Peter 4 King James Version (KJV)
Forasmuch then as
Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same
mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin; That he no
longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but
to the will of God. For the time past of our life may suffice us to have
wrought the will of the Gentiles, when we walked in lasciviousness, lusts,
excess of wine, revellings, banquetings, and abominable idolatries: Wherein they think it strange that ye run not
with them to the same excess of riot, speaking evil of you: Who shall give account to him that is ready to
judge the quick and the dead. For for
this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might
be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the
spirit. But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch
unto prayer. And above all things have
fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of
sins. Use hospitality one to another without grudging. As every man hath received the gift, even so
minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of
God. If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man
minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all
things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion
for ever and ever. Amen. Beloved, think
it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange
thing happened unto you: But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's
sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with
exceeding joy. If ye be reproached for
the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth
upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified.
But let none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or as an evildoer, or
as a busybody in other men's matters. Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him
not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf. For the time is come
that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what
shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God? And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where
shall the ungodly and the sinner appear? Wherefore let them that suffer according to
the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto
a faithful Creator.
Peter has concluded that to be free we must submit to YHWH
alone and by that submission as He works in us and our brethren and the kingdoms
of men we are free to submit our lives to all men in order to perform the will
of YHWH. If our submission means we must suffer the penalties of wrong though
we have done that which is right we know that our Master has suffered before
us; the just suffering the penalty of the unjust.
The suffering itself may serve the purpose of YHWH but it is
not our focus only a result. The focus is to place a complete and total trust,
reliance, dependence, and expectancy in our Father living through us and
working through us to perform His will. The self must be completely abandoned
if we are to have this life living in us to the end that YHWHs will is done.
Adams temptation was to obtain for himself. When he gave
himself over to that desire he died and became a murderer of every child born
of the seed within him. Our Messiah himself in His four recorded temptations
refused to act to obtain for himself. In the wilderness we see in the stone and
bread Yeshua refuses to act of Himself to make provision for His needs (body).
In the pinnacle of the temple we see His rejection of trying to receive
recognition and honor of who He is by His own actions (soul). In the offer of
the kingdoms of the earth we see Him refuse to obtain that for which He was born
by His own actions (spirit). The fourth temptation in the garden was one
temptation but in three waves.
The leaders of Israel and the disciples might not have
understood what the prophets had written of Messiahs suffering and abuse. No
man may fully grasp the abusive deathly result of and consequence of their own
sin. Yeshua knew the scripture and He knew all men; thereby He fully understood
the suffering He was being asked to endure. Still the temptation of self-preservation
(life) could find no place in Him. He lived the Fathers will and had worked the
Fathers works and so He would suffer and die in the same manner fully submitted
to the Father living in Him.
Peter encourages us to arm ourselves with our mind set to
these same things. It was this mind set by which Messiah delivered us from sin
and death and it is the only way in which we can walk in what He has provided.
Paul in telling us to put on the whole armor of YHWH breaks apart several areas
in which we place our complete trust in what YHWH has worked through Messiah;
Peter in His simple fashion simply tells us to arm ourselves but the meaning is
the same.
We are in a war, Yeshua is our seven star general and the
Master of the army of the Heavens. In His manifestation He has filled His brethren
and all of heaven with violence; in the way a battlefield general incites His
troops for war. The violent take the battle by force.
The violence of Yeshua is not against men but against the
sin and death to which men are in bondage. As such all who have been made His brethren
have taken this same fight both within themselves and in those to whom they are
sent. The weapons of this warfare are not carnal but through the Spirit and
this fight is not of force but of faith. The reason these things are true is
because there is only one true God. He is the only power and authority, the
only maker and generator, the only beginning and end, it is Him that is the
only life and love and good all else is only a pretender and murderer and deceiver.
YHWH by faith places us in His life by that same life which
was in His son our Messiah. In the same way that Yeshua was dead to His self
and alive to YHWH so we ourselves must be crucified in Him that the same Spirit
working by love that has no self-interest may make us alive with the life of
YHWH himself.
This agape type love looking only to YHWH and men is the
life shared in us and it is the deliverance to every sin that exist. Our death
in Messiah of the self with the subsequent living of the Spirit from us makes
us cease from sin. If we see sin in our life then we know that there is still
trust in self within us but have full confidence that as we trust Him to make
us trust Him the weapons of our warfare are mighty through YHWHs life to the
pulling down of strongholds and that at His presence all things bow to His
authority.
As we receive this grace of YHWH living in us let us also
share it with our brethren for we have the same life living in us and are one.
Our master said He never said or did anything that He had
not seen of our Father so as His disciples let us be like Him and speak and
work only those things He has made to be living within us.
So if we find in our life suffering for sin let us be happy
for we fellowship in the suffering that Messiah has suffered for us and knowing
that the result of that suffering is death of the sinful ways and a glory of
the Living God raising us up from the grave. If we suffer in this life for His
life living through us then count it an exceeding joy for we have fellowship
with our Messiah in that by his suffering though He was innocent He provided
for the salvation of those in guilt.
Yeshua said take the beam from your own eye that you might
see clearly to remove the splinter from thy brother. So we see that we cannot
remove the individual sin we see from our brother if we do not remove the death
from ourselves. Peter says the same when He says judgment must start at the
house of YHWH whose house you are.
The Spirit through Paul says I know in whom I have believed
and am convinced that He is able to keep that which I have committed until that
day. Through Peter the same Spirit says let us who are put to the death of our
self in Messiah by YHWH’s will entrust our souls to YHWH that He shall keep
them and do that which is right through them for He is a faithful Creator.
