Live As Free People Series

“LIVE AS FREE PEOPLE!” 1 Peter 2:13-17

FBCF – 7/2/23

Jon Daniels

INTRO – On this 4th of July weekend, we celebrate the freedoms that we enjoy as citizens of the USA. We owe a huge debt of gratitude to all those men & women who have served our nation’s armed forces to fight for & protect our freedom, some of whom we recognized this morning. We also owe a debt of gratitude to the governmental leaders who have served w/ honor & integrity. And, most importantly, we must continually pray for all our governmental leaders on every level, from local to national, whether we agree w/ them & support them or not.

- 1 Timothy 2:1-2 – “First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.”

EXPLANATION – 1 Peter 2:13-17

APPLICATION – Freedom comes by being set free from sin & death through trusting Jesus ALONE for your salvation!

Jesus sets you free permanently & eternally. Now you get to live free for His glory. And this is how you do that:

LIVE FREE BY:

SUBMITTING to authority – v. 13-14 – Not only should we pray for those in authority over us, as we said at beginning of message, but we should also submit to their leadership. They have been placed there as part of God’s plan for our lives.

- Romans 13:1 – “Everyone must obey state authorities, because no authority exists without God's permission, & the existing authorities have been put there by God.” (GNT)

Before you say, “Well, that’s easy for Peter to say b/c he didn’t have a President like ours,” you need to remember who the ruler to whom Peter was submitting. The emperor was Nero who “sexually corrupted little boys and murdered his mother, his wives, his lovers, and other men so he could molest their wives. He was a fornicator, a homosexual, a cross-dresser, and a [pedophile].” (https://earlychurchhistory.org/politics/emperor-nero-the-arsonist/). He burned down the city of Rome, blamed the Christians, instituted intense persecution of them, fed them to lions & burned them on poles to light the gardens of his palace, & eventually executed Peter.

We must submit to our leaders, but do not have to support government officials who are leading our communities & nation in directions that are in direct conflict w/ the Bible. The reason we submit even we don’t support is simple: We are commanded to submit. To NOT submit would mean we are disobeying God which is a LOT worse than disobeying a civil law that we don’t like or a government leader we don’t support or respect.

- We don’t just obey the law to avoid punishment. We obey the law b/c we are Christ-followers who want to obey & glorify God in all we do.

- We submit to follow the Lord’s instructions.

o Matthew 22:21 – “…give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and give to God what belongs to God.” (NLT)

- We submit to follow the Lord’s example – No record in any of the Gospels of Jesus organizing or participating in a political rally, mark, sit-in, protest, or rally.

Submitting to governmental authorities is a matter of simple obedience to God.

SERVING people – v. 15 – Talking a lot about witnessing right now – “Summer of Salvation” initiative. So important that we share the Gospel any time we are able to. Must speak the Gospel & defend the Gospel whenever the opportunity arises.

But our conduct & lifestyle is a way to defend the Gospel as well. Our “doing good” speaks volumes to those around us without us ever speaking a word. Understand that it’s not a substitute for verbally sharing the Gospel but goes hand-in-hand w/ our verbal evangelism efforts. Those who never read the Bible will read our lives. Question: What are they reading?

- It speaks volumes when we serve those with whom we disagree.

- It speaks volumes when we serve those who are different from us.

o Different lifestyle

o Different set of values & beliefs

o Different race

o Different socioeconomic status

o Different political views

o Different religious beliefs or no religious beliefs

Serving silences ignorant, foolish people, &, when their mouths are closed, our mouths need to open w/ the Good News about Jesus!

SLAVERY to God – v. 16 – The 1st point of message relates to our relationship w/ our leaders. The 2nd – Our relationship w/ others. This point – Our own relationship w/ God.

Different words to describe our relationship w/ God: child – son/daughter – disciple – follower – friend – worshiper. How about slave?