{ continuation of the previous lesson }

2. We Need a Repentant Life

1 Peter 4:4
They think it strange that you do not plunge with them into the same flood of dissipation, and they heap abuse on you.

They think it strange that you do not plunge with them into the same flood of dissipation, and they heap abuse on you.

You may ask, "What is dissipation?" It means a "pouring out," a wasting of energy. Peter's already said that God has redeemed us from the empty way of life. Now here we are again, wasting our lives. Another word is "prodigality." This means "wastefulness," like the prodigal son, the "wasteful" son.

Here are some questions:

a. When was the last time somebody challenged you on your strange behavior?
Does our behavior shock people by what we do and don't do in our lives? When was the last time you've done something that really shocked somebody? Over the holidays, did you shock your family by your righteous life? "Train yourself to be godly." Our very lives need to shock people. If nobody's stunned by how I live, what does that say about me?

b. When was the last time somebody changed because of my good life?
Does my life stand out so clearly that others are shamed into repentance?

c. When was the last time our husbands / wives were stunned by our consideration?
Even single brothers, have you noticed how impacting consideration is? Have you noticed how mad and hurt they get when you're inconsiderate? When you're single, they don't have to put up with you, and they don't. When you're married, they have to. Our goal is to stun them. The sisters' goal is to stun husbands by their submission and godly lives.

d. When was the last time your life shamed non-Christians?
When was the last time a non-Christian was ashamed of their attitude toward you? All of these verses say the same thing. Our lives need to shine like stars. Wives can shame their husbands without a word. It's not about words . . . Our very lives, our actions, our hearts, our deeds are meant to shame the world.

We're all wretched sinners, but the grace of God motivates us to live good lives. We do good, rather than mirror what everybody else does. When was the last time a non-Christian was ashamed of how they talked about you?

3. The End is Near

I thought the end was supposed to be a few weeks ago. Maybe next year… If the end is near, what does that mean? What are we supposed to do? Do we sell all and give to Special Contribution? Gather and wait at the camp? I don't think so, but Peter does give us a list of what we're meant to be.

a. Be clear-minded and self-controlled so you can pray

What's your greatest enemy in prayer? Many times is the lack of discipline . . . We don't have the discipline to keep praying, and our mind drifts while we pray. Peter talks about self-control a great deal. All the epistles emphasize it. It's amazing to us how much we lack self-control in our lives.

Have you ever noticed how hard it is to get a non-Christian to read for 15 minutes? Our bodies control us, rather than us controlling our bodies. That's a total lack of self-control. We need to be self-controlled and clear-minded as disciples. Discipline ourselves! We need to "beat our bodies," as Paul says:

1 Corinthians 9:27
No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

b. Above all else, love one another intensely

This word describes the muscles of an athlete straining to win a race. In our fellowship, is there any evidence of this? Not just at church. If we're not doing it when people are watching, how are we when we're by ourselves? We tend to be a better husband/wife at church when people are watching, don't we?

We need to be intense about showing our love to the brothers. We don't hug like we used to. As men, we need to hug firmly, strongly, like we mean it. Break some ribs! It's true, though. Even the public affection is down. Need to snap out of it, guys. Express our love. We say "I love you," like we say "Bye." We always say, "bro" as well. Change it up. Use his name. Let's really strive to love one another intensely.

The text says that love covers a multitude of sins. On face value, though, that's obviously a good thing. We can't pay for their sin… When we're loving intensely and with meaning, people overlook our sins. We don't always challenge right, say things right, but if they know you love them… You have the right in their mind to tell them stuff. Your love covers your own sins.

When we really love one another deeply, we can overlook others' sins as well. Think about how you feel about your kids. Surely we all love our kids, don't we? They have a sinful nature, but you don't keep a record of their wrongs. The individual acts don't really matter to you. It's their heart you're concerned about. You discipline the actions, but your love for them covers their sins toward you.

This is how we're meant to be in the fellowship toward one another. Our individual sins, mannerisms and personality quirks irk one another. If we put three brothers in a hotel room for a few days, there'd be bad attitudes. Flying with somebody for a long time strains relationships as well. Love covers up those sins, though, and that's really a great thing.

Love also protects one another:

1 Corinthians 13:7
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. We need to watch out for gossip. Sometimes we need input, but be sure to protect one another.

c. We need to offer hospitality toward one another

Hospitality literally means, "lover of strangers." Don't murmur about that, either. Murmuring is a "secret debate," mumbling about how you don't like to do something. There is an Italian proverb that says, "A guest is like a fish. After three days, he stinks."

How's it going with hospitality? When was the last time you had someone for dinner? We need to do more of this, for sure. We're actually meant to be hospitable, to have people over and feed them. We're to sit down with them, entertain them and take care of them in our homes. This is a command, but some of you don't do it. Open it up!

Family group leaders, by the very nature of your job you need to be hospitable. You're like the dad of the family, and your female counterpart is the mom. You need to be hosting, entertaining and feeding your people. The end is near. You never know who you've entertained. Entertaining angels is good.

d. We need to use our gifts. Gift of speech

Gifts are administering God's grace, serving others. Gifts are meant to do good. When you speak, how should you speak? As the very words of God. Many of us have been given the spiritual gift of speech. How do you use that gift? Speaking as the words of God . . . does this mean we're inspired? No. We talk about the weather, our jobs, but do we talk about God? Do you ever turn on the spiritual gift of speech? Share God's words with each other.

How can you be sure you're speaking the words of God? Share the Word of God. A great goal is to bring up the Word of God in every conversation at church. Bring in a Scripture, a verse reference, a Biblical concept every time I talk. If you don't push yourself, you'll just talk trash all the time. That's not what God wants. God wants us to go to church with a purpose. Commit to share the Word daily. Sharing God's Word doesn't make you weird, but so what if it does? Resolve today to share the Word with one another. Otherwise, it's all just trash talk and complaints and sharing what's wrong all the time. What are you sharing that is positive? Are you a positive, or negative influence?

e. We need to serve with the strength God provides

I'm amazed how many of you don't even show up for opportunities to serve. Many of you stay at home. You're soft on yourself, you indulge yourself. You're out of control and don't give. Many of your wives work harder around the house than you do. You're not a servant. You're not eager to serve at church, coming early to the church to serve, to give. We have to twist arms for Children's Ministry.

By the power that God gives us we're meant to serve. Too often, that's not the case. Our words aren't very deep, and our actions aren't either. We are far from this text. We're meant to change our lives, and this may very well be suffering for you. (Amen to that.) That's what the passage started off saying . . .

When we do what we're supposed to do, THEN we have victory in our life. When we shake loose, speak and serve, then God will work powerfully. It's interesting that the only two gifts he mentions here are speaking and serving. We all have those two, and we all need to use them powerfully in our lives.

Summary:

a. Refine our faith : There aren't enough people here who weren't here last year. We need to raise people up this year. Make your faith alive and dynamic. You're not in the furnace, not in the cauldron, not suffering and growing.

b. Repentant lifestyle : People need to start being challenged by your actions.

c. The end is near : Let's be different. Be more loving, serving and speaking the words of God. Let's be more hospitable and self-controlled. We'll get it done.