1 Peter 3:8-9 Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous, not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing, knowing that you were called to this, that you may inherit a blessing.
To My Beautiful Daughters in Him...
Been spending some time meditating a bit on these verses. There is so much here. So many marvelous truths. How do we as Christians, relate to others in a God glorifying manner...it is right here in these two verses.
Verse 11 of Chapter 2 says "You're aliens and strangers...You're in a war not only against the soul but a war against the society around you and you must keep your behavior excellent among the pagans." Peter went on to talk about three social relationships which demand godly living...citizens, employees and mates. Peter exhorts us to live out pure, godly lives...to live specifically in an evangelistic way before the world so that we glorify God in these relationships and we bring other people to the point where they will glorify Him in their day of visitation. Visitation here means in the day of judgment. In the day of judgment, then, they will face God redeemed and will not suffer His wrath. It means you live your life in such a way as to bring others to Christ. It is living in accordance with God's will rather than self-will. That is the bottom line of living the good life. How to do this is a paradox as it always is living for Jesus. It is living opposite of how the world lives.
The first thing we are to do to live this way and heap not only blessings on ourselves but on others is to live with the right heart attitude. The right heart attitude will be one of love. Love is where it all begins. The love of God that is shed abroad in our hearts will be made manifest in our dealings with others.
It will be evidenced by our like mindedness with other believers. There will be a harmony with God's people. A unity of mind and a working together for the purpose of doing the will of God here on earth.
The right attitude also involves putting on of brotherly love and compassion for those God has placed in your lives...everyone..not just fellow Christians. It is so easy to become hard-hearted in this world. We are constantly bombarded with bad news and evil. It is easier just to insulate ourselves from all of it. It hurts to love. It hurts to open up your heart. This is, however, what God wants us to do. Dig your roots down deep in the knowledge of what God has done for you...let mercy triumph in your heart and by His Spirit be actively compassionate, and lovingly concerned towards one another. We are to love as brothers...sharing one another's joys and sorrows. We are members of the same family. When one hurts, the others should also. When one is joyful, the others should be also.
Our hearts will be tender towards others...feeling their pain and sympathizing with them in an active way. The right heart attitude also involves being courteous which means simply that you will be meek, humble and put others and their needs ahead of your own.
Peter goes on in verse 9 and exhorts us not to retaliate in kind when someone offends us or does evil toward us. The right "God glorifying" response to offenses is not to return evil for evil or reviling for reviling but to respond with blessing. Girls, the bible speaks to this very thing in so many many places. God truly wanted us to hear this message and He exampled it mightily in His Son. Returning good for evil goes so much against our flesh which almost always wants very much to respond with even greater evil. If we want to obey our God, however, we will respond with blessings. This CANNOT be done in our own strength. It must be done by the power of His Spirit working in our hearts.
When we do respond with blessing to evil done against us, oh, what blessings are ours. I can only describe the heart feeling that comes when I heap a blessing on someone who is not out for my good like this. Think of when the Grinch's heart grew...that is how it feels...your chest expands...you can breathe easier. You relax. and your shoulders come down. You let go of something you didn't need and your whole body feels lighter somehow. Joy has entered our heart and our capacity to love has been expanded! What a lifting of the veil occurs as we see Jesus and what He has done for us then so much more clearly in our own hearts. We begin to understand the love that He wants us to show to others. We see the "self" that we need to die to. God operates with us on the basis of mercy...if it were not for His mercy all of us would be consumed and die in our sins. Returning evil for good is satanic. Returning good for good or evil for evil is human. Returning good for evil is divine.
We are to respond divinely as Jesus did. "For you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing." I LOVE this statement. You were called, that's your election to salvation, for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing. Your election...your salvation is a free undeserved, unmerited gift from God. You have been freely given and are to freely give in return. Instead of wrath and vengeance from God for your sin and offense, He has given you mercy, salvation and abundant blessings in Him. We should know then very well how to show mercy and give blessings to those that have offended us. If we do not do this, then we are not even close to being aware of what we have been delivered from and blessed with. We should be jumping at the opportunity to bless someone else with the undeserved, unmerited free gift of forgiveness that we ourselves received from God.
1 Peter 2:21-23 puts it this way: "For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps: "WHO COMMITTED NO SIN, NOR WAS DECEIT FOUND IN HIS MOUTH"; who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously;"
We are to depend on Him knowing that it is His battle and that the ONLY way to overcome evil is with good. Leave the vengeance and retaliation to Him. He suffers long but as my pastor says, "do not mistake the longsuffering of God for indifference". The time of judgment will come. Our weapons are not carnal but spiritual...mighty in God. We are to depend on prayer and His power. The greatest evil was overcome by the greatest goodness the world has ever seen...the death of our Lord Jesus Christ on the cross at Calvary.
Love
Mom
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