1 Peter 2:11
” Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul.”
“Outside of the love of God, sin is the most powerful force in the universe.” Brian Broderson. That surprised me. I certainly struggle with sin, yet I haven’t thought of it as so powerful. Today’s passage tells us to leave sin alone, as it’s seeking to destroy us.
Sin wears camaflauge. I have no desire to ingest poison. Yet dabbling in sin is harmful. We do it because of the alluring aspects of sin (Hebrews 11:25). Think of the phrase “sex, drugs and rock & roll.” There is enormous pleasure and addiction in the first two. There are varying degrees of sexual sin. Some participate with it mentally, others view porn and others engage in it with others. We all have our own struggles with sin. It may be gossip. It may be power struggles in relationships. The list is endless. There is an instant reward which fades into damaged relationships and sullied reputations.
Peter describes us as foreigners and aliens. How so? Our culture celebrates much of this sin. When it comes to sex, Hollywood mocks those that seek to live biblically. Those that don’t have sex until marriage are seen as prudish or odd. Once the friends coax them out of purity, the movies show them as much more liberated and happy. When in reality, inappropriate relationships destroy trust and produce the wrong type of intimacy in the wrong context. We aren’t to engage in sin. In that way we are foreigners. We don’t believe and live the same way as the world.
Lord, help us to abstain from sin and as Jesus modeled, “Lead us not into temptation.” Help us to band together with likeminded believers for support.