Connect360: The Pursuit of Holiness

• Lesson 2 in the Connect 360 unit “Hunger for Holiness: Living Pure in an Impure World” focuses on 1 Peter 1:10-17.

Christians are called to pursue holiness. There are many other distracting pursuits that can draw us away from holiness. Many things compete for our attention: media, entertainment, money, acceptance and success. We can even be distracted by doing good things. Each disciple ought to consider constantly all the moments of the day and how much time is spent on growing in faith and holiness, and how much time is lost on other pursuits. Jesus died for our sins. We must seek a radical kind of lifestyle as our response to him.

Peter wrote these verses (10-17) like a narrative or play in a cosmic stadium. The narrative revolves around a mystery revealed by the prophets. They began to tell the story of God saving his people, revealing each part a little piece at a time. Those prophets were “searching intently with the greatest care.” They each studied the Scriptures they had available. Separately, they were trying to figure out the time when God would do something incredible.

Then the main character entered: Jesus. To a stunned audience, the climax was not what many people thought it would be—the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. Peter, as one of the key witnesses, wrote that his readers were the ones this revelation served, not the prophets of years gone by. The readers were the ones who experienced the unveiling of the mystery. The plot, characters, and consequences were finally revealed, and Peter’s generation was the one in the primary “now” of the saving work of God.

Peter mentioned two other players in the cosmic story. The Spirit-inspired preachers were the messengers of the revealed mystery. Peter also mentioned the angels who served as a greater audience. They watched as God created the world. They saw the falling away of their fellow angels who sided with Lucifer. They saw the story unfold in the garden, through the serpent, the fall, the redemption of Noah, the calling of Abraham, the leadership of Moses, David and Ezra, and the writings of all the prophets from Moses to Malachi. They heard the deafening silence of centuries between the Old Testament and when Gabriel was summoned to visit Mary. The angels saw the narrative play out in the cross. Then they saw the true glory of Christ as he defeated sin and death for all humanity. The angels knew of the magnitude of the story even if it took a while for humans to figure it out.

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