1 Peter 1:13 Girding up the loins of the Mind

Peter exhorts the believers to dismiss the distractions of this world.  He asks, “What spiritual matters govern your decisions?”  Those who seek to enter the hope brought to believers by Jesus Christ will establish their manner of life such that it reflects the hope they have.  Distractions are the encumbrances of the flesh.  The encumbrances of the flesh Peter specifically references in the letter include:

1.      Conformity to past passions.  Conformity to the passions of the pre-converted life signals a failure to hope in the rescue of the future.  Those who conform to previous passions face encumbrance in eternal matters.  Such is the case for those who struggle with sins of enticement.  Their spiritual mindedness is obstructed by an old habit.  This does not mean they should have already conquered the enticement, but it does mean they must consistently gird up this encumbrance through repentance.

2.      Blissful ignorance.  Ignorance is never a virtue in the Scripture.  Christian people are known by what they know.  The Apostle John remarks repeatedly about the knowledge of the church.  Peter emphasizes the knowledge of salvation that the church hopes in.  Believers cannot endure without proper knowledge.  The former way of life for the believers flowed from their ignorance about God.  Christian people know the demands of God and, as children who know the demands of their father, fear to offend.  Ignorance about God’s demands is an encumbrance.  People don’t always get into sinful relationships because they are attempting to be evil, sometimes they get off-base because they are ignorant.

Girding up (ie. preparing the mind) for the journey demands both determination and careful reflection.  Any who seek to serve God have great hope but always wrestle with the encumbrance innate to this earthly existence.  Popular psychology encourages goal setting.  Peter encourages eternity setting.  Set eternity as your goal and the journey makes more sense.  Think through the eternal reality of situations in order to discover the right decision.

-Pastor Kevin Jordan