David B. Curtis
David B. Curtis
| Media #1,275 |  |
 |
Good morning, Bereans. We are continuing our study of 1 Peter this morning, looking at 1 Peter 4:1-6 which again deals with suffering. Peter began speaking about suffering in chapters 1 and 2.
In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 1 Peter 1:6 ESV
For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God. For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. 1 Peter 2:20-21 ESV
"This is a gracious thing in the sight of God"— gracious here is charis ("this is a grace to God"). This finds favor with God. God is pleased when believers patiently bear unjust suffering; it will count to their credit with God.
"Because Christ also suffered for you"—while Yeshua is our perfect example in all conduct, He is especially our example of how to suffer, especially when we are living righteously.
As Peter ended chapter 3, he showed that Yeshua suffered for us so we should be willing to suffer for Him.
For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit, 1 Peter 3:18 ESV
He continues now by showing that Christ suffered for us in the flesh (3:18), so we should also be willing to live for Him.
Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same way of thinking, for whoever has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, 1 Peter 4:1 ESV
We see here that believers are to think like Christ in regard to suffering. Paul also told us this in Philippians 2.
Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Yeshua, Philippians 2:5 ESV
The word "mind" here is phroneo, which means "thinking" or "attitude." According to Peter and Paul, what is the attitude that Christ had in suffering that we need to have?
The attitude that is being called for is Christ's attitude of humility as found verses 3-4.
Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Philippians 2:3-4 ESV
When asked what the three most important Christian virtues were, Augustine replied, "Humility, humility, and humility."
What is humility? Humility is first a feeling toward God that he has absolute rights over our life—that he can do with us as he pleases and that he has absolute authority to tell us what is best for us. A believer who has humility has no problem accepting that. It reflects a spirit of utter yieldedness and submissiveness to the Lord as master. The humble person sees himself as clay in the Potter's hands. Think about this in terms of suffering and how we respond to it.
When believers go through tough times, it is common for them to wonder ask, "Why me? Why is life so painful at times? If God loves me, why does He let me go through so much suffering."
As Christians, we are blessed. Because of our faith in Christ, we know that our sins are forgiven. Our trust in the death of Yeshua for our sins gives us the assurance that we will go to heaven when our days here are over. But have you noticed that you are not blessed with having to never go through the same pain and difficulties that unbelievers face? Christians still have bad marriages. Have you ever gone through financial difficulties? Have you ever lost a job? And there is still physical suffering. Christians get sick and have accidents just like everyone else. Becoming a Christian does not mean that we will never lose our job. Becoming a Christian does not make us immune to cancer, or tornadoes, or financial failure.
Why is it important to understand this truth? Isn't it obvious that everyone suffers with the pains of life? There are people who would have believers think that there is something wrong with them if they are experiencing great pain. But we need to understand the truth that the pains of life are inevitable even for believers in Christ. There are even those who suggest that once believers attain a certain level of maturity, pain will disappear. They claim that poor health and poverty and every other pain of life occurs because we don't have enough faith, and that God will continue to bring trials into our lives until we straighten up our act and grow up spiritually. The fact is that everyone will experience pain; it doesn't matter who you are.
As we look at our text, we need to ask whether the persecution and suffering of believers was something that only happened in the transition period or is it something that still goes on today?
John MacArthur writes the following regarding suffering:
"Some experts state that approximately 200 million Christians worldwide face the continual threat of harassment, torture, and even death because of their faith in Jesus Christ. It is believed that more followers of Christ were martyred in the 20th century than in the previous 19 centuries combined."
How can believers be prepared to suffer for righteousness' sake? Paul wrote this to Timothy, his son in the faith:
All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 ESV
What equips us for every good works? Scripture! The Word of God is useful to equip us to have a godly marriage, to be a good son, daughter, employee, or employer, to become a disciple of Yeshua, etc.
Scripture is also given for is to prepare us for the "good work" of suffering for righteousness. In 3:13-17, Christians are called upon to suffer for doing what is right (3:17) and not to be intimidated by hostile outsiders. In the new section in 4:1-6, Christians are challenged to live as people who follow the Christ who suffered in the flesh. This calls for a decisive break with the past.
Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same way of thinking, for whoever has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, 1 Peter 4:1 ESV
"Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh"—"Therefore" links the previous discussion to what follows. It looks back primarily to Christ's suffering and death in 1 Peter 3:18, and Peter reiterates that Yeshua suffered as a Man and His example and selfless attitude should motivate us to arm ourselves with the same attitude.
This would be important for these Christians to remember as they were suffering unjustly. They would need to remember their Savior. In fact, the Christians in the book of Hebrews were also suffering for the faith.
But recall the former days when, after you were enlightened, you endured a hard struggle with sufferings, sometimes being publicly exposed to reproach and affliction, and sometimes being partners with those so treated. For you had compassion on those in prison, and you joyfully accepted the plundering of your property, since you knew that you yourselves had a better possession and an abiding one. Hebrews 10:32-34 ESV
The writer tells them to fix their eyes on Yeshua as well so that they would not become weary. Look at what he says in 12:2-3.
looking to Yeshua, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. Hebrews 12:2-3 ESV
"Consider him" means to turn our eyes away from the persecution, and from the abuse, from the worries and give a concentrated look to Christ. This would enable the Hebrew Christians to not grow weary and lose heart. "Consider him" who "endured the cross, …and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God." "But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God." God is pleased when believers patiently bear unjust suffering; it will count to their credit with Him.
How should we "consider him"? Tradition says that right before Peter was hung on the cross upside down, his wife went before him. As they were dragging his wife off to be crucified, Peter said to his wife, "Remember the Lord."
Often in the midst of suffering, people become self-centered. We are worried about our future. Scripture declares the best remedy for going through suffering is to become a Christ-centered people. We are to have our eyes centered on Christ. We are to "remember the Lord."
"Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh"—1 Peter 3:18 says, "For Christ also suffered once for sins… being put to death in the flesh." Christ's suffering equates with His death.
"Arm yourselves with the same way of thinking"—the verb arm in its aorist imperative meaning, gives a command which calls for a decisive choice to effectively accomplish this action and implies an urgent and immediate call to do so. "Arm" is hoplizo. It is a military term for putting on heavy armor and preparing for battle. Hoplizo is found only here in the New Testament. In Greek, it was used from the time of Homer and beyond to mean to arm, to furnish with arms, or to provide. In the case of soldiers, it means to equip oneself with weapons. This verb was used of a Greek soldier preparing himself for the coming battle by putting on his armor.
Peter is not speaking of literal weapons or armor. He uses hoplizo figuratively to convey the idea of arming oneself with a mind or thought in preparation for suffering. Remember that the way you think determines how you act (or react). Attitude determines action. Peter says we are to have the same attitude about suffering for righteousness' sake as did the Righteous One. That was an attitude of humility.
Let's compare Philippians 2 to our text. The theme of Philippians chapter two is unity, and unity is a product of humility (verses 3-4). If you need an example of humility, look at Christ (verses 6-8). Then in verses 9-11, Paul says, "Christ was exalted." the implication is: "So will you be exalted if you humble yourself."
We must arm ourselves with the mind that Christ had. The attitude that Christ possessed led Him to willingly give Himself for the sins of others. He was willing to suffer wrongfully rather than rebel against the will of the Father. The same is true of us. Peter is teaching us in context that we too should be willing to suffer for the cause of Christ, and possessing the attitude that Christ possessed is essential to do so properly.
"For whoever has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin"—what is this saying? This phrase can be interpreted in several ways, depending on the grammatical form. Does physical suffering stop us from sinning? The translators of the God's Word seem to think so.
Since Christ has suffered physically, take the same attitude that he had. (A person who has suffered physically no longer sins.) 1 Peter 4:1 GW
Does suffering make us "cease from sin?" Some believers have turned from God because of suffering.
This phrase can be interpreted in several ways. The Greek word translated as "ceased" is pauo. In the active voice, pauo means "to stop or to cease." It is used like that in 1 Corinthians 13.
Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. 1 Corinthians 13:8 ESV
This tells us that tongues would stop. Pauo means "to stop" when it is used in the active voice. Our verse, then, says that the Christian has ceased at a point in the past with the results going on (perfect tense). How could any suffering (except for physical death) result in a complete, ongoing cessation from sin?"
John MacArthur, "Because he who has suffered in the flesh, what does that phrase mean? To die, has ceased from sin. Did you get that? Is death so bad? You know what happens when you die? What happens? You don't sin anymore. So, he's telling these persecuted Christians to look for the triumph in death. The worst that the hostile persecuting world can do is kill the believer and if the believer is willing to die then that's no threat because they know that in death they cease from sin, then death has about it a certain sweetness, does it not?"
An active verb means that the subject does something; but a passive verb (or the middle voice in the Greek) means that the subject is acted upon and the subject itself doesn't do anything. Some, such as Dr. Joseph Thayer, say that in this verse, pauo is in the middle voice or the passive. Therefore, Thayer, in his lexicon of the New Testament, translates this literally as "hath got release."
They say that Pauo is not used in the active voice; what we have here is a word that does not mean "cease," but means "got release." God has made every arrangement for you and me not to live in sin today.
This view says that the fact that he has been persecuted is an indication that he has "ceased from sin." The world directs its persecution against those who are living lives of obedience to God, thus they are those who have "ceased from sin." The verb is passive. Literally, the Christian "hath got release" from sin.
This view contends that a Christian hasn't ceased from sin because he suffered physically. It is just the reverse in that he has suffered physically because he ceased from sin; and since cessation from sinning provokes non-Christians to persecute him, he needs to arm himself with Christ's mindset. This fits with what Paul says in 2 Timothy 3.
Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Yeshua will be persecuted, 2 Timothy 3:12 ESV
Why are Christians persecuted for living godly? It is because we live in an anti-God, anti-Christ world where we don't fit in and, therefore, we are persecuted. And when we are persecuted, it reminds us that this earth is not our home. Our home is heaven.
The believer can choose to live like the unsaved people around him, sharing their sinful pleasures, and thus avoid persecution. Or he can live in purity and godliness, bearing the reproach of Christ, and suffer at the hands of the wicked. When a believer deliberately chooses to suffer persecution as a Christian rather than to continue in a life of sin, he has ceased from sin.
so as to live for the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for human passions but for the will of God. 1 Peter 4:2 ESV
"Rest of the time"—what is left of our life on this earth. Peter reminds them (and all of us) of the brevity of the remainder of their earthly life. "Time in the flesh" refers to one's mortal lifetime on earth. Peter was urging his readers not to live according to the "lusts" of men during their remaining time in "the flesh" or lifetime, "but for the will of God."
For the time that is past suffices for doing what the Gentiles want to do, living in sensuality, passions, drunkenness, orgies, drinking parties, and lawless idolatry. 1 Peter 4:3 ESV
"The Gentiles"—from a biblical viewpoint, all the world is ethnically and nationally divided into either Jews (Israel) or Gentiles (the nations). In somewhat of a negative sense, ethnos conveys the meaning of godless (generally idol worshipping) pagans.
This list of sins relates to pagan worship practices that often involved excess of drinking, eating, and sexual immorality of the most base kind. It was similar to the Canaanite fertility worship so condemned in the Tanakh. This is a list of sins that Peter understood should only mark the past life of Christians and not the present.
"Sensuality"—the Greek word aselgeia originally referred to any excess or lack of restraint but came to be primarily associated with sexual excess. This word means to live without any sense of moral restraint, especially in regard to sexual immorality and violence. It is not a stretch of the imagination to understand the kind of unbridled unrestraint that is associated with the word. All we have to do is take a look at our society today with its fixation on sex at every turn, and we can easily understand the meaning and implications of the word. The same Greek word appears in Ephesians 4.
They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. Ephesians 4:19 ESV
It speaks of someone who flaunts their immorality, throwing off all restraint and having no sense of shame, propriety, or embarrassment. William Barclay wrote this concerning sensuality: "The great characteristic of aselgeia is this, the bad man usually tries to hide his sin; but the man who has aselgeia in his soul does not care how much he shocks public opinion so long as he can gratify his desires."
One of the big problems we have in our culture today is pornography, and specifically, internet pornography. It's a monster that's loose among us. The only way you are ever going to conquer pornography is if you are walking by the Spirit. That's the only way you will ever win that battle.
"Passions"— is epithumia, which is often translated as lusts. It is a neutral term denoting the presence of strong desires or impulses, longings or passionate craving directed toward an object (whether it is good or evil is determined by the context). Most New Testament uses of epithumia are like this use in 1 Peter where it describes strong desires which are perverted and unrestrained.
"Drunkenness"—this is the Greek oinophlugia. This is a compound term found only here in the New Testament of "wine" (oinos) and "bubble over" (phluō). The ancient world drank wine regularly. It is the excess that is condemned. Paul said,
And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, Ephesians 5:18 ESV
Contrary to what some Christians believe and teach, the Bible does not forbid all use of alcoholic beverages. The use of alcohol in moderation is not condemned or forbidden. We see the idea in Scripture that the purpose of alcohol is to cheer the heart. What this verse and the whole of Scripture clearly condemns is drunkenness; it is foolish and destructive. Paul calls it "debauchery" which is from the Greek asotia. It points to the wastefulness and destruction of property, relationships, and life that often go along with drunkenness. The adverb is used in Luke 15:13 of the way that the prodigal son wastefully spent his inheritance on loose living. It means to be out of control, because alcohol now controls the person.
Orgies"—this is the Greek word kōmos which is related to the Greek term for village, kōmē. It implies a large community-wide festive party involving excess of eating, drinking, and unrestrained sexual activity. Barclay says, "It describes the kind of revelry which lowers a man's self and is a nuisance to others."
"Drinking parties"—this is the Greek word potos which is only used here in the New Testament. Potos means drinking especially …s of drinking.
"Lawless idolatry"— lawless is the Greek athemitos which is literally contrary to statute, and thus illegal or unlawful. It describes that which is forbidden. Idolatry is not only unlawful but it is indeed an abomination in the eyes of God. Vincent writes "More literally, unlawful, emphasizing the idolatries as violations of divine law."
"Idolatries"— is eidololatreia which is from eídos meaning, that which is seen, what is visible, figure, appearance, idol, some sort of physical representation of a deity. Latreia means, service, worship. "Idolatries" means idol worship and is the pagan (Gentile) counterpart (and opposite of) Jewish latreia (worship). This pagan practice involved the worship of many gods and took various forms in which devotion to the idols was expressed. Idolatry in the first century was far worse than simple idol worship. Idol worship encouraged as part of its exercise not only drunkenness but also sensuality, sexual laxity and sexual vice.
As Robertson notes "The Greeks actually carried lust and drunkenness into their religious observances (Aphrodite, for instance)."
According to 4:4-6 the new Christian behavior evokes a negative response from the populace.
With respect to this they are surprised when you do not join them in the same flood of debauchery, and they malign you; 1 Peter 4:4 ESV
"They are surprised"—the verb means to be astonished, shocked. And it includes the idea of taking an offense. They resent you. Why? They resent you because you don't run with them into the same excess of dissipation.
That little phrase "you do not join them in the same flood of debauchery" is a very vivid phrase. The picture is of a large crowd running together in a mad wild race.
Some of the persecution that Peter's readers were experiencing was due to their unwillingness to continue in their old lifestyle with their unsaved friends. This continues to be a common source of persecution for Christians today. When we don't participate in the sin around us, we convict those who practice their sin, and they don't like that — so they speak evil of us.
When they obeyed the gospel, people condemned them. The same was being done to the people to whom Peter is talking. Nevertheless, despite the opposition of people, God approved of them. This passage, like Hebrews chapter 11, is intended to encourage people who are suffering by reminding them of faithful people of the past who suffered and yet endured.
"They malign you"—they blaspheme you; to defame, to attack someone's reputation, to slander them. They speak evil of you because you are no longer running into the same cesspool that they are running into.
Kelly says, "There is plenty of evidence from pagan as well as Christian sources that it was precisely the reluctance of Christians to participate in the routine of contemporary life, particularly conventionally accepted amusements, civic ceremonies, and any function involving contact with idolatry, or what they consider immorality that caused them to be hated, despised, and themselves suspected of illicit practices."
but they will give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. 1 Peter 4:5 ESV
Peter encourages the believers who were suffering abuse by saying that ultimately the world will give an account to God for their sins, which in this context includes their persecution of believers.
"The living and the dead"— this means all humans, both those who are alive and those who have already died. Peter viewed those who slander Christians for their lifestyles as really slandering God, who has called us out of darkness into the light (2:9).
They will give account to Him, who is ready to judge. Who is the judge? Who is the one identified as "Him"? We could say, on the one hand, that it is God the Father.
And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one's deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, 1 Peter 1:17 ESV
But Yeshua says he is the judge.
For the Father judges no one, but has given all jt to the Son, John 5:22 ESV
This tells us there that all jt has been committed to Yeshua and so we believe that God will judge them. But God will judge them through the agency of His Son, the Lord Yeshua, to whom He has committed all jt.
For this is why the gospel was preached even to those who are dead, that though judged in the flesh the way people are, they might live in the spirit the way God does. 1 Peter 4:6 ESV
"For this is why the gospel was preached even to those who are dead"— what does this mean? I'm sure it won't surprise you to hear that there are several views on what this means. Some see a connection between the gospel preached in this verse and the proclamation of Christ in 3:19.
in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison, 1 Peter 3:19 ESV
They understand 4:6 to be about Christ offering salvation to those who lived in pre-Christian times. This is most likely mistaken because there is no indication in Scripture that anyone gets a "second chance" to be saved after death.
Another group of commentators also connects this preaching to 3:19 but holds that this verse is speaking of Christ's preaching the gospel only to the righteous people of Old Testament times.
Another group says that Peter is referring to the spiritually dead. The gospel was being preached to them so that they could come alive spiritually. MacKnight holds this view and suggests that those who are dead were not physically dead but spiritually dead – Ephesians 2:1ff; etc.
And you were dead in the trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1 ESV)
So, the gospel was preached to them, and when they were converted, men would condemn them as in verses 1-5. However, they would live before God spiritually.
The view that makes the most sense is that in order to encourage these sufferers, Peter talks about people who "are dead" (present tense) – i.e., they "are dead" at the time Peter wrote. But the gospel "was preached" to them (past tense) – i.e., the gospel had been preached to them prior to the time Peter wrote. They "are dead" when Peter wrote, but the gospel "was preached" to them prior to the time Peter wrote. Nothing says these people were dead at the time the preaching was done. The distinction in tenses shows these things happened at two different times. They heard the gospel when they were alive and then later, they died. Some of them perhaps had been martyred.
"Judged in the flesh"— probably implies a martyr's death, but since they are regenerate, they are "live in the spirit" after death.
These Christians were judged with respect to the flesh, that is, with respect to their earthly existence in the body. The natural result of accepting the gospel would be the living of a Christian life, and the natural result of that would be persecution. But these Christians died, many of them as martyrs.
The fact that many of these believers were martyred gives strength to the view that, "whoever has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin" (referring to the fact that they ceased from sin because they died). You decide.
The bottom line is that Peter is calling believers to live a holy life which will no doubt bring them persecution.
| Continue the Series |