Daily Devotion
Summary of Christian Duty
Today's Bible Passage
1 Peter 2:17
We will continue our walk through the writings of peter the apostle. I trust you are appreciating your experience. Pray the daily prayers with earnestness and thanksgiving!
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Here is what we might call a summary of Christian duty.
(1) Honor all men. To us, this may seem hardly needing to be said but when Peter wrote this letter it was something quite new. There were 60,000,000 slaves in the Roman Empire, all of whom were considered in law to be, not a person, but a thing, with no rights whatever. Peter is saying, “Remember the rights of human personality and the dignity of ever person.” Unfortunately, it is still possible to treat people as things.
(2) Love the brotherhood. Within the Christian community, this respect for every person turns to something warmer and closer; it turns to love. The Church is the larger family of God and its bond must be love.
(3) Fear of God. The writer of the provers has it, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge” (Proverbs 1:7). The fear here does not mean terror; it means awe and reverence. It is the simple fact of life that we never reverence men until we reverence God. It is only when God is given His proper place in the center that all others take their proper place.
It is the teaching of the New Testament that the ruler is sent by God to preserve order among men and that he must be respected, even when he is Nero.
Life Application
Ask yourself: “How do I fit into loving “all men,” the “brotherhood,” and most of all “Fear God”? Which do I have to work on to improve?”
Praise and Prayer
“Dear God, You are the leader and teacher in all of these areas: honor all men, love the brotherhood, and fear God. I want to excel in all three of these areas but I can’t do it without Your daily help. Help me to be a genuine friend of all people, giving honor to whom honor is due and to love/fear God in my daily life. Amen.
