The First Epistle of Peter

by Richard St.James

Loins of Your Mind

Bible 1611.Com / Old Paths Baptist Mission © 2011

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1 Peter 1:13 “Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;
14 As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance:
15 But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation;
16 Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.
17 And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear:”

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1. Be Sober
2. In Obedience
3. In Holiness
4. Sojourning In Fear

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1. Be Sober

Verse thirteen: “Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;”

The “revelation of Jesus Christ” here, in this verse, is to the believers in Jesus Christ only. The world will see HIM at the translation of the saints which is coming soon. When Jesus Christ comes for the body of Christ at the end of this Church Age, “we shall see him as he is” as the BOOK tells us in First John chapter three, verse two: “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.” [1 John 3:2]

The world [the nations] will see Jesus Christ [“the revelation of Jesus Christ”] at the end of the seven years of the Great Tribulation at Armageddon. “And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon.” [Revelation 16:16] This will be terribly an awesome sight, and will “sober up” all the participants of the world [the nations] from their drunken stupor of believing that they could set up a one-world government [or Kingdom] … without GOD [that is, Jesus Christ] being involved.

Now, this brings us to this question. What does it mean to be sober?

• To be sober is to be temperate [or moderate] in all things.

• To be sober, one has to be serious in deportment, and in demeanor.

• And finally, to be sober, one has to be calm in the times of stress.
 
There is something else we can learn here. Sobriety goes hand with hand with watching [the times and the seasons]. [1 Thessalonians 5:1] Let me read from First Thessalonians chapter five verses six through eight: “Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.” [1 Thessalonians 5:6-8] We, as believers in Jesus Christ, are commanded to watch for his return … and to be SOBER.

We are not only to “watch and be sober” concerning the times and the seasons, but we are to be “sober, and watch unto prayer.”
[1 Peter 4:7] “But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.”

And finally, we are not only to “watch and be sober” concerning prayer, but we are to be “Be sober, be vigilant.” Why? First Peter chapter five, verse eight has the answer.

[1 Peter 5:8] “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:”

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2. In Obedience

Verse fourteen: “As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance:”

Obedience to the word of God is … the key to ALL happiness in life for the believer in Jesus Christ. It is the proof of the pudding so-to-speak that a person loves God. You say: “prove it! Give me chapter and verse.” Alright, I will! Here it is in John chapter fourteen, verse twenty-one: “He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.” Obedience to the word of God is at the center of all this.

Do what to know something else? This obedience is to extend even to our very inner thoughts. Do you believe this? The Bible shows us this. Read with me Second Corinthians chapter ten verses five and six: “Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.” [2 Corinthians 10:5-6] Our obedience to Jesus Christ shows that our thoughts are lined up with the BOOK [the words of God]. Amen!

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3. In Holiness

Verse fifteen: “But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation;”

The true Christian is to be holy while he, or she, is living in this old world. We are to “be partakers of his holiness.” This is what it says it Hebrews chapter twelve, verse ten: “For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness.” [Hebrews 12:10]

Now, brethren, this is a LOST truth within so-called modern Christianity. The vast multitude of those who profess in believing in Jesus Christ, look-like, smell-like, and act-like the world. They know nothing of God’s command to “be ye holy in all manner of conversation.” They seem TOTALLY oblivious to the fact that without HOLINESS that they will not even be able to SEE THE LORD. You can see this in verse fourteen:
“Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:” [Hebrews 12:14]

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4. Sojourning In Fear

Now verse seventeen: “And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear:”

Brethren, it is HEALTHY for us to live in FEAR of the LORD. It is, as it says, in Proverbs chapter three, verse eight: “It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones.” [Proverbs 3:8]

• [Proverbs 1:7] “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.”

• Proverbs 9:10] “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.”

While we are here on the earth we have but a short time to let our lights shine before the lost people of this dead and dying world. The health in our navels and in our bones will be evident to all men.

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” [Matthew 5:16]

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The Precious Blood

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The First Epistle of Peter

1 Peter 1:1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia,

1 Peter 1:2 Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.

1 Peter 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

1 Peter 1:4 To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you,

1 Peter 1:5 Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

1 Peter 1:6 Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations:

1 Peter 1:7 That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:

1 Peter 1:8 Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory:

1 Peter 1:9 Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.

1 Peter 1:10 Of which salvation the prophets have inquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you:

1 Peter 1:11 Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.

1 Peter 1:12 Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.

1 Peter 1:13 Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;

1 Peter 1:14 As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance:

1 Peter 1:15 But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation;

1 Peter 1:16 Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.

1 Peter 1:17 And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear:

1 Peter 1:18 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers;

1 Peter 1:19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:

1 Peter 1:20 Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you,

1 Peter 1:21 Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.

1 Peter 1:22 Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently:

1 Peter 1:23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.

1 Peter 1:24 For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flowerthereof falleth away:

1 Peter 1:25 But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.