Journal: Southeastern Theological Review
Volume: STR 03:2 (Winter 2012)
Article: Be Holy: A Sermon on 1 Pet. 1:13–21
Author: J. D. Greear

STR 3:2 (Winter 2012) p. 239

Be Holy: A Sermon on 1 Pet. 1:13–21

J.D. Greear

Pastor, The Summit Church (Durham, North Carolina)

Introduction

Today we are going to encounter a command that is both baffling and overwhelming. It is a command that many Christians misinterpret and misapply, the command: “be holy.”

We usually have the wrong idea of holiness: we think of holiness as an aloof other-worldliness that is both impossible to maintain and irrelevant to daily living even if we could attain it. That command, however, is one of the most important, and most joy-inducing, commands to obey in the entire Bible. Peter’s command is given in the context of his presentation of us, the church, as “aliens” in the world. Only by understanding what it means to be an alien will we ever understand what it means to “be holy.”

When people live in a country that is not their own, they can assume one of several identities.1 The first is that of an immigrant. As an immigrant, they try to become citizens of their host country, even though it is not their original home. Many Christians view the world this way. They may understand that they are citizens of heaven, but for all practical purposes, they live as citizens of the world. This is why they are so concerned with how everything is turning out for them down here. They leverage their resources to make a comfortable life down here. They fret over their reputation among others down here. They worry about what they will miss down here. Peter tells us, “No! You are not immigrants in this world!”

A second attitude someone can take is that of a tourist. Tourists never really get involved. After all, they are just passing through. They do not bother to learn the local language or eat any of the local food. They stick with their group, stay in Western hotels, and keep their eyes peeled for the closest Starbucks. Tourists rarely go to other countries to engage the culture, but rather to observe it from a safe distance. Christians fall prey to this attitude as well. They stay sequestered in their Christian ghettos, never engaging the world. They are just trying to pass through, not engaging the world but waiting until the rapture comes to take them home again. But Peter tells us that a tourist attitude is wrong too.

The third possible attitude—and the one that Peter urges us to adopt in this letter—is that of an exile: “I urge you as sojourners and exiles [one can render

STR 3:2 (Winter 2012) p. 240

this Greek term as “aliens”]” (1 Pet. 2:11 ESV). Exiles do not choos...