Morning Musings-Live For the Will of God

   Morning Musings for the boys at breakfast...




"Click!" goes the 'camera', taking a snapshot of "the past way of life" of  "God's elect" to whom the apostle of Jesus Christ, Peter, was writing (1 Peter 1:1).  A past life of "debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry"; following their "evil human desires".  That is quite the picture!  

Praise the Lord, there is another "click"; this one of the new life" in Christ Jesus.  The new life where these "God's elect strangers", live the rest of their lives for the will of God" (1 Peter 4:1-11).

 During that first 'old-life-pagan-click' way of life, they wanted those with the 'new-life-click' to join them.  They thought it strange then when those 'elect' wouldn't.

There may well be visages of that old life, thus Peter records God's message that our 'suffering will help us be done with our sin".  We are supposed to see our suffering the way Jesus saw His.  Yet the sin Jesus "got done with" was not His own but ours and everyone else's in the whole wide world that ever lived or will live and died.  He suffered for our sins.  He had NONE of His own.

We suffer for our own sins in the hopes we 'get it' and come to repentance and confession to gain God's forgiveness.  Recall that God wants us, His children, to "be holy as He is holy" (1 Peter 1:15).  Let us be thankful that God doesn't leave us to our own depraved muddles of evil and sin but forgives and purifies us instead as we sincerely confess and repent of those wrongs (1 John 1:9).

Therefore, Peter entreats us to have the "same attitude" as Jesus Christ in regards to suffering that comes our way.  Examine yourself to see if there be any sin in your life.  If so, confess and repent as mentioned above.  God is ever gracious and merciful and forgiving.  Sooner or later, we will each have to give account of ourselves to God.  Live according to the will of God in regard to the spirit" (vs 5, 6).

That would be to the Holy Spirit.  As we read and reflect on God's Word, allow the Holy Spirit to measure the Word against our thoughts and hearts, and actions and what He shows us, deal with it so you can continue that 'stranger-heavenly-behavior' that characterizes a child of God.  God will judge it all in the end.  Let us honor Him by taking heed in obedience to His Word.

Bowing humbly to the Holy Spirit indwelling us helps us and gives us a clearer-click snapshot of what that looks like.  Peter enumerates:  "clear-minded, self-controlled so you can pray; love each other deeply so as to "cover a multitude of sins".  "What?! You want to hide sins?!!"  "NO!"

This is to cover those "sins" others sin against us, for real or supposed:  pettiness; personality clashes; disappointment from friends; misunderstandings that lead to holding grudges and unforgiveness; malice and slander and so on.  Euodia and Syntyche, two sisters mentioned by Paul in Philippians 4:2, 3 had trouble getting along.  Paul exhorts them to "be of the same mind" and for the others to help them reconcile; in this we have a good example of a case in which to apply this 'covering of sins' so it seems.  By God's grace, forgive those brothers and sisters in our lives, and "forbear with one another in love with meekness and humility" (Ephesians 4:2; Colossians 3:13).
Painful, no doubt, but living according to the Holy Spirit will capitulate against our pride and stubbornness and instead galvanize us to stretch out our hands in neediness and dependence on the Lord to be our strength, and to reach for His bottomless ocean of grace to do as Jesus would do and to maintain "the same attitude" as Jesus had when He took insults, beatings and mockery and that without retaliation, verbally or otherwise.  So, yes, in this way "cover those sins" in accordance with the Holy Spirit.

"Loving one another deeply" in this way will lead then to hospitality.  Bringing God's people to your home to serve them in whatever capacity is needed and that "without grumbling" (vs 9).  It will also lead you to using whatever gifts God has given you through the Holy Spirit's influence in your life, to serve others at home or in the church among the people of God.  This will be "faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms" (vs 10).

Chuck Colson is purported to have said:

"Jesus served others first.He spoke to those whom no one spoke;He dined with the lowest members of society;He touched the untouchables..."

When serving God's people with our gifts, listen to this, when we speak and serve its as if it's

the "very words of God".  We may feel we are too 'weak' or incapable of doing these things but we really don't have any excuse not to, as "God provides the strength" to attend to the mission of the minute (or longer) He has directed us to fulfill; no 'if's', 'and's', or 'but's'. 

Why all of this?  So that God will be praised through Jesus Christ as we "live for His will".  All "glory and power be to God forever and ever".

                                                                    ~ERC  2016~