Helm 1-2 Peter and Jude (Redesign)

Sharing Christ's Sufferings
1. Auflage 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4335-5019-5
Verlag: Crossway
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: 0 - No protection

E-Book, Englisch, 416 Seiten

Reihe: Preaching the Word

Everyone experiences trials at some points in their lives. But the Bible is clear that Christians have nothing to fear in the long run in light of God's sovereignty and love for his people. In this stirring exposition of 1 and 2 Peter and Jude, pastor David Helm explores these three New Testament letters in depth, reminding readers that suffering precedes future glories for anyone who claims Christ as Lord and Savior. An ideal resource for pastors and teachers looking to connect the Bible's message to the everyday lives of Christians, this commentary touches on a number of important themes, such as finding encouragement in Christ, avoiding false teaching, what it means to contend for the faith, and how to finish life well. Part of the Preaching the Word commentary series.

David R. Helm (MDiv, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary) serves as senior pastor of Christ Church Chicago. He also serves as chairman of the board of directors for the Charles Simeon Trust, an organization that promotes practical instruction in preaching. He is the coauthor (with Jon Dennis) of The Genesis Factor; a contributor to Preach the Word: Essays on Expository Preaching; and the author of The Big Picture Story Bible and 1-2 Peter and Jude in the Preaching the Word commentary series.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Helm, David R.

Leseproben

2

A Letter to Elect Exiles

1 PETER 1:1, 2

IF YOU WERE TO WALK home with me from work, you would travel a few short blocks—down an alley, through an iron gate, and up seven or eight stairs to a landing. Then, with a turn of the key and a push of a door, you would find yourself in one of Chicago’s throwback, turn-of-the-century, southside six-flats, standing in my kitchen. Once the door was shut behind us (no small task given the number of shoes that seem to collect there), you would see me greet Lisa and the kids, and then, on a normal day, you would hear me ask, “Any good mail?”

Two things constitute a “good mail” day in the Helm household. First, good mail is that which comes from a friend or family member. No bills! And second, good mail means that the note was not only handwritten but written well. Well, although you didn’t walk home with me, you have nevertheless found your way to this book; you have come in through the door, so to speak, and have gotten yourself situated. And, yes, it is a very good mail day.

The Author

A letter has arrived, and it is from one of the members of God’s family. According to verse 1 it claims Peter, the great and gregarious follower of Jesus, as its author. It is signed “Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ.” Later on, as if to leave no doubt as to his identity, the writer confirms himself as Peter the Apostle by stating, “I exhort the elders among you, as a . . . witness of the sufferings of Christ” (5:1). So, from the opening words to the final chapter internal testimony supports the notion that the letter we are studying is from none other than Peter, a disciple of Jesus, an elder in the early church, an apostle, and a witness of the death and resurrection of Jesus.

Of course, there are, and forever will be, melancholy Eeyores standing around, many who are prepared to pour rain on a good mail day. When it comes to reading 1 Peter, learned detractors intrude into our kitchen and say, “Are you so sure, simpleminded pastor? Is the letter actually from the hand of Peter? After all, it might not be, you know. In fact, many of us don’t believe in the notion of Petrine authorship. For proof we make our appeal to your own criteria on what constitutes a good mail day. This letter is simply too well written to come from Peter the Apostle.”

So we arrive, even before we begin, at a contemporary charge against this piece of divine mail. There is nothing to be gained by hiding this from you. A veritable gaggle of scholars feel that the Greek used in this letter is too elevated for Peter—the vocabulary too rich and uncommon—the engaging rhetorical flow too far above the intellectual capacity of an uneducated first-century fisherman like Peter. Our very own Eeyores shake their heads from side to side as if to say, “I am so sorry to disappoint you, but this letter was written later in time. It comes from the hand of one well acquainted with the literary tools necessary for this kind of ascendant discourse.” To support their claim, they appeal to Acts 4 where Peter is referred to as an “uneducated [and] common” man.1

The effect, of course, is devastating. Our initial excitement over a good mail day begins falling to the ground like a balloon losing the air that once kept it afloat. Well, don’t be overly discouraged just yet. There is a great irony in the charge, and like a knife, it cuts both ways.

Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus. (Acts 4:13)

The charge that Peter and John were “uneducated, common men” can certainly be perceived as a derogatory one. Yet, and this is important, these words were not used by the biblical scholars of Peter’s day to level a negative verdict on whether or not the man standing before them was actually Peter the Apostle. Rather, these precise terms were the only ones available to adequately express their astonished surprise at the superior ability and elevated style of this man, Peter. In other words, these men were amazed that one so ordinary could also be one so well-spoken.

Now, with that knowledge in place, the irony of the contemporary charge leveled against apostolic authorship for our letter is unmasked. If the terms uneducated and common were the ones employed by the elite of Peter’s day to support—not to deny—his person, then certainly the pundits of our day should be willing to consider that this same Peter could possess the ability to write well. In fact, if we are honest, all of us should be willing to admit that someone who is so well-spoken might also have the capability of becoming so well-written.

And what is it that makes good writing? Well, C. S. Lewis, in correspondence with a young American girl on June 26, 1956, wrote:

What really matters is:

Always try to use the language so as to make quite clear what you mean, and make sure your sentence couldn’t mean anything else.

Always prefer the plain direct word to the long vague one. Don’t “implement” promises, but “keep” them.

Never use abstract nouns when concrete ones will do. If you mean “more people died,” don’t say “mortality rose.”

Don’t use adjectives which merely tell us how you want us to feel about the thing you are describing. I mean, instead of telling us a thing was “terrible,” describe it in such a way that we’ll be terrified. Don’t say it was “delightful,” make us say “delightful” when we’ve read the description. You see, all those words, (horrifying, wonderful, hideous, exquisite) are only saying to your readers “please will you do my job for me.”

Don’t use words too big for the subject. Don’t say “infinitely” when you really mean “very”; otherwise you’ll have no word left when you want to talk about something really infinite.2

Isn’t that great? Good writing, after all, is clear, simple, and direct. It contains what Lewis called “concrete” nouns. As we make our way through this letter, we will see Peter put all of Lewis’s dictums into practice. This letter is good because it is clear, simple, direct.

The Audience

Peter doesn’t waste any time in utilizing concrete nouns to identify the ones to whom he is writing. In verse 1 he writes:

To those who are elect exiles of the dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia.

He uses three strong nouns to describe his audience: “elect exiles of the dispersion.” In time you will see that these three words function as floor joists to the book. They undergird and support everything Peter wants to say. Like flowers in a garden, the ideas and concepts hidden in these strong nouns will open in full bloom. In fact, one could argue that everything in 1 Peter flows from the force of these three simple words.

The Elect

The word translated “elect” simply means “chosen.” Throughout the Bible chosen is the intimate term most often used to speak of those whom God loves. To grasp the relational intimacy behind the term, consider the exalted picture Ezekiel paints when speaking of God’s electing choice of Israel:

And as for your birth, on the day you were born your cord was not cut, nor were you washed with water to cleanse you, nor rubbed with salt, nor wrapped in swaddling cloths. No eye pitied you, to do any of these things to you out of compassion for you, but you were cast out on the open field, for you were abhorred, on the day that you were born. And when I passed by you and saw you wallowing in your blood, I said to you in your blood, ‘Live!’ I said to you in your blood, ‘Live!’ I made you flourish like a plant of the field. And you grew up and became tall and arrived at full adornment. Your breasts were formed, and your hair had grown; yet you were naked and bare.

When I passed by you again and saw you, behold, you were at the age for love, and I spread the corner of my garment over you and covered your nakedness; I made my vow to you and entered into a covenant with you, declares the Lord GOD, and you became mine. Then I bathed you with water and washed off your blood from you and anointed you with oil. I clothed you also with embroidered cloth and shod you with fine leather. I wrapped you in fine linen and covered you with silk. And I adorned you with ornaments and put bracelets on your wrists and a chain on your neck. And I put a ring on your nose and earrings in your ears and a beautiful crown on your head. Thus you were adorned with gold and silver, and your clothing was of fine linen and silk and embroidered cloth. You ate fine flour and honey and oil. You grew exceedingly beautiful and advanced to royalty. And your renown went forth among the nations because of your beauty, for it was perfect through the splendor that I had bestowed on you, declares the Lord GOD. (16:4–14)

What a special picture describing God’s electing love! Israel became God’s chosen. They were his elect. Although born helpless and vulnerable, they were given life through God’s electing love. Do you see the comfort associated with this word elect? The term elect is meant to encourage the church. It is to remind the people of God of his great love. It is not a term to be waved in front of those who don’t yet know God.3 It should be used to bring comfort for those in the faith. Peter intended to assure his early dispersed readers of God’s steadfast love. And certainly they would have basked in the reassuring strength of the...