1 Peter 1:1–2 (ESV)
Greeting
1 Peter, an
apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the
Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood:
May grace and peace be multiplied to you.
We begin now with the Apostle Peter’s
writings in 1 Peter. He is called the Apostle of Hope. We believe that Simon Peter wrote this in the time period of AD 60-66. It was a time of persecution and suffering. He is reassuring them to stand firm and to endure in the faith. Verse one clearly identifies
the author as “Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ.” He also names the intended audience of his letter as “those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia.” It is easy to read verse 2 too
fast and miss the heavy words that Peter is addressing. He points to God’s foreknowledge, the growth in faith through the work of the Holy Spirit, and the plan of Salvation of Jesus “Great Exchange” on the cross. This Great Exchange will
be dealt with later in Peter’s letter. And he closes the introduction with “May grace and peace be multiplied to you. Peter’s letter is a challenging letter that teaches us that we are to “expect persecution!” We want to avoid
it, but Peter tells us to expect it!
I pray: O Lord, Help me to prepare for my journey through the great Apostle Peter’s letter. Help me not to get in the way of the Holy Spirit to work in my life
and to change me... and to prepare me for the future. Amen.