"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; As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: But as He which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy."
1 Peter 1:13-16
Part 2
Yesterday: Prepare for Action – Mentally
“Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind.”
Today: Prepare for Action – With Self-Control
“So prepare your minds for service. With complete self-control, put all your hope in the grace that will be yours when Jesus Christ comes” (1 Peter 1:13, HSB[1]).
In these four verses, Peter gives us five things[2] that we need in our lives to make us ready to serve the Lord.
Prepare mentally for action.
Be sober-minded, self-controlled.
Have hope.
Do not conform to evil desires.
Be Holy.
“Be sober.”
Be sober-minded, self-controlled.
Here’s a command that is used several times in the New Testament for believers. In our culture today, being “sober” generally has to do with being physically free from all alcohol, drugs, and other mind-numbing substances. It is the idea of being “in control” of ourselves and not “out of control.”
In our text, the Greek word “be self-controlled” is only used figuratively in the New Testament.
“It means to be free from every form of mental and spiritual “drunkenness” or excess. Rather than being controlled by outside circumstances, believers should be directed from within” [3] (BKC).
“Sobriety, that is, spiritual self-restraint, lest one be overcome by the allurements of the world…” [4] (JFB).
“More broadly, being sober-minded means that we do not allow ourselves to be captivated by any type of influence that would lead us away from sound judgment. The sober-minded individual is not ‘intoxicated,’ figuratively speaking, and is therefore calm under pressure, self-controlled in all areas, and rational.” [5]
In the New Testament, this character trait is required for pastors and deacons and their wives (1 Timothy 3:2, 11; Titus 1:8).
Believers, part of our preparation for service means learning self-control. This means our thoughts are not scattered but collected. A scatterbrained person is ready to jump up and run out in all directions at once, for there is no restraint there. Having our thoughts collected (being sober-minded) and having discipline in our thinking means that we are in control of our thoughts, actions, and desires. We are thinking clearly, ready to do whatever the Lord asks of us. This is critical advice for end-times living.
With our sobriety, Peter recommends believers be prayer warriors.
“But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer” (1 Peter 4:7).
To our mental sobriety, Peter also adds the quality of vigilance. We must always be watchful and on guard, for there are enemies out there who would destroy us and those we love.
“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8).
Believers, we also need to be self-controlled in our Bible study. If not, it’s easy to be drawn off into tangents studying only those pet doctrines that keep us from knowing the “whole counsel of God” as we ought.
“The word [sober] means ‘to be calm, steady, controlled; to weigh matters.’ Unfortunately, some people get ‘carried away’ with prophetic studies and lose their spiritual balance. The fact that Christ is coming should encourage us to be calm and collected (1 Peter 4:7). The fact that Satan is on the prowl is another reason to be sober-minded (1 Peter 5:8). Anyone whose mind becomes undisciplined, and whose life ‘falls apart’ because of prophetic studies, is giving evidence that he does not really understand Bible prophecy” [6] (Wiersbe).
Please join us tomorrow as we also need to have hope in these end-time days. But how can we have hope when it seems the world is falling apart? Come back tomorrow, and let’s talk more.
Quote: “Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober” (1 Thessalonians 5:5-6).
[1] HSB is the Harvest Study Bible from Harvest Ministries in Guam.
[2] BKC has broken down these four verses into five necessary actions for believers. I’m borrowing these four ideas from them. Raymer, R. M. (1985). 1 Peter. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, pp. 842–843). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[3] BKC, ibid.
[4] JFB, Jamieson, R., Fausset, A. R., & Brown, D. (1997). Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (Vol. 2, p. 501). Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc. The emphasis is theirs.
[5] This quote is from Got Questions Ministries. Downloaded: October 11, 2021. From: https://www.gotquestions.org/sober-minded.html.
[6] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, pp. 395–398). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.