IN the first twelve verses of his letter the apostle Peter has laid out for us the wonder, glory and blessings poured out on all those who have been given grace to put their whole trust in Jesus as their sin-bearer and Saviour. He tells us there that we have been given new birth into a living hope. We are told that it is all according to the amazing mercy of God. We are told that this hope is ever enduring, for it is impossible for it to fade or be reduced in any way. He has told us that this wonderful unimaginable hope is ours through the amazing love and power of God, who made it all possible in the sacrifice of Jesus, his only begotten Son. Now Peter begins to call us to understand and appreciate what this salvation means and requires for us who are recipients of this grace. Peter gives a title to this by saying that as God is holy, we his saved children must be holy, as God is holy, also.

Salvation, if it is real in our lives and experience, inevitably produces change in our thinking and living. It is impossible for the redeemed believer to live in the same way as it was before this salvation was given. If such a change is not seen, then this raises a serious question as to the validity of our being saved from sin and death. The question is as to how this change in living is brought about.

The answer is that we have been born again, and in our new self we have been created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness (Ephesians 4: 24). This new self was not living before conversion, and only our fallen sinful corrupt self, called the flesh in the New Testament, made up our life. Because of this we lived for this world and the desires of our flesh. Conversion brings about a massive change. Being born again we have had returned to us the holy life which was destroyed when Adam sinned. The first manifestation of the death sentence on all the progeny of Adam was this death, which left sinful humanity separated from God, and without the life of God in the soul. Through Christ, and by faith in him, we are raised to new life, where this holy life of the soul is reborn, and it becomes the dominant life within the believer. It is because of this that if conversion is genuine, then a change in living is inevitable. Paul opens this up for us in the sixth chapter of Romans. However while we continue life in this sinful world, the flesh still exists, and our new life has to be expressed through our body. The sinful flesh is not changed, it is we who have been changed by this resurrection of new life in the soul. So in this earthly life there will always be conflict between the old nature and the new. This is why Peter calls us to engage in the action of living holy lives to the glory of God.

Peter tells us we must prepare our minds for action. Living holy lives requires action on our part, and this action commences in the mind and in our thinking. This means we need to appreciate the wonder of the new experience of holy life within us, learn all that it means in diligent learning from God's holy word, and by this, control the thinking and desires of our sinful nature, which Satan is busily seeking to stimulate. Temptation is our constant affliction as people of new birth. Before new birth, Satan was content to leave us to our own devices of the flesh, which he knew we would actively follow. Now because we have been delivered from his dominion and authority, and have this new life from God in our souls, he is angry and so attacks us in his rage, and never will leave us alone while this life goes on.

Paul, when he commence his call to holiness in Romans 12: 1-2, tells us that it is our reasonable service as redeemed children of God to present our bodies as living sacrifices to God, and goes on to tell us how to do this, which is by the renewing of our minds. This means our thinking must always and continually be being renewed by the new life in the love of God which we have been born into. It is by this means we are enabled to be self-controlled, that is control ourselves by living in the atmosphere of heaven, and mortifying the atmosphere of the flesh.

How are we to be able to do this? The answer to this question can be found in Romans 8 where we are told to live according to the Spirit and so have our minds set on what the Spirit desires. Peter's direction in the verses before us in this sermon calls us to a somewhat different method of self-control. This does not mean he is contradicting Paul but simply telling us another powerful avenue for being holy.

Peter tells us to set our minds and our thinking and our contemplation massively and continually on heaven. This is expressed in the words 'set your hope fully on the grace to be given to you when Jesus Christ is revealed'. The New Testament church lived under the conviction that Jesus would return in their life time. The return of Jesus, where he would end this world of sin, and set up his everlasting kingdom, was very real in their thinking. This return of Jesus is what Peter is referring to in the words 'when Jesus Christ is revealed'. Peter tells us here that if we are to be holy, and live self-controlled lives, then we must concentrate our minds and aspirations on the promise of Christ's return, because of the grace to be given to us at that time. He speaks of setting our hope fully on this grace. In these words Peter is calling us to engage in diligent thinking upon the hope of heaven, where we will live with Jesus in his glory for ever.

Jesus also called his disciples to such diligent thinking in his sermon to them on the mount. This is found in Matthew 6: 19-21. In these verses Jesus calls his disciples to store up treasure in heaven, which is glorious and lasting, and not to look for treasure on earth which is always fading with corruption. Jesus presses this home by the truth that where we seek treasure, that is our joys and blessings, that is where our hearts are centred and concentrating on. So where our heart is centred will determine the direction of our living. If we would live a holy, Christ centred life, our hearts must be concentrating of the grace to be given us in heaven where Jesus lives, and where he has gone before to prepare a place for us.

In times of real suffering in the fellowship of believers from persecution and violent temptation, then the hope of glory becomes very real. When believers are more comfortable in their living, our thinking often becomes more worldly. To overcome this Peter's words are so important. How diligently is our mind set on the grace to be given us in heaven? How deeply do we appreciate the eternal hope of glory? The way to live in the heavenlies will be found in dwelling upon the grace of glory, so let us briefly engage in such thinking now.

The grace of glory is where Jesus is preparing for us an eternal dwelling place. He told his disciples he had to ascend to prepare these mansions for all his saved one, and that he would return to bring his believing people to be with him there. So this grace of glory is where we will see Jesus, and live with him for ever in perfect love and joy.

Further this grace of glory is where there will be an end of sin and evil. This sinful corrupt flesh will remain on this earth, and we will be given a new resurrection body fitted for that holy place. Satan will have no entrance there. The last two chapters of the book of Revelation give a symbolic picture of the glory of heaven, telling us there will be nothing to spoil our complete joy in the presence of God, and that the environment of heaven will be of a richness unimaginable here on earth.

By setting our hope on this blessed place and its holy wonder, we will be filled with the desire to be ready for it, and so live in this life a life of holiness in preparation for that glorious life. Jesus told parables about this in chapter 25 of the Gospel of St. Matthew. In the first, the wise bridesmaids were ready for the heavenly banquet, when our bridegroom, Jesus, returns in his glory. They had filled their lamps with the oil of holiness by the grace given by the Holy Spirit. By this means they were ready when the bridegroom arrived.

Then there is the parable of the talents. Two of the servants were ready when their lord returned. They had done this by increasing the grace given them. The one who had five talents had increased his to five more; and the one who had been given two talents had increased this to four. This paints the picture of believers diligently living in faithful love and service for Jesus, and that they had increased the wealth of holiness, and had lived lives of love and service for Jesus. They were not like the other servant who had buried his one talent and lived a wasted life.

So Peter continues by saying as obedient children do not conform to the godless way of life lived before being blessed with the grace of new life in Christ, known through faith in Jesus as the one who had saved them from their sin, by taking the punishment for their sins in their place, and so setting them free. Instead living a holy life because that is what salvation calls us to. God is holy and so we have been called to holiness. When Adam and Eve lived and had fellowship with God in the garden of Eden, they had no concept of evil, and were perfectly holy. The life we are called to in Christ is a better Eden, which will surpass Adam's joy beyond our conception.