1 Peter 2:11-12 [11] Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. [12] Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation. (ESV)
Although there have been many obvious devastating consequences of COVID, there have many less obvious. Beyond the sickness, death, job loss, addiction, and the like, the isolation can breed less obvious consequences. Isolation can breed frustration and a lack of grace. Removed from healthy face to face interaction, impersonal means of communication, mixed with external stressors can result in mistrust, hostility and resentment. One of the saddest impacts of COVID has been the public disagreements in harsh ways, that believes have engaged in. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus told all who would seriously follow Him: Matthew 5:16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. (ESV)
The nineteenth-century Scottish preacher Alexander MacLaren commented: “The world takes its notions of God, most of all, from the people who say that they belong to God’s family. They read us a great deal more than they read the Bible. They see us, they only hear about Jesus Christ” (First and Second Peter and First John [New York: Eaton and Maines, 1910], 105).
What we truly believe will show in how we act. If we say God can be trusted, but fail to trust Him, we bring a reproach on His name. When we say that the Gospel transforms lives, yet our life does not seem transformed, then we actually encourage others to doubt the truth. The Apostle Peter in 1 Peter 2:11-12, is trying to show his readers that “Blameless Living” is the single most effective foundation for making the gospel attractive and believable. Peter called his readers to fortify their testimonies with two crucial aspects of righteous living: 1) a personal, godly discipline that is inward and private 1 Peter 2 :11), and a 2) personal, godly deportment that is outward and public 1 Peter 2 :12).
Blameless living makes the gospel attractive through:
1) Godly Inner Discipline (1 Peter 2 :11)
1 Peter 2:11 Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. (ESV)
Peter began his exhortation by addressing his readers as beloved, which implied that they, as objects of God’s immeasurable love, had a duty to obey the One who loved them. On that basis he could urge (parakaleo, “to beseech” [] or “to encourage,” as in Rom. 12:1) them to reciprocate God’s love by living for Him. The command here implies that inward desires are not uncontrollable but can be consciously nurtured or restrained—a needed rebuke to our modern society which takes feelings as a morally neutral ‘given’ and disparages any who would say that some feelings and desires are wrong. (Grudem, W. A. (1988). 1 Peter: an introduction and commentary (Vol. 17, p. 122). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.)
Peter further identified his audience as sojourners/aliens and exiles/strangers, which reminded them that they were not truly members of the world’s society. In Philippians 3:20, the Apostle Paul wrote: “But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ”, (ESV). The moral estrangement Christians experienced in their society was a consequence of not sharing society’s values and customs. As a citizen of God’s holy nation, the Christian was therefore sojourners/aliens and exiles/strangers in pagan society, wherever that might have been (Jobes, K. H. (2005). 1 Peter (p. 169). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic).
As spiritual sojourners/aliens, believers must shun the things of this world (1 John 2:15–17, Mark 4:19, John 12:25, 15:19, Rom. 12:2, Col. 2:8, 20, James 1:27, 1 John 5:4). Sojourners/Aliens (paroikous) literally means “alongside the house.” The word came to denote any person who lives in a country not his own and is therefore a foreigner. The term fits Christians who do not belong to this world’s system but live alongside those who do. The knowledge that they do not belong does not lead to withdrawal, but to their taking their standards of behavior, not from the culture in which they live, but from their “home” culture of heaven, so that their life always fits the place they are headed to, rather than their temporary lodging in this world (Davids, P. H. (1990). The First Epistle of Peter (p. 95). Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.).
Peter also used the term exiles/strangers (parepidemous), which is a synonym for sojourners/aliens/pilgrim. It refers to a visitor (the KJV renders the word “pilgrims”) who travels through a country and perhaps makes a brief stay there. The writer of Hebrews reminded believers: Heb. 13:14 For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come. (ESV). (cf.11:13–16). Peter challenges his readers to live by Christian values and, when they conflict with those of society, to be willing to endure graciously the grief and alienation that will inevitably result. The challenge Peter presents to the thoughtful Christian is to live by the good values of society that are consistent with Christian values and to reject those that are not, thereby maintaining one’s distinctive Christian identity. (Jobes, K. H. (2005). 1 Peter (p. 171). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic.)
Since Christians are not part of the world, they must abstain from passions of the flesh/fleshly lusts (cf. Rom. 8:5–9, 12–13, 13:14, Gal. 5:13, 16–17). Even though regeneration produces a new disposition with holy longings, that new life force remains incarcerated within the old, unredeemed human flesh, precipitating an ongoing battle between the spirit and the flesh. Nevertheless, believers are no longer slaves of unrighteousness, and sin is not their master—they are free from its dominant and exclusive power. The command to abstain signifies that saints have the ability by the new life and the indwelling Spirit to restrain the lustful flesh, even in a postmodern culture dominated by sensuality, immorality, and moral relativism. Peter does not assume that these people are sinful, nor does he feel a need to describe the tension, but rather exhorts the readers to live out what they know they should, that is, not to yield to unbridled desire, for to do so would mean yielding to their enemy and allowing their very selves to be taken captive (Davids, P. H. (1990). The First Epistle of Peter (p. 96). Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.).
The term passions of the flesh/fleshly lusts is not limited to sexual immorality, but rather encompasses the evils of humanity’s sinful nature. The apostle Paul warned the Galatians: Gal. 5:19–21 [19] Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, [20] idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, [21] envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. (ESV). Consistently satisfying our desires in a manner contrary to the Word of God or consistently giving in to passions of the flesh/fleshly lusts will ultimately tear down the believer. To entertain such desires may appear attractive and harmless, but they are enemies which inflict harm on the Christian’s soul, making us spiritually weak and ineffective. (Walls, D., & Anders, M. (1999). I & II Peter, I, II & III John, Jude (Vol. 11, p. 32). Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers.)
Please turn to Romans 7
Peter, by use of the phrase which wage war against your soul, which intensified his discussion of passions of the flesh/fleshly lusts. In the Greek, which indicates that it is the character of such lusts and cravings to wage war against the new heart God has created within the soul of every believer. The “soul” that is the target of spiritual warfare is not to be understood as referring to the incorporeal part of the human being in distinction from the body but the whole self in its new identity in Christ. In addition to the usual list of carnal desires, one could also perhaps add the carnal desire to be accepted by society, which motivates ungodly behavior that is nevertheless socially acceptable. ( Jobes, K. H. (2005). 1 Peter (p. 170). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic.)
The Apostle Paul is the one who described in detail the nature of this internal battle, the type that every Christian experiences:
(READ EXTRA SLOW: EXTREME LANGUAGE DIFFICULTIES)
Romans 7:14–23 [14] For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold under sin. [15] For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. [16] Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. [17] So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. [18] For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. [19] For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. [20] Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. [21] So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. [22] For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, [23] but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. (ESV), cf. (Gal. 5:17–18)
• The law of God points out how we fall short of God’s holiness, and apart from repentance and faith in Christ, are under condemnation. Yet even after faith, we still will struggle with sin. One of the signs of the Holy Spirit within us, is the conviction of sin. We may not even understand why we have sinned. What Paul here is drawing together is the relationship with desire and action. He is not excusing sin, but helping us understand that while we remain on this earth, we will struggle with sin and done properly, this struggle can actually result in holiness and progressive victory from sin.
Reflecting what Paul was dealing with in Romans 7, Peter, back in 1 Peter 2:11 says we must “abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul”. Wage war is a strong term that generally means to carry out a long-term military campaign. It implies not just antagonism but a relentless, malicious aggression. Since it takes place in the soul, it is a kind of civil war. Joined with the concept of passions of the flesh/fleshly lusts, the image is of an army of lustful terrorists waging an internal search and destroy mission to conquer the soul of the believer. When we read the exhortation to abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul, we think immediately of sexual sins. But the application is wider than that; it refers to any strong desire that is inconsistent with the will of God. It would include over-indulgence in food or drink, catering to the body with excessive sleep, the determination to amass material possessions, or the longing for worldly pleasures. All these things wage incessant warfare against our spiritual well-being. They hinder communion with God. They deter spiritual growth (MacDonald, W. (1995). Believer’s Bible Commentary: Old and New Testaments. (A. Farstad, Ed.) (p. 2262). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.).
Please turn to James 1
The key to abstaining from passions of the flesh /fleshly desires and defeating fleshly temptations lies in walking in the Spirit’s power (Gal. 5:16), and exercising a godly discipline (1 Cor. 9:27, 2 Cor. 7:1). What Peter wants from his churches (and what God wants from his people!) is a heart focused on him, a behavior focused on love and obedience, and a lifestyle impeccable in the sight of non-Christians (McKnight, S. (1996). 1 Peter (p. 136). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.)
James is an excellent practical book to help us recognize the temptations and how to deal with them. In Chapter 1 he writes:
James 1:12–18 12 Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him. 13 Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. 14 But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. 15 Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death. 16 Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. 17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. 18 Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures (ESV).
• Not only do we avoid ruin when we avoid sin, we become stronger, more useful for God’s service and will be honored by God for our faithfulness. The world is full of excuses for sinfulness. We can’t be like the classic comic Flip Wilson, the “Devil made me do it”. James here helps us to understand the process of thoughts, desires, actions and consequences. Each of us must examine ourselves, and consider what thoughts, temptations or actions tend to lead us into sin and thereby avoid them. We can successfully avoid them if something stronger dominates. When we fill our minds with the word of God, speak about God’s desires and walk in the path of righteousness, then we will progressively be stronger spiritually, avoid sin and be more useful in God’s service, achieving greater results.
Quotation: In his book I Surrender, Patrick Morley writes that the church’s integrity problem is in the misconception “that we can add Christ to our lives, but not subtract sin. It is a change in belief without a change in behavior.” He goes on to say, “It is revival without reformation, without repentance.” Behavior and belief - If you don’t live it, you don’t believe it.
Quote: Sowing & Reaping:
An anonymous author wrote: “Sow a thought, reap an act, sow an act, reap a habit, sow a habit, reap a character, sow a character, reap a destiny”.
• He’s not saying that we earn our way to heaven but as we understand the nature of temptation and take active measures to combat it, we stop sin and it’s devastating consequences in it’s tracks, for the blessing of ourselves and others.
Finally, we can see that Blameless living makes the gospel attractive through:
2) Godly Outward Deportment (1 Peter 2:12)
1 Peter 2:12 [12] Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation. (ESV)
In order to effectively evangelize, Christians’ transformed inner lives must be visible to the outside world. Peter thus commanded his readers to keep their daily conduct/behavior at a high level. The level that God expects of our outward conduct is that of being ”honorable/Excellent which translates a word (kalen) rich and varied in significance, usually meaning “beautiful of outward form.” At least six other English words and expressions offer insight into its meaning: lovely, fine, winsome, gracious, fair to look at, and noble. The term connotes the loveliest kind of visible goodness. This is a PRESENT ACTIVE PARTICIPLE used as an IMPERATIVE. Unbelievers are watching! How believers live and react to the common struggles of life are loud witnesses to all who know them (Utley, R. J. D. (2000). The Gospel according to Peter: Mark and I & II Peter (Vol. Volume 2, p. 231). Marshall, Texas: Bible Lessons International.).
• As a simple example, if someone were to look at your life now, would they know that you are a believer in Christ? Do you proclaim the words of Christ, do you embody the confidence of Christ, are you engaged in the mission of Christ, are you calling people to Christ? How you live your life right now will show if you are living for yourself or living unto Christ.
This conduct should be shown among the Gentiles (ethnos) which refers to “nations,” or the unsaved world (cf. Luke 2:32, Rom. 2:14, 15:9–12, 16, 1 Cor. 5:1, 12:2, KJV, Gal. 3:8, 1 Thess. 4:5, 3 John 7). If Peter’s readers were to witness effectively among the Gentiles, it was essential for them to manifest behavior beyond reproach. The concern of Peter is that if non-Christians perceive the conduct of believers to be “good,” they may themselves also become believers. (Waltner, E., & Charles, J. D. (1999). 1-2 Peter, Jude (p. 85). Scottdale, PA: Herald Press.)
Quote: Reputation & Character
This describes behavior of Character. Character is the one thing we make in this world and take with us into the next. There is a difference between your reputation and your character. William Hershey Davis said: Reputation is what you are supposed to be, Character is what you are. Reputation is what you have when you come to a new community, Character is what you have when you go away. Reputation is made in a moment, Character is built in a lifetime. Reputation grows like a mushroom, Character grows like an oak. Your reputation is learned in an hour, Your character is does not come to light for a year. A single newspaper report gives your reputation, a life of toil gives you your character. Reputation makes you rich or makes you poor, Character makes you happy or makes you miserable. Reputation is what men say about you on your tombstone, Character is what angels say about you before the throne of God. Your character is what God knows you to be. Your reputation is what men think you are”.
• In an age of appearances and social media, do we waste our time worrying about our reputation, or invest the time and effort to build character in ourselves, our friends, children and among our congregation.
Character is important with our interaction with the world. Back in 1 Peter 2:12, we see the reference in the first century, to the label evildoers (kakopoion) which brought to mind many of the specific accusations pagans made against Christians—that they rebelled against the Roman government, practiced cannibalism, engaged in incest, engaged in subversive activities that threatened the Empire’s economic and social progress, opposed slavery, and practiced atheism by not worshiping Caesar or the Roman gods (cf. Acts 16:18–21, 19:19, 24–27). Unsaved people are watching us, speaking against us (1 Peter 3:16; 4:4), and looking for excuses to reject the Gospel.( Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 404). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)
Please turn to Luke 19
Observing the exceptional life of believers, some will believe, be saved, and glorify God on the day of visitation. Peter’s advice sounds like Jesus’ advice recorded in Matthew 5:16, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16 NKJV). If believers’ actions are above reproach, even hostile people might end up praising God (Barton, B. B. (1995). 1 Peter, 2 Peter, Jude (p. 64). Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Pub.)
The Day of visitation is an Old Testament concept (cf. Judg. 13:2–23, Ruth 1:6, 1 Sam. 3:2–21, Pss. 65:9, 106:4, Zech. 10:3) referring to occasions when God visited the people of the world for either judgment or blessing. The prophet Isaiah wrote of divine visitation for the purpose of judgment: Isa. 10:3 What will you do on the day of punishment (visitation KJV), in the ruin that will come from afar? To whom will you flee for help, and where will you leave your wealth?, (cf. 23:17). On the other hand, Jeremiah prophesied God’s visitation to deliver the Jews from Babylon: Jer. 29:10 "For thus says the LORD: When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place. (ESV)cf. 27:22). Usually in the New Testament visitation indicates blessing and redemption. In the immediate aftermath of John the Baptist’s birth, his father Zacharias prophesied: Luke 1:68 "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people (cf. v. 78, 7:16). God’s redemption is inherent in Peter’s reference to the day of visitation. The apostle used the expression to show that because of observation of Christian virtue and good works in the lives of believers, some would be privileged to glorify God when He also visited them with salvation. Therefore, the day of visitation should probably be understood as a reference to the future final judgment, by which time Peter hopes that unbelievers who have observed the good works of the Christians they have slandered will have come to faith in Christ (Jobes, K. H. (2005). 1 Peter (p. 172). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic.)
Concerning the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70, in Luke 19 we see Jesus regarding this visitation:
Luke 19:41-44 41 And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, 42 saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. 43 For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side 44 and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.” (ESV).
• Jesus here weeps on the rejection of His offer of life in Him and the consequences of that rejection. He brings salvation and peace with God and one another. Without the peace of God ruling our land and our hears, we invite sorrow, death, and despair. All of this is not just Israel's history. Can I make it very practical for you? Rejection of Jesus Christ as Lord is catastrophic for you, too. It's no less catastrophic for you than it was for them. What about your day of opportunity? What about the time when you've heard the gospel, when the gospel's been presented to you? The time when you've been told how you can be reconciled to God? What have you done with your visitation? Have you recognized the time of your spiritual opportunity or is the end going to be as catastrophic for you as it was for them? What are you doing about God's gracious visitation in your life with the truth of the gospel? That's the question you have to answer. It's history. But it's a monumental lesson to the catastrophe of rejecting Christ. Don't follow that path. Become one of His. Embrace Him as your Savior. (https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/42-242/jesus-humble-coronation-part-2)
Illustration: A stirring twentieth-century example of how godly living can influence the salvation of unbelievers comes from the events in a Japanese prisoner of war camp in the Philippines during World War II. American missionaries Herb and Ruth Clingen and their young son were prisoners of the Japanese for three years. Herb’s diary told how his family’s captors tortured, murdered, and starved to death many of the camp’s other inmates. The prisoners particularly hated and feared the camp commandant, Konishi. Herb described one especially diabolical plan Konishi forced on the Clingens and their fellow inmates near the end of the war: Konishi found an inventive way to abuse us even more. He increased the food ration but gave us palay—unhusked rice. Eating rice with its razor-sharp outer shell would cause intestinal bleeding that would kill us in hours. We had no tools to remove the husks, and doing the job manually—by pounding the grain or rolling it with a heavy stick—consumed more calories than the rice would supply. It was a death sentence for all internees. (Herb and Ruth Clingen, “Song of Deliverance,” Masterpiece magazine [Spring 1989], 12; emphasis in original).
But divine providence spared the Clingens and others in February 1945 when Allied forces liberated the prison camp. That prevented the commandant from carrying out his plan of shooting and killing all surviving prisoners. Years later the Clingens “learned that Konishi had been found working as a grounds keeper at a Manila golf course. He was put on trial for his war crimes and hanged. Before his execution he professed conversion to Christianity, saying he had been deeply affected by the testimony of the Christian missionaries he had persecuted” (“Song of Deliverance,” 13).
A primary purpose of a self-controlled life is its evangelistic value for attesting to the truth of the Christian gospel. The winsome way of life (that we see here in 1 Peter 2:11-12) even in the midst of a difficult social situation is hoped to be the witness that would bring unbelievers into the Christian community so that they too might glorify God on the coming day of judgment.( Jobes, K. H. (2005). 1 Peter (p. 173). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic.)
(Format Note: Outline & some base commentary from MacArthur, John: 1 Peter. Chicago : Moody Publishers, 2004, S. 135)
