Pastor Bell's Words To Live By

As an elder in the church, Peter took it on himself to remind his hearers of the sort of lifestyle that was required from them. He spoke about the strong possibility of suffering for those who chose to preach about the good news of Jesus and that all who carried and delivered this gospel would be the first to be judged. Perhaps he was thinking about the teachings of Jesus when he used the term judged. Jesus said before we judge anyone or anything, we should judge ourselves first (Matt 7:1-5). We should look inwards before we look outwards. This is a difficult task to do as we only see ourselves when we look in a mirror or stop to actively reflect.  The underlying message is this; whatever you do try to ensure that you do it for the right reasons. And don’t do the wrong thing just to get off the hook. It is better to suffer for doing the right thing than to do the wrong thing and in the end getting caught.

The trials and tribulations you go through are to pull you closer to God and to develop your character.

Peter reminds us when he asks this rhetorical question: ‘if it is hard for the righteous to be saved, what will happen to the unrighteous?’ those who do wrong and think that they have evaded justice has another thing coming since we all have to stand before the ultimate judge one day. Our conduct should be an example to those around us so that they may come to faith through our lives. Whatever we do must be done through a spirit of humility which is underpinned by love. We who choose to follow Christ believe that: he is coming back again; he will provide for all our needs and that his grace is sufficient to keep us as we commit all our ways to him.

Read Peter chapter 4 and remember that God opposes the proud  but give grace to the humble, so do not be anxious about anything, but cast all your anxieties on him and he will restore, strengthen and establish you in Christ Jesus our lord and in your ministry he has called you to.