A Change Of Desires Series

“A Change of Desires”

1 Peter 4:7-11

A sermon for 8/24/25

Pastor John Bright

1 Peter 4 “1 Therefore, since Christ suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same mind, for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, 2 that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh for the lusts of men, but for the will of God. 3 For we have spent enough of our past lifetime in doing the will of the Gentiles—when we walked in lewdness, lusts, drunkenness, revelries, drinking parties, and abominable idolatries. 4 In regard to these, they think it strange that you do not run with them in the same flood of dissipation, speaking evil of you. 5 They will give an account to Him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. 6 For this reason the gospel was preached also to those who are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit.”

Today, the church has become deeply divided. Some seem to focus on hell and judgement, while others seem to focus on love and grace. We need to remember, it's not EITHER/OR. It's really BOTH/AND. If we are going to lead Sprit-filled lives, we must recognize that a Holy God can (and will) judge us all by His standards, not by what we think or believe.

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We are still in the main section of 1 Peter where he keeps offering advice to the Jesus Followers in his day and in our day. Peter returns to a topic we covered earlier: how are those suffering from Christian persecution to live? This is a topic that we read about frequently in the New Testament:

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” – Matthew 11:28

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” – John 16:33

“Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.” – Romans 8:17

“For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ.” – 2 Corinthians 1:5

“I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death.” – Philippians 3:10

When we suffer, we are called to suffer in the same way as Jesus Christ. But why?

So we can obey, v. 1-2

“1 Therefore, since Christ suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same mind, for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, 2 that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh for the lusts of men, but for the will of God.”

I need to deal with that phrase “ceased from sin.” Those three little words keep this text of scripture from being shared in pulpits all over the church. Preachers don’t like tough phrases that are easily open to misinterpretation. Since I tend to oversimplify things, let me explain how I see Peter using this phrase. This is an important conversation for us to have because our new denomination wants to recover a Wesleyan view of holiness.

When Peter wrote that those who suffer will have “ceased from sin,” I believe he meant that Jesus' Followers were done with a lifestyle of sin. The power of the Holy Spirit that lives within you and me is stronger than the desires of the flesh, like addiction.

Peter makes a strong contrast between “lusts of men” (“evil human desires” NIV) and “the will of God.” In Matthew 6:24, Jesus gave this warning: “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” The context here is money, but greed is easily seen as an evil human desire. You see, it comes down to a question of obedience.

When we suffer, it can strip away human desires and help us desire the will of God. This can happen in the face of persecution for one's Christian faith. It can also occur when we face intense physical suffering or a time of intense grief.

Let me be blunt here – if you have no change in desire so that the will of God becomes your desire, you will not obey the Word of God. Today, much of God’s Church has made obedience to the Bible optional. That’s not the pattern of the Old or New Testament. We need to recover the Biblical pattern of obedience.