Read I Peter 4:3-6
“They think it strange that you do not plunge with them into the same flood of dissipation…” (v 4a)
(See also I Corinthians 4:3-5)
Some Thoughts…
The contrast of “normal” living and Christ-centered living is glaring… We live in a world of judgmental separation. This side demonizes the other side for all the problems in the world, and we all say that if we could just see things from the same perspective (that being our own perspective), then everything would be better. It’s that way in politics and in relational affiliations… And many times, it’s that way in how the lost see the saved (or worse how the saved see the lost).
“They think it strange…” that we don’t do what they do or talk like they talk…. A lost person can look at a believer’s conduct or refusal to participate in something and see it as self-righteous judgment and in turn pass judgment on the believer for living or acting in a certain manner (and sadly, a Christian can do the same… and we often do). But Peter here reminds us ALL of something of utmost importance; WE ALL WILL BE JUDGED! But not by each other; both the living (those in Christ) and the dead (those without Christ) will all be judged. That is, in a nutshell, what Peter is saying in this passage. That is the reason we proclaim and live out the Gospel; so that those who are so judged by the powers-that-be in the social make-up of this life will find freedom, forgiveness, and full life in Christ now and in the next life.
But I’m stuck on that very first phrase in verse 4. The “flood of dissipation”seems to be the point of conflict between followers of Jesus and those who think it strange how we live…What is it? The Greek word for “flood” can be translated “excessiveness”, and the Greek word for “dissipation” means “riotous, wasteful, or prodigal…” so the word picture is a life style that is a waste – using up all available resources for personal gain and pleasure. Jumping in with both feet into an excessive indulgence that never really satisfies…sounds fun, looks like a great way to enjoy life – grabbing all the gusto, taking the bull by the horns…but something happens when the music stops and the party dies down. In the quiet, we can hear the wind of empty loneliness, feel the pain of regret, and sense a longing for something or someone to offer us more.
So for me I’m wondering:
– Is there a contrast in me? – Am I swimming in the flood of wasteful, riot-like rebellion to God, or am I on the solid ground of God’s ways?
– Do they think it strange? – does my life evoke thoughts of “why does he do that?” “Why won’t he do this?”
– Do they realize who it is we all must give account to? Is my “floodless” life speaking good news into lives that will listen and begin real life in the Sprit? Do my honest words cause some who refuse to believe to ridicule me or am I just a non-entity to them.
Am I wet with wasteful living or am I making the most of every Gospel-moment I have left on planet earth?
A Prayer…
Father, as I attempt to stand on the solid ground of Christ and His goodness, give me the equipment to rescue those who realize they are drowning in the flood of wasteful lives. Amen.