Hi, Again
- Peter's back. And this time he's writing to all of Christendom. Yeah, he likes to go big picture.
- He's also got some good news: God has given Christians everything they need to live good lives now and in the coming world. Christians have the smarts to escape the trappings of "the world" and to live as one with God.
- But Christians have to keep up their end of the faith bargain. They have to do good deeds and be smart and control themselves and preserve and be holy. Oh, and be loving, too. Exhausting.
- If anyone doesn't do these things, well, it's not gonna work out so well for them in the end.
- But if you stay on the path to goodness, everything will be alright and you'll get your ticket to board the train to Heaventown.
Death Becomes Him
- Peter knows that Christians already get this stuff. But he wants to keep giving refreshers as long as he's around to do it. See, he's not long for this world—death is knocking. It's hard out there for an apostle.
- Now, some folks have accused Peter of making up all this stuff about Jesus. (Who you gonna call? Mythbusters!)
- Not so fast. Peter saw all of Jesus' goodness with his own two eyes. Remember that time he went up to a mountain with Jesus and the boss started to sparkle like a vampire?
- All this great stuff that Peter's been telling the world about actually happened. Not to mention, he adds, that the Hebrew Bible totally predicted that how Jesus' life would go down. (P.S. That's a New Testament POV and the Hebrew Bible fans don't agree.)
- But just in case you're thinking that Peter is selectively interpreting the Bible—he's not. Those interpretations come straight from God. (And yes, this is Peter talking about himself…super trustworthy!)