Sundays at Home

This page has the Sunday Sermon, notes for the sermon, and links for songs used during children’s music time each week. Scroll down to the bottom for the children’s info.

Live for the Lord

1 Peter 2:11-17

How should Christians live in these times? How should we as believers relate to the world and to our culture? How should we as disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ respond to an increasingly hostile society?

 11 Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. 12 Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation. 13 Be subject for the Lord's sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, 14 or to governors as sent by Him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good. 15 For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. 16 Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God. 17 Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.

I.          Live for the Lord [vv11-12]
II.        Submit for the Lord [vv13-16]
III.       Fear the Lord [v17] 

I.         Live for the Lord [vv11-12]
11 Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. 12 Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.

So our call to live for the Lord is a call to godly, holy, personal responsibility. Yes, there’s a lot of wrong in the world. But there’s plenty of wrong inside each of us to address first.

We as believers are strangers in this world. We should not feel totally at home. And we should have a longing for our real, eternal home.

So we must prepare for battle. It’s a war. And this fight is going on inside each of us, every day, every moment.

Fight your sin and the passions of the flesh with the truth of the good news and the joy of knowing Christ.

Don’t fight your sin with laws, fight it with love, the precious love of Christ for you. Learn to drink deeply at the fountain of God’s grace in Christ for you. That is where you will find the power of a great affection, something so strong and beautiful that sin cannot compete.

12 Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.

Peter clearly says in v12 that we as believers are to live “among the Gentiles”. That means we stay, we remain a faithful presence. We must reject the “Benedict Option”.

So what does Peter’s call for us to live a “beautiful way of life” look like? How about starting with being thankful people?

We live by another code, another law, the law of love, the love of God. So church regularly take time to consider how you are both declaring the gospel and displaying the gospel, in word and in deed.

II.        Submit for the Lord [vv13-16]
13 Be subject for the Lord's sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, 14 or to governors as sent by Him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good. 15 For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. 16 Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God.

Every earthly authority, government, and institution is given by God and under His jurisdiction. These human institutions should enjoy our submission, receive our respect, but in no way do they get our worship. That is reserved for God alone.

The unbelieving world may mock us for our gospel beliefs, but let us not give them reason to ridicule us for our conduct and our submission to governing authorities. We don’t do it for them; we do it for the Lord’s sake. 

III.      Fear the Lord [v17]
17 Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.

Notice that there’s a simple structure or pattern, sort of like A-B-B-A. Honor comes first and last. Love and fear are in the middle. But really the “fear of God” is the key to the others.

You cannot read your Bible and think fearing God is optional.

1) Are you a people-pleaser?
2) Do the world’s problems cause great fear in your heart?
3) Is your life characterized by obedience to Jesus?

 As we seek to live for Him and submit for Him and fear Him, we need grace, we need mercy, we need His help. We need Christ in us.

To this I hold, my hope is only Jesus
All the glory evermore to Him
When the race is complete, still my lips shall repeat
Yet not I, but through Christ in me

Children’s Music (Youtube Links)

• Fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23)

• My Hope Is In the Lord (Cave Quest)

• Grace (La-De-Dah) Eph. 2:8-9

• Lord, I Lift Your Name on High

• I’ve Got Peace Like A River

• Good, Good Father

• Trust in the Lord (Prov. 3:5-6)

• Learning to Be the Light

• Light of the World (John 8:12)

• This is My Commandment (John 15:12)

• Hallelu, Hallelu, Praise Ye the Lord

• Beloved, Let us Love (1 John 4:7-8)

• I’ve Got a River of Life

• If I Were a Butterfly