Showing Love

1 Peter 4:8-11

"Love each other deeply..."

Jesus said loving -- loving God and others -- is the greatest command God gives us. But He wouldn't have to command it if love came naturally to us. So there must be things that keep us from loving.

Sometimes there's a struggle to show love when we don't want to...

"... love covers a multitude of sins." Even if someone has hurt you or done something foolish and you can't seem to focus on the person, but keep seeing the sin they've done, Love casts a blanket over their sin.

And sometimes we just have to be reminded to wake up from our self-centered lives and show love...

"... serve others." When we look up from our own needs and see the needs of others, we can practice loving each other deeply. But it's easy for showing love by serving others to become just about serving, just another job or obligation to fulfill (Peter told me I should serve, so I'd better serve), and not about love.

Read verses 9 through 11 again, and look at what else is involved when we show "God's grace in it's various forms." (There's one of your answers right there!)

How to Pray

You may have heard that prayer is our lifeline to God. Or that it's the most important thing we can do as believers. You've probably felt or seen it's real-life affects. We are driven to it in desperate moments, even those who don't fully believe. And yet, I don't depend on it enough. Sometimes I just take for granted that God knows what I need (even before I ask, right?). But there is something that happens when I ask. The simple act of verbally talking (or writing) to God changes things, makes things happen... in me, and in the world. But prayer is not a magical act that will enforce my will on my circumstances, because -- above all -- one should try to fully comprehend WHO we are praying to, and who we are in relationship to Him.

That said, I think Peter... let me stop right here for a side bar... I was just reading an article that reminded me that when we read the Bible, we should remind ourselves that all of it is God's words to us. Even though there are many authors over thousands of years, their words were inspired by God. So when we read, remember God is talking to us. And when I say that Peter wrote or said something, his words are something that God is telling us. Okay, back to my original thought...

That said, I think Peter is telling us in 4:7 what we should keep in mind so that we can pray. What are these things (there are 3) and how do we apply them to our lives?

For more on how to pray, see Jesus' instructions here.

Living for God

I'm struggling with how to understand this passage for a couple of reasons...

The first is that I fear when one reads "he who has suffered in his body is done with sin," one might picture the albino monk from the Davinci Code, or performing some kind of painful penance. But this whole passage is about suffering for doing good. And that's what Jesus did. It was by doing the ultimate good that caused his suffering in the body. So that's the attitude we must arm ourselves with. By the way, have you ever thought of arming yourself with an attitude? Preparing for war with an attitude as your weapon? And with this weapon of attitude (the attitude of Christ), you won't live for evil human desires, but you'll live for the will of God. This sounds a lot like Romans chapter 6.

The second struggle I have is that verse 6 flies way over my head. It's referencing verses 19 & 20 in chapter 3, which talks about Jesus preaching to spirits in prison who disobeyed long ago, before the flood. In 4:6, we read that he did that because they will have to give an account when they are judged -- but it's that last part, the division he makes in regard to the body being judged, but the spirit living according to God. Hmm. Not sure if I'm grasping this... any help?

Suffering for Doing Good

I don't know about you guys, but I don't think I can say I've suffered much for doing good. Life has been pretty easy for me, and I don't feel like I can relate to some of what Peter has been saying. But there are many, many Christians who can relate, and probably count these passages as precious promises that keep them going. If you want to read their stories, you can find some of them on The Voice of the Martyrs website, persecution.com. I need to be reminded more that Christ is worth suffering for, even dying for. I need that broader perspective of "suffering" in my life.

Please pray with me that God will help us understand how suffering works in His kingdom, because we've got a tough passage coming up: 1 Peter 4:1-6. We'll tackle that Monday, okay?

"Beauty Is Only Skin Deep"

Ever heard that phrase before? Can you picture someone to whom it might apply? What is it that really makes someone attractive?

In verses 3-6, Peter isn't necessarily condemning dressing up or having nice hair. Instead, he's discussing where a person's beauty comes from. Beauty that only comes from the outside appearance is shallow. Beauty that comes from your spirit, your inner self, is true beauty. Look at verse 5 and 6 to see how to make your spirit, and thus your whole self, beautiful (there should be three parts to this beauty regimen).

Chapter 3

This week we read the third chapter in 1 Peter. He once again holds nothing back and starts us off with the sometimes sticky "husband and wife commandments." I know that a lot of my girlfriends out there have worked hard at the call to be submissive: struggling with it and defending God's purpose in it. The call to be submissive (to anyone, even our Heavenly Father) is never easily done, or easily understood by those outside of the relationship. So I was wondering if those that have some words of wisdom or advice about being submissive would share them here. At the same time, the husbands out there who are reading, maybe you could share what verse 7 means to you, and how you live it out. Thanks for your contributions, everyone. I'm really enjoying all that you have to say!

Doing Good

We saw last week that we are called to "be holy" (check out some of your definitions of what that means), and now this week we've read several instances where Peter talks about what we should do: "rid yourselves of...," "abstain from sinful desires," "Live such good lives," "doing good," and "if you suffer for doing good." Using specific verses from what we've read so far, can you sum up why we should do good, according to what Peter is saying?

Bonus Question: What's the difference between being holy and doing good? Is there one? (This is a good Friday post, since you can keep thinking about it over the weekend!)

What You Are Destined For

Since we're not afraid of tackling the hard stuff, why don't we just go ahead and tackle a theological argument that has divided many Christians throughout the centuries (since Peter has brought it up twice now): Predestination vs Free Will. Read again 1 Peter 1:1-2, and 2:7-8. What is he saying here? To stir the pot even more, read Paul's comment on this very issue in Romans 9:7-33 (notice he uses the same "stumbling stone" verse. Keep on reading, if you like).

Peter knew the concept of foreknowledge better than anyone. When he made what he thought was the most sacrificial statement of his faith, "I will lay down my life for you," Jesus told him that within 24 hours, Peter will disown him 3 times. But don't forget, eventually Peter did lay down his life (he died as a martyr). You see, Jesus never said he wouldn't. He did ask Peter if he really would lay down his life. The choice was up to Peter. The thing is, I believe Jesus wanted that kind of sacrificial faith from Peter. He just knew Peter's faith better than Peter did, and he knew that Peter wasn't quite at that level of sacrifice at that moment. And perhaps because God knew Peter's potential, He put events like this and others in Peter's life to build his faith until it became that sacrificial faith.

So this is how I try to understand it: "pre-destination" is God enabling those that He foresees will make the sacrifice and submit to Him. Our act of free will is key, but so is His enabling. We must believe. He enables us to believe. And He does because He knows our choice.

Simple, and yet, complex. That's God for you.

And feel free to disagree with me here, or add your own comments. Isn't it fun to dive deep into His Word?

A Precious Stone

Peter uses the metaphor of a stone to represent Jesus, which is a metaphor that God used way before Peter came around, and so Peter quotes for us the first instances of this "stone metaphor". In Isaiah 8:14, God says Jesus will be like a stone that causes men to stumble and fall. But later on, in Isaiah 28:16, God says Jesus will also be a precious stone that is completely trustworthy. And before God spoke to Isaiah, he spoke to the psalmist: "The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone."

I used to struggle with this idea that Jesus was destined to cause men to stumble. I'm sure some of you may have similar thoughts when thinking about friends and loved ones that do not believe, and therefore, cannot seen that Jesus is precious and trustworthy. It first sounds malicious and sneaky... why can't Jesus' preciousness be evident to all?

Your thoughts? (We're not holding anything back in this study, as you can see... when we hit the tough spots of scripture like this, we must pray for guidance and for God to reveal His wisdom to us... and He will.)

Spiritual Sacrifices

In verse 5 of chapter 2, Peter tells us that we are living stones (in reference to Christ, THE Living Stone) that are "being built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ." So my question is, what is a spiritual sacrifice? Have you made any lately?

A Resolute New Year

So I think I've figured out a system that will work here, and maybe it will fit in with your new year's resolutions (if one of them is to spend more dedicated time in the Bible, like one of mine is). We will continue reading about a chapter a week, but I will be posting (almost daily) a question from that chapter during the week, to get discussion and digestion going (we live, not on bread alone, but on every word that comes from God, remember!). So, beginning this Monday, we'll start on the second chapter of 1 Peter. Until then, refresh your memory and read, or re-read, chapter one and take a look at the questions in the last post. I'd really like to hear your thoughts about the first chapter, particularly your "holy" definition and what Peter means by "prepare your minds for action."

I hope this fits into your life and schedule, because I am praying it will change all of us immensely!