The Call and Cost to Be Different

The Call and Cost to Be Different God calls His people to be different from the world. But man prefers to compromise and to hold on to some worldly ways. Are you committed to be fully God's even if it means being different? Our text is 1 Peter 4:1-6: Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because he who has suffered in his body is done with sin. As a result, he does not live the rest of his earthy life for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God. For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do - living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry. They think it strange that you do not plunge with them into the same flood of dissipation, and they heap abuse on you. But they will have to give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. For this is the reason the gospel was preached even to those who are now dead, so that they might be judged according to men in regard to the body, but live according to God in regard to the spirit. First, let me deal briefly with two difficulties. Who are these now dead people to whom the gospel was preached? Some connect this with the proclamation to spirits in chapter 3, but this implies a non-scriptural second chance after death. Most likely, Peter is speaking of Christians who have died since receiving the gospel, explaining their status as Paul does in 1 Thessalonians 4. Then, does verse one mean that our suffering can purge us of sinfulness? That would be contrary to Colossians 2:20-23. Peter is speaking first of the suffering of Jesus as our substitute and then emphasizing our sharing the attitude of Jesus to the point of dying to sin with Him. Jesus was willing to suffer for us to free us from sin's dominion. As we identify with His death, we become willing to suffer for Him. As we fully submit ourselves to Jesus, sin becomes unattractive to us. Our new attitude becomes, "I am done with sin." We still can sin, but we do not want to. So, we are done with sin. We are called to be different. Verse three says we have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do. If you a Christian, you have had enough of sin. You want no more sexual immorality. This is called debauchery which is seeking sexual pleasure without shame when there should be shame regardless of its effect on others. It is also called lust, which in general means desire, longing, craving with sex being the most common object. You also want no more alcohol and drugs. Peter first lists drunkenness. Any non-medical intoxication is always as sin. He adds orgies which are wild parties dominated by drunkenness and its associated behavior and then carousing which is drinking parties leading to riot and sexual immorality. Finally, you want no more detestable idolatry. He is speaking of literal idol worship and the immorality associated with it. But Paul warns us that placing anything before God is idolatry. In Ephesians 5:5, he writes: No immoral, impure or greedy person - such a man is an idolater - has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Immorality puts sexual pleasure before God. Greed puts money or things before God. We must not put anything before God. Idolatry was part of their culture. Peter is telling us to live against the flow of our worldly culture, to be different to serve Jesus. In verse 2 of our text, Peter tells us not to live the rest of his earthy life for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God. We know God's will concerning sex. God is holy and wants you to be holy, set apart to serve Him. He created sex to be pure and holy in marriage. All other sex is to be avoided. He expects you to control your body and act like you know Him. We know God's will concerning drunkenness. God gives His Spirit to enable us to cope with life victoriously. Alcohol and drugs are false substitutes. And we know God's will concerning idols. God does not time-share with anything. We are to flee idolatry in all its forms. God's will is for us to be different than the world. But there is a cost to being different. Verse 4 says They think it strange that you do not plunge with them into the same flood of dissipation, and they heap abuse on you. The primary cause of persecution is not our zeal for good works. You may get a little grief for being so good. But most sinners admire a Mother Teresa. Many are trying to earn their own salvation by doing good works. But what turns people against us is our failure to join them in their sin. They react to our holiness because it convicts them and threatens them. But remember that God will judge us all. We will be encouraged to stand up to the world's pressure by remembering that judgment is coming. Others may persecute us now, but we will be ready on that day. Unless they repent, they will not be ready to give account to God. So, how should we respond to persecutors? First, love them as God loves them. Pray for them that they will turn to God. Preach the gospel to them so they might hear. Seek to win them while there is time. True Christians turn away from the ways of the world to serve the living God. Followers of Jesus are different. Are you? Do you serve Jesus in sexual purity? Do you cope with life's stresses by relying on the Holy Spirit and not on drunkenness? Do you put God above all else in your time, attention, and activities? Rather than sit in fellowship with the world for a season, let us have a walk with God through faith in Jesus that will continue forever.