1 Peter 1:17-21
Eichmann's year-long trial was presided over by a panel of three judges. Throughout the trial, Eichmann was seated in a glass box to protect him from assassination attempts. The court finally declared that Eichmann "actually relished shipping Jews to their deaths by the hundreds of thousands, saying he was motivated by 'an ardent desire to blot out an entire people from the face of the earth.
"I saw Adolf Eichmann for the first time on the opening day of his trial in the courtroom in Jerusalem. For nearly sixteen years I had thought of him practically every day and every night. In my mind I had built up the image of a demonic superman. Instead I saw a frail, nondescript, shabby fellow in a glass cell between two Israeli policemen; they looked more colorful and interesting than he did. There was nothing demonic about him; he looked like a bookkeeper who was afraid to ask for a raise. I was shocked to see that he was a man just like me."
Simon Wiesenthal
I. What does a holy person look like (revisited)?
...live out your time as foreigners here... (1:17)
Three ways to live as "outsider" in a foreign country:
1. Immigrant – assimilating
2. Tourist – observer
3. Resident alien – more permanent stranger
We are citizens of the heavenly country living in the countries of this world. We live in this countries but according to the ways and values of our true country.
Christians are indistinguishable from other men either by nationality, language or customs. They do not inhabit separate cities of their own, or speak a strange dialect, or follow some outlandish way of life... And yet there is something extraordinary about their lives. They live in their own countries as though they were only passing through. They play their full role as citizens, but labor under all the disabilities of aliens. Any country can be their homeland, but for them their homeland, wherever it may be, is a foreign country... They share their meals, but not their wives.... They live in the flesh, but they are not governed by the desires of the flesh. They pass their days upon earth, but they are citizens of heaven. Obedient to the laws, they yet live on a level that transcends the law. Christians love all people, but all people persecute them. They often live in poverty, but enrich many. They often suffer dishonor, but that is their glory.
From a 1st or 2nd C Letter to Diognetus
II. How can we actually pursue "holiness"?
1. The fear factor
Since you call on a Father who judges each person's work impartially, live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear (1:17)
According to Proverbs 1:7, the center – the essential feature of growing in wisdom -- is the fear of the Lord. This is surely unexpected news for some people. I know that this talk about fear does not sound like good news at all to many of us. many people seem to think that the emotion of fear is always negative. They think that fear is always damaging and emotionally disruptive. But, here we find the Bible saying that this fear of the Lord is not something that debilitates or damages life but is the very source of real living. We haven't begun to live life to the full until we fear God – that's what it teaches.
Also, this fear of the Lord is the one thing that takes away every other fear. When we fear Him, we need fear nothing and no one else. How can this be? Let me walk you through it:
From fear to Hope:
Step 1: See God as He Is. The answer to this begins with seeing God as He is. Just as Isaiah saw God in the temple in Isaiah 6 as one so great that the bottom of His robe filled the temple, so majestic that the whole earth is full of His glory, and so holy that even these seraphim had to hide their eyes form Him, so you and I need to see Him. We need to know that God is powerful – and that God is holy.
Step #2: See Yourself in Relationship to God. Then, after we have seen God as He is, we must see ourselves in relationship to Him. This requires honesty and transparency. God is great and we are not. God is holy and we are not. We are sinners and He is not. In fact, He has declared that all evil will be punished and all of us have engaged in it. The fear of the Lord begins when we understand that we must come to Him as sinners. We stand before Him knowing that left on our own we have no hope.
Step 3: Respond to His Grace. When we see God as He is and ourselves as we are, then we come to Him humbly, in faith, in repentance. And what do we hear Him say, "There is therefore now no condemnation for all who are in Christ Jesus (Rom 8:1). I was in Christ reconciling you to myself not counting your sins against you (2 Cor. 5:19)." We find that this powerful and holy God is also merciful, good, and gracious. When we trust in Jesus Christ, God declares, "I will remember your sins no more."
We live every day of our lives asking, "Who is my audience? Whom do I want to impress by the way I dress or the words I speak? The other faculty members? A young man or woman? Am I afraid of how they will think of me if I make a mistake or perform poorly?"
The fear of the Lord is a life lived with the main concern for what God thinks. When that is the central concern of my thought and decision-making, I will be wise. I will pursue holiness.
Dr. Kristin Lindholm
2. The heart factor
For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed... but with the precious blood of Christ...
1 Peter 1:18-19
What do we know?
1) The cost of our "ransom" – ...the precious blood of Christ...
2) The awe-inspiring certainty of God's plan -- ...Christ was chosen before the creation of the world...
3) The privilege of benefitting personally from Christ's sacrifice -- ...for your sake...
A final anchoring thought:
Through Jesus Christ you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God.
1 Peter 1:21
