Wayfaring Strangers Part 6" I Want To Live Like That" Series

Wayfaring Strangers

A study of 1 Peter

Part 6

“I want to live like that”

1 Peter 1:13-25

The Christian Group Sidewalk prophets sings a long titled live like that

I is a challenge to live a better life for Christ

Let me read you just a few lines of it

Sometimes I think

What will people say of me

When I'm only just a memory

When I'm home where my soul belongs

Was I love

When no one else would show up

Was I Jesus to the least of those

Was my worship more than just a song

Am I proof

That You are who you say You are

That grace can really change a heart

Do I live like Your love is true

People pass

And even if they don't know my name

Is there evidence that I've been changed

When they see me, do they see You

I want to live like that

And give it all I have

So that everything I say and do

Points to You

If love is who I am

Then this is where I'll stand

Recklessly abandoned

Never holding back

In todays world we see a lot of challenges

Some good some not so good

The principal or college dean standing before a graduating class

Challenging them to use their education to make the world a better place

To use their experiences to find satisfaction in their choice of career paths or future dreams and plans

Is good and inspiring

A coach or mentor challenging someone under their charge to become better

Stronger

More disciplined

More focused is also a good thing

Other challenges not so good

How many of you have seen the tide pod challenge?

Or the cinnamon challenge

Kids are challenging other kids to eat those laundry detergent pods

And kids are dying because if it

I simply can’t warp my brain around why someone would even think that was a good idea

John Wayne once said

Life is hard, it’s even harder when you’re stupid, nuff said on Tide pod challenge

So, while challenges are sometimes inspiring and sometimes not

We must learn to discern between the two

It is important that the one who is doing the challenging

Has our best interest at heart?

Not everyone who offers a challenge does

Satan and this evil world we live in want to challenge us to be as bad a s possible

Push the envelope just a bit

Bend the rules

Or even blatantly break them

They want us to look for “outs”-“loop holes” in God’s word

With statements like

“Well God would want me to be happy “

Or” That is just old-fashioned thinking”

Even

“This does not really apply to us today “

“Everyone else is doing it”

“I’m not hurting anyone”

“It’s not as bad as-----"

And the like

All the time trying to get us to

Justify

Rationalize

Minimize

And normalize

Sin and bad behavior in our lives

Captain call said

I hate rude behavior in a man

I won’t tolerate it

And God Hates sin

And he won’t tolerate it

So, while the whole world seems to be issuing negative challenges

It is refreshing when someone offers a challenge that is actually positive

Encouraging

And promotes living a life pleasing to God

That brings us back to our study of 1 Peter

Peter in this portion of text challenges us to live Holy Lives

He challenges us not to go back to the gate of our old lives and our old sins

He gives us reasons and tools to accomplish this

Peter gave a bold challenge.

1 Peter 1:13-2:3 lays out the ethical responsibilities of those who have experienced the blessings of salvation described in 1:3-12.

The salvation that we have discussed in detail over the last few weeks from the words of the Apostle Peter

He once again he reminds us of the promises God makes to believers and the hope we have based on

Those promises

Here is a fact

Christ is coming soon.

We began living in the end times on the day Jesus ascended to heaven after his resurrection

We don’t know when he is coming back

Simply that he is

And knowing he is coming

Should motivate us as believers to be all in for him

To live for him and to tell about him

This means being

Mentally alert

Morally disciplined

and

Spiritually focused.

Striving to live a Holy Life

This is hard work.

This is a challenge

And if lived

It is more than worth it!

Please open your bibles to 1 Peter chapter 1

I am going to begin in verse 13

And we will be looking at verses 13 trough 25 and the end of chapter 1

Peter starts out with his challenge in verse 13a