Peter finishes addressing the household by encouraging wives and husbands. What kind of marriage is he calling them to have while in exile?

Peter shifts from the public square to the household. He asks believers to follow in the steps of their Savior, but who's the prime example among them?

After reaffirming his hearer's identity as "sojourners" and "exiles", Peter begins to teach them what being exiles in the public square look like, namely: submitting for the Lord's sake. But what does that look like? Peter spends time explaining

Christians should not expect to feel at home where we are. Rather, we are to live lives honoring to God as his ambassadors on this earth, foreigners from the Kingdom of Heaven, where our true acceptance and citizenship can be found.

Jesus is the living cornerstone of our faith and the Church. The passage today reveals the ways in which we must walk with God in holiness, not by our own power but by the work of the Holy Spirit and by the love of Him who called for himself a Holy Nation, a people for his own possession.

Having established the believer’s new identity in Christ Jesus, Peter now begins to explore the implications of being elect exiles – that believers are called to be holy, for the Lord God is holy. This is not moralistic teaching, though; it is the natural outcome of being “in Christ.”

Peter writes to a group of Christians who are facing increasing opposition and reminds them that the Grace they have received in Christ will allow them to stand firm.

Before Peter ever wrote to the churches in Asia minor, he spoke on the day of Pentecost when the church was born. The work that God started the day is still going on in his churches and Peter‘s letter intends to remind them (and us) of that blessed hope.

David concludes his poem by reflecting on the end of his path. If the Lord is his shepherd, where does the shepherding care of the Lord lead?

When the sun rises on David's dark valley, the worst of his fears are confirmed: he is surrounded by enemies. Surrounded by constant threat, he finds himself feasting on the infinite delight God has for him.