Yesterday, I meant to cover the entirety of these two verses, but only got so far as the first word, Beloved. With that in mind, today, I figure I will simply try to cover the second designation used by Peter here, and nothing else. Peter calls his audience, which includes you and me, sojourners. This word, sojourners, is more than just a fancy word for someone traveling. You probably already know that, but up until 10 or 12 years ago, I really thought it only meant someone on a journey. Let’s look at the meaning of sojourners, and see if we can draw out Peter’s intentions in choosing this word.
11 Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. 12 Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.
1 Peter 2:11-12
Sojourners?
As with the previous designations Peter has applied to Christians in 1 Peter 2, sojourners has its origin in the history of the people of Israel. It will be useful to remind ourselves of the last two verses and their designations. Peter described Christians as a chosen race, royal priesthood, holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, God’s people, and those who received mercy. Each of these epithets had their origin in the people of Israel in their special relationship to God. But, significantly, at least to today’s study, these epithets all recalled the people of Israel in their redemption from Egypt and their conquest of Canaan. While we could easily say that God had already designated them as such in Abraham, the allusions are most certainly to the people of Israel after the Exodus.
Could we say that the people of Israel were chosen by God in Abraham before the Exodus? Yes. But, only by way of promise. It was demonstrated through their rescue from Egypt and God’s provision for them during the desert wanderings and their conquering of the promised land. Likewise, we can apply the same test to the other descriptions of the people of Israel as a people. However, with sojourners, we have an image that hearkens back to the time of the patriarchs.
Here’s a definition: “Sojourner” is the frequent translation of the Hebrew term gēr (Hebrew gēr [גר]; plural gērīm [גרים]). This Hebrew term and its translation convey the basic idea that a person (or group) is residing, either temporarily or permanently, in a community and place that is not primarily their own and is dependent on the “good-will” of that community for their continued existence. (Oxford Bibliographies).
The Patriarchs and the promise
All of Abraham’s life, after he obeyed the call of God to leave Haran (Genesis 12:1-3), could be called a sojourning. He and his people, including Lot and Lot’s family were described as sojourners wherever they went. Since God had not yet given the land of Canaan to Abraham and his people, they were never “home” while living there. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were sojourners in Canaan.
There is something remarkable here which I can smell and almost taste, but not quite wrap my mind around. Let’s back up. Abraham was called out of his home in Chaldea. He lived the rest of his life as a sojourner, primarily in Canaan – the promised land. We have established that a sojourner lives in a land not belonging to him. Yet, God promised the land to Abraham and his descendants.
4 So Abram went, as the Lord had told him, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. 5 And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother’s son, and all their possessions that they had gathered, and the people that they had acquired in Haran, and they set out to go to the land of Canaan. When they came to the land of Canaan, 6 Abram passed through the land to the place at Shechem, to the oak of Moreh. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. 7 Then the Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land.” So he built there an altar to the Lord, who had appeared to him.
Genesis 12:4-7
14 The Lord said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him, “Lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward, 15 for all the land that you see I will give to you and to your offspring forever. 16 I will make your offspring as the dust of the earth, so that if one can count the dust of the earth, your offspring also can be counted. 17 Arise, walk through the length and the breadth of the land, for I will give it to you.” 18 So Abram moved his tent and came and settled by the oaks of Mamre, which are at Hebron, and there he built an altar to the Lord.
Genesis 13:14-18
18 On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your offspring I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates, 19 the land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites, 20 the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, 21 the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites and the Jebusites.”
Genesis 15:18-21
Sojourners in peace and oppression
But, Abraham did not possess the land in his lifetime. He and his people, his son Isaac, and his grandsons Jacob and Esau, remained sojourners though they lived in the promised land (Genesis 36:6-8). And, from Jacob on for four hundred years, the people of Israel were considered sojourners in Egypt. Egypt was not the promised land. Was there war and strife in Canaan? Certainly. But, the Patriarchs’ time there could be seen as primarily peaceful. However, as sojourners in Egypt, the people of Israel were oppressed. This too was promised to Abraham by God.
12 As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. And behold, dreadful and great darkness fell upon him. 13 Then the Lord said to Abram, “Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years. 14 But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions. 15 As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age. 16 And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.”
Genesis 15:12-16
What might Peter have in mind?
So, what are we to do with this? What might Peter have had in his mind as he referred to Christians as sojourners? I think, and I am only just now really forming this thought, so bear with me, that we can look at it in two ways. We can apply the term to Christians living in a world which is not their home and in which they are afflicted by those who currently in power. That seems an easy fit, and we don’t have to think too long on that one. But, might we also apply it to Christians living in a land not their own, but one which they will one day be given?
In both cases, the situation is temporary. Is it temporary because Christians will die and move out of this world into the promised land of heaven? Well, that must be true at least. Is it temporary because possession of the land will pass from worldly rulers into the hands of Christians? In other words, will this world, like the land of Canaan, become a Christian world? Will our status as sojourners change because God will give the land in which we live to us?
Sojourners here, looking forward to a heavenly home
In the first case, we have solid support from scripture.
8 By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. 9 By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. 10 For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God.
Hebrews 11:8-10
We have a heavenly home to which all Christians belong. In this sense, it is clear that this world is not our home and that we have a promised land awaiting us where Christ is king, a city designed and built by God. If you do not think this is not what that to which the passage above is referring, let’s skip a few verses and read the next bit.
13 These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. 14 For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. 15 If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return. 16 But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city.
Hebrews 11:13-16
So, if I get everything else wrong regarding sojourners, I am confident I got this part right. We are sojourners in the here and now, but we have a heavenly home to which we can look with great joy and excitement. Let us remember that, and praise God for it! I pray we will remain ever eternally-minded.
Will Christ’s kingdom reign on earth?
But, I still wonder about the other notion. Abraham lived in a land that was promised to him, but which he never possessed. His descendants eventually returned to that same land and took it by force, thanks to God fighting for them. So, will Christ’s kingdom reign on earth? Do we really want to explore this idea? I find it fascinating, but a little confusing.
If you were to ask me “Will Christ someday be king?” I would say, “Christ is king already!” If you were to ask me, “Will Christ rule the earth someday?” I would say, “Christ already does!” Here’s why:
Christ enthroned
Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. 3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.
Hebrews 1:1-4
The Great Commission
16 Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. 17 And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. 18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Matthew 28:16-20
Let’s keep going. Christ is king. King of what? All of Creation, including heaven and earth. So, then, earth is part of Christ’s kingdom? Yes. Are we part of Christ’s kingdom? Yes. We are a royal priesthood and a holy nation. Why then are we sojourners if our captain and king rules and reigns? See what I mean? This is difficult stuff now. But, I think the answer lies in Matthew 28:16-20, and in Deuteronomy 1.
Our mission is yet to be fulfilled
Christ is our king, and our captain. He told us what to do. All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. That’s our mission. Have we done it? Is it accomplished? No? Why not?
See, I have set the land before you.
Moses dealt with a similar situation. Here’s Moses when exhorting the people of Israel before they went to conquer the promised land.
6 “The Lord our God said to us in Horeb, ‘You have stayed long enough at this mountain. 7 Turn and take your journey, and go to the hill country of the Amorites and to all their neighbors in the Arabah, in the hill country and in the lowland and in the Negeb and by the seacoast, the land of the Canaanites, and Lebanon, as far as the great river, the river Euphrates. 8 See, I have set the land before you. Go in and take possession of the land that the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give to them and to their offspring after them.’
Deuteronomy 1:6-8
See that you do not refuse him who is speaking.
Have we stayed too long at this mountain? Which mountain? Have we refused him who is speaking?
18 For you have not come to what may be touched, a blazing fire and darkness and gloom and a tempest 19 and the sound of a trumpet and a voice whose words made the hearers beg that no further messages be spoken to them. 20 For they could not endure the order that was given, “If even a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned.” 21 Indeed, so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, “I tremble with fear.” 22 But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, 23 and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, 24 and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.
25 See that you do not refuse him who is speaking. For if they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape if we reject him who warns from heaven. 26 At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” 27 This phrase, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of things that are shaken—that is, things that have been made—in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. 28 Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, 29 for our God is a consuming fire.
Hebrews 12:18-29
Someday, I hope to cover Hebrews, and Lord willing, I will. We don’t have time to go through this whole marvelous passage. But, let’s focus on two things. First, we have come to Mount Zion, the city of the living God. This is by way of Christ’s life, death, resurrection, and enthronement as king over all Creation. We have a king who rules and reigns from heaven. Second, he has given us a command to go and take possession of the land. Which land? This land. We are to go and make disciples of all nations. But, we have not done this, at least not yet. So, we remain sojourners here.
It is a good land that the Lord our God is giving us.
19 “Then we set out from Horeb and went through all that great and terrifying wilderness that you saw, on the way to the hill country of the Amorites, as the Lord our God commanded us. And we came to Kadesh-barnea. 20 And I said to you, ‘You have come to the hill country of the Amorites, which the Lord our God is giving us. 21 See, the Lord your God has set the land before you. Go up, take possession, as the Lord, the God of your fathers, has told you. Do not fear or be dismayed.’ 22 Then all of you came near me and said, ‘Let us send men before us, that they may explore the land for us and bring us word again of the way by which we must go up and the cities into which we shall come.’ 23 The thing seemed good to me, and I took twelve men from you, one man from each tribe. 24 And they turned and went up into the hill country, and came to the Valley of Eshcol and spied it out. 25 And they took in their hands some of the fruit of the land and brought it down to us, and brought us word again and said, ‘It is a good land that the Lord our God is giving us.’
Deuteronomy 1:19-25
And you murmured in your tents
It’s not that we have done nothing. Many Christians have labored long and hard. They work out in the world both in the world around them, and some of them far abroad. Many have died. Many have made disciples of other nations. But there is still work to do. If you are like me, you have been hesitant even to labor in your own families. I admit, I have even been cowardly. Why is that? If we have a captain and king who empowers us, who gives us such great promises, who is with us, and who made such great sacrifice on our behalf, why do we malinger? Why do we remain sojourners, when the land is right here for our possession as Christ’s holy nation?
26 “Yet you would not go up, but rebelled against the command of the Lord your God. 27 And you murmured in your tents and said, ‘Because the Lord hated us he has brought us out of the land of Egypt, to give us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us. 28 Where are we going up? Our brothers have made our hearts melt, saying, “The people are greater and taller than we. The cities are great and fortified up to heaven. And besides, we have seen the sons of the Anakim there.”
Deuteronomy 1:26-28
Yet you did not believe the Lord your God
We should, I should, confidently obey Christ’s command. We must disciple nations. Where should we start? Mongolia? Well, we must start with our homes. If we have children we start with them. Then there are our families, neighbors, etc. Certainly start in Mongolia if you live there, but don’t leave your family undiscipled, to go disciple people in Mongolia. Wherever we disciple, we must not be afraid. We must remember what God has done for us in Christ.
29 Then I said to you, ‘Do not be in dread or afraid of them. 30 The Lord your God who goes before you will himself fight for you, just as he did for you in Egypt before your eyes, 31 and in the wilderness, where you have seen how the Lord your God carried you, as a man carries his son, all the way that you went until you came to this place.’ 32 Yet in spite of this word you did not believe the Lord your God, 33 who went before you in the way to seek you out a place to pitch your tents, in fire by night and in the cloud by day, to show you by what way you should go.
Deuteronomy 1:29-33
Not one of these men shall see the good land
What has happened? Why, if our king commanded us to make disciples of all nations, have we not done it? I cannot account for the Christians who have come before me. Many, many of them were mighty, and I am not going to pass blame here. I myself have been weak and ineffectual. I have not sought to make disciples of more than a handful of folks outside my own family. And, only in the last ten years have I even steadily worked to disciple them! It is pretty easy to extrapolate from my own pathetic work for the kingdom the reason we remain sojourners. We have been mean living in fear. There are giants out there, aren’t there? And, so we have not yet accomplished the mission set before us. What has been the result, generation after generation?
34 “And the Lord heard your words and was angered, and he swore, 35 ‘Not one of these men of this evil generation shall see the good land that I swore to give to your fathers, 36 except Caleb the son of Jephunneh. He shall see it, and to him and to his children I will give the land on which he has trodden, because he has wholly followed the Lord!’ 37 Even with me the Lord was angry on your account and said, ‘You also shall not go in there. 38 Joshua the son of Nun, who stands before you, he shall enter. Encourage him, for he shall cause Israel to inherit it. 39 And as for your little ones, who you said would become a prey, and your children, who today have no knowledge of good or evil, they shall go in there. And to them I will give it, and they shall possess it. 40 But as for you, turn, and journey into the wilderness in the direction of the Red Sea.’
Deuteronomy 1:34-40
Encourage him, for he shall cause Israel to inherit it.
There are now, and there have always been Christian men and women who have defied fear and convention, and made disciples of nations. Like Caleb and Joshua, we can look to these Christian warriors. We should not simply look to them and take heart that someday there will be more people like them. We must look to them and follow their example (Joshua 24:15). I pray that we will raise families of men and women who will be bold. I pray we will effectively love and care for our neighbors and communities, sharing with them the great joy and hope we have in Christ. Were we to do so for a thousand generations, this world would be a Christian world. Our mission, given in Christ’s great commission, would be fulfilled. We would live in a world-wide Christian kingdom. And, we would no longer be sojourners.
Well, there you have it. An exploration of the term sojourners. I think, from Peter’s vantage, it most likely referred to the first explanation – that found in Hebrews 11. We have a heavenly home, to which we look forward with a living hope (1 Peter 1:3-5) and we are sojourning here as long as we live. That said, we do have the example of the patriarchs as sojourners in the promised land. And, their descendants definitely took over that land. So, worth considering. More soon!
