Live for the Gospel

22 Since you have purified your souls in obedience to the truth for a sincere love of the brothers and sisters, fervently love one another from the heart, 23 for you have been born again not of seed which is perishable, but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring word of God. 24 For,

“All flesh is like grass,

And all its glory is like the flower of grass.

The grass withers,

And the flower falls off,

25 But the word of the Lord endures forever.”

And this is the word which was preached to you. 1 Peter 1:22-25

All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flowers of the field. Grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord endures forever. In everything we do, every situation we face, and every decision we make, we must ask ourselves, “Am I living according to the flesh or according to the gospel?” Don’t complicate issues with nuance, excuses, and rationalization. Just be honest and blunt with yourself: is this for something that will wither away and fall, or will it endure forever?

We face all kinds of situations in life. We must make clear without any shred of doubt that God creates every moment, situation, event, and crisis that we meet. Good or bad, it’s coming from God. If we understand this, it will take care of a lot of unnecessary energy and emotion we might invest into complaining or seeking answers where there are none. Financial problems? Health problems? A promotion? Good health? Good or bad, God creates everything we face. We face situations that can be gifts from God or curses that ruin us.

Once we recognize and accept everything comes from God, we must choose. Do I live for the gospel or do I live for the flesh? Living for the flesh means living for things that will wither away like grass, fall off like flower. Yes, at one point in life, grass is beautiful. Flowers are beautiful. But their beauty doesn’t last forever. If we live for the flesh, we live for our selfish desires. We live for things like money, power, and gratification, and these things wither away. We know when we’re doing something that has nothing to do with God. Our conscience speaks to us. When we pray or read the Bible or listen to a sermon, it pokes at us. We know when our thoughts and actions have nothing to do with God. When you feel this, recognize you are living for the flesh, repent, and make a change.

Whether hardships or good fortune come, we must be the same. We must be steadfast in our mission to live according to the gospel. The “word of the Lord endures forever.” We must live according to His word. We must live for the gospel, which means living for God, truth, and the regenerated spirit.There are some cases where we choose to live for God and truth and the results might bring on more hardship or what we perceive to be worsening conditions. Even so, press on living for God and truth because in the end, the word of the Lord endures forever. Yes, giving up God and truth in the moment might make your lives easier. It might bring you a pot of gold. It might make you popular. But remember, all these things are like grass and flower. They will wither away and fall off. They are transient, here one day and gone the next. Do you want to stake your life on something so ephemeral?

Let’s simplify our lives. We intellectualize our faith to the point we have excuses and rationalizations for everything we do. Let’s stop and boil everything down to one question: is this for the gospel, or is this for the flesh? Gospel or flesh! There’s no wiggle room. If you are living for the flesh… if you are living for money, desire, acceptance, or status, stop and repent. Stop making choices and living for things that will wither away and fall off. Live for the gospel. Live for God and truth and reap eternal life.

Click for Korean sermon https://soundcloud.com/yhpaik/1980-12-14-full-mixdown