Devotional

1st Book of Peter, chapter 3, verses 18-22.

18 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, 19 in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison, 20 because they formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water. 21 Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22 who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him.

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For me, this is one of the most puzzling issues of the Bible: are there second chances for people who go to hell? If Jesus, after He died but before His resurrection, preached to the spirits in prison, would that include the rich man who went to a place of torment in the parable of the rich man and Lazarus? Did he get a second chance?

I can understand our squeamishness about telling people that going to hell may be temporary. That would be a terrible thing to be wrong about. But equally unsettling is the opposite possibility: can people fall from grace after receiving eternal life? After all, Adam and Eve fell. Lucifer and a third of the angels fell. And in Revelation, chapter 20, Satan is bound for 1,000 years, and then released for a time for a chance to deceive the nations. Who are part of these nations, and weren’t they under Christ’s reign after He returned?

There are just enough questions here to remind me that I am a mere speck of dust that is trying to explore the mind of God. I will stick to obeying the commands I do understand, and leave the secret things in God’s hands. “The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.” (Deuteronomy 29:29).

1st Book of Peter, chapter 3, verses 8-17.

8 Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. 9 Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing. 10 For

“Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit;

11 let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it.

12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,    and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”

13 Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good? 14 But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, 15 but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, 16 having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. 17 For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God’s will, than for doing evil.

When people oppose the light that is in us, we should shine even brighter. We must not hide the light, or worse still, put out the light because it offends those who love darkness. If we become like those who love darkness, we will eventually be punished for that, and we will deserve it. 

It is God who will be the final arbiter of who was right and who was wrong. So it is a mistake to hedge your bets and compromise with evil. You will only forfeit the reward of making the right choice. When slandered and accused falsely, lean into it. Do not back down. Be even more zealous to do good. It is God who is keeping accounts. 

Even more that winning the arguments, we must make it our aim to win our enemies. We want to turn them from their path that leads to destruction. We want them to be saved in the end. “Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade others. But what we are is known to God, and I hope it is known also to your conscience.” (2 Corinthians 5:11).

1st Book of Peter, chapter 3, verses 1-7.

1 Likewise, wives, be subject to your own husbands, so that even if some do not obey the word, they may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives, 2 when they see your respectful and pure conduct. 3 Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear— 4 but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious. 5 For this is how the holy women who hoped in God used to adorn themselves, by submitting to their own husbands, 6 as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord. And you are her children, if you do good and do not fear anything that is frightening.

7 Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.

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This passage is not a scold for women to keep them in line and make them submissive. It’s about getting the husband in line by bringing forth the fruit of righteousness that makes him want to believe. And it’s not about getting dolled up to manipulate him, but touching his need for respect. For some men, this would be a miraculous sign along the order of turning water into wine.

If your faith is just a public performance, you might have a hard time getting your family to believe. They might need to see a real change. If they are anything like you, they need mercy and forgiveness, not score settling and judgment. Your family, your workplace, your classroom, and your neighborhood all need the experience of God’s grace. We are His emissaries, informing them that God is no longer holding their sins against them. So neither should you.

Instead of reading the Bible to build a case against the sinners in your family, look for what YOU can do. Go over the top with your respect for them. Have a quiet and gentle spirit. Live with them in an understanding way, showing honor. Be a saint at home and at church.

1st Book of Peter, chapter 2, verses 13-25.

13 Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, 14 or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good. 15 For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. 16 Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God. 17 Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.

18 Servants, be subject to your masters with all respect, not only to the good and gentle but also to the unjust. 19 For this is a gracious thing, when, mindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly. 20 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. 21 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. 22 He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. 23 When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. 24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. 25 For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

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Peter urges us to trust God through the pain of earthly injustice. It is a gracious thing, he says, to yield to unjust punishment. Similarly, Jesus said, “But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.” (Matthew 5:39-41).

There is a difference between letting the wicked afflict you unjustly and participating in the harm they are doing to others. We are not obligated to do the bidding of rulers who want us to help them emasculate our sons and mutilate our daughters. We are not expected to violate our conscience or ignore God’s commands because the government says so. 

Suffering is an integral part of the lives of people who want to live godly lives in an ungodly world. You will be persecuted for being good and for failing to obey the orders of tyrants, who command you to be a tool of tyranny. When it’s just between you and the evildoer, you take your lumps and let God repay. When the evildoer insists that you act on his behalf to harm others, you do the same thing.

1st Book of Peter, chapter 2, verses 1-12.

1 So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. 2 Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation— 3 if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.

4 As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, 5 you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 For it stands in Scripture:

“Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone,    a cornerstone chosen and precious,and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.”

7 So the honor is for you who believe, but for those who do not believe, “The stone that the builders rejected    has become the cornerstone,” 8 and “A stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense.” They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do.

9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

11 Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. 12 Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.

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Jesus was not the Messiah that the religious leaders expected. He was lowly, from a poor family, of questionable parentage. And He did not seek their approval, did not honor their traditions. He was the vessel God chose to demonstrate His power, while the rulers of the synagogue were powerless. They called the Son of God demon-possessed, even as He cast out devils. They rejected the one who was the chief corner stone.

We who believe in Christ will also be rejected as we refuse man’s approval and seek God’s kingdom. The kingdom of God is opposed to those who have rejected Him in favor of their own wisdom, knowledge, and opinions. And we have been chosen to be part of that kingdom because it is His will that will be done.

“But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, ‘Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.’” (1 Corinthians 1:27-31).

1st Book of Peter, chapter 1, verses 13-25.

13 Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 14 As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, 15 but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16 since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” 17 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, 18 knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. 20 He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you 21 who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.

22 Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, 23 since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God; 24 for “All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, 25 but the word of the Lord remains forever.” And this word is the good news that was preached to you.

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When we put our faith in Christ, something profound happens inside of us. The outside looks the same. And we still have a lot of learned behaviors and mental reflexes and emotions that do not conform to what we now believe. What are we to do about those things? Can we do anything?

Just as new seedlings do not burst from the ground with fruit or fully formed flowers, we are not born again as mature believers. Some of our evidence of conversion comes immediately, but most of it comes after being fed, watered, pruned, and kept free of pests. When we believe in the Savior, we have a destiny to fulfill. It is a destiny that is placed inside every one of us. But there are obstacles, and they are overcome by our faith in Him who called us. Apart from Him, we can do nothing. (John 15:5).

“Blessed is the man  who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;

but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night.

He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.” (Psalms 1:1-3).

1st Book of Peter, chapter 1, verses 1-12.

1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,

To those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood:

May grace and peace be multiplied to you.

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

10 Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, 11 inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. 12 It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look.

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Peter is writing to exiles, people who were persecuted for the faith they had in Jesus. They had suffered loss in the flesh, so he writes to remind them that they have gained much more in the spirit. And what they have gained will last forever.

After we die, and leave this mortal husk behind, we will not be reincarnated in another earthly form, merely being recycled through this sin cursed world. Our new life will be one that is, “imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you.” Our old life of heartbreak, disappointment, anger and hatred, will be disposed of forever along with our worn out bodies.

If the idea of worshiping a holy God, free from sinful desires and selfish ambition seems like a drag to you, you can opt out. Just persist in your unbelief in your creator, ignore His commands, and embrace all the suffering that sin brings for all eternity. You won’t have the earthly body to enjoy those good times, but you will still suffer as a lost soul.