04-Abstain2
Study: Abstain & Key Scripture 1Peter 2:11 – continued…
1 Peter 2:11(ESV) – Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul.
Next step could be that you do two different ways to do a search:
• – “abstain” as a word search. It would give you all the sources that the word ‘abstain’ is found in the reference. However, that may cause extra searching for applicable discussion as you’re focus was 1 Peter 2:11. Entry Method for search window: “abstain”
• – Do a search for any reference that contains the scripture of “1 Peter 2:11” is mentioned in the source. This would give you a listing of sources that discuss the scripture text you’re involved in. Entry Method for search window: <Bible=1 Peter 2:11>
I will show some of the results and some of the information found in a couple references if you want to read more on the subject. However, the purpose is to show you methods of Bible Study….
Comparing results:
P211a
Results: the word “abstain” is found 5,499 times in 4,285 articles or 893 resources.
Looking at one of the recourses that has it three times:
P211b
These sound like good articles from MacArthur Commentary…
Search #2 for mentioning the Bible verse of 1 Peter 2:11:
Entry Method: <Bible=1 Peter 2:11>
P211c
NOTE that the I Corinthians reference above is NOT even in this listing, meaning, that the discussion was done without the text you’re involved in of 1 Peter 2:11.
RESULTS: 1109 results in 978 articles that use 280 resources….
The Other results were: The word “abstain” is found 5,499 times in 4,285 articles or 893 resources.
The 2nd method greatly reduce the quantity of sources. From here one would look for a more narrow method.
From the reference of Mill, MS:
P211d
Note the BLUE titles to narrow it down more… Using the TOP source – here is the reference material:
§11. Conduct Yourself in the World in Pure Morality (2:11–12)
Exegesis
v 11 Beloved = this word is derived from ‘agape.’
urge = (or) beg, encourage, appeal to, (even) summon.
aliens = (or) strangers.
strangers = (lit.) temporary residents, refugees.
abstain = avoid, keep free from.
fleshly lusts = (lit.) lusts of the flesh.
lusts = (or) longings, desires (the Greek word is not as pointed as ‘lust’ is in English).
wage war = (present tense) are warring, are battling.
v 12 keep = (lit.) have, hold (maintain).
behavior = conduct, manner of life, lifestyle.
excellent = (lit.) good, right, proper, honorable, honest, beautiful.
Gentiles = (or) nations; ‘nations’ is appropriate in this context as it stands in contrast with ‘aliens’ in v.11.
so that = (‘hina’) in order that.
slander = this is the verb form of the noun used in 2:1 (the verb and noun together are only used 7 times in the NT-Jas 4:11 [3x]; II Cor 12:20; I Pet 2:1,12; 3:16); it means lit., ‘speak against.’
evildoers = (or) wrong-doers with the nuance of harmful people (even ‘criminals’).
on account of = (lit.) out of-i.e., arising out of.
observe = this verb has the nuance of being an eyewitness-it is only used here and in 3:2, and the noun is used once (II Pet 1:16).
glorify = the subjunctive mood expresses potential only.
visitation = (or) inspection. We derive ‘bishop’ from this noun which indicates concern. Luke 19:44, Acts 1:20, and I Tim 3:1 are its only other uses, and the verb (which means ‘to look upon [over],’ hence ‘oversee’) is used in Heb 12:15 (‘see to it’ NASB) and I Pet 5:2.
Purpose
This section’s purpose is to instruct Christians in proper conduct in secular matters.
Exposition
History tells us that I Peter’s addressees were fiercely independent, so it may be that their newfound freedom in Christ, added to the realization that they were now eternal citizens in God’s kingdom (and thus that their earthly lot was of no real consequence), sparked something akin to civil rebellion. Their position would have been exacerbated by the harshness of their situation, for, as they were not Roman citizens, their lot was always that of second or third class citizens. So it would be a natural for them to feel no loyalty toward Rome and to take any opportunity they could to flaunt Roman authority, particularly when it seemed onerous. In this climate, I Peter addressed them succinctly, first making it plain that the sanctified life Christians are called upon to live should be evident in their relationships with society around them with the practical purpose of displaying the mercy of God. The believer’s relationship with the world he moves in is thus to be governed by sinless moral behavior so as to give the world no valid basis on which to derogate the Church as harmful to society.
This section starts by stating the biblical perspective of the saint’s civic role. Saints are strangers and temporary residents in any earthly kingdom, for their true citizenship is in God’s kingdom. Verses 9–10 have just made this point, so v.11 is not hyperbole and its point is made in all seriousness and urgency. However, it is also a fact that God expects saints to function for Him in their earthly situation-indeed, Paul had already called saints “God’s ambassadors” (II Cor 5:20). The Christian is thus called upon to conduct himself with this principle in mind, and not to impugn the Lord whom he represents (v.13).
The word translated ‘evildoers’ in v.12 can also be rendered ‘criminal’ and this is probably the nuance the epistle intends. A criminal, by definition, is someone who harms society, so Christians are called upon to behave in such a way that none can rationally accuse them of harming society. This clearly must be the nuance intended, for it should be unthinkable that a true believer would commit crimes like burglary, murder, etc. The Christian is therefore urged to avoid the desires of his old fleshly nature (i.e., his sin nature), and to be controlled by his new spiritual values (v.11), recognizing that his purpose on earth is to serve his Lord in the spiritual arena. The impact of v.11, in its context, is that the believer’s secular relationships must be governed by spiritual values. The reader is thus put on notice that his secular involvement will constantly have a tendency to be at war with his spiritual values, and the advice inherent in the words ‘alien’ and ‘temporary resident’ is that the antidote lies in constantly remembering one’s eternal destiny and citizenship.
With these principles established, the saint is called upon to maintain his manner of life with a proper and upright demeanor in whatever earthly nation he should find himself (remember, the Greek word for ‘Gentiles’ also means ‘nations’ which is a better option that ‘Gentiles’ in this context as it preserves the obvious contrast with ‘aliens’ in v.11). Again, the concept of being a citizen of another nation, the holy nation described in v.9, is very strong.
In order to understand the force of the rationale of v.12b, we need first to define ‘the day of visitation.’ In English this sounds remarkably like the day of judgment, and many commentaries take it so. However, the Greek noun rendered ‘visitation’ (‘episkope’) is derived from a verb which means to oversee. This verb is also the root for ‘episkopos,’ Greek for ‘bishop,’ and thus indicates a benevolent, not judgmental oversight. This is certainly true of Luke 19:44, and also holds good for its other uses (see exegesis). The concept of v.12 is that these worldly folk will be given the opportunity to respond positively to God, so this ‘day of visitation,’ will be a day of mercy extended to them. Now that we have established this point, we can understand the role the Christian is called upon to fill. The rationale is simple: God has placed the believer in the world, so God expects him to be an effective witness for Him in his secular situation. Axiomatically, this means that God intends to extend His mercy to those with whom the believer comes in contact, for that is the believer’s ministry (e.g., Matt 5:16). Now, if the believer presents a clear, upright lifestyle, particularly by not shunning his civic responsibilities, then the way he deports himself will deny the unsaved man the refutation that his sin nature desperately desires-he wants to classify the believer as a sinner (whether against society, or however), and thus, in a remarkable display of illogic, reason that religion and God do not exist in fact. Believers are urged not to allow an unsaved person recourse to this contorted logic, and this means that they will have to conduct themselves on a plane above the normal fleshly desires of human nature.
From MacArthur:
P211e
Using the title: Godly Inner Discipline – here is the information:
GODLY INNER DISCIPLINE
Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against the soul. (2:11)
Peter began his exhortation by addressing his readers as beloved, which implied that they, as objects of God’s immeasurable love, had a duty to obey the One who loved them. On that basis he could urge (parakaleō, “to beseech” [KJV] or “to encourage,” as in Rom. 12:1) them to reciprocate God’s love by living for Him.
Peter further identified his audience as aliens and strangers, which reminded them that they were not truly members of the world’s society. Paul wrote, “For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ” (Phil. 3:20). As spiritual aliens, believers must shun the things of this world (1 John 2:15–17; cf. Mark 4:19; John 12:25; 15:19; Rom. 12:2; Col. 2:8, 20; James 1:27; 1 John 5:4). Aliens (paroikous) literally means “alongside the house.” The word came to denote any person who lives in a country not his own and is therefore a foreigner. The term fits Christians who do not belong to this world’s system but live alongside those who do.
Peter also used the term strangers (parepidēmous), which is a synonym for aliens. It refers to a visitor (the KJV renders the word “pilgrims”) who travels through a country and perhaps makes a brief stay there. The writer of Hebrews reminded believers: “For here we do not have a lasting city, but we are seeking the city which is to come” (13:14; cf. 11:13–16).
Since Christians are not part of the world, they must abstain from fleshly lusts (cf. Rom. 8:5–9, 12–13; 13:14; Gal. 5:13, 16–17). Even though regeneration produces a new disposition with holy longings, that new life force remains incarcerated within the old, unredeemed human flesh, precipitating an ongoing battle between the spirit and the flesh. Nevertheless, believers are no longer slaves of unrighteousness, and sin is not their master—they are free from its dominant and exclusive power. The command to abstain signifies that saints have the ability by the new life and the indwelling Spirit to restrain the lustful flesh, even in a postmodern culture dominated by sensuality, immorality, and moral relativism.
The term fleshly lusts is not limited to sexual immorality, but rather encompasses the evils of humanity’s sinful nature. The apostle Paul warned the Galatians, “Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these” (Gal. 5:19–21). When they see Christ, believers’ unredeemed humanness will be redeemed (cf. Rom. 8:23).
Peter, by use of the phrase which wage war against the soul, intensified his discussion of fleshly lusts. In the Greek, which indicates that it is the character of such lusts and cravings to wage war against the new heart God has created within the soul of every believer. Even Paul found himself in the midst of intense struggle that every Christian experiences:
For we know that the Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin. For what I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate. But if I do the very thing I do not want to do, I agree with the Law, confessing that the Law is good. So now, no longer am I the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want. But if I am doing the very thing I do not want, I am no longer the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wants to do good. For I joyfully concur with the law of God in the inner man, but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members. (Rom. 7:14–23; cf. Gal. 5:17–18)
Wage war is a strong term that generally means to carry out a long-term military campaign. It implies not just antagonism but a relentless, malicious aggression. Since it takes place in the soul, it is a kind of civil war. Joined with the concept of fleshly lusts, the image is of an army of lustful terrorists waging an internal search and destroy mission to conquer the soul of the believer.
Prior to conversion, all sinners live under the dominance of fleshly lust:
And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. (Eph. 2:1–3; cf. 4:25–28; 5:8–11; Col. 3:5–11)
Once saved, however, God commands believers to abstain from being driven by lust:
Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever. (1 John 2:15–17; cf. 2 Cor. 6:16–7:1)
The key to abstaining from fleshly desires and defeating fleshly temptations lies in walking in the Spirit’s power (Gal. 5:16), and exercising a godly discipline (1 Cor. 9:27; 2 Cor. 7:1). The battle is won or lost on the inside, as James reports,
Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death. (James 1:13–15)
This follows James’s call in verse 12 for the same kind of behavior Peter speaks of: “Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.”