“Stop being hateful! Quit trying to fool people, and start being sincere. Don’t be jealous or say cruel things about others.” (1 Peter 2:1)
Peter’s letter is to Gentile believers in several churches in the Asia Minor area. As Christians, they were treated by the non-believers around them not as strangers, but more as exiles and refugees. This was because their new lifestyle was so foreign to the way they themselves used to live and the way those around them still did live. Their new way of thinking and way of life clashed with the current norm, therefore, they struggled with leaving past behavior behind. While Peter was well aware that discrimination, slander and ostracism were a common part of Christian life, these believers apparently were not. It seemed odd to them and caused them to question the reality of their new found faith. In verse one of the second chapter, Peter feels he must admonish his readers to shed once and for all the ungodly behavior that they were once again displaying.
As believers today we should take heed lest we fall victim to the same confusion regarding living by faith. Gossip is rampant in today’s world and Christians are not exempt from it. In some churches an air of pretension exists as constituents pretend to be deeply spiritual, while living like anything but a representative of Christ outside the churches four walls. Christians can be insincere, envious and speak ill of others either to their face or worse; behind their backs just like non-Christians. As believers in Christ and all He stands for we ought not to live like this. We allow our emotions to get the better of us and our feelings to get bruised at the least little provocation. The solution to this is to draw close to God and place our entire focus on Him and not the chaos around us. Yes, there can be chaos all around even in the house of God if it is allowed to exist. Cliques ought not to be. Exclusion of any kind is ungodly behavior. Focus on Christ and His example and do not fall back into the mire of this world. It seems easier to give in to our basest desires; however, this behavior does not please God.
We were bought with a price, the blood of God’s own Son. We must never forget the price that was paid for our freedom. We must have in our mind’s eye a continual vision of all that Christ went through to pay for our sins. If we have proper focus on those things that truly matter, we will not be inclined to roll in the mud once again. Seek to please God and God alone and you will have no time for ungodly endeavors.
WALK WITH THE KING TODAY AND BE A BLESSING!
