“First Peter 4:7-11”

Wednesday, September 13, 2017

“The end of all things is near; therefore, be of sound judgment and sober spirit for the purpose of prayer. Above all, keep fervent in your love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins. Be hospitable to one another without complaint. As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. Whoever speaks, is to do so as one who is speaking the utterances of God; whoever serves is to do so as one who is serving by the strength which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.”

---End of Scripture verses---

We should all live our lives as if “the end of all things is near” (verse 7). We are living in “the last days” (Hebrews 1:2) before the Lord returns to judge the living and the dead, and He will come “like a thief” in the night when people expect it least (2 Peter 3:10). Jesus could come back today or delay His return for another 2000 years, but either way it goes, His return is always imminent. Peter instructs us to urgently be about the Lord’s business by serving each other, loving one another and glorifying God while we actively anticipate the Lord’s Appearing.

Since “the end of all things is near” we should approach life with a “sober spirit” using “sound judgment”. Life on earth is short and eternity is forever so we cannot afford to be thoughtless, foolish and frivolous. We need a serious and focused mind so that we can properly approach God “for the purpose of prayer.” All worship, whether it be prayer, praise or perusing God’s word, is a serious matter that requires reflection, reverence and righteousness on our part.

Like the Apostle Paul (1 Corinthians 13:13), Peter tells us that love, “above all” else (verse 8), is the greatest blessing we can share with other people. We all struggle with many issues and we all stumble in many ways (James 3:2), but “love covers a multitude of sins.” There is a great need for Christians to have a loving and forgiving heart when interacting with each other. We all do and say things that we should not and, at any given time, we will be the one who needs to forgive or the one who needs to be forgiven. That is not to say that we should make excuses for our sins or the sins of other people. We all need to repent when we do wrong. But love “does not take into account a wrong suffered” (1 Corinthians 13:5).

We all have been afforded strengths and resources to contribute to the building up of the body of Christ. God expects us to be “good stewards” or “managers” of all the good things that He has bestowed upon us (verse 10). Some have the “special gift” of being competent “speakers”. Anyone who serves in a speaking role in the Lord’s church should understand the great importance and responsibility of speaking the truth in accordance with “the utterances of God” (verse 11). Other people excel in “serving” in different ways such as financial giving, encouraging the downhearted, visiting the sick, cooking meals, etc. When we use God’s manifold “gifts” to serve “one another” with “the strength which God supplies,” we actually glorify Him in the process.

Please notice one final, crucial matter before we close. No matter how good you are at serving or speaking, not matter how merciful, kind or forgiving a heart you may possess, your acts of charity can only glorify God “through Jesus Christ” (verse 11). No one access the Father accept through Christ (John 14:6) and no one can glorify the Father except through Christ (Ephesians 3:20-21). If you are not an active member of the church that Jesus purchased with His own blood, your good deeds will not exalt the God of glory or bear an eternal weight of glory.

Please read 1 Peter 4:12-16 for tomorrow.

Have a wonderful day!

-Louie Taylor

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