In
the last three verses of his first Epistle, Peter ended with a final
exhortation and greeting to his readers. In verse 12, he mentioned Silvanus
whom we know was also known as Silas. This Silas was Paul's companion on his
second missionary journey. He was probably the amanuensis who wrote the letter
under the dictation of Peter. And he was also the likely person who delivered
this letter to its destination.
A close-up look of verse 12 tells us that Peter wants us to
be encouraged and stand firm and testify to the true grace of God. At the back
of his mind, he wants us to be witnesses to the reality of the grace which God
had so freely bestowed upon us. We can do so effectively only when we consistently
conduct our lives in ways that have been affected by God’s kind dealings with
us in Christ. He initiated it and we are to live out its effect faithfully.
In
verse 13, the pronoun “She” probably refers to the Church in the place where
Peter was writing this letter. He used the term “Babylon” to refer to Rome and
not the actual Babylon. Mark, whom Peter mentioned here was likely to be John
Mark, who was his protégé. He was in Rome
In
verse 14, we discover that a common practice in that culture was to greet each
other with a kiss. This was the common expression of pure affection for each
other in the fellowship. This affectionate expression was normally a kiss on
the cheeks, forehead, or hands. With that, Peter rounded up this Epistle by wishing
peace to be with them all. Yes we need His peace more than ever before. This
peace is about the wholeness in our whole being – spirit, soul and body.
No comments:
Post a Comment