Lesson One

OVERVIEW

If you belonged to the cult of Isis in the first century AD, your neighbors probably would not have bothered you. And if they had bothered you, another Isis worshipper two thousand miles away would not have written to you about your troubles. The idea of being one body, one church, was unknown in paganism. As you read Peter's letter, try to imagine how you would have felt to receive it from the chief apostle in faraway Rome.

This overview asks you to read 1 Peter several times. Try to read it as you would approach a letter to yourself, not stopping to wrestle with individual phrases, but looking for the overall message. One reading should take an average reader about half an hour; if you don't think you are an average reader, you might try to read the letter just once or plan extra time. But even if you are "average," this may well be the most time-consuming lesson of your study. Don't get discouraged; just try to plan your time and do as much as you can. You can always return for a more thorough overview when you study 1 Peter again in a later year.

First impressions

1. Read Peter's letter at least once in one sitting, so that you can see it as a whole. You may want to read it again in another translation. Try reading parts of it aloud. Get a general impression.

2. Describe the mood (tone, emotion) of the letter. In other words, what seem to be Peter's attitudes or feelings toward his readers and toward his subject matter? (Is Peter formal, intimate, angry, joyful ...?) If you think the mood changes anywhere, note where and how it changes.

________________________________________

________________________________________

3. Think about what Peter says and how he says it. How would you describe his style? (For instance, is he writing a story, personal news, a sermon ...? Is he trying to teach doctrine, urge people to act on something, encourage, rebuke, convince ...?) ________________________________________ ________________________________________

4. Repetition is a key to the ideas a writer considers most important. What words or phrases occur over and over? ________________________________________ ________________________________________

For Further Study:

As you study 1 Peter in more depth, you may notice repetition or other general impressions that you overlooked on your first reading. If you like, you can come back to this lesson to write down what you notice for future reference.

Broad outline

If your impression of 1 Peter is vague after one reading, a broad outline can help sharpen it.

5. Reread the letter, preferably in a different translation if you have read it only once so far. (A different version can help you notice new things and can make a confusing passage clearer.) This time, think of a short phrase or sentence that can serve as a title for each paragraph. It may help you to include key words from the paragraph. Write your title below. (There is no one right answer; the first title is given as an example. Your Bible's paragraph divisions may differ, so feel free to alter those given here.)

1:1-2 Apostle to Exiles ________ ________________________________________

1:3-12__________________________________ ________________________________________

1:13-21__________________________________ ________________________________________

1:22-25_________________________________ ________________________________________

2:1-3____________________________________ ________________________________________

2:4-10___________________________________ ________________________________________

2:11-12__________________________________ ________________________________________

2:13-17__________________________________ ________________________________________

2:18-25_________________________________ ________________________________________

3:1-7____________________________________ ________________________________________

3:8-12__________________________________ ________________________________________

3:13-17__________________________________ ________________________________________

3:18-22_________________________________ ________________________________________

4:1-6___________________________________ ________________________________________

4:7-11___________________________________ ________________________________________

4:12-19__________________________________ ________________________________________

5:1-4___________________________________ ________________________________________

5:5-7___________________________________ ________________________________________

5:8-9___________________________________ ________________________________________

5:10-11__________________________________ ________________________________________

5:12-14__________________________________

Theme/purpose

People usually write letters in response to a particular situation in their own or their readers' lives.

They normally have reasons for choosing the topics they cover in their letters. It is often not possible to reconstruct exactly what needs occasioned a letter, but the more we can reconstruct, the better we will understand the writer's message.

Our own purpose for studying the letter will often differ from its original purpose, but how we understand and apply a writer's words should be influenced by how he and the Holy Spirit meant them to be understood and applied in the first century.

6. In 5:12, Peter tells why he wrote this letter. He says he is "encouraging" (nasb: "exhorting") them to do some things and "testifying" that they might believe some things. In one sentence each, summarize what you think Peter wants his readers to believe and do. Take the whole letter into account.

believe__________________________________ _________________________________________

do ______________________________________ _________________________________________

7. What seems to be the main theme or themes of Peter's letter? (Repeated and other important words may help here. You may also want to look for key verses.) _________________________________________ _________________________________________

8. If you have not already done so, read the historical background in the background section starting on page 9. If you feel that additional background information would help you to better interpret Peter's letter, you might write down your questions here. Some of your questions may be answered later in this study guide. The sources in the Study Aids may help you answer others.

9. In your first readings of 1 Peter, you may have come across concepts you'd like clarified or questions you'd like answered as you go deeper into this study. While your thoughts are still fresh, you may want to jot down your questions here to serve as personal objectives for your investigation of this letter.

10. Does any discovery from your first readings of 1 Peter encourage you in your current situation? If so, write down this discovery, along with any implications it has for the way you approach life. If you plan to do anything in response — such as pray, talk to someone, begin a habit, or whatever — you might write down what you plan to do. _________________________________________ _________________________________________

For the group

The beginning of a new study is a good time to lay a foundation for honest sharing of ideas, for getting comfortable with each other, and for encouraging a sense of common purpose. One way to establish common ground is to talk about what each group member hopes to get out of your group — out of your study of 1 Peter, and out of any prayer, singing, sharing, service, outreach, or anything else you might do together. You could take about fifteen minutes at the beginning of your meeting to give each person a chance to share his or her vision for the group. If you have someone write down each member's hopes and expectations, then you can look back at these goals later to see if they are being met.

After that, you might approach your overview like this:

First impressions of the book (questions 1–4) — 10 minutes

Outline (question 5) — 5 minutes

Themes and goals (questions 6–7) — 10 minutes

Group members' questions (questions 8–9) — 5 minutes

Examples of how you might apply something in 1 Peter to yourselves (for members who are less familiar with doing this) — 10 minutes

Don't feel you must follow this structure or its time allotments rigidly; it is just a model for how to go about structuring a discussion. Also, be aware that some people are better than others at outlining, seeing themes, and so on. Some people are better at close analysis of a verse, or at seeing how a Scripture applies to their lives. Give thanks for each other's strengths, and don't be embarrassed to give and request help.

Study Skill — Outlining

In question 5, you gave titles to each paragraph of Peter's letter. In questions 6 and 7 you began to summarize Peter's overall message and purpose. These are good first steps toward making up your own outline of the letter.

If you think you might want to outline 1 Peter, you could take time now to group together any paragraphs in question 5 that seem to be connected. For example, you could draw a bracket around 2:13–3:7 because those three paragraphs begin with a repeated word of command.

An outline of 1 Peter might begin like this:

I. [The purpose, or overall message, of 1 Peter]

A. Greetings — the Christian's Identity 1:1-2)

1. [any supporting details you want to include]

2. [another supporting detail] ...

B. Praise to God for a Living Hope (1:3-12) 1. 2. ...

C. [the main idea of 1:13–2:3] ...

You might prefer to outline the whole book at once after you have studied it in depth. Still, sometimes a first sketch (titles for the main sections — the "A's" and "B's" above) at the beginning helps you see the overall train of thought in the book.

Study Skill — Application

The last step of Bible study is asking yourself, "What difference should this passage make in my life? How should it make me want to think or act?" Application will require time, thought, prayer, and perhaps even discussion with another person. You may find it more productive to concentrate on one specific application, giving it careful thought and prayer, than to list several potential applications without really reflecting on them or committing yourself to them. One step actually taken is more important than many steps supported only by good intentions!