1 Peter 4:2
that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh for the lusts of men, but for the will of God.
Truth to Learn
He suffered and died for us, let us suffer and live for Him.
Behind the Words
In the previous verse Peter told us to “arm” ourselves with the same “mind.” Let’s look at these two words. “Arm” is translated from the Greek word hoplidzō, meaning “to equip with armament.” It is expressed in the imperative mood indicating a command. The implication of the verb is that we should start doing so right now.
The word translated “mind” is ennoia, which is a compound word made up of en, meaning “in” and nous, meaning “the mind.” Therefore this word means “that which is in the mind,” hence, “thoughts” or “understanding.”
In today’s verse, the words “no longer” are from the Greek word mēketi, made up of mē, meaning “not” and eti, meaning “anymore” or “yet.” Hence, it means “not anymore.”
“Flesh” is translated from the Greek word sarx, which refers to “the flesh of a living creature.” Hence, Peter is referring to the remainder of time that we are living on this earth.
The word “lusts” is one that we have seen before. It is translated from the Greek epithumia, which is made up of epi, meaning “over” and a form of thumos, which refers to “a violent motion or passion of the mind.” Hence, epithumia refers to “an overly strong desire of the mind.”
Meaning Explained
In the previous verse Peter told us, “he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin.” This doesn’t mean that we will never commit a sin again. Rather, Peter is telling us that when we are suffering, though we have done nothing wrong, and we are doing so patiently, we are not letting our sin nature control us.
In the current verse, Peter completes that thought. Since we have the same understanding as Christ, that this suffering is God’s will, then we should:
live the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for the lusts of men, but for the will of God.
In other words, for the remainder of the time that we are living our earthly life, we should not be living for the lusts of men but for the will of God. Well, what are these lusts of men? According to the Apostle John they are:
the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life (1 John 2:16)
So it’s not just sexual lust we are talking about, but all those desires that we have that cause us to focus on ourselves rather than God. It includes the overly strong desire for food, for pleasure, for “stuff” like a new car or a new house, or a new kitchen, or a new boat, or the desire to be admired because of a position of prominence. It’s anything that focuses on “me.”
Application
Let us not waste our few remaining years on this earth satisfying ourselves, that is, our fleshly lusts. Let us, instead, seek out ways to be obedient to the will of God so as to bring Him glory! After all, He suffered and died for us, let us suffer and live for Him!
In God’s service, for His glory,
Copyright © 2009 Will Krause. All rights reserved.
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