1 Peter 2:11-12
11 Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from
sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. 12 Live such good lives among the
pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good
deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.
Let me start
by telling you all that writing this blog causes me great stress. I am not a
theologian and I am not a great student of the bible. However, I am still
thankful for the opportunity to write this. We need to be “pushed” in our walk
with Christ and never settle for where we are.
Of course I
went to the great biblical expert, Google, for thoughts on these two verses.
That was more overwhelming than helpful.
I read the
verses that followed and the previous Chapter to better understand the context
of the message.
Who was
Peter writing to? The letter is addressed to various churches in Asia
Minor suffering religious persecution. This is likely in about the year 65 A.D. so the church is in its early
formation and in these areas of Asia Christians would have been a very small
minority.
When Peter
refers to those in the church as “foreigners and exiles” I think he means that
we are all “foreigners and exiles” in this world. As new creations in Christ,
we don’t belong to this world, we belong to a heavenly kingdom where we will
one day reside for eternity. Wherever we travel or settle in the world, Asia or
Rome, Jerusalem or Egypt, we are as Christians all “foreigners” because we are
not of this world.
As such, we
should not be seduced by the things this world usually cherishes: wealth,
power, possessions, beauty and all of the related trappings. These are the
things that wage war against our soul. If we do nothing but seek these
“trappings” while here on earth we will be just like the pagans that Peter
refers to in this verse. As a new creation in Christ we should be seeking the
fruits of the kingdom, to love others as Christ showed us, to live a life
according to Christ’s teaching of humility, compassion for others and
forgiveness.
While here
on earth we will be constantly seduced by the things of this world. How do
we “abstain from sinful desires which
wage war against [our] souls?” I think Peter’s message urges us to have pure
thoughts. To reflect on what is good and not what pollutes our spirits. If al I
am doing is thinking about how to get a bigger house or more money, I am not
thinking about the suffering of the world, I am blind to the needs of others
because I am focused on me and my needs and wants.
Every
morning when we get up we have to make a choice. I can allow my thoughts to be
seduced by the trappings of this world, or I can focus on the things of the
kingdom. Where our thoughts go, so will our actions. Throughout the day we will
struggle with this but with God’s help we will overcome. It all starts with our
thoughts and our discipline to focus on what is good and of the kingdom.
Finally, I
believe that Peter is urging the reader to set a good example and to live “good
lives” and perform “good deeds” even in the face of persecution and rejection
by others. If we only love those who love us we are not much better than the
pagans. If we only forgive those who first forgive us we really don’t
understand the message of Christ. We are
called to be different even when it’s hard, even when we feel rejected by this
world.
This Easter
we celebrate the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. His hope for us is
that the desire of our hearts for the trappings of this world will die with him
on Good Friday and be replaced by the hope, joy and promise of new life offered
to each of us through his resurrection
on Easter.
No comments:
Post a Comment