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Whose Judgment?

 

Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because whoever suffers in the body is done with sin. As a result, they do not live the rest of their earthly lives for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God. For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do—living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry. They are surprised that you do not join them in their reckless, wild living, and they heap abuse on you. 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 human standards in regard to the body, but live according to God in regard to the spirit. (I Peter 4:1-6)

This passage has seemed confusing to me. How would the willingness to suffer make one “done with sin.” Then I considered what Daniel and his three friends, Esther and Mordecai, the prophets, and the early Christians all faced. I think about a book about the Huguenots (French Protestants – including some of my ancestors) faced. All it would take to escape persecution would be to go along with the greater community, the officials in charge. Yes, all it would take would be to commit sin. So easy. So if you were going to be tortured, you had to have made up your mind to not commit sin no matter what.

We don’t face that level of persecution yet. It’s more along the lines of being called names and accused of being unloving, judgmental, intolerant, ignorant, uncompassionate, bigoted, etc. if we don’t agree with their definitions. It’s just words. Oh, and crowds surrounding your restaurant table with their fists in the air, screaming at us to raise our fists in solidarity with them.  And threats from leaders of groups like BLM that if we don’t give them what they want, they will burn the place down and build a new society.

But the question needs to be asked – whose judgment is greater? That of those around us who are angry that we don’t do as they want but can do no more than kill us? Or God’s?

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