1 Peter: The Living and Abiding Word, Part 3

We’ve paused once again in our progress through 1 Peter, this time to examine the five qualities of the Word of God that Peter mentions in 1:22-2:3. Meditating on these should help us better appreciate the Bible’s value and utilize it to its full potential. We’ve reached number three:

THE WORD BEGETS LIFE.

1 Peter 1:23 … you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God.

Peter’s emphasis on the Word now comes to the forefront through a word picture. It’s translated “born again,” but the original term Peter uses actually refers to conception, not birth: “beget again.” It’s clearly an allusion to the physical conception of a human baby. Just as the seed of a human father begets human life, so the seed of the Heavenly Father begets spiritual life.

What is the seed God uses to beget new life? “The living and abiding word of God.”

Spiritual life is conceived not through baptism or self-reformation or good works of any kind. It’s not through the persuasive words or the powerful personality of someone sharing the gospel. The Word produces life:

Romans 10:17 Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.

God’s Word doesn’t just communicate; it also converts the soul and creates life. This means that, if we want to see conversion, we must proclaim the Word. God’s Word is sovereign and powerful, and it produces what it commands.

Notice the two sides of responsibility for conversion in this passage. Verse 22 describes the human responsibility to obey the gospel, and verse 23 gives us the divine action in begetting new life through the Word. Both are essential, and both are biblical.

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