Rid Yourself of These Things

“Rid yourselves of all malice & all deceit, hypocrisy, envy & slander of ever kind.”- 1 Peter 2

                  God, in His infinite wisdom, has given us an entire book which chronicles the history of the Hebrew nation; their rejection of Christ as their Messiah & the grafting in of the gentiles as recipients of the precious gift of salvation that was originally meant for God’s chosen people, the Jews.  In its pages we, as believers in Christ, are instructed regarding many important topics. Perhaps one that is most important are those negative attributes listed in our headline verse. They are particularly important to avoid because they can be so incredibly devious & destructive both within & outside the body of Christ.

                  We are to rid ourselves of these heinous  character flaws without question. We are still human & therefore prone to exhibit these flaws from time to time. It takes a conscience effort to rid ourselves of such behavior patterns. Life can be cruel & those in it are the ones who are administering the cruelty. We must not lash out in anger. We must not be two-faced. We must not wish ill upon them or anyone for that matter. It’s a battle that we will face so often at times that it will seem continuous. We must embrace Christ, so we become all God intends us to be in this life. Without Christ in our lives, we will succumb to the temptation of living out each & every one of those negative personality traits & will be miserable in the process. Surrender your will to God. Only He can save us from ourselves. Until next time, walk with the King & be a blessing.

Richard Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

Definitions:
Malice: A desire to harm others or see others suffer; extreme ill will; spiteful.Deceit: The act of falsification; misrepresentation.