NOTES 242 Bible Study 01.12.2023 1 Peter 4:1-6 Icebreaker: Who has heard the quote: “The time is always ripe to do right” Does anybody know who wrote that quote? “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” Martin Luther King More and more I feel that the people of ill will have used time much more effectively than have the people of good will. We will have to repent in this generation not merely for the hateful words and actions of the bad people but for the appalling silence of the good people. Human progress never rolls in on wheels of inevitability; it comes through the tireless efforts of men willing to be co-workers with God, and without this ‘hard work, time itself becomes an ally of the forces of social stagnation. We must use time creatively, in the knowledge that the time is always ripe to do right. SHARE LESSON PLAN = Summary of 1 Peter / Read 1 Peter 4:1-6 / Pray / Discussion on 1 Peter 4:1-6 / Pray / Out by 8:30 Summary of 1 Peter: Simon = Peter (Petros) A rock named by Jesus as one of his original 12 apostles. Matthew16:18-19 These letters are Circulating letters written in Rome commissioned by Peter composed by Silvanus a co-worker of Peter. A letter to 5 different places throughout Asia Minor or Modern Day Turkey. Peter lays out a new family Identity to the exiled elect – He calls us: The holly people of God – the People of the new covenant – We are the new temple: all built on Jesus. We are urged to consider Christs suffering to spur us to purity and holiness. We should not confuse the worlds judgement for God’s. Read 1 Peter 4:1-7 PRAY Discussion on 1 Peter 4:1-6 There are 4 keys points that Peter makes in these 6 verses: Resist Sin (v. 1) Follow God’s Will (v. 2) Your Past is your past (v. 3) Reach to the Lost (vv. 4-6) Prepare to read Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 There is a theme of Time in these verses. You only have so much time here and these verses reveal how God would like you to spend the time that you have left. (V.2-3) READ Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 Reference the popular song Turn, Turn, Turn by the Byrds 1)Resist Your Sin (1 Peter 4:1) Read "arm yourselves," is a military phrase of being prepared. “with the same mind" Get mentally prepared with a militant mind set for the fight you're about to get into. How does Jesus move? What’s his speed of operation? It’s as if he knew everything was going to work out at the right time. Like in John 11 Lazarus Jesus is in no hurry. Our preparation is to take place, not outwardly, as much as inwardly. The battle always begins in the realm of the mind. 2)Relish God’s Will (1 Peter 4:2) Prepare Psalm 90 for reading Simply put, just pursue his will over yours, make it your ambition to discover what his will for you is, and let that happen naturally. READ Proverbs 3:5-6 Focus on your relationship with God. When you’re open to hearing from God, he will reveal the right path for you to take. Psalm 90 – READ A prayer by Moses, the only one in the Psalms. DISCUSSION Any of that standout to anyone? 3)Renounce Your Past (1 Peter 4:3) Prepare to read Ephesians 5:15-21 Renounce: formally declare one's abandonment of (a claim, right, or possession). Renounce all of these things on this list. They're not good for you. They're not the will of God for you. "We all wasted enough time doing bad stuff." To make time count, count your past as past, over, done, enough. READ Ephesians 5 15-21 4) Reach the Lost (1 Peter 4:4-6) Unsaved people do not understand when God changes a life. They do not get it. Your old friends, they don't get you. Unsaved family members, they may be polite to you, maybe not, but they don't get you. "They think it strange." I thought it strange. Tell a personal story about being around drug addicts and losing one to faith. They don't think it strange when people wreck their bodies with drugs. They don't think it strange when people wreck their homes with infidelity and immorality. They don't think it strange when people wreck their jobs because they have hangovers. They do think it strange when the drunk becomes sober, when the impure becomes pure. Discussion: V5 What does Peter mean by the living and the dead? Dead in sin, alive in Christ READ Ephesians 2:1-3 V5 They may be judging you right now, but God will judge them one day." Leave it a that. V6 This is why we share the Gospel. So humans can be saved by grace. Four take aways: Resist Sin (v. 1) Arm yourselves as Christ did. Follow God’s Will (v. 2) Its good for you. Your Past is your past (v. 3) Leave it there and grow. Reach to the Lost (vv. 4-6) For they may be saved from death. Remember: Time has been given to us by God. It’s not your time. It’s his time. Plan what you’re going to do with your time wisely. Don’t just plan then pray about you plans… but try and Pray then make your plans. How do you make God laugh? Tell him your plans. When we look at the cross, we are looking at what our sin did to our Savior. We need to arm ourselves with the same mind that Jesus had… and Jesus came to deal with sin. CLOSE = READ James 4:13-17