Evangelist, Larry Moyer, tells the story of a warden, who asked a prisoner on death row what he would like to eat for his last meal.
The prisoner replied, “I would like to have a huge piece of watermelon.”
The warden said, “You must be kidding? This is December. Watermelons have not been planted, let alone harvested.”
To which the prisoner retorted, “That's okay, I don't mind waiting” (R. Larry Moyer, "Right Smack in the Middle of Sin," Preaching Today, Tape No. 148; www.PreachingToday.com).
That prisoner wanted to hang onto his life a little while longer. He loved life even in prison.
You too can love life no matter where you are. The question is How? Well, if you have your Bibles, I invite you to turn with me to 1 Peter 3, 1 Peter 3, where the Bible tells us to how to love life.
1 Peter 3:8-12 Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing. For “Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit; let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it. For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.” (ESV)
Peter quotes Psalm 34 here, which describes how to love life even when you’re going through hard times. It’s the backdrop for his words in verses 8-9 where he tells his readers how to treat people. So he is saying, if you want to love life, then first of all...
LOVE ONE ANOTHER.
Love your brothers and sisters in the body of Christ. Love your partners in the church.
This is the completion, the perfection, of life. That word for “finally” (telos) in verse 8, literally means the end in terms of reaching a goal. It can’t be the end of Peter’s letter, because he goes on for another two and half chapters.
It reminds me of the boy who visited his friend’s church and afterward told him, “I like your preacher better than mine. When your preacher says “finally,” he finishes. When my preacher says “lastly,” he lasts and lasts and lasts.
Peter is not coming to a conclusion here as much as he’s talking about the goal of life, the thing that completes our lives, and that’s love! He uses five adjectives here in verse 8 to describe what that love looks like.
First, he says, “have unity of mind” – literally, be of the same mind. It’s not that we all have to think exactly alike, but we must at least be playing the same song. It’s like a finely tuned symphony orchestra. The players don’t play the same notes, but what they do play blends together to create beautiful music. So in the church, God wants us to blend together to create a ministry that honors Him beautifully. Be of the same mind.
Then second, “have sympathy” – literally, suffer with each other. When one of us hurts, we all hurt. We weep with those who weep.
And third, “have brotherly love – I.e., love each other as brothers and sisters. It’s okay to disagree sometimes, but at the end of the day don’t let anything separate you, because we’re family.
Have brotherly love, and fourth, “a tender heart” – Literally, have good bowels. In the ancient world, people felt with their bowels. Today, people feel with their hearts, so we might say, “Have a good heart.”
And finally, fifth, have a humble mind” – i.e., a lowly mind. People used the word in Bible days to speak of those who were lowly or servile in their thinking. They often used it in a disparaging way, but the Bible turns it around to speak of those who have a servant’s attitude.
This is what it means to love each other: to serve each other; to be good-hearted towards each other; to treat each other like family; to suffer with each other; and to be of the same mind. This’s the end of life, the goal! Love completes you as an individual, and it completes us as a church. Love makes life worth living. So if you want to love life, love people. And start by loving the people right here in the church.
Philip Yancey, in a Christianity Today article several years ago recalls talking to a pastor from India who said, “Most of what happens in Christian churches, including even miracles, can be duplicated in Hindu and Muslim congregations. But in my area only Christians strive, however ineptly, to mix men and women of different castes, races, and social groups. That's the real miracle.”
Yancey says, “Diversity complicates rather than simplifies life. Perhaps for this reason we tend to surround ourselves with people of similar age, economic class, and opinion. Church offers a place where infants and grandparents, unemployed and executives, immigrants and blue bloods can come together.” Then he talks about sitting in church “sandwiched between an elderly man hooked up to a puffing oxygen tank and a breastfeeding baby who grunted loudly and contentedly throughout the sermon.” (Philip Yancey, “Denominational Diagnostics,” Christianity Today, November 2008, p.119; www.PreachingToday.com)
Where else but the church can you find that mixture? That’s the true miracle of Christianity, and that’s the reason Christ died on a cross. He died not only to reconcile us to God, but to reconcile us to each other. Ephesians 2 says His death destroyed the barriers between us so that we could come together as “one new man” (Ephesians 2:14-15).
That’s what’s so fun about being a part of the church. We’re striving, however ineptly, to mix people of different ages and social groups. It gets messy sometimes, but how rich it is when we learn to accept and appreciate one another despite our differences. Dear friends, if you want to love life, love people, beginning right here in the church. But don’t stop with other believers…
LOVE YOUR ENEMIES, as well.
Love those outside the church. Love even those who are hostile to you.
1 Peter 3:9 Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing. (ESV)
Warren Wiersbe says, “We can live on one of three levels. We can return evil for good, which is the satanic level. We can return good for good and evil for evil, which is the human level. Or we can return good for evil, which is the divine level.”
To live at the highest level of life, repay people with good when they do you harm. Bless them when they insult or slander you. That word for blessing in the original text is eulogeo. We get our word “eulogy” from it, and it means to speak well of someone.
At a funeral, people usually say nice things about the person who died in the eulogy. Well here, God wants you to say nice things about living people even when they don’t say nice things about you.
This is your calling as a believer in Jesus Christ, and this is the way God blesses you (or eulogizes you). In other words, when you say nice things about others, then God says nice things about you.
This is truly living! Otherwise, you become trapped in prisons of bitterness and anger. You can’t love life until you learn to love your enemies.
Josef Mengele, at the Auschwitz concentration camp, performed horrific experiments on the prisoners, including Eva Kor and her sister Miriam during World War II. In 1995, Eva returned to Auschwitz for the 50th anniversary of their liberation. She asked Dr. Hans Munch (who signed death certificates at the camp) to join them and sign an affidavit acknowledging what happened. Dr. Munch agreed.
Eva said, “I was so glad that I would have an original document witnessed and signed by a Nazi… to add to the historical collection of information we were preserving for ourselves and for future generations. I was so grateful that Dr. Munch was willing to come with me to Auschwitz and sign that document about the operation of the gas chambers, and I wanted to thank him. But how can one thank a Nazi doctor?”
For ten months she pondered this question. All kinds of ideas popped into her head until she finally thought, “How about a simple letter of forgiveness from me to him? Forgiving him for all that he has done?” She said, “I knew immediately that he would appreciate it, but what I discovered once I made the decision was that forgiveness is not so much for the perpetrator, but for the victim. I had the power to forgive. No one could give me this power, and no one could take it away. That made me feel powerful. It made me feel good to have any power over my life as a survivor.”
In an interview before her death, Eva shared: “If I had discovered forgiveness sooner, I would have had that 50 years of my life back. Forgive. See the miracle that can happen” (Poppy Danby, “The twins who survived Auschwitz despite being tortured, beaten and humiliated,” Mirror, 8-27-20; www. PreachingToday.com)
Now, forgiveness is not a feeling. It is an act of the will whereby you choose to bless the one who has cursed you; you choose to return good for evil. And such an act sets YOU free, much more than the perpetrator.
The Journal of Psychology and Health recently published a study, which described one-third of Americans who say they lie awake at least a few nights a week. Then the study prescribed forgiveness as a way to overcome insomnia (Loren Toussaint, Andrew J. Gall, Alyssa Cheadle, and David R. Williams, “Let it rest: Sleep and health as positive correlates of forgiveness of others and self-forgiveness,” Psychology & Health, pp. 302-317, July 31, 2019).
In the study, researchers asked 1,423 American adults to rate themselves on how likely they were to forgive themselves for the things they did wrong and forgive others for hurting them. They also answered questions about how they had slept in the past 30 days.
The results suggest people who were more forgiving were more likely to sleep better and for longer, and, in turn, have better physical health. Forgiveness may help individuals leave the day’s regrets and offenses in the past and promote sound sleep. Otherwise, they had too much on their minds to get any rest.
People who don’t forgive, researchers explain, tend to linger on unpleasant thoughts and feelings, such as anger, blame, and regret, which detracts from sleep quality and well-being (Sophie McMullen, “Having trouble sleeping? Try forgiving someone,” The Washington Post, 10-21-19; www.PreachingToday.com)
Oh my dear friends, set yourself free to get a good night’s rest. Forgive those who have hurt you and put them in God’s hands. Love one another. Love your enemies. Then, and only then…
LOVE LIFE!
Enjoy living. Be glad to be alive!
1 Peter 3:10 For “Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit... (ESV)
If you would love life, then keep your tongue from evil. In this context, that means repay an insult with a blessing (vs.9); speak well even of those who don’t speak well of you.
There is a judge in Maui who understands this principle. A few years ago (2017), Judge Rhonda Loo sentenced Darren Young (age 30) to write 144 nice things about his ex-girlfriend. According to police reports, Young had called and texted his ex-girlfriend 144 times between 8:39 and 11:10 p.m. on May 22, 2017, in violation of a protection order. Police arrested him shortly thereafter.
In court, Judge Loo Judge Loo told Young he must come up with new praises to give to his former lover. “For every nasty thing you said about her, you're going to say a nice thing. No repeating words,” Loo said. Then she added, “I don't know whether I should cut off your fingers or take away your phone to get you to stop texting” (Daniela Cobos, “Hawaii Judge Makes Man Write 144 Compliments to Ex Girlfriend for Sending Nasty Texts,” International Business Times, 10-31-17; www.Preaching Today.com).
Saying “nice things” is good for any relationship, and you don’t need a court order to do that.
Rabbi Joseph Telushkin, author of Words That Hurt, Words That Heal, has lectured throughout the Untied States on the powerful, often negative impact of words. He asks his audiences to put up their hands if they can go 24 hours without saying any unkind words about, or to, another person. Invariably, only a few people put up their hands. Others laugh, and quite a few call out, “No!”
Telushkin responds: “[If you can’t answer] ‘yes’, [you] must recognize that you have a serious problem. If you can't go 24 hours without drinking liquor, you're addicted to alcohol. If you can't go 24 hours without smoking, you're addicted to nicotine. So if you can't go 24 hours without saying unkind words about others, then you've lost control over your tongue.” (Mark Mitchell, “The Life-Giving Tongue,” Qoheleth blog, 11-15-13; www.PreachingToday.com)
Do YOU have a serious problem in this area? Then repent of your sin and ask Jesus to deliver you from it before it destroys you as much or more than alcoholism ever could.
If you want to love life, love people, which means keep your tongue from evil.
It also means turn away from evil and do good (vs.11). Literally, “bend out of” evil. In other words, when somebody does evil to you, bend out of that evil and do not respond in kind. That’s what verse 9 says: “Do not repay evil for evil.”
In his book Confessions of a Pastor, Craig Groeschel talks about a time when he was silently praying during a worship service a few moments before he had to preach. His eyes were closed and He was focusing on God when he felt someone slip a note into his hand. He never saw who it was, but the note was marked “PERSONAL.”
Groeschel says, “I thought to myself, ‘Someone probably wrote a nice note to encourage me before I preach.’” A warm, loving feeling settled over him as he unfolded the paper. A moment later, he lost that loving feeling.
The woman who gave him the note had tried to see him on the previous Friday, his day off. She took offense at her pastor’s absence and blasted him with hateful accusations. This happened literally seconds before he was to stand up to preach. Groeschel says, “In that moment, I had a choice. I could internalize the offense and become demoralized and discouraged. Or I could ask myself, ‘“I wonder what she's experiencing that caused her to lash out?’”
Groeschel says, “I chose compassion over depression. My heart hurt for her. I knew that such a disproportionate reaction must indicate deep pain, so I didn't take her note personally” (Craig Groeschel, Confessions of a Pastor, Multnomah, 2006, p.169; www.PreachingToday.com).
He bent out of the evil done to him. He dismissed it and moved on. Otherwise, he says, “You may become the very thing you despise.”
Dear friends, if you want to love life, love people, which means keep your tongue from evil; turn away from evil, and pursue peace (vs.11). Run after reconciliation. Actively chase it down, not content just to let your relationships deteriorate into disrepair.
The Greek word for “peace” in verse 11 describes harmonious relationships. And it translates the Hebrew word shalom in Psalm 34, which speaks of a state of wholeness and unity, of restored relationships (Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament).
It supports what Peter said in verse 8, where he talks about living in harmony with one another. You see, when your relationships are not right, then life is not right. On the other hand, when you love people, you love life!
1 Peter 3:12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil. (ESV)
When you bless your enemy, the Lord blesses you. He is attentive to your prayers and answers them “far more abundantly than all that [you] ask or think” (Ephesians 3:20).
Dear friends, if you want to love life, love people. Love one another and love even your enemies.
One morning Mauricio Estrella walked into his office, sat down at his desk, and was greeted with the message: “Your password has expired. Click ‘Change password’ to change your password.”
Mauricio was running late that morning. He had forgotten to eat breakfast and had a meeting to attend. On top of that, he harbored nagging frustrations with his ex. Mauricio had just gone through an emotionally brutal divorce that had left him in a deep depression. And this was just one more aggravation that nearly sent him over the edge.
The IT people at his workplace had configured the computer server to ask thousands of employees around the planet to change their password every 30 days. As the empty field with the pulsating cursor awaited his input, Mauricio thought to himself, “I’m gonna use a password to change my life.” His password became: “Forgive@h3r.”
So each time he came back from a break or lunch, he typed “Forgive@h3r.” For one month, the password became a mantra, and that mantra changed his life. Mauricio said, “That constant reminder that I should forgive her led me to... embrace a new way of dealing with the depression that I was drowning into” (Erin Clements, “Can a password change your life? The Daily Mail, July 4, 2014; www.PreachingToday.com)
God offers you a new way to deal with life this morning, the way of love. Please don’t refuse His offer today! First, accept His love for you. Then, with His love, love the people He brings into your life.
