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1 Peter 4:1-6
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.
After mentioning the fact that Jesus suffered when He came as a human in flesh and blood, Peter goes on to tell us that we too need to possess the same attitude Jesus had, when we suffer for the sake of our faith in Jesus. He goes on to say something that would answer the question many a believer has concerning suffering - “Am I suffering because of some sin I have committed?” Peter seems to suggest the opposite. He says that we who suffer for our faith in Jesus are proving that we have ceased to live a life that is controlled by sin any longer, and hence suffering comes our way to try to turn us away from our faith, and back to sin. When we suffer for the sake of Christ, it’s not because we have sinned, but rather because we have made a commitment to follow Christ, no matter what. So we need to do all we can to remain faithful to the Lord in spite of the suffering, because if we quit on our faith in times of suffering, we are making our faith of no effect, and quitting on what we were meant to hold on to for life.
He says that such people who have put a stop to sin in their lives, have done so because they have made a decision to not fulfil their sinful desires, but instead, to live in a way that seeks to do the will of God. Thereby, such people are seeking to fulfil God’s desires, rather than their own sinful desires. This is the only way that we can be transformed into the perfect image of God.
He goes on to remind us who are tempted to satisfy our selfish sinful desires that we have spent enough time committing those sins before we came to know Christ, during which time we lived just like all the other unbelievers around us. He mentions a few of the desires that people seek to satisfy – lustful desires, alcoholism, wild singing and dancing, wild parties, and idolatry, all the Lord detests. The people of the world will be surprised that we don’t join them in such wild and irresponsible living, and would, for that reason, criticize and ridicule us for our faith in Jesus. Peter reminds us that such people who live this way, and ridicule us for the different lifestyle we live, will have to answer the Lord when He returns to judge both those who are living when He returns, and those who are dead as well.
Verse 6 is quite a difficult verse to understand, and there are several suggested interpretations for it. There are some who believe that this verse is referring to the earlier verse in 1 Peter 3:19 which talks about Jesus, after his death, and before His resurrection going to preach to the people of Noah’s time who were still in prison. If this interpretation is to be considered, then it seems like Jesus was preaching the gospel to those who died in the flood during Noah’s time. This then makes one ask what the purpose of this preaching was. Was it to give them a chance to be saved before the Lord returns the second time? This interpretation would then lend itself to mean that these people were judged by God when they were humans in the body, but if they believed Jesus’ gospel then they actually had a chance to be saved by the Holy Spirit, so they too could have eternal life.
Another interpretation to this verse is that it refers to those who died on account of some sins they committed while alive in the body, but after Jesus preached to them, they now had another chance to be saved when He returns.
My personal interpretation to this verse is that it is connected with the previous few verses where Peter encourages us to be willing to suffer for the sake of Christ, just like He suffered. Perhaps the words, “For this reason the gospel was preached even to those who are now dead so that they might be judged according to human standards in regard to the body, but live according to God in regard to the spirit,” refers to those people who had the gospel preached to them while living on earth just like any of us, but these people were perhaps condemned to death on account of their faith. The judgment they received was physical death, and was based on human standards, where people took offense at the preaching of the Gospel. But the souls of such people are no longer dead – they are alive to God. So in God’s eyes, they are no longer dead but alive and will rise again at the Second Coming of Jesus, when He returns to judge the world.
1 Peter 4:7-11
7 The end of all things is near. Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray. 8 Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. 9 Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. 10 Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. 11 If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.
Peter then reminds us that the end of all things is at hand, meaning that the end of the world as we know it, the return of the Lord Jesus, and Judgment Day are all very near. For these reasons we must take care to be alert, and not be taken unawares or misled into sinful living all over again. We must also be sober and not get drunk with alcohol, and thereby be led into all sorts of sinful living. Finally, we need to be prayerful, because that’s the only way we can be in touch with the Lord, and stay in step with the Holy Spirit who leads us in our walk with the Lord.
When it comes to relating with one another, we need to ensure that we love one another deeply, as opposed to being superfluous or pretentious in our love. Peter reminds us that when we truly love one another, then we won’t hold grudges but will rather be able to overlook the offenses of one another. He also reminds us to be hospitable to one another, meaning that we entertain one another in our homes. He adds another caution, and that is that we do all this without grumbling. This means that all the love that we share with one another needs to be shared willingly and cheerfully, and not grudgingly, because it’s only that which is done in love that truly impacts people and reflects the love of God in our lives.
Peter reminds us that we have each been gifted with spiritual gifts by God, and that we need to use those spiritual gifts to serve one another as faithful stewards. By this term, ‘stewards,’ he reminds us that we don’t own the gifts we possess but rather that they have been entrusted to our care, so we might serve one another in love. God was extremely gracious when He bestowed us with spiritual gifts – we did nothing to receive them, and did not earn them in any way, therefore we should not for one moment think that we are something because of the gifts we possess, but should, in humility use them to serve the Lord as we serve one another in love.
God demonstrated His grace to us in various ways, and in the variety of the spiritual gifts that He endowed us with, are seen the variety of the display of the grace of God in our lives. So let’s also demonstrate this grace as we serve one another in love.
He reminds us that if any of us speaks (meaning the word of God), we need to remember that we are speaking the very words of God, and therefore we should not take it lightly and share it glibly, but rather with sincerity and wholeheartedness. If any of us serve, we need to do so with the strength that the Lord provides us with. We should be careful to not seek to serve the Lord with our own strength – we need God’s strength to empower us, if we are to be effective in our service.
When we, through faith in Jesus share God’s word and serve this way, then God is the One who gets the glory, and is praised through our service. Peter goes on to say that the One Person who needs to get the glory forever and ever, is none other than God Himself, because it is He who has made all things, and it is also He who has brought about a transformation in our lives, resulting in life forever and ever. So let that be our goal in life, to bring glory to God in all that we desire, think, say and do.
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