1 Peter 4:2

As a result, it is now possible to live the remainder of your time in the flesh no longer following human desires, but following God’s will.


Now this is a powerful promise as well as a humiliating principle (hard truth)! As we saw in verse 1, the attitude that God calls us to have results in a type of commitment that will endure through great trial. Let us remember again the immediate audience of Peter’s epistle. It is to refugees who have been scattered about, fleeing for their lives because of a terrible persecution. This commitment which God calls us to have in the face of such persecution is no more (and no less) than the commitment that Jesus had in His enduring suffering for our salvation! Jesus was teaching this principle when He said that if any man would come after Him, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Him (Matthew 16:24-25). Taking up the cross is indicative of knowledge and commitment. This is not some blind sort of faith that embraces persecution in a stupid and ignorant manner (post-modernity), nor is it a sort of faith that embraces persecution for some reasons of meritorious spiritual gain (asceticism). No, this is a faith that sees the cost, has counted it, and for the joy that is seen with those eyes which see the unseen, endures, persevering to the end, realizing that Christ Himself is the reward. We have just been reminded in verse 1 that the One who suffered in the flesh for us endured that suffering according to knowledge. He saw and understood and joyfully embraced the Father’s purpose in His suffering. Peter says that as a result of us arming ourselves with this thought (attitude) we are now able to live committed and yes, victorious lives in our battle with the flesh. Think again about the immediate circumstance into which Peter wrote this epistle. There were most assuredly believers being martyred for their faith daily (even as they continue to be to this day). Peter instructs us here that, being armed with this attitude, what little time we have left to live in the flesh should be spent crucifying it. Even if God does not require us to die as martyrs, we must live as martyrs! This is the very same principle which Paul lays out in Romans 14:7-8. Self-denial or mortifying the sinful desires of the flesh is the result of being armed with the attitude that Christ had in His suffering in the flesh. What Peter is saying here is that what has been done for you in Christ’s suffering bears itself out in your life as death. Christ’s death in the flesh necessarily means that your life in the flesh is to be a crucifixion of it, and that dying to the flesh is truly life and evidence of it (see Philippians 1:21; Ephesians 4 and 5; Romans 6:11; 2 Corinthians 5:15; Galatians 2:19-20).

One related principle we should consider here which is very practical is the principle which might be called “radical amputation” found in Matthew 5. What Peter has exhorted the refugees to is radical obedience in the face of radical persecution. This is helpful to us as we consider progressive sanctification in our own lives. The application of the principle that Peter has just set forth – that it is now possible for us to live the remainder of our time in the flesh no longer following human desires, but following God’s will – very often requires radical amputation in our personal lives. The underlying principle here is the believer putting off the “old man” and the desires of the flesh, and putting on the “new man” which is the likeness of God (Ephesians 4). In Matthew 5, Jesus teaches us that sometimes there is a need for a radical “put off”. It is a put-off with a shock effect. A “let go and let God” quietest mindset is not biblical. God’s design in the redemption of man through Christ is that man, still being present in the body of flesh, should cooperate with the Divine. The underlying principle in what Peter is teaching here is the same principle Jesus taught in Matthew 5:29-30 – and it is very practical. If there is something in the flesh which causes us to sin – the implication here goes directly the desires of the heart. Jesus says that whatever it is that makes it easier for us to sin, we must take whatever action is necessary, even radical action, in order to rid ourselves of it. Implied here is that we must think and do (remember 1 Peter 1:13; 4:1). We must prepare. We must count the cost. We must act definitively and irreparably (ex. Cortez burning his ships). We should take purposeful action to make it hard, uncomfortable and difficult to sin. Paul says the same thing in Romans 13:14. Denial of self in a radical way is what is in view here. Does watching TV lead you to sinful thoughts? Never watch TV. Do you view pornography on the Internet? Sell your computer. And in the mean time, unplug it and set it on the kitchen table to remind you of your sin. Take radical steps to deal with your sinful desires. We should also notice that in His examples Jesus uses the right eye and the right hand. This should further signify to us the extreme nature of the amputation which Jesus is advocating. The amputation is to take place even if it means that the most predominant member should be cut off. Jesus is saying that self denial is that important. By His suffering, even to death, He said that our sin was that serious. The suffering of Christ in the flesh and your personal walk are inseparably intertwined (Matthew 21:28-32).