Dear Congregation

I have spent the last three days in the marvelous metropolis of Lubbock, TX. I was there as a speaker for a church planter’s conference and I enjoyed my time very much. I met church planters from all over Texas (mostly West Texas) and was shown the sort of grace and hospitality that you would expect from such fine folk. I even got invited on a dove hunt which has to be the most dramatically mismatched battle in all the world. I mean, is there anything in all creation as meek and unthreatening as a dove? Well Mr Dove, say hello to a shotgun. Now those are the kinds of odds I like in a hunt.

The people who arranged the conference asked me to speak on the first two chapters of 1st Peter. I couldn’t get past the opening line without being wrecked by the grace of God.

Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ … - 1 Pe 1:1a (ESV)

There is so much grace on display in how Peter describes (and defines) himself. Peter was an old man by the time he wrote this, and as he looked back at his life and thought of what defines him, he called himself “Peter,” a name given to him by Jesus, and he described himself as an apostle (a sent messenger) of Jesus Christ. Of all of the things that Peter could have referred to himself as, his knowledge of grace allows him to describe himself as an apostle.

He didn’t go with Peter, the denier of Jesus Christ, though that could have fit. He didn’t lead with Peter, the abandoner of Jesus Christ when things got tough, though that would be fair. He didnn’t define himself as Peter, the disappointment to Jesus Christ, though I am sure that he felt that on many occasions.

No, he led in humble confidence with …

Peter … An apostle … A sent messenger of Jesus. 

Friends, in Christ, we are not defined by our worst moments. 

I am such a weak hypocrite most days. And yet, I am Ross … beloved Son of God, justified brother of Christ, a messenger of the gospel of the Kingdom. It is almost too much to contemplate. 

But look too at how Peter described the churches that would receive his letter.

… To those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion … - 1 Pe 1:1b

Now again, this letter was written to people who could have been described in a number of ways. Peter had heard reports that the churches in Asia Minor were struggling to live in holiness and hope as persecution started to come against them. He could have described them as cowards, or as rebellious sinners, but Peter knows that in the power of the gospel those labels wouldn’t begin to come close to describing them as they really were.

They were ELECT EXILES. 

They were God’s elect, secure in His choosing, keeping, and sanctifying sovereignty. This knowledge ought to have led them to a humble freedom and joy. They were called to live as exiles, and as such they shouldn’t have been surprised by suffering and opposition and rejection. You see, the people of God were never supposed to fit in, and so there was no warrant for concern when they stood out. 

Friends, this is still true of the church today. This is who we are called to be … ELECT EXILES … and this knowledge should make us the most hopeful, humble and happy people on the planet. We should be so secure in the strength of God’s salvation for us that we are prepared to be rejected by the world around us. I can’t help but think that the church experiences an identity crisis through the fact that we switch these two things around. We try desperately to find our security and identity in society, and so feel really insecure in our salvation as a result.

So, brothers and sisters, let us remember who we are! We are a small gathering of God’s beloved chosen, and as a result of the freedom that comes from knowing that and being secure in that, we are free to exist as exiles in a place where we might well have made ourselves too much at home. 

Let’s keep going.

The music this week has to be from Counting Crows as their debut album, August and Everything After, was released on this day 30 years ago. You can find a song by song review of the album, that I wrote, here.

Counting Crows - Round Here (Official Music Video)

Press on.
Ross