Spiritual inheritance

1 Pe 1:3-5

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

• How did God's mercy cause you to be born again?
  - What was the result of your being born again?
  - What is living hope?
  - Through what means or mechanism were you born again?
  
• What is the object of your living hope?
  - How does Peter describe the permanence of your inheritance?
  - Where is your inheritance now?
  - How does this inheritance reinforce your being alien in this world?
  
• What protects you?
  - What is the goal or outcome of this protection?
  - What role does faith play in this protection?
  - When will you receive your salvation?
  
• How do the following influence your daily life?
  - living hope
  - reserved inheritance in heaven
  - God-powered protection
  - waiting salvation

Harold's Musings:
While I was growing up, I don't think I ever thought of what I would inherit from my parents when they went Home. As they get older, they bring up things that they have left in their will for me or for my sister. Some of the things have only sentimental value. Some have financial value. Others are of undetermined value. Regardless they will be mine or my sister's because our parents have chosen to give them to us. God has planned an inheritance for his children that is of matchless value. It is waiting in heaven just for you as His child. The object of your hope should be waiting in heaven. The inheritance is there, but is that where your hope is anchored?

Chosen Aliens

1 Peter 1:1-2

1:1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who are elect exiles of the dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood: May grace and peace be multiplied to you.

• When do you feel like aliens, scattered throughout the world?
  - How comfortable are you living in the world?
  - How often do you feel out of place in the world because you are a Christian?
  
• What was involved in being chosen/elected?
  - Is this choosing of individuals or a group (like the nation of Israel)?
  - How can God choose/elect individuals and also say He wants all to be saved?
  - Why would God choose a group?
  - How did God's foreknowledge play a role in the choice?
  
• What role did the Spirit have the choice?
  - What does it mean to be sanctified?
  - What were you set apart to do?
  
• What was the intended outcome of your being chosen/elected?
  - How well do you like commands and rules that you must obey?
  - How comfortable are you with the idea of obeying Jesus Christ?
  - How well do you obey Jesus Christ?
  
• What is the significance of being sprinkled by his blood?
  - How was blood used in the sanctification of the tabernacle and its objects?
  - How was blood used in the sanctification of the priests?
  
• How do you feel knowing you were chosen and sanctified to obey Christ?
  - How does this passage help you understand your identity in Christ?
  - How would realizing you are chosen and sanctified make you an alien?
  

Harold's Musings:
I generally feel uncomfortable in a group of new people, but feel excited in a new place. Perhaps I am more concerned about my emotional well-being (e.g. being rejected by the new group) than my physical well-being (e.g. walking the streets of New York). I know that I don't like to be an outsider. The word that the ESV translates as exiles has been translated as aliens, strangers, pilgrims, or sojourners. One scholar states that it presents Christians as men who have no country of their own on this earth; they are simply temporary residents. When I'm in a new place for a couple of days on a trip, I know that I'm going home soon and do not look for ways to settle in. In our moves to various places, I want to settle in quickly and feel at home. Perhaps as Christians we have forgotten our transient nature and have settled into the world around us. What do you think? Are you more comfortable in your community that you are with God?