Two Doctrines to Live By 1 Peter 4.1-11 120212PM@TBC

INTRODUCTION
 A. Book Review 

Read 1 Peter 5.10-11
Theme: “Standing in the True Grace”
Outline:
1. Theology: Our Great Salvation  1.1-2.10
2. Application: Holy Among Unbelievers 2.11-5.14
a) In Submission 2-3
b) In Suffering  3-4
c)  In Church 5
B. Pray and Read Text
C. Doctrinal Foundations

• “...that they may be better prepared to live as Christians within a society that is not sympathetic to their faith.”  —Karen Jobs in 1 Peter (BECNT) p.273
• The context here is of non-Jewish believers who have converted to Christ, left their old lifestyle and are being maligned (nasv, esv), abused (niv), or spoken evil of (NKJV) because of their good behavior.

Big Idea: Two key doctrines lay the foundation for the exhortations given to the believer in these verses.
1. Christ suffered in the flesh

• 1 John 4.1-3  Christ’s physical “in the flesh” life is an essential truth.
• 1 Peter 2.20-24 Note: The context here (and in 4.1) is unjust suffering.
• Note: Vs. 21 refers to Christ’s death on the cross (compare with v. 24 “bore our sins”)
• 1 Peter 3.17-18  Note: “being put to death in the flesh” eliminates any idea of some figurative suffering. 
• Note: The purpose of Christ’s death explained here.
• The suffering was very literal and concrete for The Lord Jesus as it was for the “pilgrims” Peter addressed here.

2. The end of all things is at hand (imminent).

• “From the perspective that all the previous acts in the drama of redemption have been completed—creation, fall, the calling of Abraham, the exodus from Egypt, the kindom of Israel, the exile in Babylon and the return, the birth of Christ, His life, death and resurrection, His ascension into heaven, and the pouring out of the Holy Spirit to establish the church.  The great ‘last act’, the church age, had been continuing for about thirty years by the time Peter wrote.  Thus the curtain could fall at any time, ushering the return of Christ and the end of the age.  All things are ready: the end of all things (the ‘goal’ to which ‘all’ these events have been leading) is at hand.   —Wayne A. Grudem in 1 Peter (TNTC) p.180
• “We teach that we should constantly watch and be ready for the blessed hope, which is the imminent, pretribulation return of our Lord Jesus Christ to rapture His Church from this earth and to reward believers according to their works.”     —-WWT - X. Future Things (eschatology)   B. Rapture
• There is nothing that prevents the rapture of the church from occurring immediately.

D. Big Idea
This passage explains how these two doctrines motivate and inform the believer’s behavior so that he will glorify God.

Break out into small groups to identify how each truth affects the believers behavior.

I. CHRIST SUFFERED… (1-6)
A. Have the mindset of Christ  (1)
Arm yourselves with the same mind that Christ had.  What was that way of thinking?
&  Matthew 26.39  “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”    Priority of God’s will over my desires.
&  1 Peter 2.23 “committed Himself to Him who judges righteously.” The patience to let God make things right in His time and hope/expectation that He will.
“he who” refers to the believer who, rather than taking the path of least resistance—going along with the values and norms of the gentiles, has been obedient even though it results in criticism and the condemnation of unbelieving family and friends.

B. Suffering for doing good  (1&4)
he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin
...those who suffer unjustly for their faith in God have demonstrated that they are through with sin to the extent that they would choose to suffer rather than sin.”  —Karen Jobs in 1 Peter (BECNT) p.266
1. Our belief in absolute truth,
2. strict adherence to Christian ethics,
3. and a final judgment of all men by Yahweh based on His revelation in the Bible
4. and our insistence to share the Gospel
put us at odds with the prevailing politically correct culture in America.

C. Live for the will of God (self control)  (2)

• Too much time has already been wasted in sin.
• Two themes in this list of sins: self indulgence and lack of self-control.
• lewdness  aselgeiais:  any behavior lacking moral restraint, particularly sexual acts but also acts of violence.
• lusts  epithymiais:  unrestricted passionate desires that tend toward immorality
• drunkenness:  oinophylygiais:  a Greek word made up of two words, “wine” and “to bubble up or overflow”
• revelries  komois:  a party of revelers parading the streets
• drinking parties   potois:   drinking bouts possibly held in connection with pagan religious rites (1 Cor. 10.14)
• abominable    :contrary to law and justice, illicit, criminal
• idolatries

D. Accountability to God  (5-6)
v. 5 —an account  logos: lit. a word or speech, an explanation
v. 6

• “those who are dead” refers to those who are now dead.  They were preached to while they were alive on earth.
• Because people will be judged after death (condemned or forgiven), the Gospel message of forgiveness and judgment is important.
• The New Living Translation and the NET Bible present two possible interpretations of this verse.
• “That is why the Good News was preached even to those who have died -- so that although their bodies were punished with death, they could still live in the spirit as God does.” —NLT
• “Now it was for this very purpose   that the gospel was preached to those who are now dead,  so thatthough  they were judged in the flesh  by human standards  they may live spiritually by God’s standards..”  —NET Bible

• Transitional Statement: The thought of the coming day of giving account to God prompts a new way of living. 
• Note the contrast between the old life of inward focused self indulgence and the new life of outward focused service to God and others.

 II. THE END IS AT HAND (7-11)

A. Serious and Watchful Prayers (7)
serious  Strong's G4993 - sōphroneō : to be of sound mind , to exercise self control
YLT—sober minded; KJV—sober; NASB—sound judgment;  WET—of sound mind; NIV—clear minded;
ESV, NET—self-controlled;
NKJV—serious; NLT—earnest;

• The great characteristic of sanity is that it sees things in their proper proportions; it sees what things are important and what things are not important; it is not swept away by sudden and capricious and transitory enthusiasms; it is prone to neither to unbalanced fanaticism nor to unrealizing indifference.  It is only when we see the affairs of earth in the light of eternity that we see them in their proper proportions and their proper importances.    —William Barclay in The Letters of James and Peter

watchful   Strong's G3525 - nēphō  lit. not drunk 1) to be sober, to be calm and collected in spirit  2) to be temperate, dispassionate, circumspect
YLT, KJV—watch; NKJV—watchful; NASB—sober spirit;  ESV—sober minded;  WET—collected in spirit;
NIV, NET—self controlled;  NLT—disciplined (in your prayers);

• It almost looks live the different common translations got together and picked different words from the Greek lexicon.

1 Thessalonians 5.6-8     Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober. 7 For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk are drunk at night. 8 But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation.

• We sleep or act drunk when we don’t give any thought to Christ’s return; when we drift through life oblivious to eternity.

B. Fervent Love  (8)

• Note: the priority of love (1 Cor. 13.1-3)
• Note: the outward focus of love
• Note: the positive result of love 

Prov. 10.12
Hatred stirs up strife, But love covers all sins.
“A community that is suffering abuse from outsiders may become a little frayed internally as well. But if they display hatred to one another, they will merely stir up dissension; by contrast, loving one another will “cover over” the many wrongs that inevitably take place in any community…” 
—DA Carson in Commentary on the NT use of the OT.
James 5.20
let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save a soul from death and cover a multitude of sins.
C. “Love for Strangers”  (9)
hospitable  Strong's G5382 - philoxenos  lit. friendly to strangers; hospitable, generous to guests
grumbling   Strong's G1112 - goggysmos  muttering;  a secret displeasure not openly avowed

• This verse addresses not so much whether we will be hospitable, but what our attitude will be when we are friendly to strangers.

D. Stewardship of God’s Grace  (10-11)

• God has given each of us grace
• We are stewards, to “manage” his grace.

1 Corinthians 15.10
But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.

• Whatever opportunity or abilities God has given us, we should utilize it in dependence on Him.
• The implication is that we will give account for how we have used our gifts, the grace that God has given us.

 Big Idea: These two doctrines motivate and inform the believer’s behavior so that he will glorify God.

Benediction:
In all things may God be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belong the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.