Daily Devotions
Our Identity in Christ Jesus
Reading for October 21st: Mark 14
Weekly reading for October 18-24: 1 Peter 1-5
Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, according to the foreknowledge of God the Father...
1 Peter 1:1-2
I am a child of the eighties, and when I was in high school there were all different kinds of groups: jocks, nerds, skaters, pot-heads, valley girls, rockers, and preppies. (I was a band geek.) These groups exercised great power on how people in the group would dress, talk, behave, and even walk down the hallways at school. This is because your identity is one of the most important things about you. There is nothing that will affect your conduct more than how you see yourself.
What is our identity in Christ? How did Peter describe us at the beginning of this letter?
1. We are exiles. We are in a world that is not our home. We are rejected and marginalized. We are mocked and made fun of. We don't belong here (1 Peter 1:17; 2:4, 11; 3:14; 4:4; 5:13).
2. We are elect exiles. While we've been rejected by men, we are chosen and precious to God (1 Peter 2:4). While we have no place here, there is a home where we belong. There's a place where we're valued, loved, and accepted.
3. We have a Father who has chosen us. He gave his only Son to purchase us (1 Peter 1:18). We don't need man's approval of our dress, our speech, or our actions (1 Peter 3:3-4; 4:2). We are secure in who we are. He has given us all the validation we need. Our Father is the God of all grace and has called us to eternal glory (1 Peter 5:10).
Father, thank you for choosing us (though we are nothing). Help us to be secure in your love for us. Give us courage to not conform to this world but to be transformed by the knowledge of the One who has given us our identity.
