Resident Strangers

September 13, 2026 | 1 Peter 1.1-2 | Rob Collis

What happens when our faith in Jesus changes us and makes us feel like aliens and strangers in our own home? This was the question Jesus’ earliest followers started asking: Following Jesus had changed them, and reoriented their entire way of life – and now they were feeling like outsiders and strangers in their own towns. And they weren’t sure what to do. That’s why Peter wrote his first letter to the church.

This week Rob Collis begins our new sermon series, Not From Around Here, which explores the letter of 1 Peter. As we begin our series, he preaches from 1 Peter 1.1-2, and shows us how, from the very outset – in these first 2 verses, and the time it takes Peter to say ‘hello’ – Peter is giving us a language and a theology to help us stand firm in their faith, and grow in their confidence in Jesus.