Shadows
With the start of Lent, we will examine the shadows of our own life through the framework of the seven deadly sins.

1. Sloth

2. Gluttony

3. Lust

4. Pride

5. Envy

6. Greed

7. Wrath

Evagrius the Solitary compiled a list of eight evil thoughts that he believed to be the source of all temptations. 200 years later Pope Gregory combined vanity and pride making Evagrius’ list what we know it as today.

“...while many critics of the church and her would-be reformers identify the symptoms (inattention to the poor, heresies, misogyny or misandry, racism, moral laxity, works righteousness, interminable chattiness, etc.), Evagrius identifies the underlying disease: our thoughts.”– Matthew Milliner

Sin matters, because life matters.

Sin takes into account the reality that we do actually make things worse for ourselves, and the reality that things simply are not as they should be.

And unless we have the courage to look our brokenness we will continue to put bandaids on cancerous bodies.

Sloth.

Evagrius’ word is acedia; a lack of care, indifference, apathy.

“a sort of heavy sadness . . . that presses down on a man’s mind in such a way that no activity pleases him.” – Thomas Aquinas

The Gospel of Mark

Mark composes a biography of Jesus to describe the good news of the Kingdom of God and to portray Jesus as the suffering servant.

Jesus was awake to the Moment.

32 They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. 34 “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.” –Mark 14:32-34

As the story will go, the disciples will fall asleep twice contrary to Jesus’ instructions.

In their weariness the disciples fail to recognize the moment; they failed to read the times.

Despite the events of the day, Jesus’ explicit statements, and his simple plea, “stay up with me” the disciple miss the urgency of the moment.

Opting for sleep over prayer.

How often can we turn to simple creature comforts missing the urgency of a moment?

Jesus Practiced Obedience.

35 Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. 36 “Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” 37 Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Simon,” he said to Peter, “are you asleep? Couldn’t you keep watch for one hour? 38 Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” –Mark 14:35-38

Three time Mark records Jesus’ retreating from his disciples to pray in secret.

"No one has taken it [my life] away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative.” – John 10:18

The Garden of Gethsemane sat outside of Jerusalem to the east on the mount of Olives, a border to the Judean Wilderness.

Jesus could have run.

This was not the first time Jesus prayed– “Not my will, but your will be done”

Christ & the Disciples

Throughout this story there is this overt comparison between the quiet desperation of Jesus and the sleepy indifference of the disciples.

“Perseverance is the cure for acedia, along with the execution of all tasks with great attention.” – Evagrius the Solitary

“we boast in the hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.” –Romans 5:2–5

Wake up to the Season

Ash Wednesday is a somber reflection on our mortality, brokenness, and sin.

Lent is a forty-day period in which we imitate Jesus’ forty days in the wilderness.

Lent, and Ash Wednesday, are not necessarily happy seasons– but the are necessary wake up calls remind us that the world is not as it should be.

Practice

The first practice is fasting.

This is going without food and drink (excluding water) for a period of twelve or twenty-four hours.

That body and soul might be unified in hunger for God. *

*A note on eating disorders and medical conditions– if you’ve ever suffered from an eating disorder (anorexia, bulimia, rumination, etc) or live with a diagnosed medical condition, you should consult a doctor, therapist, or pastor prior to fasting. Fasting is a helpful practice given to us by Christ, but notice that fasting is not intended to harm the body. Rather, it is designed to bring the body and soul into alignment.

The Second practice is abstaining.

Abstaining is putting good things away so that your focus may be on God.

Repentance
Lent is a time of introspection and soul-searching; to look at the evil of the world and to look at the evil in our own heart.

“return to Me with all your heart, with fasting, weeping, and mourning.” So rend your hearts and not your garments, and return to the LORD your God. For He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion. And He relents from sending disaster.” – Joel 2:12-13 (ESV)

Digital Babylon.

Like the Israelites taken into Babylonian Captivity,  we find ourselves navigating an alien world; theirs was a foreign nation, and ours is a digital age. 

Artificial Intelligence. 

1. “The Hunt for Artificial Intelligence Heads Underwater” By Christoph Droesser and Hakai Magazine

2. “The Weird World of AI Voice Replicas” By Damon Beres

3. “The Big AI Risk Not Enough People Are Seeing” By Tyler Austin Harper

4. She is in Love with ChatGPT by Kashmir Hill

   “To know intelligence well enough to be able to build a working model of it is surely one of the most intellectually exciting and spiritually challenging problems of the human race. To do so is to know ourselves as we’ve always yearned to, to make us a part of nature instead of apart from it... And such a model promises to be an extension of those human capacities we value most, our identifying properties, which we sum up as our intelligence or our reason; the thinking machine would amplify these qualities as other machines have amplified the other capacities of our body.” –Pamela McCormick, Machines Who Think

In grandiose statements about artificial intelligence is assumptions about what it means to be human, namely our capacity for thinking, reasoning, and solving problems. 

“Gnosticism”, an ancient Grecco-roman philosophy, claimed that the material world is evil and that only the spiritual (the immaterial)  is good. 

A Digital Gnosticism reduces what it means to be human down to pattern recognition and large language models– all things machines can replicate.  

A Theology of Bodies

The biblical narrative insists that being human is more than just data points and problem-solving; Being human includes a body. 

1. Blessed Bodies.

2. Cursed Bodies. 

3. Redeemed Bodies. 

4. And Blessed Bodies (again)

Blessed Bodies. 

In verses 1-25, God speaks, and the raw material of reality listens, shaping beauty from the chaos. 

The highlight of creation arrives in verse 26, where God takes special attention to shaping a creature that will be made in his likeness, those who bear his image. 

Those who bear the image of God

1. hold inherent value.

2. are given a royal task 

3. And embody love

“the body always remains a value not sufficiently appreciated...the body is so good we have yet to fathom it.” – Pope John Paul II, Theology of the Body

Cursed Bodies. 

Despite living in a garden paradise with God, Adam and Eve join a rebellion against God by choosing to decide what is good and what is evil for themselves; this is what the Bible calls sin. 

The scripture explains sin as something unnatural is warping the human soul, that has attached itself to our DNA.

John Mark Comer observes that this disease of sin has three dimensions.  

1. Sin done by us. 

2. Sin done to us. 

3. Sin done around us. 

‘The Human Propensity to [muck] things Up’ – Francis Spufford, Unapologetic

“we are born into an environment where it is easy to do evil and hard to do good; easy to hurt others, and hard to heal their wounds; easy to arouse men’s suspicions, and hard to win their trust. It means that we are each of us conditioned by the solidarity of the human race in its accumulated wrong-doing and wrong-thinking, and hence wrong-being. And to this accumulation of wrong we have ourselves added by our own deliberate acts of sin. The gulf grows wider and wider.” – Kallistos Ware, The Orthodox Way

 “Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life… until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.”– Genesis 3:17,19.

“the wages of sin is death…” –Romans 6:23

Redeemed Bodies. 

Matthew and Luke tell of God’s complex, messy, and fraught entrance into history, and surprisingly, he shows up the same way we all do. 

The incarnation is the most extraordinary case that our bodies matter– they matter so much that God himself became flesh and dwelt among us. 

“Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins…Take your mat and go home.” – Matthew 9:5–6.

“Take heart, daughter…your faith has healed you.”– Matthew 9:22

There is this blurring of the lines between healing and saving because salvation is a kind of healing. 

On a Roman cross, Jesus offers the cure to the disease plaguing our bodies: once cursed bodies, now become redeemed bodies. 

Blessed Bodies (again). 

In 1 Corinthians 15, the apostle Paul focuses his writing on Jesus’ resurrection. He mounts a defense against anyone who would suggest that the resurrection is a ridiculous idea or unnecessary for the Christian faith. 

1. Jesus died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures. 

2. He was buried. 

3. He was raised on the third day. 

4. And he appeared as many as 500 witnesses. 

But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. 22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. – 1 Corinthians 15:20-22

Our inheritance from the first humans is sin and death, but in our new inheritance in Christ is resurrection.

The Christian hope is that those who give their allegiance to Jesus will discover life after death. 

“According to the early Christians, the purpose of this new body will be to rule wisely over God’s new world. Forget those images about lounging around playing harps. There will be work to do and we shall relish doing it. All the skills and talents which we have put to God’s service in this present life—and perhaps, too, the interests and likings we gave up because they conflicted with our vocation—will be enhanced and ennobled and given back to us to be exercised to his glory” – NT Wright, Surprised by Hope

Embodied Spirituality

1. Pay attention to your body.

2. Take care of your body. 

3. Worship with your body. 

“Luke-Acts is like a film. When you are watching it unfold, Luke brings your mind to things within the narrative that have already happened, are happening, and things that are yet to come. As a literary work, Luke-Acts is full of interconnections.”

Dr. Marty Mittelstadt

“He taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all.”

Luke 4:15

“Keep away from these men and let them alone, for if this plan or this undertaking is of man, it will fail.”

Acts 5:38

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.”

Luke 4:18-19

“The poor and the blind does not exclude the literal poor and blind.”

Darrell Bock

“They did not believe.”

Mark 6:3

“This child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed, so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.”

Luke 2:34-35

Jesus Asks Us to…

1. Do do what Israel could not

2. Cast aside prejudices and false unity

3. Be insiders to what He is doing

A Secular Age & Cross-Pressure

The Apostles’ Creed begins: “I believe in God…” – a statement that was self-evident in the 4th century but now competes with a multitude of beliefs.

Charles Taylor (A Secular Age): Secularism today means belief in God is one option among many, creating a cross-pressured experience where endless spiritual and ideological choices lead to decision fatigue.

The Infinite Library: Searching “Does God exist?” online yields thousands of conflicting responses, reinforcing the sense of disorientation.

Andrew Sullivan: “I Used to Be a Human Being:An endless bombardment of news and gossip and images has rendered us manic information addicts. It broke me. It might break you, too.” (New York Magazine, 2016)

The digital world overwhelms us with information but doesn’t necessarily provide wisdom.

Doubt in a Digital Age

Doubt can arise not because of logical refutation but due to information overload and spiritual exhaustion.

• The faithful are tempted toward unbelief.

• The skeptic is tempted toward belief.

Biblical Examples of Doubt

John the Baptist’s Doubt (Matthew 11:1-6)

• John, a man of conviction, experiences doubt in prison.

• The Question: “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?”

A Heritage of Questions:

• Elijah (1 Kings 19:4) – "I have had enough, Lord... Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors."

• David (Psalm 13:1) – "How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever?"

• Jeremiah (Jeremiah 20:14) – "Cursed be the day I was born!"

• The Disciples (Matthew 28:17) – "When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted."

• Thomas (John 20:25) – "Unless I see the nail marks in his hands... I will not believe."

“[It] seems most likely that Matthew recorded John’s struggle with doubt not to condemn John, but to encourage subsequent disciples.” – Craig S. Keener

Doubt is not a sin; it is a common companion on the journey of faith.

John’s Doubt Explored:

• Experience: John’s suffering in prison led to questioning.

• Expectations: John anticipated a Messiah of judgment, yet Jesus brought healing and grace.

• Emotions: Likely felt abandoned, anxious, and uncertain.

A Helpful Diagnostic:

• What experiences contribute to your doubt?

• What expectations of God are unmet?

• What emotions accompany your doubt?

Jesus’ Response to Doubt

“Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor.  Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.” –Matthew 11:4-6

David Brooks’ Encounter: Faith "tiptoed" into his life through observation rather than argument. (The Shock of Faith: It’s Nothing Like I Thought It Would Be, New York Times, 2024)

Jesus’ final word to John is a blessing for all cautious believers. 

 “Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.” Matthew 11:6.

“...God bless you, John, if you do not throw the whole thing over because I am a different kind of Messiah than you were expecting.” –Dale Bruner

Advice for Doubters

1. Take time away from the digital noise. 

2. Clarify what your specific question is.

3. Explore trustworthy sources

4. Doubt your doubts. 

5. Redefine success as trust, not certainty.

Digital Babylon

Developing deeply formed disciples who engage with technology intentionally.

• Week 1: Digital Formation – Digital Audit

• Week 2: Effects of Digital Consumption – Digital Simplicity & Generosity

• Week 3: The Impact of Digital Babylon on Attention – Devote Time to Holy Attention

Sexual Integrity in the midst of a hyper-sexualized digital culture.

A Culture of Pornography

“I had a helicopter mom. I found porn hub anyway” Essay by Isabel Hogben

2020 Study by NIH: 91.5% of men and 60.2% of women in the U.S. have consumed pornography in the last 30 days.

Barna 2020: 75% of Christian men and 40% of Christian women report having consumed pornography.

Sermon on the Mount

• Jesus' longest recorded sermon, describing the life He calls His followers to live—distinct, salt-and-light living.

• In Matthew 5:21-48, Jesus deepens the understanding of Mosaic Law.

Matthew 5:27-28

• “You have heard it was said" – refers to the Mosaic Law (Exodus 20:14).

• "But I say to you" – Jesus reveals the deeper, heart-level requirement of the law.

• Jesus extends the command: Lust in the heart is just as sinful as adultery.

 “[Jesus is going] underneath the command and gets to the deeper issue of the human heart.” – Tim Mackie

Christianity has a High View of Sex

Sex is a good gift from God (Genesis 1:28).

Marriage: Monogamous marital sex is viewed as sacred in both Jewish and Christian traditions (Song of Solomon, Paul’s letters).

Sexual desire in its right context is beautiful and holy.

Defining the Look
A prolonged, intentional gaze that leads to lust or possession. Lust involves the willful, prolonged look, designed to objectify and dehumanize another person.

“There is a difference: one happens, the other is allowed to happen…. To look at an attractive person can be a drive given in creation; to keep on looking- staring- is a drive given in the fall from creation.” – Dale Brunner

Jesus' Point: Lust is not about natural desire but about dehumanizing another person. Lusting after someone is reducing them to an object for personal gratification.

The Male Audience
In the ancient world, adultery was excused for men but not for women. Jesus challenges this, addressing men directly. He also says, it is not the women’s fault if you are tempted with lust, it is about your [men’s] desires, your heart, your problem. 

This message is necessary for women as well, as rates of pornography among women have grown and it has become culturally acceptable and even applaudable to objectify men. 

We cannot externally blame our problems of lust or unhealthy sexual desire on others. We must always examine our own hearts and desires; our internal motivations. 

Take Decisive Action

“If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out... If your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off…” – Matthew 5:29, 30

Jesus does not literally mean to dismember yourself but uses hyperbole to stress the seriousness of the situation.

Jesus calls for decisive action to remove anything that leads us to sin, even if it’s precious.

“Jesus tells us by his choice of words that he knows our sacrifice for a clean conscience will be very hard and painful. Yet Jesus honors us by thinking we can make the attempt.” – Dale Brunner

Cutting Off and Confession

Cutting Off
Identify anything that leads you to sin (habits, apps, relationships) and take radical action to remove it.

• Delete apps 

• Cancel subscriptions to inappropriate shows.

• Radical Measures: Consider deleting social media, using a “dumb phone,” or even getting rid of internet browsers. Maybe get rid of your TV. 

Confession

• Normalize confession in the Church for it is one of the best things we can offer one another and a community, a generation, a world that desperately wants to be free from their addiction. 

• Take time to bring darkness into the light by confessing to God and trusted individuals.

• In confessing, there is no condemnation, only love, kindness, and support in the community.

Digital Babylon

In 597 BC, the Israelites were exiled to Babylon—a foreign world of unfamiliar customs, language, and gods. Today, we navigate our own “Digital Babylon” with its digital costumes, languages, and idols.

Like the Israelites, we must discern faithfulness in this new digital landscape by auditing our digital habits and shaping intentional discipleship.

• Week 1: Digital Formation: Exploring how devices shape and form us.

• Week 2: Simplicity: Exploring how Digital Babylon encourages reckless consumption. 

• Week 3: Holy Attention: Digital Babylon steals our attention and distracts us, faithfulness calls us instead to cultivate Holy Attention.

“We, for every kind of reason, good and bad, are distracting ourselves into spiritual oblivion. It is not that we have anything against God, depth, and spirit, we would like these, it is just that we are habitually too preoccupied to have any of these show up on our radar screens. We are more busy than bad, more distracted than nonspiritual, and more interested in the movie theatre, the sports stadium, and the shopping mall and the fantasy life they produce in us than we are in church. Pathological busyness, distraction, and restlessness are major blocks today within our spiritual lives.” – Ronald Rolheiser, The Holy Longing

Luke 10

1. Jesus sends out the 72 to proclaim the Kingdom (Luke 10:1–24).

2. The Parable of the Good Samaritan teaches us to love our neighbor (Luke 10:25–37).

3. Mary and Martha’s story calls us to focus on God’s presence (Luke 10:38–42).

Martha’s Distraction

• Jesus visits Martha and Mary in Bethany. Martha, likely the eldest, bears the weight of hosting Jesus.

• Martha becomes consumed with preparations while Mary sits at Jesus’ feet.

Martha protests:

“Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” – Luke 10:40

Jesus’ Response:

“Martha, Martha... you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” – Luke 10:41–42

Pulled Away by Digital Distractions.  

“Back in 2004, we found that people averaged 150 seconds on any screen before switching to another screen. By 2012, it had declined to 75 seconds, and between 2016 and 2021, it diminished to 47 seconds.” – Gloria Mark, Attention Spans

• Most people average of 12 minutes and 40 seconds on a single task before being interrupted. 

• On average, returning to that interrupted task takes 25 minutes and 26 seconds. 

• For most people, it takes 15 minutes to get back to a similar level of concentration once they’ve returned to the task. 

“More often than not, our sense of self and those things to which we commit our attention are scattered by the many things we do, the varied needs of others, and the demands and pleasures of social media and the digital.” – Felicia Wu Song, Restless Devices

The Golden thread of Scripture is God’s Presence (Dallas Willard)
Mary’s simple legacy is that she always found herself in a humble posture in the presence of Jesus. 

1. Sitting at Jesus’ feet in Bethany (Luke 10).

2. Grieving at Jesus’ feet after Lazarus’ death (John 11:32).

3. Anointing Jesus’ feet with perfume (John 12:3).

Holy Attention

Holy attention is giving God our whole focus, leading to healing and transformation.

Todd Hall, in Relational Spirituality, argues that those who practice silence and devote their attention to God find that they can –

1. Hold multiple perspectives more easily

2. Become less reactive to experiences

3. More easily observe sensations and emotions

4. Can act with a deeper awareness of their mind

5. And can judge experiences more intentionally, not just operating on autopilot. 

   “Christians have to re-wire their brains for accessing glory.” – Eric Johnson

Cultivating Holy Attention

• Eliminate Digital Distractions:

• Turn off all notifications that are not essential. 

• Use focus modes to create intentional times of day that are distraction-free.

• Use app limits to establish boundaries.

• Take particularly distracting apps off your phone, making them inconvenient to access.

• Establish device-free moments. 

• Investigate other tech to help with your specific problem.

• Practice Silence

• Bring your attention to God.

“Social media constantly exposes us to the glamorous lives of others. Carefully curated snapshots of lavish lifestyles fill our feeds as we scroll through the social media platforms, flashing images of luxurious vacations, designer wardrobes, and extravagant dining experiences.” - James Curry, VP of Wealth Management at Greenleaf Trust

"Social media is a breeding ground for envy and dissatisfaction." - Dr. Jean Twenge,  Professor of Psychology at San Diego State University

Despite technology’s promise to do more for our finances, I think it is doing less. 

How in a digital culture that pressures us to keep accumulating more things, do we steward our money well and give it back to God? 

Luke 12:13-25 in 3 Sections

1. “We are all that guy” 

2. Greed

3. Worry 

Section 1: “We are all that guy” 

13 Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” 14 Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?” 15 Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.” -Luke 12:13-15

Section 2: Greed 

16 And he [Jesus] told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, 17 and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ 18 And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.” ’ 20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ 21 So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.” - Luke 12:16- 21

This man…. 

1. Never saw beyond himself

2. Never saw beyond this world 

“Instead of denying himself he aggressively affirmed himself; instead of finding his happiness in giving he tried to conserve it by keeping.” - William Barclay 

“The selfish pursuit of things is pointless. When creation is inverted, the value of possessions is distorted. Those who climb over people or ignore them in the pursuit of possessions will come up empty on the day God sorts out our lives. What a tragic misuse of the gift of resources this man had gained! What could have been an opportunity for generosity and blessing became a stumbling block to the soul.” - Darrell Bock 

Section 3: Worry 

And he said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. 23 For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. 24 Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! 25 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? 26 If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest? 27 Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 28 But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! 29 And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. 30 For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them. 31 Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you. 32 “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. 33 Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. 34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. - Luke 12:22-34

“Jesus is talking about our basic approach to life. Are we anxious and lacking trust in God, constantly trying to gain control of things that often are beyond our control? Or do we trust God to provide and concentrate on honoring relationships by pursuing righteousness and serving others with our resources? Two things tell us the answers to these questions: our heart and our pocketbook. Our heart can tell us if we are anxious, and our pocketbook can tell us if we are generous. Both tell us if we are trusting God.” - Darrell Bock 

Spiritual Practice

Christian Simplicity: Richard Foster and Mark Scandrette define it as: “An inward reality that can be seen in an outward lifestyle... choosing to leverage time, money, talents, and possessions toward what matters most.”

Four Ways to Practice Digital Simplicity

1. Live by a Budget: Create a budget to ensure your treasure goes where it matters most.

2. Be Aware of Lifestyle Inflation: Are you consuming content that inflates your expectations? Unfollow, limit, or fast social media usage if necessary.

3. Limit Shopping Apps: Delete shopping apps from your phone. Make it harder to buy things

4. Be Generous: As you journey towards simplicity, you’ll find you have a lot to give away and more money to share with others. Additionally, practice proactive not reactive generosity. 

Human Formation

We are shaped by a multitude of influences: environment, culture, relationships, and experiences.

Technology has an outsized influence on our lives, often without our awareness.

Social media platforms and algorithms are designed to keep us scrolling, subtly modifying our behavior.

“What might once have been called advertising must now be understood as continuous behavior modification on a titanic scale.” – Jaron Lanier

Psychologist Dr. Maria Panagiotidi identifies five features that elicit specific responses:

1.  Unpredictable notifications to create anticipation.

2. Tailored notifications that are harder to ignore.

3. Interference with deliberate decision-making (e.g., autoplay features).

4. Partial goal fulfillment to keep users engaged.

5. Exploiting user vulnerabilities with personalized content.

Author Jonathan Haidt highlights the rewiring of adolescent brains due to smartphone use, contributing to anxiety and limited attention.

"Whenever we use tools, from shovels to books to phones and virtual reality, regardless of whether you use them for good or evil, the act of using them forms us physically, mentally, spiritually, and relationally.The problem with thinking of technology as neutral is that doing so often makes us miss all the non-neutral ways its presence in our lives affects us." –John Dyer

Digital Babylon

Like the Israelites in Babylon, we live in a world with foreign customs and influences, striving to remain faithful to God.

The challenge: How do we follow Jesus faithfully in this digital age?

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. 2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” – Romans 12:1-2

Squeezed into Mold of this World.

We are all being shaped by something—the question is whether we’re being conformed to the world or transformed into Christ’s image (Romans 8:29).

Paul’s words emphasize the need for intentional cultural non-conformity and mind renewal.

1. Do you shop habitually and carelessly?

2. Do you compulsively scroll, losing focus?

3. Do you consume problematic content?

4. Do you avoid engaging with differing perspectives?

5. Does your technology use hinder your health, relationships, or spiritual life?

Renewing the Mind

“For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son…” –Romans 8:29.

“Christians have to re-wire their brains for accessing glory.” – Eric Johnson

“Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” – Philippians 4:8

“Instead of having our imagination saturated by media, we seek to be transformed by the renewing of our mind. We commit to establish structured limits for our use of screens and our consumption of entertainment, in quantity, frequency, and moral character.” – Andy Crouch 

Living Sacrifice:

Paul calls believers to be “living sacrifices,” holding nothing back (Romans 12:1).

Worship is not limited to songs but includes every aspect of life—our actions, decisions, and digital habits.

“Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it.” –Luke 9:23–24.

Suggestions for Digital Faithfulness:

1. Phone Locker: Try going phone-free during services.

2. Digital Habits Audit: Reflect on how technology influences your life. Consider Dr. David Greenfield’s Smartphone Compulsion Test or answer simple questions about screen time and habits.

3. Grace and Patience: Different people will adopt different practices; move intentionally and extend grace to yourself and others.

  “Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.”

The Liturgical Calendar

Advent & Christmas– God with us. 
Lent– God prepares us. 
Easter– God for us. 
Pentecost – God in us.
Ordinary Time– God through us. 

Practicing the Church calendar is ultimately a way of marking time not by our work schedule, not by the business of school, not by holidays or vacations, but by the story of Jesus. 

Love.

Our understanding of love, and consequently the God of Love, is profoundly shaped by our family of origin– those who raised us. 

 We can unconsciously apply the way we relate to our family to the way we relate to God. 

“…If we can’t trust our parents, who we can see, to provide emotional support and security, how can we trust God, who we can’t see? Patterns of interactions with our attachment figures get stored in our memory as gut-level expectations of how close relationships work. These expectations get placed on our relationship with God, often without realizing it. This doesn’t mean that our experiences and expectations of God can’t change, but it does mean that the social context in which we are raised profoundly shapes the “God of our gut.” And this—not the God of our head—is the God we experience most of the time.” – Todd Hall

In Jesus, God is working to define love on his terms so that we might come to know who He really is.

At Christmas, God takes on flesh and shows us that his love is (1) attentive, (2) joyous, (3) self-giving, and (4) glorious. 

Attentive Love. 

God’s attentive love is demonstrated as his angelic messenger takes the time to ease the shepherd’s fears. 

“And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.  But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid…’” – Luke 2:8-12

One of Luke’s favorite themes throughout his biography of Jesus is the great reversal. 

“God’s love is meteoric, his loyalty astronomic, His purpose titanic, his verdicts oceanic. Yet in his largeness nothing gets lost; Not a man, not a mouse, slips through the cracks.”– Eugene Peterson

God’s love is attentive to those who are overlooked.

Joyous Love.

“Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people.” – Luke 2:10

That phrase ‘good news’ is the Greek term Euangelion (where we get the term ‘evangelism’ or ‘evangelicalism’). 

Euangelion was news sent from the heart of Rome to the far edges of the empire.

Luke calls this the good news of the Kingdom of God. 

“Your Kingdom come, your will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven.” – Matthew 6:10

The adjective Luke uses is mega. This is news that will cause mega-joy. 

Is it not telling that the news of God will cause great joy? God’s love is joyous.

Self-giving Love.

“Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”  –Luke 2:11-12

As the angel tells it, the Gospel is that the long-awaited Jewish messiah has been born in Bethlehem, just as the prophets said centuries before. 

“[Jesus] emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.” –Philippians 2:6-7

God’s love is incarnational in that he became flesh and bone. 

“...[Jesus]humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”(Philippians 2:8)

“Jesus’ love relentlessly abounds for his people... He is our great signpost—a king gifting us life in exchange for his death.” – Alexandra Hoover

They wrapped him in cloth strips and placed him in a manger because there was no place. –Luke 2:7

They wrapped him in linen cloth, placed him in a rock-hewn tomb, where no one had yet been laid. –Luke 22:53

Could this threefold phrasing be a deliberate choice to tell us the sacrificial and self-giving nature of God’s love?

“In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son…” –1 John 4:9–10

The Love of God is not a sentimental well-wishing. God’s love is self-giving action for the sake of all.  

“Never underestimate the power of a God who could have turned his back on us in wrath forever, but instead became Love incarnate, love that bore all things and endured all things, even to the cross, so that we might be restored to him and to one another. “ – Fleming Rutledge

Glorious Love.

13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, 14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” – Luke 2:12-14

God’s glorious love is displayed as he heals the world by getting His hands dirty.  

Love is not an abstract concept. Love is a person. 

“God is love.” – 1 John 4:8, 16 

“The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.” –Exodus 34:6.

“I will give thanks to you, O LORD, among the peoples; I will sing praises to you among the nations. For your steadfast love is great above the heavens;  your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.”  –Psalm 108:3–4.

“...God is love. 9 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. –1 John 4:8-9.

 Reflect on God’s Love.

1. How has your family of origin shaped your understanding of God’s love?

2. How can you reflect the self-giving love of God in your relationships this Christmas season?

3. How might you encounter God’s glorious love in the messiness of your everyday life?

“In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2 (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 And everyone went to their own town to register. 4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in clothes and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them. 8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” –Luke 2:1-12 (NIV)

“Advent is practice in waiting.” – Tish Harrison Warren

8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” –Luke 2:8-12

“In that day the deaf shall hear the words of a book, and out of their gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind shall see. The meek shall obtain fresh joy in the Lord, and the poor among mankind shall exult.” Isaiah 29:18-19

“You will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.” –Luke 2:76-79

“Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in the last days he has spoken to us by his Son, who he appointed the heir of all things, through whom he also created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature." –Hebrews 1:1-3

"The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me,
    because the Lord has anointed me
    to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
    to proclaim freedom for the captives
   and release from darkness for the prisoners,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor" –Luke 4:16-18

“In Jesus Christ he became a limited human being, vulnerable to suffering and death….In the most profound way, God has said to us, in Christ, I will adjust to you. I’ll serve you though it means a sacrifice for me.” –Tim Keller

“Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy! He who goes out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing, will returnwith shouts of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.” –Psalm 126:5-6

“looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross." –Hebrews 12:2

“All joy reminds. It is never a possession, always a desire for something longer ago or further away or still about to be.” – C.S. Lewis

He gives us comfort in all our troubles. Then we can comfort other people who have the same troubles. We give the same kind of comfort God gives us.” – 1 Corinthians 1:4

“Peace! Peace! When there is no peace.”

-Jeremiah 6:14

“When Mary was filled with the Holy Spirit and conceived the Son of God, her body became the inner court of the Holy of Holies (the place where God’s presence dwelled in the Temple). Never before had a woman entered this sacred space, but in the incarnation, the Holy of Holies came into her space.”

-Cheryl Bridges Johns

“We must resist the tyranny of the present. If we ignore the echoes of the past, we doom ourselves to unrecognized ignorance. It’s only because of our connection with our technological past that we don’t have to reinvent the wheel every generation. Likewise, if we maintain our connection with our theological past, we don’t have to reformulate the essential creeds every generation.”

-Brian Zahnd, Water to Wine

Greeting: Peace be with you. Response: And also with you.

Hope in Emmanuel

Christ is the Savior we need, not the one that was expected. 

The names of Jesus are not just taglines, they are declarations of hope!

Scholar Joseph Exell “ It would seem as if every soul had to undergo a period of questioning and doubt and wondering before it realizes the ineffable peace and cloudless radiance of perfect trust.“

Immanuel is the promise of God with us and the promise that nothing is impossible with him.

Darrell L. Bock - “Luke wants us to identify with Mary’s example, not to unduly worship her personhood”

Dietrich Bonhoeffer: "The Christian is not to be a pious soul who waits for the Kingdom of God, but a man who engages in active obedience to the will of God in the present world, preparing the way for Christ’s coming by living faithfully according to His Word."

The Christmas story tells us that the promised eternal Kingdom is already here.

Emmanuel is the promise of God with us and the promise that nothing is impossible with him. 

Lessons from Mary - Life of consecration.

“So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: 2 shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; 3 not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock. 4 And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. - 1 Peter 5:1-4

“Power, no more today than in the first century, is addictive. It leads to unworthy motives and pollutes decisions that are to be made under the guidance of the Spirit. Instead of seeking God’s agenda, power-hungry [leaders] pursue their own.” - Scot McKnight

Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. - 1 Peter 5:5

“This puts a finger on a touchy issue: leadership and authority. Ours is not a culture that easily adjusts itself to such an idea. Ours, in fact, is a society of mavericks and do-it-yourselfers. Consequently, not only does the term submission sound foreign, but even the idea of actually being led… is hard for many to comprehend.” – Scot McKnight

“Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” 6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, 7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. 8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to.”  - 1 Peter 5:5b-8

Spiritual Practice: 3 Challenges 

1. To leaders in the room- are you willing to be a servant? 

2. To followers- are you willing to submit to others? 

3. To all of you- are you willing to remember your true enemy and let that change your response? 

“Christians in the first century undoubtedly frequently experienced loss of respect and shame to a degree that we probably never will. But we are not amiss if we try to find analogies to this in our society—to the occasional presence of shame in our world for being Christians.” - Scot McKnight

We can respond with joy to offense by making three shifts. 

1. Surprise to expectancy 

2. Distance to Intimacy  

3. Offense to compassion.

12 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. 13 But rejoice insofar as you share Christ's sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. - 1 Peter 4:12-13

“Persecution is a theme woven tightly and boldly into the fabric of the Christian story. When it does occur, we ought not to be surprised.” -Scot McKnight 

14 If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. 15 But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler. 16 Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name. - 1 Peter 4:14-16

“Suffering for doing what is right—for bearing the difficult name of Christ and being slandered as Christians—is not the result of God’s discipline or retribution. It is the result of bearing the name and living in the way of the One who is foreign, alien to the dominant culture. It puts them in sanctifying solidarity with their Lord and with fellow members of God’s household.” -Janette Ok

17 For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? 18 And “If the righteous is scarcely saved,what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?” 19 Therefore let those who suffer according to God's will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good. - 1 Peter 4:17-19

“I can afford to turn the other cheek. I have Christ. They are still looking for him, even in their offense. I do not want my offense to be the obstacle. I want them to encounter the message of Christ… If they are willing to die to themselves and submit themselves to Christ, there is a far better table and feast to be found.” - Chris Replogle

Spiritual Practice: Be unoffendable. 

24-26 Then Jesus went to work on his disciples. “Anyone who intends to come with me has to let me lead. You’re not in the driver’s seat; I am. Don’t run from suffering; embrace it. Follow me and I’ll show you how. Self-help is no help at all. Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to finding yourself, your true self. What kind of deal is it to get everything you want but lose yourself? What could you ever trade your soul for? - Matthew 16:24-26 (MSG) 

Christianity & Suffering. 

“It's right for God to slaughter women and children anytime he pleases. God gives life and he takes life. Everybody who dies, dies because God wills that they die.God is taking life every day. He will take 50,000 lives today. Life is in God's hand. God decides when your last heartbeat will be, and whether it ends through cancer or a bullet wound. God governs.”–John Piper.

Piper’s words are extreme perspective known as meticulous providence; everything that happens happens at God’s initiative. 

Theodicy is a philosophical argument that attempts to explain God’s goodness with the existence of evil. 

God’s Will. 

Many have misconstrued God’s will as cosmic determination; every event unfolds according to God’s design.  

A better understanding of God’s will is “what God wants or desires.”

God doesn’t always get what he wants. 

• The Garden of Eden, with Adam and Eve’s fall– doesn’t seem to be what God desires. 

• Nor in Exodus, where God has to push Pharaoh to release the Israelites with ever-increasing signs. 

• Nor later when the Israelites worship a Golden Calf. 

• Nor in 1 Samuel when the Israelite people demand a King, like the neighboring nations. 

A Dangerous World

God is all-powerful, all-good, and all-knowing; he has also created a world of freedom and choice. 

“Evil is the result of the morally significant free actions of God's creatures.” – Gerry Breshears.

Evil is not God's creation; it is the result of the freedom God built into the fabric of the universe.

“...the whole world is under the control of the evil one.” – 1 John 5:19

The Bible seems to tell a story of God being at war with this evil one and by the suffering love and sacrifice of his son Jesus. 

A Theodicy: Waring Wills

A more helpful theodicy recognizes God’s conflict with evil. 

“your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven.” – Matthew 6:5

Jesus teaches that Heaven is the place where God’s will is being done all the time: Earth is where God’s Will is not being done all the time. 

On Earth, there are at least five wills at work. 

1. God’s will. 

2. Our will. 

“The line between good and evil runs right through the human heart” – Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

3. Other peoples’ will. 

4 Spiritual being’s will

5. Chaos. 

Peter’s Exhortation 

The Bible seems to tell of this war between God and evil. Human beings, as well as other created being, have the freedom to choose to cooperate with God or evil.

“Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.” – 1 Peter 2:12.

And Peter gives three specific instructions about suffering well and revealing God’s glory. 

1. Be good to one another

2. Do good in the face of evil

3. Cling to good news. 

Be Good to One Another. 

“Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble.”  – 1 Peter 3:8

“But please, please—won’t you—can’t you give me something that will cure Mother?” Up till then he had been looking at the Lion’s great feet and the huge claws on them; now, in his despair, he looked up at its face. What he saw surprised him as much as anything in his whole life. 

For the tawny face was bent down near his own and great shining tears stood in the Lion’s eyes. They were such big, bright tears compared with Digory’s own that for a moment he felt as if the Lion must really be sorrier about his Mother than he was himself.

“My son, my son,” said Aslan. “I know. Grief is great. Only you and I in this land know that yet. Let us be good to one another…” – CS Lewis

In light of the suffering we face, let’s be good to one another. 

Do good in the face of evil.

“Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing. For, 
 “Whoever would love life
and see good days 
must keep their tongue from evil 
and their lips from deceitful speech. 
They must turn from evil and do good; 
they must seek peace and pursue it. 
For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous
and his ears are attentive to their prayer,
but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”  
Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. “Do not fear their threats; do not be frightened.”  –1 Peter 3:9-13

“Christians respond to outside hostility by doing what is good in the sight of God, which includes repaying evil and insult with a “blessing”’ – Janette Ok

“But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. For it is better, if it is God’s will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil. – 1 Peter 3:15-17

Cling to Good News. 

“For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit. After being made alive, he went and made proclamation to the imprisoned spirits— to those who were disobedient long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water, and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at God’s right hand—with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him. – 1 Peter 3:18-22

“Few passages have so many themes and different ideas intertwined. It is no wonder that commentators have shaken their heads in despair! But the main point is not complex. Just as Jesus suffered as a righteous man and was vindicated, so too if the churches of Peter live righteously, they will be vindicated and sit with Jesus in the presence of God.” – Scot McKnight.

Jesus suffered but was vindicated by God. Christians can endure suffering, trusting God to do the same for us. 

God is waging war against all evil and suffering, and in Jesus, victory has been secured. 

Jesus is the champion of God’s will, working to transform human will, conquer rebellious spiritual wills, and reorder the chaotic world. 

Human Will. 

Sin, a poison infecting our bodies, emotions, minds, and souls, is being cured through the antidote of Jesus’ blood.

Spiritual Wills.

All entities, seen and unseen, have been put on notice that their reign of hostility and disorder in the world is ending.

Chaos. 

The final influence that will be brought into alignment is the general chaos of our world. 

Practice Hope. 

“we gain hope—not from the darkness of our suffering, not from pat answers in books, but from the God who sees our suffering and shares our pain.”― Eugene Peterson.

4. Be good to one another.

5. Do good in the face of evil.

6. Cling to good news. 

Outline of 1 Peter (Chapters 1-3)

• Salvation | “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead…” – 1 Peter 1:3

• Formation | “...just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do.” – 1 Peter 1:15

• Chosen | “ you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” – 1 Peter 2:9

• Demonstrate | “Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.” –1 Peter 2:12.

Peter's intention is to promote the Christian reputation in the public square—that those who follow Jesus's example will display God's goodness, beauty, and mercy in their world. 

And Peter will apply this thought in three ways– 

1. To politics (2:13-17)

2. To enslaved people (2:18-21)

3. To Marriages (3:1-7)

On Difficult Passages

1. Acknowledge the feelings it produces (confusion, discomfort, anger, etc)

2. Refuse to Ignore it. 

3. Dig into the passage. Commit yourself to study when you come across a difficult passage. 

• Read an article or commentary. 

• Watch a YouTube video or listen to a podcast. 

• Text a pastor or email a scholar. 

Our discomfort with this Text in particular.

Americans value the freedom and the protection of our rights almost above all else. 

1 Peter 2:17-3:7 is so offensive to us because if we wrote it, it would be more revolutionary. 

When we read Peter’s instructions “to submit,” they sound like an endorsement of the status quo. 

But Peter is not protecting the status quo—he is offering an alternative vision for changing it. 

A Subversive Manifesto.

To be subversive is to undermine the status quo; The Latin origin is “to turn from below.” 

To be subversive is to seek change from the bottom up, from the inside out, in unexpected and surprising ways. 

He wants everyone to see God's glory and reorder society according to God’s way. He wants change and thinks it is best accomplished through subversive stability. 

Authoritarians, cruel masters, and harsh husbands may be won over by suffering love.

Household Codes

Peter is writing what was known as a household code;  a common and influential cultural practice for running a household. Philosophers, writers, and intellectuals would compose household codes. 

Peter’s Disruptive inclusions–  

1. Peter’s writes directly to slaves and wives. Typically, these codes are written to the patriarch of the household.

2. Peter assumes that these slaves and wives were Jesus followers and their Patriarch was not. In the first century, the Patriarch’s religion was everyone’s religion. 

3. The third idea that Peter smuggles into his household code is that wives and slaves are not lesser than their masters or their husbands. Before God– all people are humble, submissive, and, most importantly, equal. 

God’s Patient Work

These statements from Peter do not go far enough for us, but through God’s patient endurance, the world is being redeemed, and we are being healed. 

To Slaves

“18 Slaves, in reverent fear of God submit yourselves to your masters, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh. 19 For it is commendable if someone bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because they are conscious of God. 20 But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God.” – 1 Peter 2:18-20

1. This text has been used over and over as a justification for slavery,  but Peter offers no defense of the institution of slavery. He is offering guidance to and recognition of Christians who find themselves enslaved.

2. The American practice of slavery and the ancient institution are different. Scott Bartchy notes some of the differences between 1st-century slavery and modern slavery. 

• Not based on race.

• Slaves were encouraged to be educated.

• Many slaves carried out sensitive and highly responsible social functions.

• Slaves could own property. 

• The majority of urban and domestic slaves could legitimately anticipate being emancipated by the age of 30. 

This does not make ancient slavery ethical or morally superior; it is simply different. 

3. Peter had seen slave revolts cruelly and violently ended– and they didn’t want the same for these believers. 

He encourages them to look to the way of Jesus and the cross.

“he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant…humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross!” –Philippians 2:7-8

Peter is infusing dignity and sacred purpose into the lives of the enslaved– even when they are unjustly beaten or punished–  by insisting that they are following in the way of Jesus. 

The Example of Jesus

“21 To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. 22 “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.”  23 When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. 24 “He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.” 25 For “you were like sheep going astray,” but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.” – 1 Peter 2:21-25

Jesus exemplified one who suffered for doing good; through his patient endurance, the world is being redeemed, and we are being healed. 

“If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.  For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” – Mark 8:24-25

“A cruciform understanding of the Christian life is the one thing that is easiest to discern in this passage, though it may be the one item contemporary society resists the most.” – Scot McKnight

Peter looks to Jesus' example—who upended the status quo of sin and death by his death and resurrection– and encourages his audience to follow in the way of suffering love. 

Marital Relationships

3 Wives, in the same way submit yourselves to your own husbands so that, if any of them do not believe the word, they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives, 2 when they see the purity and reverence of your lives. 3 Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. 4 Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight. 5 For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to adorn themselves. They submitted themselves to their own husbands, 6 like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her lord. You are her daughters if you do what is right and do not give way to fear. 7 Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers. – 1 Peter 3:1-7

It may seem problematic that Peter’s instructions to wives are six-verses compared to his one verse to husbands. This is likely because the wife's position was much more challenging and complex than her husband’s. 

Peter’s six verses to wives are not misogynistic edicts but empathetic guidance on living within the limits of marriages, particularly if their husbands did not follow Jesus. 

Peter advises these wives to redouble their efforts to demonstrate God's glory through their love and actions. 

A silent preaching of the gospel. 

Consider how refreshing, dare I say liberating,  it is for Peter to say beauty is a gentle soul not a look. 

Peter is using a cultural axiom– “women are the weaker partner”– to smuggle in maybe his most subversive idea. And it is four words – “In the same way” 

Peter was calling for a new type of marriage not built on convenience or domination; but on mutual submission and mutual consideration. 

Subversive Stability. 

“The workshop where we are to toil faithfully at all these tasks is the enclosure of the monastery and stability in the community.” – St. Benedict

The Christian practice of stability is a commitment to staying put and can be applied to being rooted in relationships, communities, workplaces, friendships, or places.

Peter’s letter directs us toward subversive stability, A commitment to changing things from below. 

“If we can develop a sense that sacrificial love, justice, and hope are at the core of our identities—they go to our jobs with us each day, to our families each night—then we are in fact subversive. You have to understand that Christian subversion is nothing flashy. Subversives don’t win battles. All they do is prepare the ground and change the mood just a little bit toward belief and hope, so that when Christ appears, there are people waiting for him.” – Eugene Peterson

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By his great mercy we’ve been born anew to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” -1 Peter 1:3

“For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin.  Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.” - Romans 6:5-11

"From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” 2 Cor 5:16-17

Abstain from the passions of the flesh that wage war against your soul. What you do with your body matters. -Joseph Lear

"Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution. Peter has to ask that because everything else he’s saying about what it means to be Christian might lead us to do otherwise.” -Joseph Lear

“Coming to Him, a living stone – rejected by men but chosen and valuable to God – you yourselves, as living stones, are being built into a spiritual house for a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ." 1 Peter 2:4-5

“For those he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, so that he would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.” Romans 8:29

"You yourselves, as living stones, are being built into a spiritual house for a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ." 1 Peter 2:5

“Don’t you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you,” 1 Corinthians 6:19

“Yours's isn’t a Kingdom of concrete or mud.
Yours is a Kingdom of Spirit and Blood.”
Jon Guerra, Someone Like Jesus

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:19-21

"But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy." 1 Peter 2:9-10

“He is good, and He is God
What I earned, it's not what I got
And He is just yet also kind
What I deserve, it's not what I find
What more can I say about Him? My God is love.”
Chris Renzema, God Is Love

“I want to live in such a way that would make no sense if Jesus Christ had not risen from the dead.” Dr. Stanley Hauerwas

Spiritual Practice:

1. We Have been Chosen by God

2. We Have Priestly Duties

“Like an explosion of a bomb in a small room, the host [of a TV show] is interrupted with the news of ten-year-olds being shot execution-style by fellow gang members who were not much older. Belief in some kind of goodness quickly falls on deaf ears. Any theory of ethics that assumes humans are somehow inherently good and, if they are simply educated, will begin to behave in morally decent ways is about as believable as the Easter bunny—a great story but it belongs to a previous stage of development.” - Scot Mcknight

“Spirit driven process of forming the inner world of the human self in such a way that it becomes like the inner being of Christ himself.” - Dallas Willard

“Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” - 1 Peter 1:13

“Live for the future.” - Scot McKnight

“As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, 15 but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16 since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” - 1 Peter 1:14-16

17 And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, 18 knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. 20 He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you 21 who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God. - 1 Peter 17-21

22 Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, - 1 Peter 1:22

“The church today is suffering a fellowship crisis.… In a world of big, impersonal institutions, the church often looks like just another big, impersonal institution.… One seldom finds… that winsome intimacy among people where masks are dropped, honesty prevails, and that sense of communication and community beyond the human abounds—where there is literally the fellowship of and in the Holy Spirit.” - Howard Snyder

23 since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God; 24 for “All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, 25 but the word of the Lord remains forever.” And this word is the good news that was preached to you.

2 1 So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. 2 Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation— 3 if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good. –1 Peter 1:23-2:3

A Gospel of Self-Preservation

Often, Salvation is articulated this way: I have a sin problem, and I am on the road to damnation, but Jesus died for my sins, so now I have a chance to go to heaven.

First Peter is a is a letter written to a hurting and scattered church attempting to embody a Christian Presence in a hostile world. Emphasizing the themes of holiness, hope, and suffering in the salvation Jesus offers.

Peter’s idea of salvation is a life of (1) holy community, (2) hopeful presence, (3) joyful suffering, and (4) good news for the world.

To Exiles & Strangers.

Peter wrote this letter approximately thirty years after the death and resurrection of Jesus. By this time Peter is writing to a church that had been scattered all over the Roman empire.

“Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To God’s elect, exiles scattered throughout the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia…” – 1 Peter 1:1

Peter identifies his audience as exiles, and later as “strangers and exiles” in chapter 2.

Peter's essential message is to live in faith amid suffering by clinging to God's salvation– as a life of holy communion.

Holy Community.

“...[to the exiles] who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to be obedient to Jesus Christ and sprinkled with his blood: Grace and peace be yours in abundance.” –1 Peter 1:1-2

(1) The foreknowledge of the Father, (2) the sanctifying work of the Spirit, (3)Obedience to the Son.

To be saved is to be invited into life with the holy community called Trinity.

The Foreknowledge of the Father.
From the beginning of time, God has chosen that the Church would be his Holy people.

The Bible does not offer a neat and tidy picture of God’s decision-making.

When God’s foreknowledge is mentioned, it is almost exclusively applied to communities of people, not individuals.

Southern Paraphrase–“Ya’ll were chosen according to God’s foreknowledge.”

Peter is writing to Gentiles using Old Testament metaphors and language to let them know God has always planned to adopt them into his one large, multi-ethnic family.

The Shaping of the Spirit.

Sanctification is the act of making something or someone holy.

Like the Creation story, the Spirit hovers over the chaos of the human heart, bringing about a new creation and order.

The Sacrifice of the Son.

What is explicitly accomplished through the death of Jesus is a theological concept called atonement.

“The action of God in the cross of Christ has elicited various theories because the New Testament speaks about it in various ways…it is precisely because of the rich variety of the biblical testimony that a number of interpretive “theories” and “models” have grown up around the cross.”– Fleming Rutledge.

These various models of understanding Jesus’ sacrifice are known as “atonement theories.”

Random Theory: Humanity is held hostage by our sin and Satan, Jesus pays that ransom that we might be free.

Satisfaction Theory: Human sin, injustice, and evil have broken the relationship between God and humanity. The only way to mend that relationship is through some sort of restitution– which Jesus satisfies.

Substitution Theory: Humanity has earned God's punishment and wrath by sinning. But Jesus substitutes himself for us, taking on God's full wrath for humanity and giving us the opportunity for a relationship with God.

Victory Theory: When humanity sinned, we were taken captive by sin, satan, and death; Jesus’ life and ministry were a campaign against these dark powers, but his death and resurrection were the decisive victories.

“The work of Christ is first and foremost a victory over the powers which hold mankind in bondage: sin, death, and the devil.” – Gustaf Aulen

What is accomplished by Jesus’ sacrifices is victorious, liberating, and cleansing– by His blood poured out for us that we are saved.

Saved into Holy Community.

The place to begin with salvation is not that it is a “get-out-of-hell-free-card” but that it is invitation to life with the community of God– Holy Community- with a foreknowledge Father, a shaping Spirit, and sacrificing savior .

And the theme that quickly emerges throughout Peter's letter is not just community but a holy community.

In verse 16, Peter quotes Leviticus 11 – “Be holy, because I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:16).

In chapter 2, verse 5 Peter calls the people of God “a holy priesthood” (1 Peter 2:5)

“‘Holiness’: being set apart for God in every part and at every level.” – NT Wright

The holiness of salvation is a wholehearted devotion to God– an undivided and fully integrated life.

Hopeful Presence.

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.” –1 Peter 1:3–5.

…because we are new creatures.

“...truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.” – John 3:3.

This is a theological concept called regeneration; the renewal, healing, and restoration of all that has gone wrong in our lives and our bodies.

…because death has been defeated.

At the heart of the Christian faith is one central claim– Christ was dead, but now he is alive.

“The 'resurrection of Jesus.. reveals the reign of God as the ultimate shaper of reality, and the ultimate power in the universe.” –J. Dermy Weaver

…because our future is secure.

What God accomplishes in Jesus isn’t just for individuals to be transformed; God is at work healing and renewing the whole world.

That future is being safely kept out of sign in God's space, Heaven, until it is time for it to be set loose in our space, Earth.

A day is coming in which our reality will be thoroughly permeated with God’s presence: his love, mercy, creativity, and justice.

Joyful Suffering.

In all this, you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 7 These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9 for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls. –1 Peter 1:6–10.

Peter isn’t calling for a violent revolt—he is infusing their present circumstances with dignity, love, and hope.

Genuine faith.

He then transitions to helping the exiled believers to understand that their suffering is being redeemed.

“My dear friends…continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose” – Philippians 2:12-13

Active Spirituality is when you and I apply ourselves to Jesus's practices– it is the stuff we do.

Passive spirituality is what God is doing; it is where he acts in us “to fulfill his good purposes” through the circumstances of life.

Good News for the World.

Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, 11 trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of the Messiah and the glories that would follow. 12 It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things. –1 Peter 1:10–12.

Peter is explaining that all those who came before saw, in part, what his audience now sees in full.

The salvation offered in Jesus is good news for the whole world.

This is the dizzying grandeur of what God is doing through Jesus—what he has done for each of us, he is planning to do for the whole world.

“The first epistle of Peter speaks of this new preaching as “the things which have now been announced to you by those who preached the good news to you … things into which angels long to look” (1 Pet. 1:12). The word “now” is often used in the Epistles to indicate the brand-new state of being that exists as a result of Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection…The cross, incomparably vindicated by the resurrection, is the novum[new thing], the new factor in human experience, the definitive and world-changing act of God that makes the New Testament proclamation unique in all the world.”- Fleming Rutledge

“Salvation is not an event — it is a life. It is not just forgiveness and a “ticket to heaven” — it is an interactive life with God, participating now in what Jesus is doing on earth.” – Dallas Willard

Salvation is more than self-preservation; it is an invitation to a life of holy community, hopeful presence, joyful suffering, and good news for the world.