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Presence Weekly: Living Differently with Everyone

1 Peter 3:8-12 Part 2: The Ethics of Faithful Presence Outside the Church

[First Things]

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[The Devo] The Ethics of Faithful Presence Outside the Church

8 Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. 9 Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing. 10 For 

“Whoever desires to love life and see good days, 
let him keep his tongue from evil 
and his lips from speaking deceit; 
11 let him turn away from evil and do good; 
let him seek peace and pursue it.
12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, 
and his ears are open to their prayer. 
But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.” 1 Peter 3:8-12

A Biblical Narrative of Blessing Outsiders

Francis Schaeffer, a pastor, philosopher, and cultural apologist, was fond of saying that the church lives before the watching world.  But this was not his idea. The idea of our ethical behavior as a proclamation of the redemptive purposes of God is found in God’s call to Abram in Genesis 12,

Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” Genesis 12:1-3

It is further undergirded by Moses’ words to the redeemed people of God just before they crossed into the promised land,

See, I have taught you statutes and rules, as the Lord my God commanded me, that you should do them in the land that you are entering to take possession of it. Keep them and do them, for that will be your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples, who, when they hear all these statutes, will say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’ For what great nation is there that has a god so near to it as the Lord our God is to us, whenever we call upon him? And what great nation is there, that has statutes and rules so righteous as all this law that I set before you today? Deut. 4:5–8

This was also the instruction of Jeremiah to the elect people of God shortly after they arrived at their Babylonian exile, who wondered if their mission needed to change based on their new circumstances. 

“Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.” Jeremiah 29: 4–7

The people of God, now known as Christians, are always supposed to apply the ethics of loving our neighbor as ourselves (Leviticus 19) to those both inside and outside the church. Acknowledging the draw his disciples may have felt to see themselves as part of a privileged group of insiders inclined to treat the rest of the world as second-class citizens, Jesus reframed his teaching toward his disciples as those whom the world would see as second-class citizens, and to treat the world as their neighbor. He said it clearly in the Sermon on the Mount, 

“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you. 

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect. Matthew 5:38-48

The content of the full Sermon on the Mount text is often referred to by Biblical scholars as “The Ethics of the Kingdom” sermon. His message is not a call to arms but a call to humility, submission, blessing, and service of others. Jesus is simply saying that the mission of God for the people of God is to be a blessing to those around them. 

Clarifying the Mission of the Church

Peter was not just reapplying the house-tables that guided Greco-Roman citizenship for the benefit of the church, he was also doing so with an eye towards those outside the church and in keeping with the ongoing and unchanging word of God. The message of Peter is simple, yet profound and difficult to apply. 

While many Christian colleges, universities, seminaries, and para-church organizations have focused on the need “to change the world,” God’s purpose for the church is to use it as the primary means through which the world is blessed.  

This is especially true for those servants and leaders in the public square. Despite the seemingly unending opportunities to repay evil for evil and reviling for reviling, Peter’s message to the elect exiles of Asia Minor, on the weak side of a power differential, where they are seen as irrelevant and extreme, is not to respond by waiting in the tall grass to ambush someone for what they did to you, “but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing.

This presupposes engagement with the world. Because of the cultural isolation, persecution, and suffering that increasingly come from living as a Christian, there is a certain attraction to just getting out of the public square and huddling together within the Christian community. But, as we have already seen, Jesus is sending us into the world as the Father sent him, “so that the world will know that he loves them and sent his son for them.” Withdrawal is not an option. But neither is the social media slamfest that describes how so many non-Christians experience the church. Rather than fight or flight, which is a limbic system response to suffering and danger, followers of Christ are called to faithful presence. 

One other aspect of Peter’s instruction is that his application is not speaking about particular personal ethics, but about the corporate ethics of the church. This concept of the individual as part of the whole is central to the Biblical message from the patriarchs, through the kings and prophets, to Jesus and his disciples. For individual ethics to align with community ethics, there needs to be “unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind.”

Consider the prayer of Jesus for his diverse disciples in John 17, in which he asks God to make them one so that the world will know that he loves them and sent his Son for them. Paul’s words to the church in Ephesus also depict this counter cultural way of relating to each other and the world, 

Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love. Ephesians 4:15–16

This brings us back to Peter’s foundational statement earlier in the letter, where he describes the followers of Jesus as the new Temple among the people of the world, by using the language of living stones being built into a spiritual house united in offering spiritual sacrifices to God and tying the spiritual sacrifices to ethics, 

So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. 2Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation— if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good. As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 2:1–5 ESV

Each of us, as Christians, plays an important part in the mission of God because we are a part of the whole. Our ethics towards outsiders impact the rest of the church and its witness to the world.  One would think that such behavior would be met with cultural approval. However, Peter, who watched the sinless Son of God die on a cross, understands this is not the case.

That is the subject of our next lesson. 

Application questions

  1. What aspects and situations of life in the public square make pursuing biblical ethics towards others so difficult?

  2. How do the circumstances where you have felt compelled to return evil for evil differ from those in which you have felt compelled to withdraw? What is it that tends to guide your response toward one or the other?

  3. How could those situations have been reshaped by seeking to bless?

[Faithful Prayer] 

  • Cabinet Agency: Servants and leaders at the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy (Labor)  as they play a crucial role in developing and advancing the department's priorities by providing advice to the Secretary of Labor, Deputy Secretary of Labor, and department leadership on actions to improve the lives of workers, retirees and their families.

  • Think Tank, Lobby group, NGO: The American Farm Bureau Federation and its advocacy efforts to ensure reliable labor in agriculture for farmers and ranchers so they can efficiently and effectively produce the food and other agricultural products that feed and support communities and economies around the world.

  • Weekly delegation: For the servants and leaders with the congressional delegation of Illinois.

  • Agency News: The Department of Labor recently announced its servants and leaders have “recovered more than $1.4 million in back wages for more than 2,600 employees after finding a large, San Jose-based electrical engineering and construction company had failed to pay them proper overtime rates, a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act. Investigators with the department’s Wage and Hour Division determined Cupertino Electric Inc. failed to include non-discretionary bonuses when determining the rate for purposes of calculating overtime pay, which led to the significant wage recovery. The company is one of California's largest electrical contractors.“The U.S. The Department of Labor is committed to making sure employees are paid properly, including the full amount of their legally required overtime rates,” said Wage and Hour Division Assistant District Director Lilita Hom in San Jose.

  • Personal requests: For someone caught in a chaotic workplace situation with confusing and unclear leadership structures. For someone dismissed from their senior-level position because of their commitment to the ethics of Christ. For a government advisor traveling to a foreign country to comfort a family member. For several Cabinet agency appointees who are faced with a depleted staff. For a couple hoping to conceive their first child. For an elected official considering a run for another office.

[The Page, The Pod & The Stack]

This Week 

Next Week

[Two Thumbs Up] Rail Records & Books (Union Station, Washington)

Since COVID, many changes have come to Union Station. While there are still several vacant spots, new merchants like Insomnia Cookies and Bullfrog Bagels have opened their doors, with even more new tenants coming. 

Last month, Rail Records & Books brought something to this bustling transportation hub that it has long needed - a shop that sells well-curated used books and vinyl records. In addition to a wide selection of soul, R & B, blues, funk, disco, jazz, and even go-go, music lovers will also find a nice selection of singer-songwriter, classic rock, rap, and easy-listening. Their collection includes rarities and Top 40, LPs and 45s, CDs, 8-tracks, and cassettes. Until recently, their bins included Esther Phillips’ album, All About, and a copy of the Art Farmer Quintet’s live recording, At Boomers. Both of those, however, now reside in a home outside of Warrenton, Virginia.

As for the books, RRB’s selection is equally diverse, with something for everyone’s interests. Best of all, the staff is great, friendly, and willing to chime in with a recommendation for those new to the tactile wonderland that is used records and books. 

Rail Records & Books in Union Station (Credit: Popville)

[Last Things]

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