A People With a Purpose – I Pet. 2:1-12

Are you familiar with the concept behind Alcoholics Anonymous? If not, it's pretty simple. The typical alcoholic trying to change his ways is continuously tempted to drink again. AA offers a variety of support and resources to prevent being pulled back into the world of booze, including teaching alcoholics how to move forward in sobriety. Why? because the best antidote to being dragged backward is to keep moving forward.

Peter offers a similar mindset in his first Epistle to the scattered Jewish believers. One of the purposes of this letter is to encourage them to not be pulled back into the old life of Jewish legalism. In the 1st part of chapter 1 he reminds his readers of what they truly have by faith in Jesus. He then reminds them to be afraid of those things that could pull them back, in hopes they will avoid such things. Now they need a way to keep moving forward. The explanation begins in chapter 2 with a simple premise: we Christians are a people with a purpose.