Open your Bibles once again to 1 Peter 3. I'm just going to read verses 8 through 12 once again. 1 Peter 3. Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous, not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing, but contrary wise, blessing, knowing that ye are there unto called, that ye should inherit a blessing. For he that will love life and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile. Let him eschew evil and do good. Let him seek peace and ensue it. For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers. But the face of the Lord is against them that do evil." As we already noted, the key to this passage is found in verse 10. We find the phrase, Let him who means to love life and see good days refrain his tongue. This passage of Scripture is telling us what we must do if we're going to love and enjoy the good life. Solomon was also very interested in this topic. In fact, we read about him carrying on his own little personal research project. In Ecclesiastes 1 verse 13, it tells us that Solomon set his mind to pursue wisdom. And I set my mind to seek and explore by wisdom concerning all that has been done under heaven. And what was his conclusion? In verses 16 through 18, Solomon says, I said to myself, behold, I have magnified and increased wisdom more than all who were overdrew some before me. And my mind has observed a wealth of wisdom and knowledge. And I set my mind to know this wisdom and to know madness and folly. I realize this is also striving after the wind because in much wisdom, there's much grief and increasing knowledge results in increasing pain. That anyone who has matured in life, we'll say, grown a little older, surely can understand that increasing knowledge results in increasing pain the more you realize the things that are going on. Then, in Ecclesiastes 2 verse 1, it tells us that Solomon set his mind to pursue pleasure. I said unto myself, Come now, I will test you with pleasure, so enjoy yourself. And behold, it too was futility. And they expand on this Evaluation goes on in verses 2 and 3 I said of laughter is madness and a pleasure what is accomplished then after this Solomon pursued materialism that we see in verses in verse chapter 2 verse 4 I Enlarge my works. I built houses for myself. I planted visions for myself. I I made gardens and parks for myself. I planted in them all kinds of fruit trees. I made ponds of water for myself in which to irrigate a forest of growing trees. I bought male and female slaves. I had home-born slaves. Also, I possessed flocks and herds larger than all who preceded me. Also, I collected for myself silver and gold. the treasure of kings and provinces I provided for myself male and female singers and the players of men many concubines Then I became great and increased more than all who preceded me in Jerusalem My wisdom also stood by me and all that my eyes desired I did not refuse them I did not withhold my heart from any pleasure, for my heart was pleased because all my labor, and this was my reward for all my labor. Thus I considered all my activities which my hands had done, and the labor which I had exerted. And behold, all was vanity and striving after wind, and there waxed no profit under the sun." Imagine being able to make the statement. But you could say, anything that my eyes could see that I wanted, I got it. So is there anything more that you can imagine? Maybe he just didn't imagine the right things or didn't see the right things. No one was in a better position than Solomon. to explore all these pursuits to the fullest. And yet, in the end, he saw all these pursuits were chasing after the wind. He saw all these things which the world around us are so committed to as foolishness. In fact, as Solomon looked at the emptiness of the pursuits of man, while at the same time observing all the trouble that mankind endures in this world, he says in Ecclesiastes 4, And I looked again at all the acts of oppression which were being done unto the Son. And behold, I saw the tears of the oppressed, and that they had no one to comfort them. And on the side of their oppressors was power, but they had no one to comfort them. So I congratulated the dead, who are already dead, more than the living, who are still living. But better off than both of them is the one who has never existed, who has never seen the evil activity that is done under the sun. Now that should be an extremely depressing evaluation. Better off I'd never been born. But this is exactly how Solomon, in fact, saw life. And yet Solomon was not finished. He concluded the book with a very simple statement. Ecclesiastes 12 13 the conclusion and all has been heard is fear God and keep his commandments Solomon is saying to us in words incredibly clear that apart from seeking a life Apart from seeking a life to live a life in humble submission Lord to be better for you to never been born It is a life lived in humble submission before the Lord which truly at offers the good life 1 Peter 3 verses 8-12 is simply expanding on the premise by giving us this kind life, by giving to us the kind of life those seeking to live the good life should be living. The passage of Scripture that we are looking at now that we're examining now allows us to see the visible expression of what constitutes a good life. This passage allows us to see the specific actions that would be taken by those who are seeking to live a life in humble submission before the Lord. We begin with the testimony of Peter and Looked at the all the behaviors that should be pursued in verse 8 if we would love life and seek good days Then we need to pursue being harmonious sympathetic brotherly kind-hearted and humble in spirit Having given us the behaviors that we should be pursuing, Peter then goes on to tell us in verse 9 the behaviors to be avoided. First is not returning evil for evil. Those who Peter was writing to were in the midst of a very severe persecution. Therefore, it's not surprising at all that Peter would not take time not only to encourage these believers to pursue certain positive behaviors, but he would also encourage them to avoid certain negative behaviors, especially those negative behaviors associated with unjust treatment. How easy is it for us when we're wrong to want to retaliate? It's just our nature. How many times have you seen someone in a situation where they seem to be caught off guard and they feel like they've just been attacked and they retaliate and then in just a moment the situation's cleared up and that's not what was meant at all but they've already done it. It's a natural, it seems just so natural for us. You remember the expression, it's an old expression, don't get mad, get even. How many examples do we have of people, you know, we used to have a term for it, now I haven't heard it used in a long time, but it was going postal. People going to the post office, people working in the post office, that seemed to be a thing at one time, but we've seen many other examples over the years of someone feel like they've done wrong at their workplace, or in some kind of a public setting, and the more they do, they go back and they deal out, they retaliate. Many, many of those have happened over the years, when you think back on them, and many we've probably never even heard of. This may be what our flesh wants to do, what many people's flesh wants to do to retaliate, but it is a totally unprofitable, it's totally unprofitable, to approach life in this way. People that live always wanting to get revenge on anyone that they feel has wronged them or has slighted them in some way. If we truly want to live the good life, we cannot foster this kind of behavior. Therefore, read verse 9, do not return evil for evil. The word for evil is one that speaks of what is evil in character, that thing which is inherently bad. If someone has treated us in an inherently bad way, or a bad and evil way, we are not to feel that it's okay for us to treat them in the same way they treated us. Now, it may be that we haven't murdered anyone recently in retaliation for what they may have done to us, but I would be very surprised If there's any of us here who have not battled feelings of retaliation in respect to someone in their life, maybe a husband, a wife, mother, father, sister, a brother, an employee, fellow employee, an employer, or a friend. It is easy for us when we hurt. to want to strike back. It's our natural thing. But the scriptures are clear. Do not return evil for evil. This is a very basic One of the most basic biblical principles in Matthew chapter 5 it says you've heard it But it was said an eye for an eye for in a tooth for a tooth But I say to you do not resist him who is evil but whosoever slaps you on your right cheek Turn to him the other also and if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt and let him have your coat also and any and whosoever or whoever shall force you to go one mile go with him to in fact The passage goes on in 43 and 44, it says, you've heard it 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. Someone might say, well, there must be some point along the way where revenge is appropriate. Men may think this, but it's not what the scriptures teach. In Romans 12, 17, never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Respect what is right in sight of all men. We are never to act in a retaliatory or vengeful spirit, treating others in the same evil way that we believe that they've treated us. Paul reiterates this in 1 Thessalonians 5 verse 15, see that no one repays another with evil for evil, but always seek after that which is good for one another and for all men. Peter has been talking here about evil acts so far in this verse. Now Peter moves to an area of speech and identifies another area that needs to be avoided. In verse 9, not returning evil for evil or insult for insult. We are not only not to retaliate evil acts, but even with evil speech. Someone may say we need to expose evil. Well, certainly there are times when evil needs to be exposed, but we need to be discerning about when that would be profitable. in respect to the unsaved community, we should have a responsibility to expose false teachers or false professors. Certainly Christ felt the freedom to do this, and we need to follow His example. But apart from this, there is no need for us to go about doing this. And in respect to the church, we are called to confront sin in respect to individual members, but this should never be done in any kind of a spirit of retaliation, returning an insult for insult, but out of genuine concern for the person. To engage in some kind of war of words, returning insult for insult, is a very, very serious matter. People who do this could be labeled, in a biblical term, as a reviler. A reviler is just simply one who speaks abusively. In 1 Corinthians 5.11 it says, But actually I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he should be an immoral person or covetous or an idolater or a reviler. We're not to associate with people who have mouths which are foul with abuse, those who feel the freedom to abuse others with their tongues, inflicting damage upon a person or a person's reputation simply because we've been provoked by something they have done or said." Paul makes a stronger statement. in first Corinthians 6 verses 9 and 10. Do you not know that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers shall inherit the kingdom of God. We have not been saved by works, but as Ephesians 2 tells us so clearly, we have been saved unto good works. We're not saved by our good works. We're saved to do good works. God has not brought us into his family so that we can remain the same revengeful, mouth abusers, foul-mouthed persons that we have been. As we grow and mature in Christ, we will discover a totally new dynamic dominating what we want to say, what our speech is. What might that be? Verse 9, it says, not returning evil for evil or insult for insult, but giving a blessing instead. What does that mean? The word here is related to the word that we use for eulogy. It means to speak well of. It means to lie at their funeral. No, that's not what it means. It means to speak well of. What could this involve? We can actually answer this question by looking at its usage in the New Testament. First, to bless someone can refer to invoking blessings on behalf of that person, or in other words, to pray for that individual that good things might happen to them. We see this used in a way in Luke 628 where it says, bless those who curse you and pray for those who mistreat you. We are not to return evil for evil or insult for insult, but rather we are to bless. We are desired good things for them and thus we bless them by praying or speaking good things to the Lord for them. This is something that should be, it should have, you should have an aha moment with this. If you're praying for the lost, this should be an aha moment, right? Speaking good things, how many more good things can it be than to be praying for the lost? But then there's the other things, the things that flow out of this. Are you doing this? Are you praying for those who have mistreated you? How many times do you want to take this, hear something like that, and you think, okay, I'll do that. But go back and think. Do you have somebody in your past that's wronged you? You're holding a grudge against? You're not praying, you're not seeking a blessing for them? You want them to pay. Is there something you can accept this for this group of people? but you're not going to accept it for this person? You're putting them in a different spot? Are you praying for those who mistreated you? Or are you in anger with a spirit of retaliation wanting to strike back? If you are then, you can rest assured that you're outside of God's will for your life. Second, to bless someone can also refer to actually being thankful for them. We see this usage in Luke chapter 6, chapter 9, verse 16, where it says, And he took five loaves and two fish, and looking up to heaven, he blessed them. The term bless in the Scriptures oftentimes means to thank. Therefore, another way for us to bless those who do evil towards us or insults us is to thank the Lord for them. Why would we thank the Lord for them? Because He's using them in our sanctification. Are you doing this? Are you thanking the Lord for those he has permitted into your life? The Lord obviously has a reason. The Lord obviously has a reason. If you believe in God's sovereignty in all things, then you have to, have to, have to understand when you look back that God has allowed these people into your life for a reason, to teach you. Now this is an excuse to sin. to look forward and to go off into some sin over here because the Lord is going to bless you some way through that sin. You're just justifying yourself and you're trying to make up an excuse for your sinful lifestyle. That's not what we're talking about here. We're talking about when you look back and you can see the things that have happened, you need to be thankful to God that He's put you through the things that you've been through to teach you the very things He wants you to learn. Are you thanking the Lord for those He's permitted in your life? Who have made it difficult for you? Who have affected you in ways that you only can see the negative from? You haven't gleaned out of that the positive things that God is teaching you? Believing that through them God is doing a great work? Or are you in anger with a spirit of retaliation, striking back, waiting for that moment? And maybe you're not the type that's bold enough to confront someone. Maybe you're laying in wait until somebody else does it so you can revel in it. If you are, you can rest assured that you're outside of God's will for your life. Third, to bless someone can finally mean to speak well of them. Consider the story of Mary and Elizabeth in Luke chapter 1. The Bible tells us that when Mary was pregnant with Jesus, that she went to visit Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist. And when Elizabeth saw Mary, she exclaimed, Blessed among women are you, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. What did Elizabeth do? She spoke well of Mary. She spoke. She spoke. well of her. In other words, she blessed her. In the context of this passage, we are being called not to return evil for evil or insult for insult, but rather rendering a blessing. In other words, to speak well of the person who is causing difficulty. This does not mean that you need to lie about them to lie to them or lie about them. It means that you have to be careful how you speak about them. If you speak to them or about them, you speak good things. Are you doing this? Are we doing this? Are you speaking well of those who have caused you difficulty? Not speaking well of them or to them, but speaking well of them to others? Are you in anger or in anger and in a spirit of retaliation, of striking back? Let's look then at the last phrase of the verse. It says, For you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing. We have been given a gift that we did not deserve. We were elect by God for a blessing. The point is if we have been freely given a blessing from God without any merit, rather than vengeance from a God who we have offended so greatly, then we should be able to understand why we should do this. We offended God. But did he give us vengeance? No, not as Christians. Then why would we treat others who we feel are mistreating us so poorly, returning evil for evil or insult for insult? We need to greet them in the same gracious way which we have been treated. You can look to Matthew 18 verse 21 on the topic No forgiveness. So, in concluding the first, and now this, second half of 1 Peter 3 here, there are some questions for us to consider. Do we want to live the good life? Do you want to live the good life? The good life then let us pursue certain behaviors. Let us pursue being harmonious. There are times when strangers will come up to you in your time of need. Maybe you're out in public somewhere and you need a hand with something. It can be something as simple as somebody struggling and you open the door for them. That is a tiny example of living in a way that's harmonious. Imagine the bigger things. You have a family member, someone you're in close contact with, a friend, someone at church, a brother, a sister. How far do you go trying to push your agenda rather than just being harmonious, living in a harmonious way, helping them out, coming along the side, letting your own personal, your own personal trivial things go and embracing them. Harmonious. Then pursue being sympathetic. And sympathetic, sympathetic is for us as Christians, in the Christian life it is being brotherly, but then for those outside of Christ being sympathetic to them in a way that the only difference between us and them is the salvation that God has given us, not anything we have done. So before we look down our nose at them, the difference between us and them is His work, nothing that we've done. Let us pursue being brotherly let us pursue being kind-hearted Jesus when he was When Jesus was here on this earth and we can see Through his word the look looking through his eyes and what did he see was he mad? About what he saw overall No, he had compassion He looked on them as sheep with no shepherd." Now, is he mad about sin? Oh yeah, we've seen that. Let us pursue being humble in spirit. Being humble, being humble around others. Do we want to live the good life? Then let us avoid certain behaviors. Let us not return evil for evil. Let us not return insult for insult. Don't try to one-up. to be witty, to get one over on someone. But rather, let us give a blessing instead. This is what God has called us to. Let us therefore fear Him and keep His commandments. Let's close with a prayer.