Diane Avenue Church of Christ

1 John 3:1 (NIV)

 1 See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.

BIBLE CLASS

The Anticipation of the Kingdom

1 Peter 3:8-17

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Are we Preparing ourselves for the Best – Part 2

1 Peter 3:8-17

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Peter wrote the book of 1 Peter to prepare Christians for the trial of persecution, to encourage them in their faith. His approach was optimistic and positive. Prepare for the Best was his message.

In 1 Peter 3:8-17 he gave us three instructions to follow so we could experience the best blessing in the worst times.

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1. Cultivate Christian Love - 1 Peter 3:8-12

2. Practice the Lordship of Christ - 1 Peter 3:13-15

3. Maintain a Good Conscience - 1 Peter 3:16-17

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Cultivate Christian Love - 1 Peter 3:8-12 1 Peter 3:8-9  8 Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be

sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble. 9 Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.

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Re: vv 8,9 – Why are these so important in cultivating Christian Love?

- to be of one mind , like minded- be sympathetic - love one another- be compassionate - be humble- do not repay evil with evil, but bless those who do evil against you

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Peter reminds us in verse 9 of our calling, that we are called to inherit a blessing. The persecutions we experience today only add to our blessed inheritance of glory in heaven someday.

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Isaiah 45:9“Woe to those who quarrel with their Maker, those who are nothing but potsherds among the potsherds on the ground. Does the clay say to the potter, ‘What are you making?’ Does your work say, ‘The potter has no hands’?

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Love your enemies.

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In the book of 1 Corinthians chapter 12: Paul gave evidence of their lack of love , in

Chapter 13 he defines real love. Love is more important than all the spiritual

gifts exercised in the church body. Great faith, acts of dedication, or sacrifice have little effect without love.

Love makes our actions and gifts useful and fulfilling.

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Read - 1 Corinthians 13: 1-13

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Matthew 5:10-12(NIV) 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted

because of righteousness,  for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.   11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

We should love one another; love our enemies, and love life

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Luke 6:35 (NIV) 35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and

lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.

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Luke 6:27-28 - NIV

  27 “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.

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Matthew 19:19 (NIV)

19 honor your father and mother, 'and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’”

Footnotes: Matthew 19:19 Exodus 20:12-16; Deut. 5:16-20 Matthew 19:19 Lev. 19:18

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During the ministry of Jesus Christ, his teaching, and the

Continued teaching of his apostles in the formation of the church

Why do you think “love” is such an important factor

In cultivating our Christian lives.Footnote : Matthew 22:39 (NIV) 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor

as yourself.

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Let's look at 1 Peter 3:10-12: - 10 For,   “Whoever would love life  and see good days must keep their tongue from evil  and their lips from deceitful speech. 11 They must turn from evil and do good;  they must seek peace and pursue it. 12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous    and his ears are attentive to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.

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Peter is quoting Psalms 34:12-16. When we see bad days increasing and we

see all the bad things happening in life, it should not cause us to give up on life. What may appear as "bad days" to the world can be "good days" for a Christian, if he will only meet certain conditions.

We can decide to endure life and make it a burden, escape life as though we were running from a battle, or enjoy life because we know God is in control.

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Peter was urging us to take a positive approach to life and by faith make the most of every situation. It is an attitude of faith that sees the best in every situation.

In vv 10-12; Peter shows us four steps to loving and enjoying life:

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1: refrain your tongue from evil (v.10) 2: turn away from evil and do good (v.11) 3: seek peace and pursue it (v.11) 4: remember the source of life, the Lord

Himself is against those who do evil (v.12)

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1. Refrain your tongue from evil. This is an imperative, a command. We

are personally responsible to stop our tongue from evil. Many of the problems of life are caused by the wrong words, spoken in the wrong spirit.

We need to pray Psalms 141:3 every day and ask God to help us with our tongue.

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Psalm 141:3 New International Version (NIV)  3 Set a guard over my mouth, LORD; 

   keep watch over the door of my lips.

cf: James 3:5

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2. Turn away from evil and do good. The KJV says "Let him eschew evil..." 8 The word ―eschew‖ means more than

just "avoid". It means "to avoid something because you despise and loathe it." It is not enough for us to avoid sin because sin is wrong; we ought to shun it because we hate it.

We are commanded to turn away from evil and do good.

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3. v11 - Seek peace and pursue it We live in a world full of people who

could care less about peace, who are troublemakers, but we are commanded to seek and pursue peace.

The fact that we are instructed to run after, to chase after, to press after peace means that peace is not always possible. There are going to be situations that we simply cannot have peace.

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Romans 14:19 (NIV)  19 Let us therefore make every effort to

do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.

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Peace is not going to be attainable in all situations, there are going to be those who simply do not want peace.

But we are to press toward the goal as it says in-

Philippians 3:14 (NIV) 14 I press on toward the goal to win the

prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

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4. v12 -Remember the source of life, the Lord Himself - The scripture says the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous. God sees the righteous, the very person that was just described. The person who controls his tongue, who does not speak evil nor deceive people, the person who turns away and flees from evil, the person who seeks peace and pursues it.

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Then it says His ears are open to their prayers. The idea here is that He hears their cries in times of need and He meets their need. God cares and looks after the righteous day by day, never letting them suffer more than they can bear.

God gives life, both abundant and eternal life, to the righteous, and He looks after them by answering their prayers while they journey throughout life.

Thy Kingdom ComeA good day for the believer who loves life is

not one in which he is pampered and sheltered, but one in which he experiences God's help and blessing because of life's problems and trials.

It is a day in which he magnifies the Lord (Ps 34:1-3) experiences answers to prayer (Ps 34:4-7) tastes the goodness of God (Ps 34:8) and senses the nearness of God (Ps 34:18).

The next time you think you are having a "bad day" and you hate life, read Psalm 34, and you may discover you are really having a "good day" to the glory of God.

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Practice the Lordship of Christ

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I Peter 3:13-15

13 Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? 14 But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. “Do not fear their threats; do not be frightened.” 15 But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, 

Thy Kingdom Come The word “who" is seeing that God takes

such good care of the righteous, who is he that will harm you? This question was asked in view of the persecution and suffering through which these saints were going through.

Peter indicated that since the believers are righteous and God is watching out for them, no one can "harm" them.

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Romans 8:31 (NIV)  31 What, then, shall we say in response

to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?

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As Christians, we are faced with crises, and we are tempted to give in to our fears and make the wrong decisions. but if we "sanctify Christ as Lord" in our hearts, we need never fear men or circumstances.

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When Jesus Christ is Lord of our lives, each crisis becomes an opportunity for witness.

1 Peter 3:15- 15 But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,

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If we are going to win lost souls to Christ, our walk needs to match our talk. We need to make Christ Lord of our lives. Live only to please Him and not men. –

Matthew 6:33 (NIV) 33 But seek first his kingdom and his

righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

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Romans 12:1-2(NIV)  1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and

sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. 2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

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When we seek first the kingdom of God as it says in Matthew 6:33 and we present our bodies as living sacrifices not conforming to this world as it says in Romans 12:1-2, we will not be satisfied with anything less than the will of God in our lives. Living totally for Christ.

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Our third instruction from Peter was to maintain a Good Conscience

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In order to give an effective witness, Peter said they need a "good conscience".

The conscience is that internal judge that either approves our actions or not.

Theologian Dr. Warren Wiers bests describes it. He said: "Conscience may be compared to a window that lets in the light of God's truth. If we persist in disobeying, the window gets dirtier and dirtier, until the light cannot enter no more.

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If we do not grow in spiritual knowledge and obedience, we have a weak conscience.

A good conscience removes from us the fear of what other people may know about us; say against us, or do to us.

When Christ is Lord and we fear only God, we need not fear the threats, opinions, or actions of our enemies,

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Psalm 118:6 (NIV)

6 The LORD is with me; I will not be afraid.    What can mere mortals do to me?

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As times of difficulty come to the church, we must cultivate Christian love, for we will need one another's help and encouragement as never before. We must also maintain a good conscience, because a good conscience makes for a strong backbone and a courageous witness. The secret is to practice the lordship of Jesus Christ.

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Jesus gave Peter the keys to the kingdom. These commands are the terms of entrance into the church. Peter's preaching of the gospel resulted in guilty individuals hearing, being baptized, and having their sins forgiven. Through their obedience they were then ushered into the church that Jesus promised he would build, thus opening the door to all who would believe and obey forever.

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Matthew 16:18-20 (NIV) 18 And I tell you that you are Peter, and

on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

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When a person hears the gospel of Jesus and obeys the commands that are contained therein to repent and be baptized, they will be added to the church just as those who first heard the preaching of Peter. Peter used the keys that were given to him to unlock the door of the kingdom. The door of the kingdom stands opened wide for all who would use those same keys.