Bible Studies
The Resurrection, Our Promised Expectation
Series: Resurrection References to the Resurrection in James and 1 PeterIntroduction:
1. Dennis Prager in his book Happiness Is a Serious Problem suggests that one way we can be happier is to lower our expectations. There is an element of truth in that. If your expectations are low and things turn out better than you expect you do tend toward celebration. 2. But there is one area in which we do not have to lower our expectations because God has made a promise. 3. James 1:12 says, “Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.” 4. In this lesson we continue our study about the resurrection and its meaning in our lives, particularly focusing on the passages in James and 1 Peter.Discussion:
I. The crown of life is promised to those who love the Lord (James 1:12).A. The crown of life is a reference to the resurrection life that believers will experience at the end of the age.
1. It is variously described in Scripture as “eternal life,” “always being with the Lord,” “immortality,” “having put on the imperishable,” being “conformed with the body of His glory,” “Zion,” “heaven,” “the city of the living God,” “the heavenly Jerusalem,” et. al.
2. The “crown” refers to the ancient runner’s reward (cf. 1 Cor. 9:24-27; 2 Tim. 4:7-8).
3. In this case it is not a perishable wreath, but a crown, which is life.
B. This expectation enables us to persevere under the trials of this life.
C. This “crown of life” is promised to those who love the Lord.
1. This love is not a mere whimsical emotional attachment.
2. It is a love of commitment, devotion and action. This becomes more evident as James’ letter unfolds.
II. We have been brought forth by the word of truth so that we are a kind of first fruits among His creatures (James 1:18).A. There is a sense in which this life has already begun for the people of God.
B. They have been brought forth by the word of truth in the exercise of God’s will.
1. Such language may remind us of the creation account in Gen. and how God simply spoke things into existence. The whole first chapter of Genesis is punctuated by the statement, “Then God said . . .” Each time God spoke a new element of creation was added.
2. The text says, “In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth.”
3. The language is suggestive of the “new creation” that we have seen before associated with resurrection.
4. God’s word was the active force at the beginning of creation. In the new creation His word is again the active force.
C. We are brought forth by the word of truth as we hear the good news of Christ, come to believe it and place our trust in what God has done for our forgiveness (Rom. 10:8-15). For James receiving this word naturally results in doing it (James 1:21ff). The rest of his letter fleshes out the doing.
D. God’s people begin to participate in the new creation from the time of baptism.
1. They are joined together with Christ in His death and resurrection and raised to walk in newness of life (Rom. 6:4-5).
2. Note also Col. 2:12-13.
3. We are a kind of first fruits among His creatures.
E. This new creation reaches its fruition at the final resurrection (cf. Rom. 8:19-23).
F. James concludes his letter with an exhortation to be patient until the coming of the Lord (5:7).
III. Peter begins his letter with a powerful statement that joins the resurrection of Christ and the imperishable inheritance (resurrection) of those sprinkled with His blood (1 Pet. 1:3-6a).A. We have been born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
1. To be born again connects with the new creation concepts associated with the resurrection theme.
2. You may recall that Jesus connected being born again with entering into the kingdom of God (Jn. 3:3-5).
B. It is God who has caused us to be born again. It is His great mercy that has motivated it. And it is the resurrection of Jesus Christ that is the ground of the new beginning.
1. 1 Pet. 1:21 says that God “raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.”
2. That’s why Peter praises God (v. 3).
C. This living hope looks to an inheritance, imperishable, undefiled, unfading, reserved in heaven.
1. We are protected by faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
2. And so we rejoice.
IV. We have been born again through the living and enduring word of God (1:22ff).A. Note that here again the word of God is the active force bringing about the new birth. The statement here is similar to that made by Jameswhen he said that God “brought us forth by the word of truth” (1:18).
B. Therefore like newborn babes we are to long for the pure milk of the word that we may grow.
1. This word is the essential ingredient for our growth and life.
2. The word began our life and continues it.
V. We have come to Him as a living stone and are now living stones in the new creation (2:4ff). A. While the image has shifted from that of newborn babies it is not a shift away from the new creation.1. Christ is a living stone in the temple and we have become living stones in this spiritual house.
2. Heb. 8:1ff refers to this as the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, not man.
3. Note how Jesus refers to His resurrection in Jn. 2:19-22 as the raising up of a new temple. His resurrection involved the beginning of a new creation.
B. As part of the new creation Peter now does the same thing that James did (and Paul). After reasoning about the new life he calls on us to live in the way of the new life (1 Pet. 2:1, 11 and through the rest of the book).
1. It involves longing for the word (2:2).
2. Abstaining from fleshly lusts and keeping ones behavior excellent (2:11-12).
3. Submitting oneself in various roles (2:13ff).
4. In summary if one desires life (3:8ff, note v. 10).
VI. There is an association between the resurrection of Christ, Noah’s new beginning and the new beginning of baptism (1 Pet. 3:18-22).A. This passage causes interpreters’ problems because of verse 19 and Christ making proclamation to spirits now in prison.
B. But the main point is Christ died for our sins and was made alive.
C. But the passage takes us back to Noah.
1. This was a historical point of new beginning, of a new birth, a new creation.
2. The language of Gen. 8 is reminiscent of Gen. 1. Cf. Gen. 8:15ff when the flood waters subside and Noah and the animals come out of the ark.
3. Noah emerged from the flood. Corresponding to that baptism now saves you. Jesus experienced a new beginning. Noah experienced a new beginning and we experience a new beginning in baptism.
D. All of this is accomplished through the resurrection of Jesus Christ who triumphed over the angels, the authorities and powers.
1. Col. 2:15 says, “God disarmed rulers and authorities and He made a public display of them triumphing over them through Christ.” He overcame all those who would prosecute us for our sins by nailing our debt to the cross.
2. In this way he made proclamation to the spirits now in prison. I take these spirits to be those angels, authorities and powers who would prosecute us for our sins.
3. In His death and resurrection he proclaimed victory over them.
VII. As new creatures we must live the rest of the time for the will of God (1 Pet. 4:1ff). VIII. We are promised the crown of glory; therefore we patiently endure (1 Pet. 5:1ff).Conclusion:
1. 2 Pet. 1:3-11. 2. The trials of this life, the sufferings and the difficulties are overcome through our promised hope in the crown of life. 3. Sin and death have been overcome and we have a promised inheritance. 4. We have joined our Lord in death and we have been born again. 5. We now live the rest of our time in the flesh no longer for the lusts of men, but for the will of God. 6. Yes, His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life (and godliness). 7. And entrance into the eternal kingdom has been abundantly supplied to us. 8. Therefore we rejoice with Peter saying, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.”
