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1 Peter 3:10-12
10 For [gar] he that will [thelo] love [agapao] life [zoe], and [kai] see [eido] good [agathos] days [hemera], let him refrain [pauo] his [autos] tongue [glossa] from [apo] evil [kakos], and [kai] his [autos] lips [cheilos] that they speak [laleo] no [me] guile [dolos]:
11 Let him eschew [ekklino] [apo] evil [kakos], and [kai] do [poieo] good [agathos]; let him seek [zeteo] peace [eirene], and [kai] ensue [dioko] it [autos].
12 For [hoti] the eyes [ophthalmos] of the Lord [kurios] are over [epi] the righteous [dikaios], and [kai] his [autos] ears [ous] are open unto [eis] their [autos] prayers [deesis]: but [de] the face [prosopon] of the Lord [kurios] is against [epi] them that do [poieo] evil [kakos]. KJV-Interlinear
10 For, ‘Let him who means to love life and see good days Refrain his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking guile. 11 ‘And let him turn away from evil and do good; Let him seek peace and pursue it. 12 ‘For the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, And His ears attend to their prayer, But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.’ NASB
This is a quote from Psalm 34.
Psa 34:12-16
12 Who is the man who desires life, And loves length of days that he may see good?
13 Keep your tongue from evil, And your lips from speaking deceit.
14 Depart from evil, and do good; Seek peace, and pursue it.
15 The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous, And His ears are open to their cry.
16 The face of the Lord is against evildoers, To cut off the memory of them from the earth. NASB
There are only two types of people in this world. The first group consists of those who desire and pursue the opinions of God, and the second group consists of those who desire and pursue the opinions of the world.
The second group consists of perhaps 99% of the entire world. And though most of that second group are unbelievers, there is a huge percentage of believers, also in this second group, who are lax in their spiritual life and therefore have their eyes on their beliefs and comforts from the world.
Peter cites four pursuits in these verses. There are those who love life, refrain the tongue, turn from evil, seek peace, and then there is the response from God with respect to the mature believer who establishes these attributes in his life.
The first is really a question. ‘Who is it that loves life?’ Who is it that desires life in such a way that he can enjoy life, regardless of his circumstances? It is only the person who pursues their spiritual life, as God would have them to pursue it. It is the person who does not make up their own rules, who does not mix in their own standards, the person who does not compromise Gods principles with their earthly conveniences or excuses.
And as for the refraining of the tongue? This is the selfish desires of the individual for whatever it is that they currently have or want. The word for refrain, ‘pauo,’ means to cease sins against charity, and therefore comes to mean selfishness in thought, expressed by ones refusal to give. This type of person takes but never gives.
We all have financial burdens in our lives, but most folks disregard the fact that it is God who gives us all of our finances, whatever they may be. God gives us life from the very moment of our birth and then gives us various means to live that life. This includes the presentation of circumstances where we are faced with giving up what we have , so someone else can have something. Whether it is charity giving, or support for doctrine, both are in view here.
Often times God will place people in situations in which they cannot make a living, or have obligations such that receipt of a gift from someone else is necessary for them to have a life.
And selfishness, greed, and an indifferent attitude will always come up with an excuse as to why giving is not required from you. ‘They have enough, they don’t need anymore.’ ‘They got themselves in that mess, they can get themselves out of it.’ ‘They are rich already, why give to them’ ‘Someone else can give, I don’t have the money right now.’ ‘My situation, my needs are more grim than theirs.’ ‘It’s free. Why should I pay for it?’
And so the first requirement of spiritual maturity, is cancelled out by ones excuses which are used to veil his selfishness.
God set out an economic system, by which financial support, though everything comes from Him, is funneled through people. And whether the need is for a bit of food, or for some massive enterprise, God allows people to either become a part of it, or refuse to be a part of it.
The third expectation of the spiritual life is to turn ones back on the ways of the sin nature. The old self must die, in order for the new self to live. Life in the carnal sphere and life in the spiritual sphere are mutually exclusive. Each cannot cross over into the sphere of the other.
He who lives his life in both, in an inconsistent manner, takes a step or several steps backwards for every step forwards. They get nowhere. An inconsistent spiritual life gains you nothing. You must establish a long term (for the rest of your life), pattern of living, and that lifestyle must be inside the fellowship sphere, or living within your spiritual life day in and day out.
Again, most folks simply do not pay attention, moment to moment, day after day, to their spiritual status. All believers are soldiers and a part of their duty is to mind their post, or to stand their watch for the enemy. Your life is always on duty, and you either have a watchful eye out for the enemy in your life (sin), or you go to sleep at your post and fall into the enemies grasp (the sin nature).
And finally, you must seek peace. This is the ultimate goal of the spiritual life – spiritual maturity.
From spiritual infancy (the moment of faith in Christ), to spiritual maturity, when Bible doctrine so saturates your thinking process and lifestyle, you grow up through daily study, learning, application, advancement in your spiritual life, slippages backwards in your spiritual life, recovery of your forward motion, and so forth, until you arrive at a point when the problems of life no longer bother you. Your faith in Christ is so great, that the storms of life seem as nothing, because you trust in His good judgment and help for your life.
Peter has long been addressing our eternal future, in these chapters. Peter has been addressing people who live under horrible conditions, and yet if they focus on their daily Bible study, their living conditions will become less and less of a burden in their lives. Life will actually become a fun adventure.
But in order to achieve this level of spiritual life, you must set aside selfishness, recognize that everything comes from God. You must make a commitment to live inside the spiritual sphere of life, monitoring your own life moment to moment, day after day, for the rest of your life in this world. You must decide to pursue Gods word everyday, listen, read, learn, and use what you learn, and develop a professional attitude toward wanting to learn and grow in your spiritual life, and actually want it more than anything else in the entire universe. Your leap of faith, as it were.
That is the love of life at its best. Anything else is merely a convenience for sin.
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And it is this person, as set out in these verses, that God focuses His attentions on. It is from this person that God actually listens to their prayers, and answers. Anything else, any other type of lifestyle, is an illusion and amounts to nothing as well as a huge waste of ones time.
The mature believer, is the person who pursues doctrine because he loves it, can’t get enough of it, can’t even visualize a day going by without it. It is this person that God uses in His divine plan, and for whom He even established a plan in the first place.
Anyone else, is nothing more than historical filler.
Which are you?
