Ep 354 – 1 Peter 4:7-11

Good service. We all love it, when we're the recipients of it. But in the Kingdom of God, service is to be other-oriented, not me-centered. As followers of Christ, it's no longer about us. Our lives exist for God's glory and for the good of those around us. In 1 Peter 4:7-11, Peter is going to provide us with a primer on service. First of all, he is going to instruct us to live with a short-term, goal-line mentality, fully expecting the return of the Lord at any time. And while we wait, we are to focus our attention on the needs of others. None of this what's-in-it-for-me stuff. God has equipped us with gifts, not to lavish them on ourselves, but to build up the body of Christ. We are to steward what God has so graciously given us, so that we might serve as His Son did: selflessly and sacrificially. Life on this planet can be hard. There will be days of difficulty and moments of strife and turmoil. We will find ourselves the objects of persecution and facing rejection by this world. But while we're here, we are to live with our eyes on the needs of others, recognizing that the days are short and the mandate we have been given by Christ to spread the gospel and share His love with a lost and dying world is our first and only priority. We are children of God, and we should serve like it.