1 Pet 2:1 Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind.

   

Yesterday we saw Old Testament law revealing God's view of things, of how we should maintain justice. In the New Testament the Law, as such, is not a means of showing the way to salvation, but there are still ‘rules' or requirements, of God's design for us, and these still apply. There are still things that run contrary to God's design and which will harm us, our relationship with God and with others, and which are, therefore, things to be avoided. It's not a legalistic thing, just a practical thing for harm-free living.

 

Thus Peter brings this instruction before the church. Make sure, he says, that you have right attitudes towards everyone else. There are things here that have no place in the life of the Christian. First there is malice – a spiteful attitude that wants to get back at other people. Then there is deceit – simply deceiving others by telling lies (don't call them anything else.) Then there is hypocrisy – which meant play acting, or pretending to be something you are not. Be real, be truthful, be honest. Then comes envy – discontent with your lot, so you wish for what others are or have. Finally there is slander – speaking untruths that pull down others, that damage their reputation and make others think badly of them.

 

We need to really take hold of these things. There is no room for them in the lives of true Christians if God's love genuinely flows in us. Check yourself out to make sure these things aren't there! Listen to what is said among the congregation of God's people, inside the local church and in the broader context, and make sure none of these things exist. We are, after all, called to be a holy people, a people who are utterly different from the unbelieving world, a people who reflect the love and goodness of their Saviour, the One who set us an example of how to live and how to love all others, blessing them and seeking the best for them. That rules out all these things above.