10. Obedience to holiness

Purpose of Obedience is Holiness part 1

There are three primary Points of this passage.

1.Our relationship defined as the children of God

2.The defining characteristic of the Children of God is Obedience

3.The defining purpose of obedience is holiness

We have addressed the first two and will begin addressing the third this morning.

1Pe 1:13-19  Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;  (14)  as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance;  (15)  but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct,  (16)  because it is written, "BE HOLY, FOR I AM HOLY."  (17)  And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one's work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear;  (18)  knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers,  (19)  but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.

General Observations

There are several general observations in the later part of verse 14.

1. There are 5 references to holy in these 3 verses, one of them in the negative sense in the space of one sentence. We can take this as a strong indication of how important holiness is.

2. There is a contrast between old nature and new. This is made clear in the use of the word former, referring to what was in the past. The nature of our new life as a child of God is that we are a new creature. As Paul writes in 2Co 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. This text is not suggesting that, as a result of being saved, we will never have an issue with the old nature, or old man, or flesh. No, what it means is that being a new creature, we look at the old way of life as passed away. We have a new attitude toward our former way of life. It is an attitude of moving away from that old life and moving to the new life. It doesn’t mean that we will never have issues with the flesh, but it does mean we have a new relationship with the flesh and that is one of antagonism, hostility, and all out war. It will be a lifetime of battles won and lost but we rest in the full knowledge that the Lord Jesus has won the war on our behalf. The battle is the mark of the true child of God in the struggle in the new life putting off the old. There is no struggle or war between nations that are in a relationship of peace and the same goes for remaining sin in us. Have we made peace with it? So as Peter has defined our relationship as children of God, and he has described the children of God as obedient who has both the motive and motivation in love, God’s love for us and as a result of His love for us, we love Him.

3. There is a contrast between ignorance and knowledge. In the beginning after the fall of man there was still a knowledge of God. When Pharaoh took Abraham’s wife, Sarah, God came to him in a dream. Pharaoh did not act surprised or asked who was speaking to him. Abimelech was the same way. After taking Sarah God came also to him in a dream. He also was not shocked or asked who it was speaking to him. We have the king of Salem, Melchizedek, who was a priest to God most high, to whom Abraham paid a tithe to. But as time passed, the worship of other gods suppressed the knowledge of God to the extent that people are indeed ignorant, not only to who God is but also of what He requires of us. Though creation itself is testimony to God and His invisible attributes, God cannot be known savingly in general revelation. This is the point that Peter is making. Ignorance not in the general knowledge of God in creation but ignorant of God in regards to salvation. This implied knowledge is found in special revelation through and applied by the Spirit of God. The Holy Spirit who works in our regeneration, our salvation, and in the enlightening to the truths of the Word of God. Just as something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes and he received back his sight in Acts 9, so to the scales of our spiritual blindness have been removed by the Spirit of God and now we see clearly, we understand clearly. Thus we see again God’s work of salvation and the fruit of it. A new life and true knowledge that are to be applied practically as children of obedience. I want us to see to that we are indeed children of obedience. We are the children of the obedience of Christ. We are the progeny of His faithfulness to all His Father’s commands. We are secured by the obedience of Christ, we are defined as children of God by our obedience to Him.

4. There is a contrast between the changing standard of morals of our society and the unchanging nature

III.The Defining Purpose of Obedience is Holiness – 14b-16

A.The Negative Command not conforming yourselves to the former lusts as in your ignorance. Repentance from old way of life.

The verb to conform is to shape in the pattern of a mold. Ex: Fire Ants and making an aluminum cast. Explain the process.

In 1973 my family moved from New Orleans to a place called Dubai, located on the Saudi Arabian peninsula, on the Persian Gulf. I don’t know if you have ever noticed but the accent of people from New Orleans is quite distinct. But as time passed, my accent changed, even my word order changed. After three years you would never have known I was from that area. And after three years of listening to mostly British English and English spoken from other places like India and Pakistan my ability to understand certain American accents had also changed. I could not speak nor understand southern. This was made clear after we got back and was visiting my grand mother in Jackson. I walked to the convenience store for a coke. It was the old style where you needed a bottle opener. The gentleman behind the counter asked if I wanted him to open it. And I couldn’t understand him. After about a minute of him asking in every way he knew how both he and I were frustrated. It wasn’t until I was a couple of blocks away it dawned on me what he was asking. You see where I lived influenced how I spoke, what I understood. And not only that but it also formed how and what I thought of the world around me. That is being conformed, molded, and shaped by an external force.

In this verse it is a pattern of conforming behavior to a pattern or mold that is changeable or unstable. This is indicative of the ever-changing standards of the world, that will only ever move toward the more and more depraved rather than to holiness. It is a slide of moral decline. In our society we have seen this ever-increasing spiral to moral depravity. There has always been moral depravity throughout history and in our country. But never has it been more celebrated as it has been now. Never has it been promoted to our children as normal and even good as it has been now. We cannot turn on the TV without seeing rampant sensuality, and violence, the promoting of homosexuality and transgenderism. Paul said in Romans 1 that those who suppress the knowledge of the truth teach good is evil and that which is evil is good.

The exhortation to holiness is now more clearly defined by reference to their anti-Christian state. As Christians, you dare not pursue a course that is in unison with your former walk in sinful lusts. The Greek word conform is the same word that is used in Rom 12:2 And do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of you mind that you may prove what the perfect will of God is. That which is good, acceptable, and perfect. Note this is also used in the negative.

Lusts are not sensual impulses and wants only, but desires of what is different from what God allows, desires of evil comprehensively described by John (1Jn 2:16) as the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye and the pride of life. They include, also, the proud aims of ambition, of the lust of power and of the desire of worldly, carnal, knowledge, the pursuit of material goods. The lusts are more clearly defined by ‘in your ignorance.’

You may think you are beyond the reach of this text. Maybe you have been brought up in a Christian home, maybe you have been a Christian most of your life. Maybe it has been so long that you have forgotten what your life was like before God saved you. It really doesn’t matter. The fact of the matter is that at some point in time you were dead in your trespasses and sins before God saved you. As such, you have former lusts just like everyone else.

When we look at the broader evangelical church has been conformed to the pattern of this world. Statistically speaking the divorce rate within the church is almost as high as it is among non-Christians. Why is that? When the Lord has said what God has joined together let no man separate, why? Can it be that Christians have bought into the worldly notion of it is all about me? This pretty much covers all the reasons given for divorce. Adultery is all about pleasing self, meeting your needs apart from God’s provision. How often is it because ‘my needs weren’t being met’ or they weren’t being met the way I thought they should be. Because we have drunk the cool-aid of ‘I DESERVE to have all my needs met when I want them met.

The broader evangelical church has also bought into the world’s view of fashion instead of God’s view of modesty. When there is more flesh showing than covered that’s a problem. We have moved from being healthy to looking fit. So we pour ourselves in hours of exercise to have that certain look. We should be healthy and exercise is good, but when the point is a certain external appearance then it has crossed over to self. Christian young men spend more time in front of their gaming consoles than in the pursuit of godliness filling their minds with images which are not unto holiness. Are we careful with the entertainment we enjoy. Even as older saints, as we approach retirement age from secular work, we also retire from the work of evangelism and discipleship.

I ask you, as individuals, within this body, does this reflect who you are? When we serve do we expect recognition? Are we offended when we don’t get it or are thanked for our efforts. What is our attitude toward our elected officials? And here I am speaking to myself. Do we hold grudges? Are there people we have not forgiven? Then I say to you, that you no longer be conforming yourselves to your former lusts which were yours in your ignorance. Paul says this Eph 4:22  that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts,

We see here that the old self continues to grow corrupt. How? Because of deceitful lusts. Those voices in our head we listen to when they say we are justified in our sinful attitudes that result in sinful actions. Just as the mouth speaks from that which fills the heart so too our actions are a reflection of the attitude of our heart.

Again, I ask you. Have you conformed yourself with the attitudes of the world? We must carefully consider all our ways, judge ourselves rightly and repent, turning away from these former lusts which were our in our ignorance.