“As a result, he does not live the rest of his earthly life for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God.”
We do some self-evaluation when we are hurting. Peter is addressing Christians and is calling them to a life of holiness. He is calling them to follow Jesus by repudiating sin. It is a call to distinguish between human desires and sinful desires.
Peter calls us to arm ourselves with that same attitude that Jesus had by submitting ourselves to God's will. To arm yourself portrays a warrior putting on armor for protection and weapons for offense. When we are in God's will, we do have spiritual protection against the temptations of the evil one. According to Ephesians 6 our offensive weapons become prayer and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. Having the Holy Spirit dwell in our lives opens us up to a greater will for which we live. When suffering comes, we have to ask if we really are in His will and doing what He wants or have we missed something.
Jesus’ purpose is also stated in John 4:34 "My desire is to do the will of Him who sent me and to accomplish His work." When someone is suffering for any reasons, his priorities change. When one man was diagnosed with terminal cancer, he said new cars and new suits are no longer important, but God, family, and church are. One person going through the pains of divorce said, “All the things I thought were so important and I worked so hard to obtain really are nothing compared to my family, but it's too late now.”
Suffering many times brings people to their knees before God. Words of commitment are often spoken in foxholes in the midst of attack and unfortunately forgotten when all is safe again. That is true in others circumstances of tragedies and difficulties. I hear little of prayer mentioned on the news these days, but when 9/11 attack occurred there was hardly a news station and political leader that didn’t speak of prayer.
When Christians face suffering for their faith, they evaluate their real desires and material possessions and ask, “Is it really worth it?” There are many Christians who have become spiritual giants through painful crises in their lives and said such things like, "This experience drove me to my knees. I vowed that when I got out of the hospital, I'd be all out for God from now on.”
Application: What is God’s will for my life? Obey today what you know you should be doing.
Prayer: Lord Jesus help me to live righteously and responsibly to love God and others. I trust You and know that You will lead when I ask and when I am obedient.
