1 Peter An Introduction And Study Guide

A hope-filled expository guide to an epistle written to Christians in a society like ours. A must-read for Christians under cultural pressure. The book of 1 Peter could have been written for our times-a time of antagonism toward biblical ethics, and the marginalization of biblical Christians. Into that culture-our culture-Peter speaks of hope and offers joy as he points believers home to heaven. Juan Sanchez brings his experience of ministry in the US and Latin America, and his pastoral wisdom and insight, to this wonderful epistle-an epistle that every Christian needs to treasure today.

The New Testament writing known as First Peter was probably written at the end of the 1st century CE; it is addressed to 'resident aliens' who live as colonial subjects in the Roman Province of Asia Minor. They are portrayed as a marginalized group who experience harassment and suffering. This letter is ascribed to the apostle Peter but was probably not written by him. It is a rhetorical communication sent from Christians in the imperial centre in Rome (camouflaged as Babylon), an authoritative letter of advice and admonition to good conduct and subordination in the sphere of colonial provincial life. 1 Peter is a religious document written a long time ago and in a culture and world that is quite different from our own. However, as a biblical book it is a part of Christianity's sacred Scriptures. This guide to the letter keeps both of these areas, the cultural-social and the ethical-religious, in mind. It offers help for understanding the letter as both a document of the 1st century and as sacred Scripture that speaks about the religious forces that have shaped Christianity and Western culture. In short, this guide seeks to enable readers to read 'against the grain'.

In 1 Peter, explains Wayne Grudem, readers are encouraged to grow in their trust in God and their obedience to him throughout their lives, but especially when they suffer. "Here is a brief and very clear summary both of the consolations and instructions needful for the encouragement and direction of a Christian in his journey to Heaven, elevating his thoughts and desires to that happiness, and strengthening him against all opposition in the way, both that of corruption within, and temptations and afflictions from without," says Archbishop Robert Leighton in the introduction. The Tyndale New Testament Commentaries have long been a trusted resource for Bible study. Written by some of the world's most distinguished evangelical scholars, these twenty volumes offer clear, reliable, and relevant explanations of every book in the New Testament. These Tyndale volumes are designed to help readers understand what the Bible actually says and what it means. The introduction to each volume gives a concise but thorough description of the authorship, date, and historical background of the biblical book under consideration. The commentary itself examines the text section by section, drawing out its main themes. It also comments on individual verses and deals with problems of interpretation. The aim throughout is to get at the true meaning of the Bible and to make its message plain to readers today. The original, unrevised text of this volume has been completely retypeset and printed in a larger, more attractive format with the new cover design for the series.

The first volume in Travis B. Williams' and David G. Horrell's magisterial ICC commentary on first Peter. Williams and Horrell bring together all the relevant aids to exegesis - linguistic, textual, archaeological, historical, literary, and theological - to help the reader understand the letter. This first volume presents introductory maps, and a comprehensive introduction covering aspects such as genre, canonicity, early citations of the letter, and its theology and influence. A particular feature of the introduction is that each section is preceded by an initial bibliography. The exegesis also provides for each passage sections on bibliography, text-criticism, literary introduction, detailed exegesis, and overall summary. Following the introduction volume 1 provides commentary up to 2.10, the conclusion of the first major section of the letter.

This Guide surveys the more important historical, socio-cultural, theological, and literary factors we must grapple with in understanding the two letters of Jude and Second Peter, between which there are very strong similarities. It appears that the letter of Jude was almost entirely 'plagiarized' by the letter of Second Peter. George Aichele's main approach is the method of semiotics, examining signifying mechanisms in each of the texts both independently and when they are read together. In both of the letters, Jesus Christ is called the 'master', with a Greek word that means 'slave-owner', and the authors of both books refer to themselves and other Christians as the slaves of Christ. Furthermore, both writings report situations of paranoid fear within Christian communities of their time as they picture heretical infiltrators who threaten to pervert and perhaps even destroy the community. In addition to this, in an adventurous excursion, the letter of Jude is read intertextually with the classic science fiction/horror film, Invasion of the Body Snatchers (Siegel 1956), in order to explore the dynamics of paranoia.

Our inheritance through Christ is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading. In 1 Peter, a man of faith and flaws and eyewitness to the life of Christ challenges us to look beyond our current circumstances to a future inheritance. He shares his concerns on big picture issues for the early church, describes believers' true identity in Christ, and ultimately helps readers discover what it means to experience the Living Hope they have in Christ. Key themes of humility, submission, and identity in Christ guide the study of 1 Peter as participants are challenged to read the book in its entirety each week. Teaching videos are key to the understanding of this study. (9 sessions) Features: Personal study segments to complete between group sessions 9-session study with 8 weeks of homework Verse-by-verse approach to complete a book study Teaching videos that build upon and tie together the personal study available for purchase or rent (30 to 35 minutes per session) Benefits Expand your understanding of 1 Peter for personal spiritual growth by reading the book in its entirety throughout each week of study Follow a verse-by-verse approach to complete a book study Discover the gospel of Christ as learners seek to conform fully to the Scriptures Dig deeper into Scripture individually and alongside other women--both those new to Bible study and those more familiar with Scriptures--with this widely-applicable study Author: Jen Wilkin is a writer, teacher, and blogger at JenWilkin.net. She is the managing editor of The Village Church blog and leads the Flower Mound Women's Bible Study, an interdenominational Bible study with about 700 members representing 68 different churches. She earned a B.A. in English and a Master of Business Administration from Texas A&M. Jen wrote Women of the Word: How to Study the Bible with Both Our Hearts and Our Minds and has a 9-week DVD Bible study on The Sermon on the Mount.Jen grew up in Texas and came to saving faith in elementary school. Her childhood was marked by time spent in seven different denominations - a range of experience that left her with the conviction that knowing the Word was the only sure means of discerning truth from error. Jen's passion is to see women become articulate and committed followers of Christ, with a clear understanding of why they believe what they believe and grounded in the Word of God. She sees women as most frequently appealed to through their emotions. Because of that, she advocates for women to have Bible literacy, love God with their minds, and have their voices and giftings fully leveraged in the church.

Scholarly study of Samuel continues to wrestle with how we interpret this pivotal text. Even such basic matters as the question of what kind of literature it is remain unresolved while older questions such as the nature of its text and sources are debated anew in the light of material from Qumran and of current approaches to Hebrew narrative. Recognizing the importance of questions such as these, David Firth explores and introduces fresh ways of reading Samuel as a unified and yet complex text, which displays high levels both of literary artistry and of theological commitment. Although some stories in the books of Samuel are well known, and in the case of David and Goliath even proverbial, much of the content of these books is strange to modern readers. It is a story about a woman wanting a child, for example, that relates the beginnings of monarchy within Israel. Even the question of the monarchy is problematic, for we are introduced to not one royal family but two-those of Saul and David. David is ultimately shown to be the king chosen by God, yet by the end of the book he is only just managing to hold on to the kingdom as it is nearly torn from him by rivalries within his family. These arresting stories are perplexing, for Samuel's writers seldom tell us how to read and interpret them. Firth presents these complex and fascinating stories as part of a bigger picture, enabling students to chart their way through the literary and historical issues of the Samuel narrative. Firth addresses issues of historicity, sources, date and authorship, as well as -- crucially -- appreciating the text as a literary whole.