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.
We have heard the phrase, “Be in the world, not of it”. It is a hard thing to quantify but we have the words of Jesus in John 17:14.
I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.
These words from Peter are among the best examples of how to live that life. We are in the world but as aliens in a strange land. We are not of it. That is why, just as Jesus said the world would hate us, Peter’s imperative tells us that they should hate us in spite of our behavior, not because of it. In fact, our behavior, Peter says, may lead them to glorify God.
These are our marching orders for today. Walk in the world but not like the world does. We should not feel at home amid the strife and moral decay around us. We should, instead, walk in such a way that people see us but do not quite understand where we are coming from. May they ask. May we then tell them the story of Jesus, not of the world, who came because God so loved the world.
Dear Lord, thank you for the love you gave for the world. As we struggle in enemy territory, may we follow the orders of our Master, Jesus Christ. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Pastor Brad Boyer
Cape Community Church