of living has been opened up to you. Use whatever you reflected on as a springboard for prayer.