God's Stunning Artistry

1 Peter 2:9a – But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation. (NIV)

A painting that an artist gave me recently had been no more than a colourful garden scene, until it suddenly exploded with new relevance. That "Aha!" experience was too exciting to keep to myself. So here it goes:

It began with an assignment to read 1 Peter. Strangely, I couldn't get enthused about this epistle, until a college student in our Zoom study group asked a thoughtful question: "How can we trust this book, considering how the author, Peter was so biased?" Suddenly, I had an exciting reason to study First Peter. I needed to gather evidence of Peter's changed thinking.

Perhaps you are familiar with Peter's bias, how, as a Jewish Christian, he distanced himself from Gentile dinner guests in Galatians 2:11-16. But was Peter later a biased writer? Was he insensitive to his non-Jewish readers? He certainly used many Old Testament terms.

My painting — or rather, the artist — can shed some light. When he gave me the piece, he explained, "I didn't originally paint it like this. It appeared rather dull to me, so I painted over it with brighter tones." Thus, with one brushstroke at a time, he made every green leaf look greener, every flower petal brighter, until the entire painting came alive with new vibrancy.

That's it! That's what the apostle Peter did in his letter! With careful brushstrokes, he revitalized a faded old picture. Those Old Testament words which had been exclusive to ancient Israel were vibrantly restored. Peter took words like "chosen", "God's elect", "inheritance", and "holy priesthood", and brushed over them with the colours of new promise. Now they extended across the entire world! Peter's non-Jewish readers would have been delighted to read how, through Christ, they now belonged to God's family, with full inherited privileges.

That's surely proof that Peter had changed. Gone was that former Peter! Clearly, Peter had been thoroughly brush-stroked with the vivid colours of new covenant promise. That's God's stunning artistry in Peter's life! (Let's remember that Peter!)

What about you and me? We can't exclude ourselves from God's project. So, we ask, What has He been restoring within us? Perhaps He's been brushing over our dull old religious memories and covering them with the vibrant blessings of salvation. Perhaps, He's been brushing over our dulled perceptions of familiar biblical words, stories, or characters so that we see them in stunning new colours. We experience refreshing "Aha!" moments (as for me).

Perhaps, like the earlier Peter, we need a restoration of God's redeeming love within and through us. We need to see God's promises afresh — as not just for the church, but for the entire world — including those whom we've not considered or those on whom we've given up.

Perhaps, we see ourselves like the former Peter, prone to misunderstand our Master. Perhaps, we want His love to glow more vibrantly within us. Really, the need for God's touch-ups in our lives is never-ending. He keeps working — one brushstroke at a time — up till our final day. That's God's stunning artistry!

Prayer: Lord, wherever our Christian experience has become dulled and faded, restore us with the blazing colours of Your glory. Amen.