1 Peter 1:14-21
English Standard Version
(ESV)
14 As obedient children, do
not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, 15 but as he who called you
is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16 since it is written,
“You shall be holy, for I am holy.” 17 And if you call on him
as Father who judges impartially according to each one's deeds, conduct
yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, 18 knowing that you were
ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with
perishable things such as silver or gold, 19 but with the precious
blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. 20 He was foreknown before
the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the
sake of you 21 who through him are
believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your
faith and hope are in God.
When
we do not know Christ we can do things that we do not even realize are
wrong. Have you ever been frustrated by
someone who makes the same mistake over and over again? If they do not know Christ then they have thea
good reason why they do theses things, they are ignorant of the Power of Christ
and we need to share that with them. If,
however, they are Christians and begin to slip away, they need to remember who
their Father is.
As
a child and even today, I have always wanted to please my Dad. I did not like getting in trouble and would
do all that I could do to stay in his good graces. I still was not perfect but I strove to be as
much as humanly possible. I did not fear
my dad like some children do. He did not
beat me, he was not a drunk, he was a hard workingman that I adored and still
do today. I have always longed for his
acceptance in anything that I have done whether it be cooking, cleaning, or
getting good grades in school. I have
always wanted him to be proud of me so I have tried to conduct myself in ways
that I think he would be proud. Not
always am I perfect at this and if I know he is coming to my house, I might
have to tidy up a bit!
I
have a Heavenly Father that I want to make proud of me as well and I need to
keep my conduct in a manner that He will smile on me in all situations. The difference between the two is huge; one
gave me physical life, the other, granted me both physical life and eternal
life. One raised me to be a good person
and disciplined me along the way. One will
judge me for every act that I have done and He knows everything that I have
ever done. One only sees what I do in
his presence, the other One sees what I do all the time. Yes, I need to fear Him; out of respect for
Him I should do what He would want. He
knows all things and He knows what is best for me.
I
get so frustrated when I hear people complain about the way a Christian is
acting. It is usually a complaint from
someone who is not a Christian and they compare all Christians by the conduct
of another. We need to be living our
lives for our Father. We need to fear
Him but so many times people see Him merely as their friend. He is their friend but He is also the
Father. We should want our Father to
look down on us and smile. Is He doing
that? As you go about life today,
remember the importance of pleasing Him.
Conduct your lives in a manner that your Father would be proud. Seek Him so that you may know Him in a deeper
manner so that you will always want to please Him.
Seeking
Him with all my heart,
Sheila
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