Abundant Joy

“For there has already been enough time spent in doing what the Gentiles choose to do: carrying on in unrestrained behavior, evil desires, drunkenness, orgies, carousing, and lawless idolatry. They are surprised that you don’t join them in the same flood of wild living—and they slander you. They will give an account to the one who stands ready to judge the living and the dead.”

In verse two, Peter writes that we are no longer to live the remaining time in the flesh for human desires, but for God’s will. Here, he describes what those desires look like. He starts by saying that there has already been enough time spent in doing what the Gentiles choose to do. There is going to be a strong contrast in how a believer acts versus how a non-believer acts. Edmund Clowney puts it this way. “Peter draws the line for those who have died with Christ to the life of sin. That life went on long enough. The new life, the rest of our earthly life, is before us.”

What are those sins that we are to steer clear of? If you look this verse up in different versions, you might find different words. I thought it might be interesting to look the words up in Greek using my Logos Bible software and see what I could find. I’m new at this, and I don’t have any training in Greek, so it won’t be detailed information. But I think there will be enough to get the basic gist of it. And there is something I realized as I studied the words. There is nothing new under the sun. The same sins that were plaguing the early church are still around today.

The first sin he lists is ‘carrying on an unrestrained behavior.’ The Greek word is aselgia which translates as licentiousness. This is indulgence in sensual pleasure unrestrained by convention or morality. The dictionary definition of licentious is “promiscuous and unprincipled in sexual matters.” Again, there is nothing new under the sun! We have come to a place in our society where anything goes! Everything must be celebrated. And if we, as Christians, disagree with the lifestyle, then we are bigoted, homophobic, and hateful.

Next, he mentions evil desires. The Greek word for desire is epithymia. It translates as lust, craving. This carries the sense of an inordinate, self-indulgent craving (that displaces proper affection from God). It is used several other times in Paul’s writings. Here are two examples: “Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires” (Galatians 5:24). “Therefore, put to death what belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desire, and greed, which is idolatry” (Colossians 3:5).

Peter then mentions drunkenness. The Greek for this word is oinophlygia. It translates to drunkenness, debauchery. It is a temporary state of drunkenness resulting from excessive consumption of alcohol. Paul also warns of drunkenness in his letters. In Romans 13:13, he writes, “Let us walk with decency, as in the daytime: not in carousing and drunkenness; not in sexual impurity and promiscuity; not in quarreling and jealousy.” And in Galatians 5:19-21, “Now the works of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, moral impurity, promiscuity, idolatry, sorcery, hatreds, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambitions, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and anything similar. I am warning you about these things—as I warned you before—that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”  We are not to partake in excessive alcohol, or any drug that lowers our inhibitions.

Orgies and carousing can be put together. The Greek word for orgies is komos and carousing is potos. They both carry the sense of binging, or excessive eating and drinking, with moral debauchery normally ensuing. The dictionary definition of debauchery is” excessive indulgence in sensual pleasures.” Paul used the same word carousing in both verses I quoted above.

The last thing that Peter mentions is lawless idolatry. Lawless is athemitos in Greek. It means not allowed, forbidden. It has the sense of being contrary to accepted morality or convention. Idolatry is eidololatria in Greek. It is the worship of a material representation of a deity. Paul uses this word in 1 Corinthians 10:14 when he writes, “So then, my dear friends, flee from idolatry.” When Peter wrote this letter, there was still idol worship going on. In Acts 19, we read about Demetrius, a silversmith, who made silver shrines of Artemis. So we know there were still actual physical idols that were being worshipped. We might think that this one does not apply to us today. But let’s look again at Colossians 3:5. “Therefore, put to death what belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desire, and greed, which is idolatry.” We can make idols out of anything. When we value our possessions over God, we have made idols out of them.

In verse 4, Peter points out that the Gentiles (or non-believers) are surprised that the believers do not join them in the same “flood of wild living”. He also says that the believers will be slandered for it. The phrase “wild living” is asotia in the Greek, which is translated as dissipation, debauchery. It has the sense of lavishness, or the act of spending or using something excessively; especially something which will result in sinful license. This same word is used in Ephesians 5:18, where Paul writes, “And don’t get drunk with wine, which leads to reckless living, but be filled by the Spirit…” Wayne Grudem writes this in his commentary. “The phrase join them is literally “running with them,” an expression which vividly reflects the frenetic pace of their disappointing search for true pleasure.”

Why were they slandered? Why are Christians today slandered when they do not participate in the sinful activities of society around them? The answers are the same. Grudem puts it this way. “No doubt because silent non-participation in sin often implies condemnation of that sin, and rather than change their ways unbelievers will slander those who have pained them, their consciences, or justify their own immorality by spreading rumors that the ‘righteous’ Christians are immoral as well.” We see it so often today, especially on TV and in movies. The Christian is made to look like a fool, a bigot, or the villain. There are very few positive portrayals of Christians in the media.

But Peter ends this section with this. “They will give an account to the one who stands ready to judge the living and the dead.” Who is that One? Let’s look at some verses. In Acts, Peter says this about Jesus. “He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be the judge of the living and the dead” (10:42). Paul writes this to Timothy. “I solemnly charge you before God and Christ Jesus, who is going to judge the living and the dead, and because of his appearing and his kingdom: Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; correct, rebuke, and encourage with great patience and teaching” (2 Timothy 4:1-2).  We need to be prepared. Peter writes that God is ready to judge. It could come at any time. Jesus himself said this. “Be on your guard, so that your minds are not dulled from carousing, drunkenness, and worries of life, or that day will come on you unexpectedly like a trap. For it will come on all who live on the face of the whole earth. But be alert at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place and to stand before the Son of Man” (Luke 21:34-36). We are to stay alert and be prepared.

There are some Christians today who have fallen into the trap of conforming to society. There are whole denominations that feel that we must progress with the times. Rather than plant their feet on the solid rock of Jesus and the dependableness of the holy Bible, many have decided to rest on the shifting sand of culture. As culture changes, so do their beliefs. I would rather place my trust on the solid rock that is Christ than the shifting sand that is culture.

 “I will show you what someone is like who comes to me, hears my words, and acts on them: He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. When the flood came, the river crashed against that house and couldn’t shake it, because it was well built. But the one who hears and does not act is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The river crashed against it, and immediately it collapsed. And the destruction of that house was great” (Luke 6:47-49)

Grace be with you!