Chosen Strangers: Understanding Our Identity in Christ (1 Peter 1:1-3)

Jeffrey Perry   -   June 4, 2025

The opening verses of 1 Peter provide us with a rich theological framework for understanding our identity in Christ.

The Apostle Peter, under the authority of Jesus, writes to a group of people whom the world has rejected, yet whom God has chosen.

In these opening words, we are introduced not only to a new identity but also to the foundation upon which our entire Christian walk is built. This is the identity of elect exiles—a tension-filled yet real reality that shapes how we live, respond, and find our hope in the gospel.

The Word of Christ

In the first verse, Peter identifies himself as an apostle of Jesus Christ. This simple phrase carries profound implications. Peter’s words are not his own but the words of Jesus, and his authority comes from the risen Christ.

What Peter writes, then, is not merely a collection of his thoughts or advice; it is the very word of Christ to the elect exiles. These Christians, scattered across various regions, are not left to navigate their identity or purpose on their own. They have received an apostolic message and the authoritative word of Christ that lays the foundation for everything else.

In this first verse, Peter is clear: though the exiles have been scattered and rejected by the world, they have been chosen by God.

This is not a sociological reality; it is a theological one. Their identity is not based on the circumstances of their lives or the opinions of others. Their identity is rooted in the eternal choice of God. They are chosen, not because of any inherent merit or worthiness, but because of God’s sovereign love and grace.

As Peter will go on to elaborate, this is an identity that is established by God Himself, and it is the ultimate basis for their hope and perseverance.

Chosen by God

One of the most critical truths we must understand from these opening verses is that the relationship between the believer and God is not transactional; it is sovereignly initiated and fully accomplished by God.

Our identity as the elect is not based on a contract or exchange. It is rooted in God’s unmerited grace and His sovereign will. He is the primary mover in our salvation, and He is the source of both our identity and our hope.

Peter emphasizes this by stating that the believers are chosen “according to the foreknowledge of God the Father.”

God did not merely foresee what would happen in history; His foreknowledge is not a passive awareness of future events. It is an active, relational knowing. To be chosen “according to the foreknowledge of God” means that God, in His sovereign will, set His affection on these believers before the foundation of the world. This is not a response to anything in the believer; it is purely God’s gracious decision to love them and call them to Himself.

The 1689 London Baptist Confession (10.2) captures this truth well when it states, “This effectual call flows from God’s free and special grace alone, not from anything at all foreseen in those called…They are dead in sins and trespasses until they are made alive and renewed by the Holy Spirit.” This is the essence of God’s election: a sovereign, gracious act that is neither transactional nor conditional on the actions of the individual but is rooted entirely in God’s sovereign choice and grace.

And it is in this reality that there is great hope. If these believers had been called to God, not based on anything good in them, then there is no evil in them that can cast them from Him.

Regenerated by the Spirit

The elect are not only chosen by God, but they are also set apart by the Spirit. This is the work of regeneration—being born again by the Spirit of God. Peter makes it clear that this work of the Spirit is what leads to belief in the gospel. The elect are those who have been set apart (sanctified) by the Spirit, meaning they have been spiritually reborn and are now able to obey the gospel.

It is essential to understand that obedience to the gospel is not an action that is taken to be made ready for the gospel, nor is it something that we do before we believe. According to 1 Thessalonians 1:8 and 1 John 5:13, to obey the gospel is to believe the gospel.

Faith in Christ, then, is itself the evidence of our obedience to God’s call. In other words, belief in the gospel is the proof of our election.

As John Calvin explains in his commentary on this passage, our belief in the gospel is the key out of the labyrinth of the mystery of election.

We can know that we have been elected by God because we have been born again by the Spirit, and we know we have been born again because we believe in the gospel. This circular relationship is not one of works or merit but is a gracious gift from God. Faith is the fruit of regeneration, and regeneration is the cause of faith.

Covenant People of God

Peter’s description of the elect is not complete without reference to the blood of Christ.

In verse 2, he states that the elect have been “sprinkled with His blood.” This phrase draws us back to the Old Testament, where sprinkling with blood was a sign of covenant and consecration. In Exodus 24:8, the Israelites were sprinkled with blood as a sign of the covenant God made with them. In Matthew 26:28, Jesus institutes the new covenant, declaring that His blood was poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. This sprinkling with the blood of Christ signifies that the believer is now part of the covenant people of God. They are not a new people, but have been made part of the ancient people of God under a New Covenant.

This idea of being sprinkled with the blood points to the deep and unbreakable union between the believer and Christ. It is by Christ’s sacrifice, His atoning death, that the believer is made inwardly holy. The covenant is not merely external; it is internal, marking the believer as one who belongs to God. This is not a process of gradual improvement but a completed work in Christ. The believer is sanctified, made holy, not by their works, but by the finished work of Christ on their behalf.

A Foundation for Gratitude and Response

This theological foundation provides the basis for everything Peter will say throughout the rest of his letter. The identity of the believer as one chosen by God, regenerated by the Spirit, and sprinkled with the blood of Christ is not something we can take lightly.

This is not merely our doctrinal statement; it is the foundation for how we live. Everything that follows in 1 Peter, especially regarding suffering, holiness, and perseverance, is built upon this rock-solid identity.

Because we are chosen by God, our response is not one of mere duty or obligation but of gratitude and praise. We do not serve God to be chosen. We serve Him because we have already been chosen. We do not obey to earn His favor. We obey because we have already received His favor in Christ.

This foundation of grace sets the stage for Peter’s call to holy living in the rest of the letter. Our identity as the elect exiles of God is what empowers us to live as strangers and pilgrims in this world, to endure suffering for the sake of righteousness, and to pursue holiness.

The Christian life is one of response—response to the grace of God already given, not a means to earn that grace.

Peter’s opening words remind us that our identity in Christ is a work that God Himself has initiated and completed. We are chosen by God, regenerated by the Spirit, and made holy through the blood of Christ.

This is who we are, and this is the foundation for everything else we will encounter in the Christian life. It is not a relationship based on transaction but on grace, and it is the ultimate source of our hope, joy, and perseverance.

Our identity is not defined by the world’s standards or the trials we face. Our identity is defined by the sovereign, gracious choice of God. And in response to that grace, we are called to live as His people, knowing that we are secure in His love and empowered by His Spirit.