Christ's Instructions

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494) 1Pet 3:1-2 . . In the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own
husbands so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, they may
be won without a word by the behavior of their wives, as they observe your
chaste and respectful behavior.

Peter began his instructions with the words “in the same way” which refer
back to 1Pet 2:18-25 wherein he taught Christ's followers the Christian way
to cope with abusive management practices.
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495) 1Pet 3:3-5 . . Wives, let not your adornment be merely external--
braiding the hair, and wearing gold jewelry, or putting on dresses --but let it
be the hidden person of the heart, with the imperishable quality of a gentle
and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God.

Some of the more ascetic Christians have attempted to use that passage to
insist it's wrong for women to wear cosmetics. No, the apostle Peter is only3
reflecting an old Portuguese proverb that goes something like this: A beleza
não ajusta a tabela. (Beauty doesn't set the table) which simply means a
pretty girl might be amazing in yoga pants but that's no assurance she's any
good as a homemaker.

Hollywood movies often portray "spirited" women as somehow desirable. No,
they aren't desirable; they're feral, they demean men and make them
miserable. Hollywood also commonly portrays women slapping men in the
face and getting away with it. That is NOT what Peter means by a "gentle
and quiet spirit" and besides, slapping is the criminal act of assault and
battery-- not what I would call setting a good example for growing girls.

● Matt 5:3 . . Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of
heaven.

● Matt 5:9 . . Blessed are the peaceable: for they shall be known as God's
kin.

An assertive, confrontational woman is neither peaceable nor poor in spirit;
no, in point of fact she's quite militant, obnoxious, chafing, critical,
temperamental, impudent, and arrogant. Those might be desirable
characteristics for strong females in television and movie roles but clearly
not desirable in a Christian wife.

When a Christian wife gets all dressed up to her nines, but yet lacks a
"gentle and quiet spirit" then her ensemble is incomplete. In point of fact, an
assertive, confrontational wife is, in reality, nothing less than a domesticated
beast.

● Prov 11:22 . . As a jewel of gold in a swine's snout, so is a fair woman
which is without discretion.

So then, by all means Christian women should continue to shop at
SEPHORA, but at the same time make an effort to be agreeable too.
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496) 1Pet 3:6 . . . Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord; and you have
become her daughters if you do what is right without being frightened by
any fear.

Sarah's submission to Abraham was voluntary, i.e. she was neither coerced
nor intimidated. Abraham didn't have to break Sarah's spirit by violence,
neglect, or abuse.

That's very interesting because Sarah's original name was Sarai (Gen 17:15)
which in Hebrew means dominative, i.e. domineering. I can't imagine any
parent tagging their little girl with a bossy name like that, but apparently it
was appropriate, viz; baby Sarai must've been a demanding little tyke right
from the get-go.

I don't know how or why it came about, but somewhere along the line in
their relationship; Sarah decided within herself that it was far better for the
home to negotiate with her husband rather than destroying his peace of
mind with ultimatums, walk-outs, foot stomping, looking at him with
daggers, silent treatments, withholding conjugal rights, serving cold food,
grumpiness, assertiveness, stone walling, brow beating, chafing, nagging,
slamming doors, hissy fits, and likely a number of other methods that wives
employ to manipulate their men.

In other words: Sarah decided to exercise diplomacy in her relationship with
Abraham; and the important point to note is that she chose that route
voluntarily, i.e. by simply making up her own mind about it.

I get that from the fact that Sarah called Abraham her lord kind of late in the
marriage. Her first recorded expression of that designation doesn't show up
till Gen 18:12 after they had been together in the land of Canaan something
like 25 years prior to the birth of Isaac. (Gen 12:4-5 & Gen 17:17)
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497) 1Pet 3:7a . . You husbands, dwell with your wives according to
knowledge

The Greek word translated "knowledge" basically means knowing (as
information) in other words: facts and/or ideas acquired by study, education,
training, investigation, observation, research, and/or experience.

There are young boys being brought up by macho (a.k.a. toxic) fathers
teaching their sons to "control their women". Well, that might be an
acceptable marriage philosophy in the home of a Muslim fundamentalist
and/or a club-toting Neanderthal, but not in the home of a man passing
himself off as one of Christ's followers. In a pious home, Christian husbands
are neither required nor expected to tame their Christian wives seeing as
how the onus is upon the wives themselves to exercise self control.

It's required of Christ's followers to love their enemies, but it's not required
to like their enemies nor is it required to always have a good opinion about
them. If a man's enemies include his wife, then of course Jesus' instructions
apply there too.

So then; although a Christian husband's love for his wife need not include
the elements of affection and/or fondness; the love he extends to his wife
does need to include the element of benevolence, along with diplomacy;
which Webster's defines as skill in handling affairs without arousing hostility,
viz: tact. Benevolence is defined as the disposition to do good, i.e. kindness.
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498) 1Pet 3:7b . . Give honor unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel,

The Greek word translated "honor" basically means a value, i.e. money paid.

The word for "weaker" basically means: having no strength, i.e. fragile.

And the word for "vessel" basically indicates anything from a soup bowl to a
cardboard box; in other words: a container.

Peter isn't saying women are wimps; but that Christian husbands should
practice the same care and preservation with their wives as they would a
fragile antique worth thousands of dollars like, say, one of Claude Monet's
paintings. Nobody in their right mind handles a valuable painting the way a
farmer handles a 5-gallon bucket. Not that some women couldn't take that
kind of handling; it's just that its unbecoming for a Christian man to lack
sensitivity.

This particular assessed value isn't an intrinsic value, nor is it a deserved
value either; but rather, it's a gratuitous value. In other words: Christ
commands Christian husbands to catalogue their wives up there with
Dresden china even if she's as tough as a female cop and/or a UFC mixed
martial artist the likes of Rhonda Rousey-- and this is not a choice; no, it
isn't optional; it's required.

Christian husbands who treat their Skil saws and their tomato plants with
more care and preservation than they treat their wives can just forget about
associating with God on any meaningful level.

● 1Pet 3:7c . . as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers
be not hindered.
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499) 1Pet 3:8a . . Finally, all of you be of one mind,

Peter’s not talking about the nerve center of a Borg-hive collective. The
Greek word translated "one mind" basically means harmonious; and this is
the only place in the entire New Testament where that word appears.

Webster’s defines "harmonious" as: 1) musically concordant, 2) having the
parts agreeably related; viz: congruous, and 3) marked by accord in
sentiment or action.

Peter's instructions emphasize the third element-- "marked by accord in
sentiment or action". Head-strong Christians, domineering Christians, and3
those for whom every disagreement is either an affront or an act of war to
win at any cost-- those for whom the words diplomacy and tact have no
meaning --of course have trouble complying with 1Pet 3:8a; that is: if they
even consider it worthy of their notice.

Anyway; Peter's instructions relate to a timeless complaint that goes
something like this: Why can't we all just get along? (cf. Ps 133)
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[Treeline]

In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. On my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will speak." (Joel 2:28-32)

In fact there have always been special women in the Bible -
Miriam who saved her baby brother Moses from death when she was just a child;
Deborah, preacher, judge and military leader;
Huldah who taught at the college in Jerusalem.;
The evangelist Philip had four daughters who were preachers;
The early Christian sect in Phrygia was led by Montanus and two preachers, Priscilla and Maximilla..

And Paul paid glowing tributes to women -"I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a servant of the church in Cenchrea..she has been a great help to many people, including me..
Greet Priscilla , my fellow worker in Christ Jesus, she risked her life for me.
Greet Mary, who worked very hard for you..
Greet Tryphena and Tryphosa and Persis, those women who work hard in the Lord.
Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother, who has been a mother to me, too.
Greet Julia.." (Romans ch 16)

And he reminds us -
"There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:28)

At the crucifixion some of the disciples ran off in fear of the Romans, but some women stuck with him to the end-

 

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500) 1Pet 3:8b-9 . . Have compassion one of another, love as brethren, be
pitiful, be courteous; not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing, but
contrariwise: benevolence.

"compassion" is from a Greek word that basically means having a fellow
feeling; viz: empathy, i.e. mutual commiseration.

One of the meanings of commiserate is condole: like when we share
someone's grief at the passing of a loved one, or their job has been
outsourced to cheap labor in a foreign country, or they've lost their entire
retirement fund to an unscrupulous corporation like ENRON, or their life
savings to a crooked Ponzi schemer like Bernie Madoff, or when there's news
from their doctor they have to begin chemo-therapy for a recently detected
advanced cancer, or when the car of a single mom with limited income
needs expensive repairs.

People in those predicaments are in no mood for philosophical platitudes.

The Greek word translated "railing" basically means slander or vituperation;
which Webster's defines as 1) to abuse or censure severely or abusively;
viz: berate, and 2) to use harsh condemnatory language.

Toxic rejoinders fall into that category; which are defined as a usually rude
or angry reply to something written or said; viz: insensitive retorts
deliberately meant to hurt people's feelings; viz: tit for tat, i.e. food fights.
That kind of behavior doesn't go unnoticed.

● Matt 12:36-37 . . I say to you, that every careless word that men shall
speak, they shall render account for it in the day of judgment. For by your
words you shall be justified, and by your words you shall be condemned.
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Re: There For Him

To my knowledge, no women touched Jesus crucified body till later on after
his remains were restored to life.
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501) 1Pet 3:10-11 . . Let him who means to love life and see good days
refrain his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking guile. And let him turn
away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it.

Webster's defines "guile" as duplicity which is defined as: contradictory
doubleness of thought, speech, or action; especially in the belying of one's
true intentions by deceptive words or action; in other words, speaking with a
forked tongue and/or saying one thing while meaning another.

Quite a bit is said in the Bible about the words people speak, whereas little
to nothing is said about the words they write. That could be because so
many people back in the day were illiterate. But surely one's written words
have just as much voice as one's spoken words; else we couldn't justify
calling the Bible the word of God.

Good and evil are here juxtaposed as benevolence vs malevolence, i.e. good
will vs ill will.

To "seek peace and pursue it" is blessing-worthy.

● Matt 5:9 . . Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the
children of God.

If it's true that only peaceable kinds of people qualify to wear the label
"children of God" then the opposite is just as true: difficult Christians are
unworthy of the distinction.
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502) 1Pet 3:14a . . If you should suffer for the sake of righteousness, you
are blessed.

The Greek word translated "blessed" means fortunate.

The righteousness spoken of here is likely relative to a moral code in
agreement with Christian standards-- which are more or less set in concrete
--whereas the world's moral codes are typically flexible, i.e. aligned with
cultural/political standards.

* Circumstances are unpleasant for Christians living in countries dominated
by Islam and Communism. Though I pity them, the Bible says I should count
those particular Christians fortunate. Apparently they will be compensated in
ways unavailable to us who live in the free world.
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503) 1Pet 3:14b . . And do not fear their intimidation, nor be shaken,

Peer pressure, mob rule, cultural influences, group-think, censoring,
ostracism, changing customs, and political powers are always at work
seeking to manipulate Christians and tone down their moral values.

This is especially true in communist countries like North Korea and China.
Their governments do not tolerate attempts to correct their unholy
management practices consisting of cunning, duplicity, bad faith, theft,
dishonesty, cruelty, abuse, thought control, unjust legal practices, gulags,
murder, beatings, kidnapping, political prisons, media control, and dissent
suppression.

In addition: Christianity seeks to unify families whereas communism seeks
to splinter them, even to the point of family members spying on each other
and reporting each other to the authorities. Christians value God as an ally,
whereas communism regards God as an enemy of the State who despises
their way of doing things and wants them taken down.
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504) 1Pet 3:15a . . Dedicate your hearts to The Lord God

A word not commonly heard in Christian circles is loyalty; variously defined
by Webster's as allegiance, faithfulness, and fidelity.

This goes much further than just merely believing in God; it includes
following His instructions.

"Why do you call me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say?" (Luke 6:46)

The Greek word for "Lord" in that passage is a title that applies to just about
anybody considered a superior and/or an authority figure. People often called
Jesus "master" and sometimes "rabbi" which refers to teachers, especially
spiritual counselors.

We might paraphrase Luke 6:46 to say: If you are convinced that the words
I preach are true and reliable, then why are you not complying with them?
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505) 1Pet 3:15b . . Be ready always to give an answer to every man that
asks you a reason of the hope that is in you.

The only requirement there is to always be ready; we are not required to
always give an answer. In point of fact the Lord restricts our responses to
sincere folks rather than any John Que and/or Jane Doe pumpkin that
happens along.

"Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you
do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to
pieces." (Matt 7:6)

Anyway: the Greek word for "hope" in that passage basically pertains to
expectation, viz: it isn't wishful thinking, nor crossing your fingers; no, this
kind of hope is a confident looking forward to taking possession of
something that's already in the bag, viz: it's an anticipating hope, i.e. it
doesn't pray for the best, while in the back of its mind dreading the worst.

When people are uncertain what the future has in store for them-- if there is
even the slightest anxiety or unease --then of course they can't possibly
comply with Peter's instructions for the simple reason that the hope that is in
them, if any, is the wrong kind of hope.

● Rom 12:12 . . Rejoicing in hope.

People have absolutely no cause for rejoicing when they're unsure of their
afterlife destination, no, but they do have plenty of cause to fear the
unknown.
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506) 1Pet 4:1-2 . .Therefore, since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm
yourselves also with the same purpose, because he who has suffered in the
flesh has ceased from sin, so as to live the rest of the time in the flesh no
longer for the lusts of men, but for the will of God.

The Greek word for "flesh" basically pertains to the meaty parts of either
man or beast; i.e. the body. The meaty parts of course consist of not only
muscle and fat; but also the brain, the blood, and nervous system along with
the body's chemistry, e.g. its hormones and such; and according to 1John
2:16, our bodies are listed among the three of mankind's worst enemies.

The "lusts of men" is speaking of lusts that are common to human nature.
(cf. 1Cor 10:13)

The Greek word for "lusts" basically pertains to longing, defined by
Webster's as a strong desire, i.e. a craving.

Cravings aren't necessarily bad. Problems arise when we let our cravings
rule us to the point of acting contrary to good scruples and/or our better
judgment especially when it comes to making God frown upon our conduct
as unbecoming, i.e. inappropriate for His son's followers.

NOTE: It offends some Christians to even so much as suggest that Christ
might've had human longings just like everybody else. They truly believe he
should have been above all that-- he wasn't. Much of Jesus' suffering in the
flesh came from suppressing his body's natural cravings. (Heb 5:7-8)

The Word in heaven above knew by omniscience that it's not easy to live the
life of an h.sapiens down here on the ground; but now he knows for himself
as a human being by personal experience just how tough it is because the
Word didn't come to Earth in the likeness of divine flesh, rather, in the
likeness of Jewish flesh. (cf. Rom 8:3, Heb 2:16 18, Heb 4:15)
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507) 1Pet 4:7 . . The culmination of all things is approaching; therefore be
serious, and watchful in your prayers.

I think we can safely apply some of the parable of the ten virgins to this
passage. (Matt 25:1-13)

The big mistake made by the five foolish virgins was abandoning their watch
to go in pursuit of something far less important than the arrival of the
bridegroom.

Seeing as how nobody knows either the date or the hour of Christ's arrival
spoken of in 1Thess 4:13-17, then everyone would be well-advised to avoid
getting too absorbed in worldly pursuits lest the Lord suddenly appear
unexpected.
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508) 1Pet 4:8 . . Above all, keep fervent in your love for one another,
because love hides a large number of sins.

A person easily provoked is not a loving person.

One Saturday morning I and another man at church were moving some
furniture from one place to another inside the main building where,
completely unknown to us, a wedding rehearsal was being conducted.

The woman in charge of organizing the wedding came out into the hall and
began scolding us for talking and making noise. When I pointed out that
there were no posted signs in the hallway indicating a function in progress
on the other side of the door, she became sullen, and tightened her lips and
narrowed her eyes in anger.

Had that lady exemplified the love about which Peter wrote, she would have
handled her inconvenience with a little more tact and sensitivity, i.e.
diplomacy.

BTW: That same lady was also in the choir, and sang doxologies in front of
about 2,000 people every Sunday morning. She was good at musical
harmony, but obviously in sore need of some training in the civil kind.
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509) 1Pet 4:10 . .As each one has received a special gift, employ it in
serving one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.

The Greek word for "manifold" basically means motley, i.e. varied in
character. All that’s really saying is that the gifts of God are multifarious;
viz: having a number of different aspects or characteristics. (cf. Rom 12:5-8,
1Cor 12:1-11)

Unfortunately, people with natural aptitudes generally make up the majority
of those in church capacities for which is supposed to be required a spiritual
gift from God. They may look like they're "on fire" for The Lord, but really all
they are is ambitious.

Now, the important thing is: good stewards of the manifold grace of God use
their gift not for showing off, nor for a feather in one's cap; rather, for the
benefit of others.

Paul encourages gifts (1Cor 12:31) and I would add to that by warning to
exercise restraint because the Greek word translated "serving" refers to
attendants, waiters, and hosts. In other words, if you're not comfortable
with the thought of seeing to the needs of others, then you may not enjoy
the life of someone entrusted with a spiritual gift, i.e. they're not
achievements, rather, they're a serious responsibility with accountability to
go along with it. (1Cor 3:11-15)
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510) 1Pet 4:11a . . If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the
very words of God.

I don't see standing in for God's voice as a privilege; to me it is a heavv
responsibility, and incumbent upon the speaker to experience a very high
degree of confidence that his comments and remarks are not only
acceptable, but also infallible and free of impurities like sophistry, and
embellishment, and humanistic reasoning.
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511) 1Pet 4:11b . . Whoever serves, let him do so as by the strength which
God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ,
to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

Serving in the strength which God provides consists of not exceeding that
strength, i.e. stay within your limits because by doing so, you will serve the
Lord's best interests rather than their own.
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