Who do Christians say they are?
Is it an identity that you have acquired through life, rather than something you learned or heard?
The Apostle Peter's message to the scattered Christians: "The True Nature of a Christian"

The Apostle Peter, while encouraging and strengthening the early Christians scattered throughout Asia Minor, gives a detailed introduction to 'Christians' as people who are like this.
It emphasizes how deep-rooted and solid the Christian faith they have established is.
He encourages us to pass through this period of 'temporary sojourn' by placing our hope in the kingdom of God, which seems so insignificant compared to the power and promise of the Roman Empire.
What was the force that sustained them and enabled them to live as Christians amidst adverse circumstances? "Deep Roots, the Kingdom of God" unravels the essence of that faith, line by line from the Apostle Peter's letters.

Who a Christian considers himself to be is not as simple as it may seem.
If you vaguely define your identity based on what you heard or learned from others, you may end up in a difficult situation.
We know better than anyone else that we are not actually that kind of person.
To us, the Apostle Peter speaks firmly.
Do you know how great the gift we, God's chosen people and temporary residents, have been given? How could we remain silent when this happens to us?
To modern eyes, Rome has long since vanished, and the seemingly insignificant kingdom of God still stands as a large, green tree where anyone in the world can nest.
Yet, perhaps we are still more attracted to the ideas of worldly architects than to God's divine house.
So the affection and confidence that the Apostle Peter expressed in his letter still resonates among us today.

『Deep Roots, Kingdom of God』, which covers the first half of 1 Peter, is the third book in the 'Reading the Bible through the Kingdom of God' series, following 『Disaster Again, Kingdom of God Again』 and 『Kingdom of God in the City』.
A book covering the latter part of 1 Peter is also scheduled to be published soon.

Of all the books in the New Testament, 1 Peter is the most outstanding in its treatment of Christian identity.
The Apostle Peter wrote this letter to Christians scattered throughout Asia Minor in the early 60s AD.
The recipients lived in neighborhoods and environments that challenged their identities.
So this letter serves as an excellent guide for modern Christians who are living through many difficulties and crises today.

--- p.22

Temporary residents know very well that they do not belong to the country of residence.
However, we live while respecting the culture and laws of the place we reside.
However, people with a clear sense of self-identity are neither brainwashed nor subservient to the values ​​and lifestyles of the place they reside.
Although there are times when you have to follow the standards of your place of residence, that doesn't change your identity.

--- p.45

Christians, the 'temporary residents' who live scattered throughout the world, are people who have obtained a completely different status through rebirth.
That is why the Apostle Peter called them “the elect” in the opening greeting of his letter.
Based on the fact that we have received amazing salvation, the Apostle Peter teaches us how to live as temporary residents.

--- p.74

God's salvation, how great is this gift we have received.
This is why Christians, who are merely temporary residents, can live with pride and dignity.
The salvation we have received is something God planned long ago to restore a broken and wounded world, something prophets researched and foresaw and foretold, something countless people risked their lives to spread, and something angels still watch with anticipation.
That salvation is a reality that is being realized within us.
The saints of the early church also enjoyed salvation and waited for the second coming of Jesus Christ. Even though they could not see Him in person, they loved Him, believed in Him, and rejoiced in Him.

--- p.111

It is important to properly understand the truth.
When you correctly understand the truth, you will have dreams based on it, and you will live to achieve those dreams.
But if you don't understand the truth properly, you will dream dreams based on what you believe to be the real truth, and you will live your life accordingly.
Many Christians say they believe in God, but they do not truly understand God's truth and consider something else to be absolutely important in life.
Therefore, before we change our lives, it is important to check whether we have a dream worth pursuing and whether we possess the foundation for achieving that dream—the true truth.

--- p.149~150

The expression “period” indicates that the period of living as a temporary resident is a time in one’s life.
It suggests that when the “temporary resident period” ends, “another period” will come.
The world constantly forces a closed worldview without God, saying that this world is all there is and that what comes after is unknown and does not exist.
So, we are encouraged to build our own fortresses with things that keep us safe and prosperous.
But we who have met God have come to know that this world is a temporary place to stay, and that our life is a “season” spent in this world.
The perspective that this world is not everything, that our lives are merely a “season” of temporary sojourn, is growing deeper.
This is the Christian life.

--- p.177

Most people lived in the town where they were born and heard rumors about the cities founded by Rome.
You must have been amazed by the imperial power displayed through such cities.
The few who actually had the opportunity to visit Rome would have had an even more shocking experience.
Even the villages they lived in, and the cities they were proud of, would have seemed shabby compared to the scale and grand architecture of Rome.
But the Apostle Peter declares:
That the vast world you see before your eyes is not everything.
Rather, it declares that God is building a 'spiritual house' centered on Jesus, the living stone, though it is invisible to the eyes.

--- p.211

The houses built by the world's architects are destined to collapse, and rise and fall are unavoidable.
And the people who live in that house's way also walk the path of rise and fall along with that house.
If you can astutely grasp the values ​​and methods pursued by the world's architects and apply them effectively, you may be able to enjoy the wealth and glory this world promises.
But only a very few can live like that, and even they will be “ashamed” of their lives when this world “falls.”
Some people have realized that the world we live in has many problems.
However, it is difficult to find an alternative that can compete with or replace the mainstream of the world, so people usually follow the trend.
Rarely, there are people who become “small world architects” and build their own house of life with their own values ​​that are different from those of the world’s architects.
But that road is not easy either.
Because it is very difficult for one individual or a small group of people to overcome the influence of the 'architects of the larger world'.

--- p.217~218

The Messianic community established by God naturally grows both qualitatively and quantitatively.
The same goes for the individuals within it.
Those who were once swayed by the world begin to live completely differently when they connect with Jesus, the living stone, and when they belong to a community that encourages such a life, their growth accelerates even more.
Those who have experienced change naturally spread that change to those around them and those they love.
People around you come into the light one by one, and they in turn lead those around them into the light.
In fact, the history of Christianity, spanning over two thousand years, is a story of people coming to the light, over and over again.
They could not cover up the light they had experienced (Matthew 5:15), and so the mission of the kingdom of priests reached to the ends of the earth.

--- p.230