The End Is Near

Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because he who has suffered in his body is done with sin. As a result, he does not live the rest of his earthly life for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God. For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do -living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry. They think it strange that you do not plunge with them into the same flood of dissipation, and they heap abuse on you. But they will have to give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. For this is the reason the gospel was preached even to those who are now dead, so that they might be judged according to men in regard to the body, but live according to God in regard to the spirit.

The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised though Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power forever and ever. Amen.

Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. If you suffer, it should not be as a murderer or a thief or any other kind of criminal, or even as a meddler. However if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name. For it is time for judgment to being with the family of God; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who do not obey the gospel of God? And,

If it is hard for the righteous to be saved,
what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?

So then, those who suffer according to God's will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.

1 Peter 4

Peter's letters cut right through the haze of human foolishness. I've spent much time reading secular philosophers - and with them there is always that tendency to say, "How brilliant!" When I read Peter's letters I say to myself, "How serious!"

This passage has a lot of imagery describing the way the world lives in darkness and is surprised (perhaps offended) that those who follow Christ do not join in with them. A central theme for Peter is the way those who follow God are aliens among even their countrymen. A person who has been transformed by the power of God is not rewarded by the acceptance of the world and should expect (in some ways hope) to be mistreated by the world.

Of particular note is the way the passage makes discretionary measures of time. When will the end come? "The end is near". How much time have I spent in the past doing what pagans choose to do? "You have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do". One could spend an eternity measuring and quantifying the answers to those questions, but their lengths are clear to God: "near" and "enough". These are value judgments which are often ignored and called arbitrary, but we are hearing the very opinion of God who is the Truth.

The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised though Jesus Christ.

The letter describes the world's darkness as something that brings uncertainty and indecision to our choices. Our flesh has its desires, certainly, but they are never absolute and the people who follow after those desires aren't absolutely committed to them. People in the world turn to their desires to tell them who they are, but their flesh never tells them anything with certainty. This is in direct contrast to they way a disciple of Christ is decisive and intentional in the way they live.

Perhaps one could read this paragraph as, "In everything you do, do it for real." Peter is zero-ing in on how the disciples are to act, and not necessarily what they are to do. Certainly a believer in Christ can pray, can love, offer hospitality, serve others, administer God's grace, speak, and serve. The aspect of spiritual importance is the way we do it: with "self-control", "deeply", "without grumbling", "faithfully", "as one speaking the very words of God", "with the strength God provides". As people living in a time close to the end, we should pay attention to the way we are living and not just what we are doing.

The end is near and judgment is waiting for all of us. For believers in Jesus Christ this judgment is taking place now. Therefore Peter is commanding us to live in a state of great self-examination. The examination the world gives us is shallow and a deception ... those who follow Christ will never be understood by it. But God does not miss anything, and we are to live lives of honest and authentic love before Him.