Word@Work 1Pet52 - 1 Peter 4:5-6
Published: Tue, 07/07/09
Word@Work from BeaconLight
SPIRITUAL SURPRISES
1 Peter 4:5-6 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. (NIV)
Peter has just been describing those who serve and worship their corrupted, sensual appetites (1 Peter 4:3-4). Such people live for today, without thought for eternity. They judge the 'weakness' of Christians who refuse to do the same, without reckoning on the strength of the judgement of God. They are so blind: blind to their own nature and its rebellion against truth, blind to their collusion with Satan's purposes, blind to the righteousness of Believers who obey God, and blind to His right to judge the wicked. They are also blind and deaf to the gospel - the only message by which people may find salvation.
So they really do need to hear and believe the gospel. This verse does not mean that God gives a second chance to dead people (that would be against Jesus' own teaching in Luke 16:19-31). It means that even the most wicked and perverse (spiritually dead) person, who believes in Jesus, will be saved. Their physical death does not cut them off from God's salvation; because when Christ returns, both the living believers and those who have died will all be raised to new life with Him.
The gospel is a surprise to many. Wicked people, who trust in the salvation which Jesus offers, will go to heaven; while respectable people, who do not trust in Christ, cannot enter. The difference between the two is that those who submit to Christ are willing to repent of their sins and receive His grace; but those who proudly assert their own uprightness are as blind as the wilfully immoral (cf Luke 18:9-14). So this passage should encourage us to persist in following Jesus, however greatly we have sinned: it also encourages us to preach/speak/share the gospel with those who cannot yet see their need, with the prayer that God will use it to bring them to repentance and faith.
Prayer: Father God. I am so grateful that I do not have to pretend in Your presence; that I can confess my sins to You, and trust in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ to gain Your forgiveness. So please help me to keep trusting you and to be concerned for those who are sleep-walking into Your judgement. May I have the courage to declare your gospel even to those who cannot see their need of salvation. For your glory's sake. Amen.
You can read the verses around this Bible passage from the Internet Bible: - in English, and many other languages
Peter has just been describing those who serve and worship their corrupted, sensual appetites (1 Peter 4:3-4). Such people live for today, without thought for eternity. They judge the 'weakness' of Christians who refuse to do the same, without reckoning on the strength of the judgement of God. They are so blind: blind to their own nature and its rebellion against truth, blind to their collusion with Satan's purposes, blind to the righteousness of Believers who obey God, and blind to His right to judge the wicked. They are also blind and deaf to the gospel - the only message by which people may find salvation.
So they really do need to hear and believe the gospel. This verse does not mean that God gives a second chance to dead people (that would be against Jesus' own teaching in Luke 16:19-31). It means that even the most wicked and perverse (spiritually dead) person, who believes in Jesus, will be saved. Their physical death does not cut them off from God's salvation; because when Christ returns, both the living believers and those who have died will all be raised to new life with Him.
The gospel is a surprise to many. Wicked people, who trust in the salvation which Jesus offers, will go to heaven; while respectable people, who do not trust in Christ, cannot enter. The difference between the two is that those who submit to Christ are willing to repent of their sins and receive His grace; but those who proudly assert their own uprightness are as blind as the wilfully immoral (cf Luke 18:9-14). So this passage should encourage us to persist in following Jesus, however greatly we have sinned: it also encourages us to preach/speak/share the gospel with those who cannot yet see their need, with the prayer that God will use it to bring them to repentance and faith.
Prayer: Father God. I am so grateful that I do not have to pretend in Your presence; that I can confess my sins to You, and trust in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ to gain Your forgiveness. So please help me to keep trusting you and to be concerned for those who are sleep-walking into Your judgement. May I have the courage to declare your gospel even to those who cannot see their need of salvation. For your glory's sake. Amen.
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