1 Peter 4:1-6 (Peter’s description of the victorious Christian Life)
August 7, 2012
Introduction:
Prayer:
Well I hope that you all had a wonderful week and I hope that as we look at this passage this morning that you would be ever the better.
We have been studying through 1 Peter now for 18 weeks and now we come to a new chapter within Peter’s first epistle chapter 4.
How many of you were able to see the great support that Chic-Fil-A received there on August 1st. My family and I had plans to drive to Idaho Falls to support them, but with Lyla’s toe being about cut off we decided that we wouldn’t put her through the struggle of driving 4.5 hours to support the Chic-Fil-A. My heart was encouraged as many Christians took a stand all across America flooding chic-fil-a buying their food and standing on the Biblical view of Marriage. One Women and One Man!
You Know Chic-Fil-A took a stance on Biblical marriage and now will suffer the cost for their beliefs, but when we look at today’s message it fits right into place as we see Peters description of the victorious Christian life.
So without delay let us get right into the Word of God this Morning:
If you will turn your bibles with to the 4th chapter of 1 Peter.
Those that are new to the Bible go all the way to the book Revelation and thumb backwards and you will soon find 1st Peter and turn with me to Chapter 4. Today will be reading verses 1-6
1 Peter 4:1-6
1Therefore, since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same purpose, because he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, 2so as to live the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for the lusts of men, but for the will of God. 3For the time already past is sufficient for you to have carried out the desire of the Gentiles, having pursued a course of sensuality, lusts, drunkenness, carousing, drinking parties and abominable idolatries. 4In all this, they are surprised that you do not run with them into the same excesses of dissipation, and they malign you; 5but they will give account to Him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. 6For the gospel has for this purpose been preached even to those who are dead, that though they are judged in the flesh as men, they may live in the spirit according to the will of God.
Remember Peter is writing to Christians that are going through sufferings and they being killed for their faith and so much of this letter is to encourage and to admonish these followers of Jesus and for us as well today.
Today we see both, we see encouragement and admonishment all in the same passage it’s Like Peanut Butter and Jelly. Three things that I want for you to take home and think about this week are:
1. We should desire the Attitude of Jesus! (4:1)
2. We should desire the Will of God! (4:2)
3. We should desire the Eternal Hope! (4:3-6)
These three points are something that all Christians should desire, they should desire to copy, reflect or mimic the Attitude of Jesus Christ, they should desire to follow, know and understand the Will of God in their lives and they should desire to have, take or inherit our Eternal Hope! Now eternal Hope is for the Believer and Eternal destructions for those unbelievers and today I pray you will move from darkness to Light and from the Power of Satan to God.
This morning I want to take just a little time in each one of these things that we as Believers should desire. That brings us to Point #1
1. We should desire the Attitude of Jesus! (4:1)
Well we have seen a lot about what Christ has done through out our study on 1 Peter. I hope that you have seen those things and have pondered on them, because if you remember in
1 Peter 2:21 it says “For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps,”
we are called as Christians to suffer for Christ sake.
He says in verse 1 “1Therefore, since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same purpose, because he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin,
Now you know the proper way or at least I hope should know how to handle the word therefore when it appears at the beginning of the sentence.
When we see the word therefore, we need to ask ourselves “What’s it there for?”
He is taking us back to the previous passages in 18-22 when we saw the victories of Christ, His victory over Sin, His victory over Hell and His victory of Death!
So therefore, since Jesus Christ had victory over these things, yes He suffered, but he came out on the Top!
Since He has suffered in the Flesh we are to arm our selves with the same purpose!
Peter is making a Statement here, You who align your self with Jesus Christ, Those that claim Christ - because of what he did there on Calvary you! Therefore arm your selves also with the same purpose.
Just like Christ has suffered, so you are called to suffer for His sake.
Do you understand that we are to suffer unjustly?
Listen I needed to here that, this is my very purpose to suffer unjustly! The closer that we get to the seconded coming of Jesus Christ, the more this will make since to us that Follow Jesus Christ and His word.
We are called to suffer and so we need to ask ourselves are we suffering for Christ? When is the last time that you have suffered for your faith?
When is the last time that you have been challenged for what you believe in.
I think for the most part Christians in America are ok without suffering, but listen Peter tells us, He instructs us and here he give us an imperative, “A command”, to Arm our selves for this very purpose.
Why in the world would he be telling us this! To Arm our selves.
I have never been in the military and while I have ministered within the military and I have seen soldiers. A matter of fact you want to talk about military, go to another country like Israel and you will see what it means to Arm your self. These men, women and children are armed to the hilt and prepared for action.
This word Arm here gives the Idea of a heavily armed solider! And so Peter is telling us just as a solider brings heavy artillery so we are to Arm our selves and be ready to suffer for Chirst!
Now listen while a solider armor is his gun, weapons and such! What is it that we are to arm our selves with.
The Word of God! Hebrews 4:12 “For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
But not only that, the context is speaking of Christ! The weapon that we are to make sure that we are arming ourselves with is the ability to endure unto death! To Suffer for the Sake of Jesus that is a powerful weapon for a soldier, one that is willing to die for what he believes.
Because its when we see the value of giving up our very lives for Jesus, this is the death that produces the greatest victory for the Christian and sometimes even for the unbeliever.
On January 8, 1956 a man by the name Jim Elliot and four others gave up their lives as missionaries to the Waodani Indians warriors, there were guns that these men could have used, but instead they gave up their lives and I love this quote from His journal entry for October 28, 1949, as he expresses his belief that missions work was more important than his very life. He said and I quote "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose." He who wishes to save his Life must loose it!”
His very life was his testimony and it wasn’t until He gave up his life that his wife sometime later went and evangelized and saw many come to Christ.
Arm your self, with the attitude of Jesus, that to suffer unto death is to bring about victory! They can kill the Body, but soul will have victory, because Christ conquered death, Oh death where is your victory, oh death where is your sting! Died in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit!
Its important to arm your self for suffering,
because he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin,
does this teach us the doctrine of perfection? That you can some how be without sin? I think not, there are some that believe once you are saved you can live a sinless life and I don’t find that in the scripture, matter of fact what does it say in 1 John 1:10? If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us.
No what Peter is saying is this! If you are suffering for righteousness you have decided that you are done with sin, you are standing up for the truth of Gods word!
Look a Chic-Fil-A, they took a stand on the Biblical and traditional view of marriage and therefore the are being persecuted, because they stand on truth and when you stand on truth, you put away sin, but just like anything else you have to make a choice! I have to make a choice, We have to make a Choice and Christ wants us to Choose that what is righteous.
Jesus in his death put away sin once and for all! Now when you give up your life for Christ you are brought forth unto the Lord and there is no longer sin!
You see suffering is the key, because Unless you are willing to take up your cross daily and follow Him, you will not be worthy of the King. That comes from Luke 9:23 by the way if your interested.
If you want to live the victorious Christian life, you must arm yourselves to suffer Be of right mind, because many time Your outlook on life = the Outcome of if.
We should to desire the attitude of Jesus! But also!
2. We should desire the Will of God! (4:2-3)
You see the will of God is that you not live in sin and that you suffer for the sake of Christ, because when Jesus was buried, so you were buried!, when Christ suffered so you suffered and when Christ was killed so you were killed.
Lets look at verse 2
2 so as to live the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for the lusts of men, but for the will of God.
Christ wants us to live for the Will of God and not for the lust of the flesh! We need to a Christians take a stance!
You and me are all called to live a different life style than the rest of the world! And Jesus Christ in his Triune ability is the one that can make that happen in your life. You can try alone, but until to give you problems, sins, victories, short comings and struggles to Christ, you will be beating the air and become weary!
Are you here this morning with a sin that you can’t kick, an grudge that you are get rid of, with a attitude that makes you miserable? Listen Christ wants to set you free of these things and He has set many free from addtions, marital issues, sins, financial problems, but He will not force His grace and mercy on you, but He will call you! Will you let Him in? You know I let many people become my friends on Facebook that I don’t know and God this morning I pray is trying to friend you! Will you accept him or decline Him? Be for Him or Against Him?
Peter is calling you to no longer live in the Lust of the flesh, but to finish out this walk obeying the Will of God.
Turn if you will with me to
Romans 6:8-11
8Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him. 10For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.
Just as Jesus Christ Died, so you have died to sin!
Think about that!
If I was to died today, and you were to put me into the ground and right before you covered me you asked me pastor, I want to get married to this man, or women will you do the wedding, pastor I want you to call every member of this church today, Pastor how about play this video for the church service, listen I wouldn’t answer because Im dead and dead people don’t have to respond!
You could ask but it wont get done! Listen you are dead to sin.
So when sin ask you to watch that video, when sin ask you to hold that grudge, when sin asks you to talk about that man, listen you have a choice to make! Will you obey it or are you dead to it, but it says that you are alive with Christ and if your alive and no longer a slave to sin then you are now a slave to God, to righteousness.
Chic-Fil-A don’t have to listen to the world, because those owners are dead to sin and alive to Christ, take business, take there profit, but they are slaves to Christ and not the World and neither are we.
3For the time already past is sufficient for you to have carried out the desire of the Gentiles, having pursued a course of sensuality, lusts, drunkenness, carousing, drinking parties and abominable idolatries.
This past life is a closed book! You have already spent enough time doing that. Look my dad after he was saved when asked how would he be tithe him money, to the JW or the this new church? He responded, I have given the devil most of my life, my wife and my money long enough.
You see his past was sufficient for him, he had plenty of time to carry out the desires of the gentiles, the pagans, but now He is living a different life style, sharing his faith and leading his wife to Christ and suffering for the sake of Christ, sharing his faith with him family and no longer a slave to sin, but a slave to God!
As a late bloomer as a Christian that was saved in 2001 I remember all the years that I wasted away, but now I have been called to a different lifestyle, I had many years to live as a pagan and I so grateful that God in His mercy spared my life and now I want live a life that brings honor to him and no longer live a life that brings about the lust of the flesh like the pagan, having pursued a course of sensuality, lusts, drunkenness, carousing, drinking parties and abominable idolatries.
He is saying people are trying to live their lives in pursuit of sensual, physical, bodily pleasures! Sinful passions that drive the Lust! Drunkenness, listen the world will offer your happiness in the Bottle, but nothing good comes from drinking. The Bible says:
• Do not look on the wine when it is red, When it sparkles in the cup, When it goes down smoothly; That’s speaking of fermentation!
• Noah became drunk; the result was immorality and family trouble.
• Lot was so drunk he did not know what he was doing; this led to immorality
And what Peter is saying here is that the past life of drunkenness has no place in the Christians life.
And the abominable idolatries that he talks of is the worship of false God and let me tell you sometimes this world offers false Gods. What ever you worship is your God and if its not the God of this Bible Peter says put it away you are to live differently as a Christ! And You Can, through power of Christ. But you have to make a Choice, to serve sin or the Will of God! We should desire the Will of God, but
3. We should desire the Eternal Hope! (4:4-6)
What is the Eternal Hope and why is it encouraging to those suffering for Christ. Peter now finishes with these two verse!
4In all this, they are surprised that you do not run with them into the same excesses of dissipation, and they malign you; 5but they will give account to Him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. 6For the gospel has for this purpose been preached even to those who are dead, that though they are judged in the flesh as men, they may live in the spirit according to the will of God.
When you don’t join in with your buddies, to go out drinking and partying, when and you dont run with these people as a herd of cattle run together, Peter says they are surprised!
My question to you is do you look any different? Do we as Christians look different than the rest of the world. Listen Christ when He saved you if He has indeed saved you, when he changed you, you should have been a surprise to people. What wrong with Stuart He is acting all holier than though!
Listen when people look at you like your self righteous, it maybe that you are truly changed and they just don’t know how to deal with it because they don’t see that much change in themselves.
People should be surprised about the life your living, but if they are not you might just be fitting right in and if your fitting right in, you might fit the bill.
When they speak badly of you! Your blessed, let them have their joy and their entertainment! Because Verse 5 Says that He is ready to Judge! Even those that dead, so that every mouth may be closed and all the world may become accountable to God; Romans 3:19 You may suffer for Christ, but we have the hope of eternal life. We will no long have sin to battle, but those that mock you rejoice for the Lord is the righteous Judge and He will judge them on His own account and they will live in the Spirit according to the Will of God. Which side are you one? The persecuting side or the side of a victorious Christian?````
There is Victory in the Lord and though you may seem to be the loser here, again I would rather fail at what I know will have victory in the end than to have victory in what I know will fail.
Chic-Fil-A stand firm, Christians brothers and Sisters stand Firm and consider the Sufferings a blessing and know they cant last long!
Lets Pray!
