“And remember that the heavenly Father to whom you pray has no favorites. He will judge or reward you according to what you do. So you must live in reverent fear of him during your time here as ‘temporary residents.’ For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God. God chose him as your ransom long before the world began, but now in these last days he has been revealed for your sake.”
Peter’s ministry focused on Jewish Christians, and one of his main messages to the church was, “Being Jewish won’t save you.” Jesus invited anyone from any nation and ethnic group to participate in his salvation. The Holy Spirit entered Jews and Gentiles alike. Peter himself encountered this first-hand in Acts 10, and it changed his perspective on the entire Gospel message. In today’s passage, Peter is reminding his readers that God doesn’t favor one people group over another. The fruit of our lives will either flow from the Holy Spirit or it won’t. You can’t cheat God or trick him into thinking you are living for him when you’re not.
Now before we head into works-based thinking that makes us try to be “good enough” to earn God’s favor, Peter reminds us that God is the one who set up our only system for success. Jesus’ death on the cross paid off the one who was holding humanity hostage: Satan. And here in these last days, the fullness of God’s plan through Jesus has been revealed. As we discussed a couple of days ago, the full revelation of the Messiah’s identity was something the world could only wonder about before Jesus came. We now understand the plan, we know the mission, and we are called as the church to bring the kingdom of God into its fullness.
Here’s your freedom for today: you don’t have to save yourself. In fact, you couldn’t even if you wanted to. God has paid your ransom, and he’s finishing the rescue mission as we speak. The only way out is to follow him. To step into the life-stream of his Spirit and let it carry you away from the clutches of the enemy. So let go. Don’t cling to anything. Stop trying to be good enough, it won’t get you anywhere. Dwell in God’s presence and his kingdom today, you just might find it’s exactly where you belong.