Sermon 2020.06.14 1 Peter Week 6

So, for 2½ chapters Peter has been talking to us about the difference between the earthly way of doing things and the kingdom way of doing things.  He has taught us how the essence of the earthly life is selfishness and the essence of the kingdom life is a desire to be more like Jesus, and he’s tried to encourage his readers, in the face of persecutions, that the kingdom strategy is not just the right choice, but the only choice.  Now, Peter wants to expand on his teaching of what it means to live a life that is patterned after Jesus.

It’s critical for us to notice that right off the bat, Peter begins to describe the Christ–like life, talking not about what we do but talking about who we are.

Has anyone ever wondered about the meaning of this parable from Luke 11?

“When an evil spirit leaves a person, it goes into the desert, searching for rest. But when it finds none, it says, ‘I will return to the person I came from.’   So, it returns and finds that its former home is all swept and in order.   Then the spirit finds seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they all enter the person and live there. And so that person is worse off than before.”

This is what happens when a person tries to act holy.  Remember that we learned that our word “Hypocrite” in the original Greek was the word “actor”? Christ likeness is not about acting holy.  The actions of the followers of Jesus spring from a heart that has developed the attributes of sympathy, love, compassion, and humility.  Only when these things have taken root in the believer’s heart will the demons find the return to their original home impeded.

Peter next says that the believer is called not to return evil for evil and insult for insult, but to return evil with blessing.  Warren Wiersbe points out the fact that to return evil for good is Satan’s way, to return good for good and evil for evil is the earthly way, and to return good for evil is the Godly way.  For the believer who has developed a compassionate and loving heart, returning evil for anything is impossible, even when evil is what is tendered.  Peter then goes on to say that our refusal to return anything but good, is that to which we are called, in order that we may inherit a blessing.

When we think about why people do hurtful things, I think we all realize that, while sometimes it is done out of malice, more often than not, it’s done unconsciously.  It’s not that people intend to hurt others, but the earthly mind often lacks the sensitivity to realize the hurt that it causes.  The earthly mind allows selfishness and self-interest to dictate one’s actions, usually without regard for the impact that those actions have on others; and so often when we are hurt, the hurt is unintentional, but it is hurt, nevertheless.  The believer, seeking always to be a peace maker, may choose to act with a heart of humility, not taking offense, but rather responding with compassion and understanding.  This is the life that Jesus modeled for us.

In discussing this passage, Max Lucado said: “The Christian life is often counter to human instincts.  In our natural state, we humans want to return evil for evil and reviling for reviling.  We believe that what goes around comes around, and we want to give it an extra shove when it goes by us!  However, if we’re going to obey Jesus’ command to love others, we have to ignore our inclination to have things our way.  Jesus goes beyond His role as our example… He also empowers us to love beyond what we could ever do in our own strength.”

So, why was Jesus so good at loving the unlovable?  Why did He forgive those who mocked, beat, and crucified Him; and even prayed for them?  And how are we to become people who are able to exhibit this kind of love?  What Jesus knew is that everyone, absolutely everyone, is a precious and beloved child of God; and that understanding permeated His interactions with everyone.

It’s easy not to love someone when you don’t value them, but it’s a completely different story when you do.  Part of our job as Christians is to develop this same fundamental understanding of the immeasurable value of each and every one of God’s precious children; no matter who they are, no matter what they look like, no matter what they do, or what they believe, or who they love, they are all precious to God, and all loved by Him, and must all be loved by us as well.

I don’t need to be the one to tell you that this isn’t easy!  But Peter also knew that it isn’t easy, and so he addresses this very issue as we continue.

Peter quotes from Psalm 34 “Whoever would love life and see good days must keep their tongue from evil and their lips from deceitful speech.  They must turn from evil and do good; they must seek peace and pursue it.  For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”

In quoting this psalm, Peter is doing two things.  First, this psalm echoes Peter’s teaching from the beginning of chapter 2 where he spoke of avoiding malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy and slander all as part of the quest to be like Jesus.  Here, the psalmist is also telling us to avoid slander, malice, and deceit.  But, when the psalmist tells us to “turn from evil”, the psalmist did something really interesting.  The phrase which we have translated into “turn from”, in the original Greek, would ordinarily have used the word apofugei, which was the word that was most commonly used that meant to “avoid”.  But instead, the author chose to use the word ekklino which is a word that means to avoid something for reasons of piety. In other words, you are avoiding something because, to you, just the idea of doing it is repulsive. Once again, Peter is illustrating the need for our goodness to spring from the heart.

Second, when the psalmist says “For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.” The psalmist is illustrating a point that Peter made way back in the beginning of his letter.  Remember when we recalled Peter’s “Where shall we go” statement?  As we face difficulties and challenges and the temptation to respond to these difficulties and challenges in earthly ways, comes to us in a stronger voice than we might like to hear, we must remind ourselves that we, as believers, are called to remember that Jesus alone has the words of life, and that, just like Peter, we also have nowhere else to turn.

Throughout this letter, Peter is straightforward about the possibility of there being a personal cost to our faith.  “Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good?”  Peter says, “But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed.”

Even though, in this time and place, our lives may not be threatened by our witness, we still live in a world where the wisdom of God is considered foolishness.  What would ever make us think that living Godly lives would be something that would always be considered in a positive way?  People will be annoyed by behaviors that are gracious and forgiving.  People will be enraged when we dare speak for the poor and the marginalized.  People will berate us for being empathetic, and for treating people with kindness or compassion or respect.  Just as Peter is saying, those who are truly seeking to become like Jesus can expect to face opposition from the world, and not just the secular world.  Just as the first century Christians were persecuted by the religious establishment; the Pharisees and the Sadducees, we also will face opposition from segments of the church that have traded the power of the Gospel for a man-made religion centered not on grace, but on human morality, or at least the perception thereof.  In today’s society, we don’t need to look far to see the apostate church vehemently fighting against the very things that are essential components of the Christ like character; portions of the church are actually fighting against the very things that we are called to be fighting for.  And when we, as believers, stand up for these things for which we are called to stand, we can expect opposition and adversity.

In the face of opposition, name calling, others denouncing our faith, and personal attacks on our sincerity and our morality, Peter tells us not to fear threats and not to be frightened, but to continue to honor Christ with lives that continue to reflect Christ’s character.

And then, in one of the truly important passages in the New Testament, Peter tells us that we should “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.”

I love what Max Lucado had to say about this passage.  “To the watching world, the perseverance of a Christian in the face of persecution would have caused much curiosity.  Peter wanted believers to be prepared to ‘Give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have’ and in this way draw others into the family of God”.

Peter continues, saying that this should be done with “gentleness and respect”, and this is the second time that Peter has shown himself not to be a fan of spiritual “mugging”.  Peter knows that the most effective spreading of the gospel isn’t accomplished through clever words, or through carefully crafted apologetics, but simply through love.  When we show love in unexpected ways and in unexpected places, people will be curious, and some will ask us why.  When they do, please don’t be hesitant to tell them what God’s love in Jesus means to you.  In some instances, it’s possible that you may be their only opportunity ever to hear the Gospel; that your love, in that moment, is the only thing that will ever open their hearts wide enough to allow Jesus to come in.

Peter then reminds us that, if we do face persecution, we’re in good company, because Jesus suffered unjustly, the righteous for the unrighteous, in order to bring us to God.  In the original Greek, the phrase “Bring you” is the word prosagage which is a legal term which meant to summon to court, a word that we might translate today as “subpoena”.  What Peter is saying here is that through Jesus we have been called into direct access to God.

Peter would surely have known about the tearing of the veil in the temple and would have been fully aware of its significance.  I’ve probably explained this before, and if you already know the story please bear with me. Herod’s temple in Jerusalem was designed in a series of concentric rectangles. The outermost court of the temple was the Court of the Gentiles, and all were permitted there.  Inside that was the Court of the Women.  Only Jewish men and women were permitted in this area, and entrance by any non-Jewish person was a capital offense.  Next was the Court of the Israelites and only Jewish men were permitted in this area.  Inside that was the Court of the Priests, into which only priests, or those offering sacrifices were permitted, and in the center of it all was the Holy of Holies.  The Holy of Holies was separated from the rest of the temple by a huge veil that hung three stories from the ceiling to the floor, and surrounded the Holy of Holies.  The Holy of Holies was entered only one day a year, only by the High Priest, in order to make sacrifices for the entire nation of Israel on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.  Legend has it that, when the priest entered the Holy of Holies, he did so with bells tied to the hem of his garment, and a rope tied around his ankle. So fearful was entrance into the Holy of Holies that the bells were used to let the other priests know that the High Priest was still moving around, and the rope would be used to pull the High Priest out should he be struck dead, as no one else would dare enter.  When Jesus died, the veil that separated this awesome and terrifying place from the rest of the temple is the veil to which the Bible refers as having been torn from top to bottom, revealing the Holy of Holies to everyone.  The sacrificial death of Jesus totally removed the barrier between God and man, and now, through Jesus, we all have direct access to the Father, with Jesus as our advocate before Him.  And Jesus, the only One in all of creation with the authority to judge us, acts not as prosecutor, but as defense attorney.  THIS is God’s grace at work.

Hebrews 10:14 says “For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.”  How can the believer possibly respond to this in any way other than gratitude?  And how can that gratitude rightly manifest itself in any way other than for us to commit ourselves to becoming followers of Jesus, no matter what the cost?

Peter, after a cryptic comment about Jesus making a proclamation to imprisoned spirits, a discussion that we will save for another day (Sorry), Peter closes the chapter by speaking of our baptism.

Peter compares our baptism to the saving of Noah through the flood.  Just as faithful Noah emerged from the flood with his family to begin a new civilization, so it is that we emerge from the waters of baptism to become a new creation.

The human heart does not easily adopt Christ like qualities.  The heart that does develop the attributes of sympathy, love, compassion, and humility, must, of necessity, be a completely new creation within us; with a new life and a new outlook brought about by the Holy Spirit.

This is what Jesus was talking about when He told Nicodemus that “You must be born again”.  Becoming like Jesus requires a heart that is able to adopt Christ like qualities.  Any effort to become like Jesus will be fruitless until we allow God to fill us with His Holy Spirit, and to form within us this completely new creation.

And the very essence of the Gospel is the fact that this new creation within us is the free gift of a gracious and loving God, and is available to everyone who will seek Him with all of their hearts.

Please pray with me.

Gracious God, fill us with Your Spirit, that we may become a new creation in you; a creation filled with your love and compassion, a creation that recognizes the infinite value of every single one of your precious children, a creation that seeks to become a peace maker, and a creation that is willing to live a life of selfless, extravagant, love, for you, and for each and every one of your precious children.  Amen.

Sermon 2020.05.31 1st Peter Week 5

I have some explaining that I have to do before we step into today’s sermon.  Peter has been talking about love for four weeks now, and I need to talk a little bit about the concept of love among Peter’s first century audience.  Koine Greek, which is the original Greek of the New Testament, had seven different words that we translate into the English word “love”.  Four of these seven words appear in the Bible.

Filia is the love that you would have for a sibling or the closest of your friends.  Filia is often described as “brotherly love”, in fact filia is one half of the name Philadelphia. Filia is brotherly love, and adelfia is city, so Philadelphia is the city of brotherly love.  Filia is a love that can be rich in emotion and feelings; and is the strongest expression of non-physical human love.

Eros is romantic love, such as would be experienced between a husband and wife.  Eros is the source of our word “erotic”, but eros is not to be thought of in a negative way, because it is describing that wonderful, blessed, love both physical and emotional that is shared by couples who are devoted to one another, and as we learned a few weeks ago, there is a completely different Greek word for lust.

Storge is love as shared by families and also describes love of community. Storge can sometimes be an obligatory love, but more commonly it is as Strong’s defines it:  Storge is “cherishing one’s kindred, especially parents or children; loving affection; loving tenderly; but speaking chiefly of the reciprocal tenderness of parents and children.”

Agape is sacrificial love.  Agape sets aside pride, self-interest, personal comfort, and possessions, for the sake of the beloved.  Thayer, in his Greek Lexicon defines it as “to take pleasure in the thing, prize it above all other things, be unwilling to abandon it or do without it.”  This is the love with which God loves His children, this is the love that sent Jesus willingly to the cross to suffer and to die in our behalf, and this is the love with which we are called to love God, and to love others… ALL others.

So often I wish that the English language differentiated between these varied manifestations of love.  There are times when having separate words would make things a lot easier to understand.  But we are stuck with what we have, so throughout this series, when I need to differentiate between different meanings of the word “love”, I’ll use the Greek, and no, there won’t be a quiz.  The word agape was used only rarely in classical Greek writings, but it is a word that abounds in the New Testament, and when Peter speaks of love in this letter the word agape is the one that he uses.

I defined agape above, but there is a much better definition to be found in Paul’s first letter to the church at Corinth.  1^st Corinthians 13 is one of the most recognized passages in the Bible, a passage that is almost universally read at Christian weddings, and something believers recognize as the ideal love to which we all aspire, but I think rarely do we realize that this passage is actually describing the love that God has for us.  Let’s read these familiar words, bearing that in mind.

Love is patient, love is kind.  Love is never jealous, never boastful.  Love is never proud or rude, love is never selfish, not easily angered.  Love keeps no record of wrongs, love cries over evil, but always takes delight in what is true.  Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.  Love never ends.

Let’s hold this thought of God’s definition of agape love in our hearts as we continue.

Well, last week I promised you another loaded passage, and here it is.  As happens at times, this passage about wives submitting to their husbands is occasionally lifted out of context and used as a bludgeon.  My fun for the day is the fact that this misusage actually speaks directly to my analysis of the passage, so let’s talk about it.

My first observation with regard to people using this passage to imply that wives should be subservient, is simply to say “keep reading”.  I actually like the NLT translation of verse 7: “In the same way, you husbands must give honor to your wives. Treat your wife with understanding as you live together. She may be weaker than you are, but she is your equal partner in God’s gift of new life. Treat her as you should so your prayers will not be hindered.”

I’m not sure which part of “She is your equal partner” people aren’t understanding, but if there are any questions about the real meaning of this passage, one can always turn to Paul and compare what he wrote in his letter to the church at Galatia “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

Certainly the Bible has passages, especially in the Old Testament, that report on the subjugation of women throughout history, but if the subjugation of women was actually the Bibles intent then we would have seen it in the actions and teachings of the Living Word of God, Jesus, but we saw no such thing.  In fact, at a time when women did not have anything even remotely resembling equal status, Jesus did not discriminate between men and women, and several women were included in His inner circle.  We are familiar with Mary Magdalene’s status as a follower of Jesus and a member of His inner circle, but there are also Mary and Martha, the sisters of Lazarus, Joanna, who was healed by Jesus, traveled with Him and His disciples, and was present at His crucifixion, and Susana, who is mentioned in Luke as a follower of Jesus who provided for Him out of her resources.

When one looks at the book of Acts one finds women prominently named throughout the book.  From Acts 1 where the Bible lists the disciples who gathered in the upper room after the transfiguration, and then adds “They all met together and were constantly united in prayer, along with Mary the mother of Jesus, several other women, and the brothers of Jesus.  Women were present at Pentecost and were among those who were filled with the Holy Spirit, and women are mentioned as teachers, hosts of gatherings of believers, financial supporters, and Deaconesses of the church throughout the book of Acts.

In addition, please allow me to read what Paul wrote in the closing paragraph of his letter to the church at Rome, “Greet Andronicus and Junia, my fellow Jews, who were in prison with me. They are highly respected among the apostles and became followers of Christ before I did.”  Junia is a woman, and was identified as such by the early church fathers.  Unfortunately, several hundred years later, some translators of the Bible decided to change the name to the masculine Junias, (misogyny doesn’t give up easily) but in a simple linguistic analysis of the original Greek, were the name to be masculine, there would be an accent over the last syllable, and the fact that none of the earliest manuscripts contain that accent confirms the name to be feminine. Junia was female, and was named as an apostle of Jesus Christ, and according to Paul, a highly respected one at that.

So now that we’ve established the fact that Peter isn’t referring to second class citizens here, what exactly is he saying?  Last week Peter used the government, and slave owners to illustrate two different aspects of his kingdom strategy.  I believe that, today, Peter is continuing his discussion of what it means to be Christ like.

“What does the Lord require of you”, Micah asks, “To live justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God”.  Love is humble, it places the needs of others before its own.  Jesus left His heavenly throne and all of His glory to become a baby in a manger.  Why?  Because of love.  To humble Himself was never a problem for Jesus because of His love for us.  And if we are to be Christ like, our love needs to be rooted in humility as well.

In the life laboratory that is marriage, both husband and wife need to learn that love is always giving and never taking; that learning to honor one another, to listen to, to understand, and to trust one another are all building blocks of a loving relationship.  And then there is one other thing that was really lost in the translation.  In verse 7 it says “As you live together”, and while it may seem that this is an unimportant phrase, the meaning of this isn’t simply about living arrangements, it actually means to be present with one another; not only to be physically together, but to be actively involved in one another’s lives.

Those who have used this passage to try to limit a woman’s place in God’s kingdom have totally missed Peter’s point.  The object for husband and wife alike is to be Christ like, the object is to love.

Most of you know what a big fan I am of Warren Wiersbe.  In discussing 1^st Peter, he made two comments that I find to be right on the mark.  The first is “As citizens of heaven, we must be united.  We must present to the world a united demonstration of what the grace and mercy of God can do.”  Last week I spoke about the ineffectiveness of an inconsistent witness.  For the believing couple, a strong and loving marriage is a powerful witness to the world.  Husbands and wives who honor and respect each other and who live with readily apparent affection for each other will find that their marriage will speak to the wonders of God’s love far more effectively than mere words.  In fact, Peter says in this passage “That they may be won over without words”.  Saint Francis of Assisi echoed this thought when he said “Spread the Gospel, use words if necessary”.  A loving marriage can be a great witness to an unbelieving world, and do so without a single word ever being spoken.  The same thing applies when one married partner is a believer and the other isn’t.  Showing a true agape love to your partner can be a powerful, wordless, witness to them as well.

Wiersbe’s 2^nd 1^st Peter observation is even better.  “After all, one day all of us will be together in heaven; so, it might be a good idea if we learned to love each other down here.”  Can you see why I love Warren Wiersbe?

As we’ve discussed for the last few weeks, Peter’s kingdom strategy revolves around the believer seeking to become like Christ.  Today Peter has given us one more example of what it means to be like Christ.  The more we study Peter, the more we come to realize that the very essence of Christ likeness is agape love.  There is no other way to put it.

Now, for those who noticed, I glossed over verses 3 through 6.  I did this on purpose, first because I wanted to comment on these verses separately, and second, because this is my very favorite verse in the Bible; and even though this appears in a section in which Peter is addressing the wives, I don’t for one second believe that this applies only to them.  In fact, if ever I were to make a list of words to live by, this verse would be at the top of my list.  “Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes.  Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight.”

This world is fixated on status.  So much of what is done, so much of what people wear, and what people drive, and where people live, is focused on impressing other people.  But just as Peter has contrasted the worldly strategy with the earthly strategy, we need to ask ourselves “Who are we trying to impress, and why?”  Those taking an earthly view understand that status is important.  Without status it’s almost impossible to land the right job or to fit in with the right people.  For those seeking to succeed in life, status is an integral component; status is what tells the world “I am somebody”.  But once again, the wisdom of the world is made foolishness by God.  The world doesn’t recognize the value of a “quiet and gentle spirit”.  On the contrary, one with that demeanor would be considered weak, and unworthy of a high position in society.  And yet, to God, the attributes of kindness and gentleness, the capacity for compassion and empathy, the heart inclined towards the needs of the poor and the marginalized, and the willingness to defer to others for the sake of love, are all giant steps in the right direction towards Christ likeness.

Please understand that I am not saying that there is anything wrong with trying to look our best.  There’s nothing wrong with wearing jewelry, or having nice clothes, or having a great haircut, and Jackie hates it when I go out with a stain on my shirt, but these things are not the priority.  Life is not about how we look, or who we impress, or what we acquire.  Life is about who we become.  Life is about making our hearts look like God’s heart.  To care about the things that God cares about.  To rejoice over that which God rejoices over, to despair at the things that trouble God’s heart, and to embrace the things that please Him.  And at the heart of all of this is agape love; a love that is willing to let go of self, and to love others with the same extravagant love that Jesus modeled for us.

I know some of you have already heard this story, but as Groucho Marx once said “If you’ve heard this already, don’t stop me because I want to hear it again.”

There was a pastor who was giving a children’s sermon when a young girl raised her hand.  Now, answering children’s questions during a children’s sermon can be an iffy proposition, so the pastor said with some trepidation “Yes?”  The young lady said “If God is everywhere, then He must be really big, right?”  “Yes” the pastor replied.  “And I’m really small, right?” the girls asked.  “Yes” the pastor replied again, not really sure where she was going with this.  Then the young lady said “Well if God is really big, and I’m really small, and God is supposed to live in me, then isn’t some of Him going to stick out?”

My prayer for today is that we all live our lives with God sticking out.