To start the year, we are studying Peter’s first letter by beginning with I Peter 1:1-2. In each section, we will see how he describes the people of God. In his greeting, Peter calls Christians “elect exiles,” which is a curious expression that mixes something positive (elect, chosen, selected) with something negative (exiles, driven out, rejected). As it turns out, God’s election makes his people exiles in this world, and Peter reminds us that it is our call to live our lives as those who are in the world but not of the world.
When Peter explained what happened at Cornelius‘s house, the Jewish Christians were amazed that God had given salvation also to non-Jews!
Because of a general persecution in Jerusalem, the believers were scattered and took the gospel to Judea and Samaria, where many believed in Christ.
In John 13:18-38, we pick up the conversation between Jesus and his disciples over dinner. After he had washed their feet, he announced that...