1 PETER CHAPTER 2
by
Jim Bomkamp
1.
VS 2:1 - “2:1 Therefore, putting aside all malice and all
guile and hypocrisy and envy and all slander,
2 like newborn babes, long for the pure milk of the word, that by it you
may grow in respect to salvation,” - The
nurture of the Christian: Peter tells
his readers that they must put aside some things and that they must long for
the milk of the word
1.1.
This is not a new section of the book, it began in verse 22 of chapter
1
1.2.
Peter writes in verse 22 how that Christians are first of all people
who have purified themselves from their grievous sins.
1.3.
Christians are people who have been born again and thus made new
creatures in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17). All
things are new in our lives now.
2.
Just as with a baby’s physical growth, growth as a Christian doesn’t
come automatically.
2.1.
There are things we must do and things we must ‘put aside’ (not do) if
we want to grow, we must repent of sins when we are aware of them otherwise we
will eventually have our relationship with the Lord grow cold.
2.2.
There is no use trying to get more of God until we have first put off
the yucky stuff in our life. We can’t
get more of God until we first put off the stuff that is offending Him in our
life.
2.3.
Peter writes that a Christian must ‘desire’ something also though: the milk of the Word of God.
2.3.1. Interestingly, notice that
Peter doesn’t exhort us to “drink” from God’s Word, but rather to ‘desire’ it.
2.3.2. All we need to do in a sense
is to ‘desire’ the milk of the Word.
2.3.3. God will always fulfill that
desire of those who hunger and thirst for the things of God’s Word.
2.3.4. This verse shows that we have
the “ability” to determine what it is that we desire in our life.
2.3.5. We always have the time to
do the things that we really want to do in our lives.
2.4.
When a person is, in a manner of speaking, desiring the leeks and
onions of Egypt (the things of his BC life), this will quench his desire for
God’s Word.
3.
Exhortations to lay aside malice, guile, hypocrisy, envy, and slander
occur often in the New Testament.
3.1.
This reveals that these sins tended to be prevalent in the New
Testament times.
3.2.
If these sins go unchecked, they will destroy the unity and fellowship
of the body.
3.3.
Certain attitudes of the heart must be dealt with before there can be
growth in a Christian’s life.
3.4.
In the body of Christ, if the body is to be healthy, then we must
constantly remove the pathological attitudes that kill unity and fellowship in
the body.
3.5.
In contrast to the Christian laying aside all manner of sins we also
ought to apply ourselves to putting on certain attitudes, just as Paul exhorted
us in Col. 3:12-17, “12 And so, as those who have been chosen of God, holy
and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and
patience; 13 bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a
complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. 14
And beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. 15
And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were
called in one body; and be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ richly dwell
within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms
and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.
17 And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus,
giving thanks through Him to God the Father.”
3.6.
Christians of all ages and spiritual maturities are to consider
themselves to be ‘like’ new born babies.
3.7.
Newborn babies do not need to be taught of their need for mother’s
milk, its born into them just as it is for us who have been born into God’s
family.
3.7.1. I remember well when I as a
first-time dad first stayed home alone with my son and experienced the
ferociousness of his hunger for milk. I
panicked because I literally thought he was going to die of hunger he cried so
hard because he was hungry.
3.8.
A mother’s milk contains all of the nutrients that the baby needs, just
as God’s Word is just exactly what the Christian needs for nutrition.
3.8.1. God’s Word is for our being
built up in our faith: 2 Tim. 3:16-17,
“16 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for
reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; 17 that the man of God
may be adequate, equipped for every good work.”
3.8.2. We need to let it richly
fill our life: Col. 3:16, “16 Let
the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and
admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with
thankfulness in your hearts to God.”
3.8.3. In John 6:63 Jesus said that
His Words were “spirit and life.”
3.9.
The use of the word ‘pure’ in regard to the Word of God is ambiguous
and is translated variously as “pure,” “unadulterated,” “sincere,” “spiritual.”
3.9.1. One person has commented
that the use of this ambiguous word may have been intentional since God’s word
has such a multi-faceted effect in our life.
3.10.
God’s word has promises for us that cover everything in life that we
may struggle or have to deal with, as 2 Peter 1:3-4 tells us, “3 According
as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life
and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and
virtue: 4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious
promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having
escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.”
4.
VS 2:3 - “3 if you have tasted the kindness
of the Lord.”
- We have all received kindness and
mercy instead of punishment from God
4.1.
We read in Rom. 2:4 that it is His kindness that “leads us to repentance.”
5.
VS 2:4 - “4 And coming to Him as to a
living stone, rejected by men, but choice and precious in the sight of God,” - Jesus is the “living
stone” that we as believers come to for salvation
5.1.
A stone is hard and durable and denotes that Jesus is solid and
unchanging.
5.1.1. Applying Ps. 118:22 to
Himself, Jesus spoke of Himself as being a stone in Matt. 22:42-44, “42 Jesus
*said to them, “Did you never read in the Scriptures, ‘The stone which the builders
rejected, This became the chief corner stone;
This came about from the Lord, And it is marvelous in our eyes’? 43 “Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of
God will be taken away from you, and be given to a nation producing the fruit
of it. 44 “And he who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; but on
whomever it falls, it will scatter him like dust.””
5.1.2. Jesus said that if anyone
built his house upon the rock (His word) his house would withstand the elements
and storms of life (Matt. 7:24-27).
5.1.3. The “chief corner stone”
holds up two walls and is the key to the stability of the entire house.
5.2.
Jesus as the rock also symbolizes to us “refreshing and life.”
5.2.1. In 1 Cor. 10:1-4 Paul wrote
that the rock in the wilderness that the Israelites drank from symbolized
Christ, “10:1 For I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that our
fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; 2 and all
were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea; 3 and all ate the same
spiritual food; 4 and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they were
drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them; and the rock was Christ.”
5.2.2. The stone mentioned by Peter
in this verse is a ‘living’ or life-giving stone.
5.2.3. Jesus said that a river of
living water would flow from this stone into the hearts of those who are His
people (John 7:38).
5.3.
Jesus was ‘rejected by men,’ however in the sight of God He is ‘choice
and precious.’
5.4.
For those who reject Jesus, tragically this corner stone will fall on
them and crush them: Heb. 10:29-31, “29
How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled
under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the
covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace? 30
For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge His
people.” 31 It is a terrifying thing to
fall into the hands of the living God.”
5.4.1. There is only one sin that
will send a person to hell: rejection
of Jesus as Lord and Savior.
6.
VS 2:5 - “5 you also, as living stones, are
being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up
spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” - We as members of the body
of Christ are also “living stones”
6.1.
When we come to Christ, in many ways what He is we become in diminutive
form.
6.1.1. He is “the only begotten and
unique” Son of God, we become sons of God.
6.1.2. Christ is a priest, and He
makes all of us a priest.
6.1.3. Christ is our intercessor, and
we all become intercessors for others.
6.1.4. Christ is the King, and He
makes kings of all of us as well (Rev. 3:21).
6.1.5. Christ is that durable and
enduring stone, and we all become strong, sturdy, and enduring stones in His
building.
6.2.
Christianity is not a spectator sport, we are all called to fulfill our
roles in God’s building project, as Paul wrote in Eph. 2:19-22, “19 So then
you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the
saints, and are of God’s household, 20 having been built upon the foundation of
the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, 21 in
whom the whole building, being fitted together is growing into a holy temple in
the Lord; 22 in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God
in the Spirit.”
6.3.
The ‘spiritual sacrifices’ that we are to offer up encompasses all of
our service for Him.
6.3.1. All of our service for Him
is then to be an act of worship.
6.4.
Not all of the sacrifices in the Old Testament were ‘acceptable’ as
ours are to be.
6.4.1. To be acceptable to God our
service to Him must be lived out in obedience of heart, word and deed to Him.
6.4.2. Our service must be done
God’s way, according to His Word and leading in our life.
7.
VS 2:6-8 - “6 For this is contained in
Scripture: “Behold I lay in Zion a
choice stone, a precious corner stone,And he who believes in Him shall not be
disappointed.” 7 This precious value,
then, is for you who believe. But for those who disbelieve, “The stone which the
builders rejected, This became the very corner stone,” 8 and, “A stone of
stumbling and a rock of offense” ;for they stumble because they are disobedient
to the word, and to this doom they were also appointed.” - The Old Testament
revealed Christ as the chief corner stone
7.1.
In the Old Testament we read of Christ as the choice and precious
corner stone, as is stated in Isaiah 28:16, “16 Therefore thus says the Lord
God, “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a tested stone, A costly cornerstone
for the foundation, firmly placed. He
who believes in it will not be disturbed.”
7.2.
We see from these verses that what is of prime importance in a person’s
life is whether or not they “believe” in Jesus.
7.3.
It is a solemn fact that if anyone rejects Christ, Christ is still the chief
corner stone upon which the entire foundation is built, and without faith in
Christ you can’t come to the Father.
7.4.
In Rom. 9:31-33, Paul similarly wrote of Christ as being this “stone of
stumbling” and “rock of offense.”
7.5.
We need to realize from this verse that at the center of all sin is
“unbelief.” You cannot sin with being
in unbelief, and visa versa.
7.5.1. It is also “belief” in
Christ and His Word that will bring back a backslidden Christian.
7.6.
We Christians sometimes forget how precious Jesus really is to us:
7.6.1. Paul said that he had
suffered the loss of all things in order that he might know Christ in Phil.
3:7-10, “7 But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted
as loss for the sake of Christ. 8 More than that, I count all things to be loss
in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I
have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish in order that
I may gain Christ, 9 and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my
own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the
righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, 10 that I may know
Him, and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings,
being conformed to His death.”
8.
VS 2:9-10 - “9 But you are a chosen race,
a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a
people for God’s own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him
who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; 10 for you once
were not a people, but now you are the people of God; you had not received
mercy, but now you have received mercy.” - Peter begins a theme that was one of Paul’s
favorites: Christians being a called
out people, a separate race, a peculiar people to the world
8.1.
In this church age, the “church,” not Israel is the called out people
of God.
8.1.1. God’s gifts and calling are
irrovocable (Rom. 11:29), and He will resume dealing with Israel, but it will
be during the Great Tribulation Period after the church is “raptured” out of
the earth by Christ.
8.1.2. We Christians need to accept
our identity as being God’s people, holy and set apart to Him.
8.1.3. God called each of us not
because of anything special about us nor our faith, but just because of His
grace and desire to choose us as an object for His mercy.
8.1.4. In the end, each person who has been chosen and called to become one of
God’s children through faith in Christ will only be able to give glory to God
for His mercy in having been chosen by Him, and likewise each person who has
rejected Christ and been appointed for that end and eternal punishment will
only be able to blame themselves for not repenting and believing in
Christ! This is all according to the
wisdom of God, and it is marvelous to behold.
8.1.5. Paul wrote in Rom. 9:15 about
God’s sovereignty being seen through those whom He calls to Himself, “15 For
He says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have
compassion on whom I have compassion.””
9.
VS 2:11 - “11 Beloved, I urge you as aliens
and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts, which wage war against the soul.” - Being God’s chosen people, Peter now exhorts them to avoid
those things that were in the life that they used to live before becoming a
Christian: ‘fleshly lusts’
9.1.
We Christians often do not recognize how powerful and deadly the beast
that remains within each of us can really be.
9.1.1. Paul described the depravity
of our sinful nature in Rom. 3:9-18, “9 What then? Are we better than they?
Not at all; for we have already charged that both Jews and Greeks are all under
sin; 10 as it is written,“There is none righteous, not even one; 11 There is none who understands, There is
none who seeks for God; 12 All have turned
aside, together they have become useless;
There is none who does good, There is not even one.” 13 “Their throat is an open grave, With
their tongues they keep deceiving,”
“The poison of asps is under their lips” ; 14 “Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness” ; 15 “Their
feet are swift to shed blood, 16 Destruction and misery are in their paths, 17
And the path of peace have they not known.”
18 “There is no fear of God before their eyes.””
9.1.2. Paul wrote in Gal. 5:16-17
about the war going on in the Christian between the “flesh” and the “Spirit”,
“16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of
the flesh. 17 For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit
against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may
not do the things that you please.”
9.1.3. ILLUSTRATION OF COBRA IN
HOTEL ROOM: If you were to check into a
hotel room and as as the attendant gave you the key to your room he were to
tell you to be careful because a King Cobra had escaped into your room, would
you just nonchalantly walk into your room, kick off your shoes, and get into
bed just as you would any other night?
No, you wouldn’t! You’d make
sure that beast was killed or removed from your room before you would ever step
foot into it. Well, in the same way, if
we Christians only realized just how deadly and capable of destruction the very
sin nature within each of us really is, we would be committed for life to dying
to this old self and eradicating its influences in our life.
10.
VS 2:12 - “12 Keep your behavior excellent
among the Gentiles, so that in the thing in which they slander you as
evildoers, they may on account of your good deeds, as they observe them,
glorify God in the day of visitation.” - In this verse Peter exhorts the Christian to be a
good testimony to the unbelievers in the world
10.1.
It is a foolish thing for Christians to allow attitudes and actions in
their lives be such that non-believers recognize their deeds as being evil.
10.2.
God calls each of us to have two testimonies to the world.
10.2.1.The testimony of our life
(good works which shine before men, Matt. 5:16).
10.2.1.1.If we Christians could just
realize how people of this world are affected for God by a person with a good
testimony, we would strive so much the more to have one.
10.2.2.The testimony of the gospel
itself.
10.2.2.1.We all must be committed to
sharing with the lost even if evangelism is not our primary gift, just as Paul
commanded Timothy in 2 Tim. 4:5.
10.3.
One author has wisely remarked
that the heathen world around us expects basically three things out of those
who call themselves Christians:
10.3.1.We live righteous lives.
10.3.2.We have unity amongst
ourselves.
10.3.3.We love each other (they could really care less about our
doctrines).
11.
VS 2:13-15 - “13 Submit yourselves for the
Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in
authority, 14 or to governors as sent by him for the punishment of evildoers
and the praise of those who do right. 15 For such is the will of God that by
doing right you may silence the ignorance of foolish men.” - The Christian is called
to submit himself to all of the authorities over his life
11.1.
Submission to authorities is another doctrine where Peter and Paul
agree (see Rom. 13 for instance).
11.2.
Foolishly, there are many in the world today who call themselves
Christians, and yet they defy our government.
11.2.1.The Timothy McVeigh’s in our
world (the man who blew up the federal building in OKC) never reach anyone for
Christ by opposing the government or being a “terrorist.”
11.2.2.We must not be deceived into
defying our government saying that we are submitting to the Lord as a “higher
authority.”
11.2.2.1.When Peter wrote this, the
emperor he was under was Nero, a horribly wicked man who hated Christians and
persecuted them. Nero may have already
killed the apostle Paul at the time of Peter’s writing.
11.2.2.2.We must realize that any
government is better than anarchy, so its wise for us support our government.
11.2.3.We can’t win the
non-Christians of this world when we defy our government, for this only angers
or pricks the consciences of the non-believers who see what we are doing as
wrong.
11.2.4.The only exception to this
rule that we see in scripture is when we must defy the government because in
order to obey it we would have to disobey one of God’s commands.
11.2.4.1.For instance, the apostles when
forbidden to preach the gospel in the book of Acts continued on doing so
telling the authorities that they must obey God not man.
11.3.
Peter writes that we are to submit to every authority over us “for the
Lord’s sake” (because He has commanded
it and will be honored if we obey His command).
11.3.1.In other words, we are to do
it, “as unto the Lord” (as does he who does any work).
11.4.
Peter uses unlimited language saying we are to submit to ‘every’
authority.
11.5.
Peter acknowledges that government performs two important functions.
11.5.1.Punishment of evildoers.
11.5.2.Praise of those who do
right.
12.
VS 2:16 - “16 Act as free men, and do not
use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bondslaves of God.” - We Christians must be
careful how we use our liberty
12.1.
We can ‘act’ as free men, because in reality Christ has set us free
from the Law.
12.2.
We must give back to God our freedom and be obedient in how we use that
freedom.
12.3.
Our motives can become confused when we aren’t obedient to God in the
use of our freedom, and we can end up using the excuse of liberty just to cover
what is really sin within our lives.
12.3.1.We are truly free only when
we are slaves to God, not when we take on an antinomian attitude, for then we
become enslaved to our sin.
12.4.
Paul taught likewise that the Christian must be careful how he uses his
liberty in Christ (1 Cor. 8).
13.
VS 2:17 - “17 Honor all men; love the
brotherhood, fear God, honor the king.” - Four General Exhortations for every believer
13.1.
Honor all men : the Christian
is called show respect and honor to every single person.
13.2.
Love the Brotherhood : We in
the body of Christ are called as members one of another to ‘love’ each other
with a pure and genuine love that is without hyprocisy. This is what Paul wrote in 1 Tim. 1:5, “5 But
the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and
a sincere faith.”
13.2.1.This reminds me of the
saying, “blood is thicker than water, but a kindred spirit is thicker than
blood.”
13.3.
Fear God : Peter exhorts his readers
to develop that fear of the Lord that is called “reverance.”
13.4.
Reverence of the Lord among God’s people is so important, and yet it is
in such short supply in the church these days.
13.5.
Proverbs 9:10 says, “10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” That is to say, the “fear of the Lord” is
where we begin as God’s people, where we first understand true wisdom, and thus
it is of primary importance in our lives!
13.6.
Honor the King : It is important
for a Christian not only to submit to those who are in authority over his life,
but also to honor them.
13.6.1.If we can’t honor the man
for who he is, we must honor him because of his God given office of authority.
13.6.1.1.David honored Saul in this
way, for though David had been anointed by Samuel to be the new king, and Saul
had been hunting for him to take his life, yet because David respected Saul for
his office as king he was unwilling to kill him even when God had twice
delivered Saul into his hands.
14.
VS 2:18 - “18 Servants, be submissive to
your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and gentle, but
also to those who are unreasonable.” - Peter writes that servants are to be submissive
to their masters
14.1.
As we study the rest of the 1 Peter, we are going to see that all of us
as Christians are called to be in submission to others in some sort of a way of
form.
14.2.
Peter could have said in these verses that since a slave is now free in
Christ that he no longer must be submissive to a master, however this is not
what either Peter nor Paul taught.
14.3.
To show the extent to which a slave was to be submissive to his master,
Peter writes that the slave is to do it ‘with all respect’ (honor).
14.3.1.If a slave is to be submissive
to his master, we must all be submissive and respectful to our employers.
14.4.
Peter writes that they were not only to be respectful towards and
submissive to those who were good and gentle, but also to those who were
unreasonable (harsh in their treatment of them).
14.5.
Again we see that submission to authorities in our lives is to be done
irrespective of whether or not we think that those we are in submission to are
worthy of that submission.
15.
VS 2:19 - “19 For this finds favor, if for
the sake of conscience toward God a man bears up under sorrows when suffering
unjustly.”
- Peter writes that suffering for Christ is honored by God if for the sake of
conscience toward God a man bears up under sorrows when suffering unjustly
15.1.
What we do in showing submission to others only counts to the Lord if
we are doing it for the Lord and out of conscience’s sake.
15.2.
In these verses, Peter must mean that if a man’s conscience is
offending him because of some sin he has committed while being persecuted, that
his life is not pleasing to God, even though he may be suffering for being a
Christian.
15.3.
Sometimes we as Christians may bring suffering upon ourselves by our
own recklessness and waywardness, doing things that we shouldn’t be doing.
16.
VS 2:20 - “20 For what credit is there if,
when you sin and are harshly treated, you endure it with patience? But if when
you do what is right and suffer for it you patiently endure it, this finds
favor with God.” - We receive no credit before God for our suffering if we are allowing
sin in our life
16.1.
When we believers stand before Christ at the Bema Seat judgment for
believers it will be a judgment of rewards for the things that we have done in
our life since becoming a believer.
16.2.
What each of us as believers will receive a reward from God for in our
suffering then is those things that we have done which are right. When we have done right and as a result of
doing right we have endured suffering, then we will have a reward from the
Lord.
16.3.
We must also “patiently endure suffering” in order for our suffering to
gain credit before God. This is God’s
purpose for us in how we are to handle all of the fiery trials that we go
through, and this is such a key attitude necessary for those trials performing
the purpose God designs for them.
17.
VS 2:21-23 - “21
For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you,
leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, 22 who committed no sin,
nor was any deceit found in His mouth; 23 and while being reviled, He did not
revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting
Himself to Him who judges righteously;” - Christ is to be our example as Christians for how
we deal with suffering
17.1.
Peter tells us in these verses that we as believers are sometimes
called to ‘suffer’ for Christ.
17.2.
When we believers may have to suffer because of our relationship with
Christ, we should remember during those times just how much He suffered for
each of us.
17.2.1.Jesus left us an example
that we are to follow in how we endure the suffering and persecution that we
will endure in this life.
17.2.1.1.Though He suffered, He
committed no sin in doing so.
17.2.1.2. He never deceived anyone or “bore false witness.”
17.2.1.3.When He was reviled, He “did
not revile in return.”
17.2.1.4.When suffering, He didn’t
threaten anyone.
17.2.1.4.1. When the heathen Roman soldiers spat upon Him and reviled Him
saying things like, “You who are going to
destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself!”, or, “If
You are the Son of God, come down from the cross,” Jesus could have mocked and reviled back, but He didn’t do
this. He bore His suffering it says
like an innocent sheep that is going to the slaughter.
17.2.1.4.2. Jesus told His disciples that He could have called down 12
legions of angels to fight for Him and deliver Him from those who were coming
to crucify Him, yet He didn’t, Matt. 26:53.
17.2.1.4.3.We must realize that Jesus was
really the One who was in control of His Himself as well as His circumstances
during His suffering.
17.2.1.4.3.1.In Jesus’ crucifixion, and
the suffering associated with it, He wasn’t overpowered by the devil, but
rather “willingly” chose to suffer for us.
17.2.1.4.3.1.1. We can see this when Jesus healed the servant’s ear that Peter
cut off in the garden when the soldiers came to arrest Him.
17.2.1.4.3.1.2. We can see this when Jesus
in the garden of Gethsemane asked if it would be possible for the cup to be
taken away from Him, but resolved that He would do not His own will, but the
Father’s.
17.2.1.4.4. At the very last upon the cross, Jesus asked the Father to not
hold the sin of those who crucified Him against them.
17.2.1.5. In His suffering, He “entrusted His life to God” (as we should
do), instead of fighting back and exacting just revenge.
17.2.1.6.He didn’t complain when He
had to “suffer unjustly” (like we often
do).
17.2.1.6.1. When we have to suffer, we should remember and be encouraged by
the fact that if anyone has ever suffered unjustly, it was the Holy Son of
God. Jesus had never done anything
wrong in His entire live, and yet He suffered more than any person who has ever
lived.
18.
VS 2:24 - “24
and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, that we might die to sin
and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed.” - What Jesus did for us
upon the cross was to provide healing from all that sin has done to our lives
18.1.
It was Christ’s intention that those who follow Him would identify with
Him in His death and resurrection: die
to sin, but live to righteousness through the new creation He has made of each
of us.
18.2.
We Christians must settle it in our minds and act upon the fact that
when Jesus died, that we died, and when He rose from the dead, we likewise rose
up to walk in that new resurrection life in Christ.
18.2.1.We true Christians have been
set free through Christ from all of our enemies: sin, hell, death, the grave, and the Devil.
18.3.
Pentecostal groups wrongly interpret this verse where Peter quotes from
Isaiah 53 as saying that this verse guarantees physical healing from any and
every physical disease.
18.3.1.Peter was talking primarily
here about the healing from our life of sin not physical healing.