Living as strangers in a strange land, Christians are called to be different, to live humbly. But humility is not a popular nor celebrated trait in the modern world. It's not praised on talk shows nor celebrated in graduation speeches, its not touted as a core value for business. If you go to the self-help section of Dymocks or Page One you won't find many books on humility. The basic reason for this is because humility can only exist in God’s presence. You could say that humility follows God like a shadow. We can expect to find humility celebrated in our modern world as often as we find God celebrated – which means almost never.
Christians live as strangers in a strange land; they are called to live differently from the values and customs and expectations of this world. One of the reasons Christians know that they are aliens and strangers in the world is that the world we live in does not embrace the same principles. The core concerns that preoccupy Peter – and the whole New Testament – are the salvation of the human soul and the glory of God.
In 1st Peter, Chapter 2, we are told to crave for what is pure. As we do this, we learn that the desire to taste and enjoy God's kindness cannot flourish in the same heart with things like malice and hypocrisy. So we long to live differently from the values and customs and expectations of this world. As strangers in a strange land, we are to strive to taste the kindness of God in his Word. Because it was “God has caused us to be born again to a living hope” – for another world, another, greater kind of existence.
As Christians, we are strangers in a strange land. The language and values and customs and expectations of this world should feel foreign to us. Something really radical has happened to us. Peter writes: “God has caused us to be born again to a living hope” – for another world, another, greater kind of existence.
In 1st Peter, we are told that Christians survive in this strange land by faith and endurance. Not by imposing a lifestyle on others through rules but by living holy lives that compel others to follow.