5 commands and your calling as a Christian, 1 Peter 3:8-12

1 Peter 3:8–12 (ESV) 8 Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. 9 Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing. 10 For “Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit; 11 let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it. 12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.” Finally... this doesn’t end the letter, but it does bring to a close a section of the letter that began with 1 Peter 2:11–12 (ESV), which says, “11 Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. 12 Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.” 1 Peter 2:11-3:12 focus our attention on how Christians live... in particular it teaches us how we are to view our lives and how we related to others. Christians understand their identity as citizens of God’s kingdom, or as Peter writes: sojourners and exiles Christians are called to live among unbelievers in a way that glorifies God. To do this, Peter tells us how Christians can live for the glory of God in some of the most difficult and important relationships. The relationship with oppressive government leaders The relationship between servants and harsh masters The relationship between wives and unbelieving husbands and husbands toward their wives. One of the things we learn is: The way Christians conduct themselves and treat other people has an impact on our relationship with God. 1. It determines whether or not we bring Him glory 2. It impacts the way the Lord responds to us.

We see this truth again in the instructions Peter gives in the closing part of this section. God tells us how believers should relate to one another, and again gives us direction on how to relate to those who are outside the church. In our passage today we see 5 Commands for relationships in the church and the evidence of God’s calling in your life. 5 Commands for relationships in the church 1 Peter 3:8, “8 Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind.” Finally, all of you, have... God doesn’t suggest a set of goals, God gives clear direction in the form of a command to those who are His. If you are a sojourner or exile, one who is following Christ in the face of difficult and chaotic circumstances... you must do the following in your relationship with your brothers and sisters in Christ. 1. Harmony- Unity of mind 2. Sympathy Caring deeply about the needs, joys, and sorrows of others 3. Brotherlylove Our common relationship with Christ is evidenced in our love for one another... the love shared and displayed in the church is evidence of genuine faith in Jesus Christ. 4. Compassion- A tender heart Those who have received compassion are to be first in line to show and give compassion to others. The ability to give compassion to others is born out of and flows from the mercy and forgiveness God gives to sinners.

5. Humility- A humble mind Humility is to consider others more important than your self... Humility was not a value in the 1st century Roman world and it isn’t valued in the world we live in today. But, humility is a distinctive of those who are saved... and it’s not optional, it’s commanded. And, when you look at the example that we are all to follow- Jesus Christ, there is no greater example of harmony than the Trinity, or sympathy than the way Jesus relates to us, or love displayed to us, or compassion given to us, and of humility through his death for us. But, when we look at these 5 commands, we see that Peter has used a literary device known as a chiasmus or a chiasm to focus our attention on one of them over the others. A chiasm is when an author uses symmetry of words or phrases for emphasis... and the emphasis is on the word or phrase at the middle of the structure. Harmony - Sympathy - Love - Compassion - Humility A. B. C. B. A. A. Harmony and Humility are comparative characteristics B. Sympathy and Compassion are comparative characteristics C. Love is the central characteristic and action that is at the heart of relationships within the church. 1 Corinthians 13:13 (ESV), “13 So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.” The passage in 1 Corinthians isn’t about marriage, though it is applicable to marriage. 1 Corinthians 13, the “love” chapter is about the relationships within the church... and we often think of this passage as just for marriage or the home, when in fact they are directly written to the church and have an indirect relationship to marriage. Jesus said in John 13:34–35 (ESV), “34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. 35 By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

In the same way that God commands us to relate to one another as Christians in love; He also commands us, or calls us to live in a manner that fits our conversion. God calls Christians to live a transformed life 1 Peter 3:8-12 9 Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing. 10 For “Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit; 11 let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it. 12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.” It says in verse 9, “for to this you were called...” and this calling is connected to the blessing that has been promised in Christ- eternal life, the inheritance Peter spoke of earlier in the letter. This doesn’t mean that the inheritance is earned by the life you live... instead it means that those who will receive the inheritance are those who live a transformed life. And what does a transformed life look like? It looks good, or better than that- A transformed life looks like Jesus. Peter is quoting from Psalm 34 here in these verses, and we see Jesus fulfill this in his own life. Psalm 34 deals with suffering and staying faithful. Psalm 34 tells us that we are to focus on the deliverance God has promised while we stay faithful to Him in the face of suffering and persecution... this Psalm prepped us to see what we see in Jesus, and it also directs us in how we are to live in our relationship with those who are not followers of Jesus. Our goal is to be a blessing to them, even if their goal is to end our lives or destroy our faith. Like Peter said in 1 Peter 2:11-10, “11 Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. 12 Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.” God calls Christians to live a transformed life to be a blessing to Him and to those who are not converted.

A transformed life flows from the love of Christ, and glorifies God through our love for one another and our commitment to the good of those who don’t know Jesus. Is your life in contrast to the world, or the lost around you? Would you characterize your life as transformed? The Bible uses the words conform and transformed often. As Christians we are told not to conform ourselves to the ways of the world, but instead to be transformed... and as those who are transformed we are told that our lives should conform to the Word (or Jesus). As we have seen so far in 1 Peter, the church should be distinct from the world in its goals, purposes, organization, relationships, and responses. I would venture to say that we have allowed the Christian influence of the founding of our country to shape the way and thoughts of many churches and members. When, we should take notice that our country was founded on the influence of the Bible... but our laws are not the Bible. Our country was founded on the principles in the Bible, but our principles are not the Bible. Though we have a country with laws and codes that are similar to what we see in the Bible... we must turn to the Bible to see how we are to live. But, Satan has successfully tempted many Christians and churchgoers in America to see the ways of our country as the same thing as the way of God or the Bible. A transformed life in America is a life that pursues faithfulness to the Word of God, even if it is contrary to or different than what others are doing. And a transformed church in America is a church that pursues faithfulness to the Word of God, even if it is contrary or different than what others are doing.