The word of God this morning—not the word of the newspaper editorialists, not the word of the television commentators, not the word of public schools, not the word of state universities—but the word of the apostle Peter, speaking on behalf of Jesus Christ the Son of God, who expresses the very mind of God is: we need to be saved. Saved from sin and Satan and judgment. And saved for inexpressible joy with the Shepherd of our souls in light of the glory of God for ever and ever.
1 Peter 1:10 “Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully”
Peter points out the amazing fact that Christ himself—the Spirit of Christ—hundreds of years before His own death and resurrection, was predicting His own death and resurrection. Look at the middle of v. 11: “The Spirit of Christ within [the prophets]. . . predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow.” Christ Himself predicted His own sufferings. Which means that Christ, the Son of God in Heaven, had been contemplating his suffering and his death for us for centuries. Indeed as far back as the plan of salvation reaches in the mind of God, so far back has Christ been willing and ready to give Himself for our sins. You were not loved for just a bloody moment of sacrifice in history. You have been loved for endless ages in the eternal plan of the Father and the Son to save sinners who trust in him.
Peter highlights the worth of our salvation by telling us how the prophets longed to be a part of it. V. 10: “The prophets who prophesied of the grace that would come to you made careful search and inquiry, seeking to know what person or time [Christ was indicating].” Christ came to Isaiah seven hundred years before the incarnation and said, Write this:
He was wounded for our transgressions,
he was bruised for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that made us whole,
and with his stripes we are healed.
All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have turned every one to his own way;
and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
(Isaiah 53:5-6)
When the Spirit of Christ told Isaiah to write that, Isaiah said, “O, Lord, who? O, Lord, when?” How long, O Lord, how long? That searching and inquiring and longing is an echo of the tremendous worth of our salvation in the hearts of the holy men of old.
The Lord’s answer to that yearning cry of the prophets is given in v. 12: “It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you.” The Spirit of Christ said to Isaiah, “Isaiah, be patient, you’re not serving yourself or even merely your own generation. You are serving saints hundreds of years from now. They will see in your prophecy of me the proof that I am who I say I am. And its truth will make its infinite value unshakable in their lives. You will not have lived in vain.”
The next thing Peter says to highlight the value of our salvation is that angels love to look into it. Verse 12 (at the end): “things into which angels long to look.”
This does not mean they want to but can’t. It means they want to because in a sense they are outsiders to the drama of sin and redemption (since they never sinned) and they love to watch the great work of God’s salvation unfold in history and in the lives of the saints. Peter’s point is this: if angels get excited about our salvation, how much more should we. If angels love to look at the work of God in saving sinners like us, how much more should we who are the very beneficiaries of that salvation (not just onlookers) love to look into it and be thankful for it and say with Peter, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. . .”
Finally, Peter highlights the value of our salvation by telling us in v. 12 that the Holy Spirit Himself sent from heaven has brought us the news of our salvation through the gospel. “These things . . . now have been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven.” This is the right place to stop. This is what is happening right now. I am preaching to you the gospel—the good news that Christ came into the world to save sinners, with a salvation of tremendous value—far more valuable than anything else you own or know.
Conclusion: For what God has provided, have we been mindful? Thankful? Confidently resting in His provision for this life and the next? Such is God’s gift and our gain.
