The Exile's Lifestyle
We all live our lives with a vision of 'the good life' in our minds. What was that vision when you were in high school?
What is it now?
The first command in this passage is: "set your hope" (v. 13). It is amplified with two participles: "prepare your minds" and "keep sober" (v. 13). What does 1 Peter 1:13 oblige Jesus-followers to do and what does this look like in your life?
The marks of one who practices the way of the 'elect exile' are detailed within this passage. From just these verses, what would mark a person as fully setting their hope on Jesus?
What would mark someone as still committed to their former way of life that Peter says is actually empty? (v. 14, 18)
Can you name something in your life that you desired greatly, but that later its 'perishable' nature became evident to you and let you down?
Why does Peter hammer away at this idea of the imperishable vs. the perishable, and what is the imperishable that he sets up as the ideal in this passage?
Look up the quoted Old Testament passages as a group. Why would Peter be quoting from these and what do you they tell you about the rhetoric behind what Peter is saying?
What does it look like, this week, to embody the way of the 'elect exile' in our city? What needs to change THIS WEEK for you to 'set your hope' firmly on Jesus as your King?