An Exile’s Way of Life • 08.06.23
Nick Lees   -   August 8, 2023

An Exile’s Way of Life

1 Peter 2:11-17

Living out your identity in Christ in a world that opposes him

  1. Abstain from the passions of the flesh
  2. Live honorably among unbelievers
  3. Submit to others, as appropriate to their role, as a servant of God

Good morning church family! What a sweet morning of worship. I’m thankful to be here with you, lifting our voices in unison to praise our God. If you’re new, welcome. My name is Nick Lees and I have the privilege of studying God’s Word with you today. We’re in a study through the book of 1 Peter right now called Elect Exiles: Living as Outsiders.

Ushers + Bibles (1 Peter 2; page 1204)

Over the past month, we’ve heard Peter repeatedly instruct his audience on their identity and calling in Christ. From the very first verse of the letter, where they are identified as “elect exiles” to our most recent verses from last week in 2:9-10, where they are identified as “a chosen race, royal priesthood, holy nation, a people for his own possession”, there have been tremendous truths about who they are. Alongside of these were purpose statements, addressing why they are here, statements such as “to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ” and “that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light”. Along the way, Peter has given them very practical calls to action about how they are to live – rejoicing in their identity, enduring suffering redemptively, and setting their hope on future grace and conforming their lives around this hope. And, as we’ve seen, these truths and calls to action are not restricted to them but are highly applicable to us today too!

If you’ve missed any of these sermons, I would encourage you to take time to go to our website this week and listen to them. It is crucial to understand what has come before in order to make sense of what comes next. You see, today we are transitioning into the next section of Peter’s letter. This section runs from 2:11-4:11 and it addresses several practical scenarios and relationships that they would have faced in their daily lives. Peter has been preparing them to think rightly about themselves and their mission so that they can represent Christ well in a world that opposes him! It won’t be easy. There will be a real war going on within them, but this is what Christians have been rescued and redeemed to do! It is a privilege and a blessing to be God’s chosen people who get to proclaim his excellencies. Peter is going to give them real scenarios wherein they can live out their calling. With that in mind, let’s turn our attention to the text for today.

1 Peter 2:11–17 (ESV)

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.

13 Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, 14 or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good. 15 For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. 16 Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God. 17 Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.

Peter is continuing to help them flesh out (pun intended) what it looks like to live out their identity as Christians in a world that opposes Christ. That is the focus of our discussion today.

Living out your identity in Christ in a world that opposes him

In verses 11-12 Peter lays out the guiding principles for what is coming next over the rest of this section. These two verses function as an introduction that guide our interpretation for what is being said about a Christian’s lifestyle and conduct in an unbelieving world. So, let’s look at these two primary principles first, starting with verse 11’s call to…

  1. Abstain from the passions of the flesh

To abstain means to keep away from or restrain oneself from doing something. In this case, Peter calls Christians to abstain “from the passions of the flesh”. What in the world does that mean?

By flesh, Peter is referring to the part of our human nature that is worldly and opposed to the things of God. You may recall in previous weeks we’ve discussed how God rescues and redeems a sinful, worldly man or woman out of their former way of life. As part of this salvation process, a man or a woman is born again or spiritually made new – this is known as the process of regeneration in the Order of Salvation. (Ordo Salutis) When God does this work in a man or woman, they are no longer enslaved to their fleshly desires for sin. They are now able to live for God and make choices that please him. We’ve heard this taught in passages like 2 Corinthians 5:9-21 or Titus 3:3-7 (last week). I won’t read them again today, but you’re welcome to write those references down to consider them later.

The point being when a man or a woman has faith in Jesus Christ, they are made new, and they are called to live differently! Peter is urging Christians to put this into practice by abstaining from the passions of the flesh – the passions (lit. desires) that defined their sinful, worldly nature, opposed to God. We’ve spoken briefly about what some of these desires may have been as revealed in chapter 4 of this letter – sexual immorality, drunkenness, lawless idolatry – but by no means was that an exhaustive list!

The passions of the flesh encapsulates any desire that would be opposed to God. From pride to sinful anger to addiction to lust and so on. Time does not permit us to brainstorm every possible type of desire that could fit into this category. To put it simply, if you are a Christian and there is a desire in your life that is opposed to God’s calling and standard of righteousness, then it must be forsaken! But why!? Because these hinder your holiness, and they wage war against your soul.

What strong terminology! This is quite different than what we often tell ourselves… “this is a small thing or no big deal.” God through Peter tells us that these desires wage war against our soul. These desires are literally fighting against your entire personhood and well-being. They are promising satisfaction and pleasure, all the while they are killing you and hindering your communion with God and others. Doesn’t that get you a bit fired up this morning?! Why would I want to indulge in such desires!? I want to be near to God and experience the joy of unhindered communion with him and others. Don’t you? Then abstain from the passions of the flesh. Don’t give room for them in your life. Don’t make excuses or rationalize them.

We all know that we do this… “What’s the harm in one look?” “They deserved to be treated that way.” “I just feel like doing this today.” “I didn’t mean it.” “I can always ask forgiveness later.” Our justifications for sinful desires are endless. But God says we must remove them from our life. Take sin seriously. Daily go to war against temptation that leads to sin.

This text is a helpful reminder that temptation is still present in the life of a Christian. We are not perfect or sinless yet. That will come in heaven, but, in this life, we must wage war against our worldly/fleshly desires.

Resource Recommendation: (Jonathan Owens – The Mortification of Sin)

This war is necessary if we’re going to draw near to God and be a godly witness to the watching world. Peter is very concerned in his letter that Christians be a godly witness! That’s exactly where he goes next in verse 12, with the command to…

  1. Live honorably among unbelievers

“Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable…” Peter wants them to live in a way that is considered good or honorable. Christians ought to look different in a positive way. Your lifestyle should stand out for its holiness and honorable nature. Given how the rest of this section develops with the repeated emphasis on doing good throughout chapters 3-4, it is clear that a Christian’s life is to be overflowing in good deeds!

This cannot happen if you’re given over to the passions of the flesh. If you’re doing what’s right in your own eyes, you’re not going to live honorably, you’ll live selfishly. You’ll look just like everyone else who doesn’t follow Jesus. Because you are driven by your sinful passions.

But if you’re abstaining from those worldly desires and instead living honorably, then you will stand out. For these 1st century Christians, they had their work cut out for them… Both the Jews and the Romans were not big fans of Christians. The Jews viewed them as apostates who had rejected the truth faith and the Romans often made up all kinds of lies about them – that they sacrificed Gentile people at their feasts or encouraged inappropriate familial relationships. I imagine this is why Peter doesn’t say, “so IF they speak against you as evildoers” but rather he says, “WHEN they speak against you as evildoers.” It was already happening! They were being slandered and mocked for their faith.

The answer to this slander and ridicule was not to get even but to live honorably. To be overflowing in good deeds so that these unbelievers would take notice and, as verse 15 says, put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. Christians were to live in such an honorable and good way that it not only silenced their opposition but also that unbelievers might glorify God on the day of visitation – meaning that they might be convicted unto salvation through the testimony of the Christians. Let me give you an example of this…

Back when we started this series on July 9th, I told you the story of Bassam. You may recall Bassam is a former Muslim man living in the Arabian Peninsula. After coming to know Christ, he kept quiet about Jesus for years. Eventually he became convicted that he needed to speak up and tell everyone about the only true God, Jesus. That is when his walk of suffering began. Without reviewing all of the gory details, I told you about how his wife rejected him, kicking him out of the home and removing his access to his children, working to get his paycheck sent directly to her; how his brothers-in-law began to regularly beat him brutally, to the point of being hospitalized multiple times. I ended with sharing how Bassam after being brutally beaten by his brother-in-law one day, refused to press charges but said instead, “I love you. My Lord tells me to forgive.” But I never told you the outcome of his story.

Bassam’s response of love and forgiveness to his violent brother-in-law prompted more of his family to ask about Christianity. “Bassam’s boldness is bearing fruit,” Surur said. (A local evangelist to Muslims) “He has become an inspiration and encouragement to the old and the new believers in our area.” Despite ongoing persecution, Bassam continues to distribute Bibles and copies of the JESUS film to people on the street. “Bassam shares his faith all the time,” Surur said, “knowing that every day could be his last on earth.” By doing good to those who persecute him and sharing the gospel throughout his suffering, Bassam has seen one of his brothers and a sister come to faith in Jesus Christ. One of his daughters has also placed her faith in Christ, even though he is rarely permitted to speak with them. What a powerful testimony! Bassam is overflowing in doing good while suffering.

Can you imagine living in such a way? When the world calls you a hateful bigot, instead of getting angry you simply continue feeding the hungry and clothing the poor. When your co-workers incessantly mock Christianity, you show them by your words and actions that you love them and will gladly lay down your life for them. When your peers at school mock you for not partaking in their sinful speech or listening to the music that they like, you speak words of encouragement to them and help them in their time of need.

These are not hard scenarios to imagine because they are ones we face in our daily lives. I may not have suggested one that hit immediately home for you, but surely you can think of those that you have faced… And surely, we will all face many more such scenarios in the years to come. Christianity is not mainstream in our world’s eyes, and it was never intended to be. The world rejected Christ when he came, and it continues to reject him to this day. But, as Peter will point out at the end of chapter 2, Christ, when he was reviled, did not revile in return. Jesus is the ultimate example of doing good in the face of evil and poor treatment. He has paved the way for us! We are called to follow in his steps of not demanding to be served but rather seeking to serve.

So, what will it look like for you to overflow in doing good? To live honorably among unbelievers? I would encourage you to write those questions down and answer them this week. (repeat questions)

Peter is about to get into some specific examples, but before we address those, let me point you back to verses 15-16, which said:

1 Peter 2:15–16 (ESV)

15 For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. 16 Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God.

If your faith is in Christ, then you have been set free from temptation and sin. They are not your masters. You serve a new master, God. You are not free to live however you want, but you are free to live as a servant of God. And in the context here, it is better translated as “submit as people who are free… submitting as servants of God.” There is no verb translated “live” in this entire verse, so the controlling verb is found in verse 13 which says, “be subject” or “be submitted”.

This fits well with the teaching of Paul in Galatians 5:13-26 or Romans 6. For the sake of time, I’m only going to read verses Galatians 5:13-15.

Galatians 5:13–15 (ESV)

13 For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. 14 For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 15 But if you bite and devour one another, watch out that you are not consumed by one another.

When a man or a woman is rescued and redeemed from sin by Jesus Christ, they are set free. But this is not a freedom to live however one wishes. It is a freedom from sin to serve God and others. We are submitted to Christ. We are servants of God. And our calling is to love God and love others. Brothers and sisters, let us not continue in sin. It is a travesty when professing Christians are just as selfish, proud, controlling, slanderous, and angry as the unbelieving world around them. How does that testify to the redemptive work of Jesus Christ in your life? It doesn’t. It brings reproach to the name of Christ.

It is God’s will that Christians live differently. That they live honorably. Overflowing in good deeds so that the watching world can’t help but notice. Christians ought to be the humblest, the most generous, the most selfless, the most self-controlled people on the face of the earth because we have a God who has shown us incredible mercy. A god who has brought us from death to life. A God who has transferred us from the kingdom of darkness into his marvelous light. If God has done that for you, why would you not live honorably for him?

And one specific way that Peter highlights this honorable lifestyle is in the principle of submission. He first addresses this principle in 2:13 and it continues to influence his teaching throughout the rest of the letter. Here is our final component of living out your identity in Christ in a world that opposes him:

  1. Submit to others, as appropriate to their role, as a servant of God

As I was preparing for this part of our discussion today, I was greatly aware of the tension around this topic over the past several years. The pandemic certainly stretched us all in thinking carefully about submission to others and I hope to honor the Lord in my teaching on this topic today. Of course, I invite follow-up discussion if you are confused or concerned by anything that is said here.

Let’s start by re-reading the passage:

1 Peter 2:13–17 (ESV)

13 Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, 14 or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good. 15 For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. 16 Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God. 17 Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.

I want to start by pointing out an interpretation decision made by the ESV near the beginning of verse 13. They have translated it “institution” where the Greek word literally means “creation”. Other translations use “authority” or “ordinance of man”. The context helps us understand what is intended by this word “creation” – it is speaking about submission to fellow humans, specifically those who are our authorities. Peter will go on to elaborate about this submission in specific contexts with government authorities, the master/slave relationship, the husband/wife relationship, and the relationship between Christians and Christians/world.

To “be subject” is the same as to be submissive or to be subordinate. It is recognizing that there is an ordered structure to relationships and willingly subjecting yourself to that order. A very clear example is in the military where everyone has a specific rank and those of lower ranks are subordinate to those of higher ranks. In this case, Peter is commanding these Christians to submit to others, as appropriate to their roles, as servants of God. That’s a mouthful, so let’s unpack it.

Let’s start with the last piece, “as servants of God.” This is important because it reminds us of our identity and motive. When Peter commands these Christians to be subject to every human creation or authority, he says to do so “for the Lord’s sake” and “living (submitting) as servants of God”. Christians submit to earthly authorities out of reverence and submission to their heavenly authority. (repeat) God is the ultimate authority over all persons and both we and our earthly authorities answer to him. Our submission is an act of obedience to God; in fact, we are told it is God’s will that we submit so that by doing good we would put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. 1st century Christians submitting to their Roman authorities would have removed opportunities for unbelievers to say they were zealots or rebels against the empire (unintentional Star Wars reference!). Submission to the emperor (or more literally king/ruler) and his governors was a way for them to honor God and remove obstacles for gospel witness.

In an ideal society, those in authority will punish evil and reward/praise those who do good. In the Roman society, it was possible for Christians to do good in the public eye and earn commendation. Peter says that it is necessary for Christians to live in a way that is doing good and silencing those who would speak ill of Christians/Christ. Do not give unbelievers unnecessary ammo against the gospel. “Oh, those Christians think they’re better than everyone else. They don’t obey the law. They say they’re not of this world or kingdom, so they can get away with whatever they want.” Nope! That’s not how God calls us to live as exiles in this land.

Rather, God calls us to be exiles who seek the good of their community. We are to be like Daniel or Joseph, men who were taken to foreign lands and yet they were faithful representatives of God in those lands. Joseph was used by God to preserve the life of the Egyptian nation, as well as many others. Daniel was a wise man and counselor to the ungodly kings of Babylon and Persia. He was able to serve across multiple kings’ reigns. These men were not called to undermine these foreign authorities at every step but to do good to them for the glory of God. The same is true for Christians throughout history. We are not to be obnoxious people who constantly undermine our governing authorities or claim citizenship in heaven as a reason to disobey earthly authority.

Whenever and wherever possible, we are to be joyfully submissive to our authorities, so long as they are not asking us to contradict our ultimate authority, God. Because God is our ultimate authority, we must always obey him. There are times when earthly authorities overstep the limits of their rightful rule, and they ask us to do thing that would be sinful in God’s sight. If this is the case, then we must respectfully say, “No, I cannot do this. I will obey God, not man.” This is exactly how the disciples responded when commanded to stop preaching the Gospel in Acts:

Acts 4:18–20 (ESV)

18 So they called them and charged them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter and John answered them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, 20 for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.”

Afterwards, they continue to obey God and preach the gospel!

Another example is when Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were ordered to bow down and worship King Nebuchadnezzar and they refused because they were worshippers of Yahweh alone. Similarly, when Daniel was ordered to pray only to King Darius, he went to his home and continued to pray to Yahweh three times a day, as was his regular practice. These men would not sin against God for the sake of a human king’s pride. All these men risked their lives by disobeying earthly authorities to obey God. They are great examples of drawing a line in the sand when it comes to an earthly authority contradicting our heavenly authority.

The challenge for Christians is determining when an authority has asked you to sin. The instances shared above are very clear, being asked to stop preaching the gospel or worship/pray to anyone other than God is clearly sin. But what about when your authority commands you to stop meeting together as the church? Or puts limitations on how many can gather and for how long? Or mandates how you raise your children? Are these immediately sinful, and, if not, under what circumstances do they become so?

These scenarios, which are all too real to us now, is an example of human authorities overstepping the bounds of their authority to command something that is not their right to command. God has commanded his church to gather to worship him and serve one another. As the church, we must navigate obeying our God while also seeking to honor our authorities wherever possible. As Christians, we must always consider first what God would say before we assess how to respond to the governing authorities. The same holds true in the realm of parenting. God has given parents the primary responsibility of raising their children in the nurture and admonition of his Word. Governments who seek to supersede this are overstepping the bounds of their God-given authority.

I appreciate how Pastor and Commentator Tom Schreiner speaks about this:

Ordinarily believers will submit to the commands of ruling authorities, for in the normal course of life governments punish evil behavior and reward good conduct. The inclination and instinct of believers, then, will be submission to government. Peter wanted to avoid anarchy and a kind of enthusiasm that rejects any human structures. Nevertheless, if governments prescribe what is evil or demand that believers refuse to worship God, then believers as slaves of God must refuse to obey.  (NAC)

This requires wisdom to execute well. At times we will have to think carefully about the role and bounds of God-given authority that each of our earthly authorities retains. However, our normal disposition as Christians must be to submit to others, as appropriate to their role, as a servant of God. Peter makes this clear in verse 17 when he issues four commands in a row:

  • Honor everyone
  • Love the brotherhood
  • Fear God
  • Honor the emperor

These commands cover the gamut of our relationships. In general, we must honor all people. Specifically, we must love our brothers and sisters in Christ. (Though we know Jesus also called us to love our enemies and Peter certainly isn’t minimizing or contradicting that!) We must fear God – he alone is worthy of reverence and awe. And we honor the emperor (king/elected officials of our country).

Christians live out their identity well by giving each relationship its due. Even if we disagree with their policies or morals. Even if we abhor their sinful lifestyle. Even if we would prefer someone else were in that role/office.

I am not saying that you should be politically apathetic and fail to participate in our representative democracy. To the contrary, we should exercise our influence as citizens and Christians to help our society pursue righteousness. Consider Jesus’ teaching in the sermon on the mount:

Matthew 5:13–16 (ESV)

13 “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.

14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

It is right and appropriate for Christians to live righteously and influence others towards righteousness. And guess what? As you are overflowing in doing good to others, you will influence them for Christ. But be careful not to put your hope in societal transformation or political reformation. These are false hopes. Remember our hope is in future grace – we have a salvation waiting for us with God!

We know that true transformation is found in Jesus Christ. Jesus is ultimately the one who calls people to himself. And he does not promise a reformed political system or societal transformation this side of heaven. Our job is to faithfully live out our identity as Christians as we proclaim the excellencies of God and call others to repent and believe in him… then we trust God for the results. *pause*

There is always more to be said on any given topic. I certainly have not covered every scenario possible today. I do hope that you have a refreshed understanding of the way you’re called to live on earth. That every one of us who calls ourselves a Christian would:

  1. Abstain from the passions of the flesh
  2. Live honorably among unbelievers
  3. Submit to others, as appropriate to their role, as a servant of God

Speaking of our identity in Christ and being servants of God…

Communion

We’re going to close out our study of God’s Word with a celebration of the Lord’s Table. This is an opportunity for Christians to remember all that the Lord has done for us through his death, burial, and resurrection. This is our opportunity to look to Jesus the founder and perfecter of our faith!

We will celebrate by partaking of both the bread and the cup as a symbol and reminder of Jesus’ body broken in our place and his blood shed for the forgiveness of our sins. Communion is an opportunity to remember how great a price was paid so that we could be saved from our sin. It is a sobering, yet joyful celebration for Christians. Sobering that the Son of God would give himself for us as a ransom. Joyful that he did, and the result was a living hope that cannot be taken from us! Jesus is victorious; therefore, we have the hope of heaven with Him!

At this time, I’d like to invite the ushers forward with the elements.

Before we pass them, I want to share the biblical requirements for joining in this celebration.

This celebration was given by Jesus to his followers. It is an opportunity to remember all that he has done for us. We invite anyone who has trusted in Jesus Christ alone for salvation to join us in this celebration today. If your faith is not in Jesus Christ alone, then we would encourage you to let the elements pass by you and simply consider what you’ve heard so far during the service this morning and reflect on what is keeping you from trusting him.

The second requirement we see in Scripture is a call to examine ourselves. This is the idea of making sure that you’ve confessed any known sins and sought to turn away from it. It would not be wise to partake of the table if you have sin in your life for which you are not repentant. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 11 that taking the table while living in sin is eating and drinking judgment on yourself. I would ask you not to do that, for your sake and the sake of God’s glory. Instead, I would encourage you to use this time to confess that sin and make a plan to address it right away. If you know you need to be reconciled to someone else in this church, please take care of that during this time. The table is time to protect the unity of the church.

The ushers are going to pass the elements now as we have a time of silent reflection and prayer to prepare for the table. Please use this time to reflect on all that we’ve talked about today and to prepare yourself to take communion by confessing and repenting of any known sin. After the elements have been passed, I’ll lead us in prayer and taking communion together.

Ushers pass elements

Silent prayer. Corporate prayer.

1 Corinthians 11:23–26 (ESV)

23 For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”

Take bread.

25 In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

Take cup

Hallelujah, thank you, Jesus!