Yesterday we covered 1 Peter 1:22 and the admonishment “to love one another deeply from the heart.” As you can see, 1:23 is not even a new sentence but Peter’s explanation of why we can “love one another deeply from the heart.” And the reason he gives is that we “have been born again” (SAVED) “not of perishable seed but of imperishable” (GOD’S SALVATION IS PERMANENT AND TRANSFORMATIVE) “through the living and abiding word of God” (THE WHOLE BIBLE BUT ESPECIALLY THE SAVING MESSAGE OF THE GOSPEL). The context of all this is that Peter is writing to both Jews and Gentiles who have gotten saved out of completely different backgrounds. And these two people groups were not naturally friends (ie: they were enemies) or even used to being around each other before they got saved. So, how are people who are natural enemies, who have a lot of bad history, supposed to get along in the church? Remember, they did not have the option of simply going to another church down the street or across town! The answer is that all of them have been changed by the radical love of Christ and are now to demonstrate that same radical love to one another. Friend, is the gospel transforming you into a radical lover of others, even those who are different from you, even those who are “enemies”?

PASSAGE: 1 Peter 1:23 "...since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God…"

PAUSE: Jesus challenged Nicodemus that he must be born again (John 3:1-15). Peter now encourages all of us who have been born again. Spiritual birth leads to a transformation in how we interact, relate, and communicate with others.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, I thank you that I have been born again. I desire to live a different, transformed life that walks with you by loving others like you.