Living Distinctly

Message:  In 1 Peter 1 Peter is encouraging the believers in several providences of Rome because they were gentile believers foreign to the land they were in and they were enduring quite a bit of persecution. Peter is reminding them of not only the hope of eternity waiting for them, but the importance of living “distinctly”. The dictionary definition of “distinct” is “recognizably different in nature from something else of a similar type.” Peter was calling them to live recognizably different in nature from everyone else. I think the words “in nature” are also important here because being distinctly different can’t be faked. To be different in nature is very different than playing the part. Our lives should look different in deeper ways than surface level. We should not be different people for different situations. Obviously there are people in our lives that we are able to be more relaxed with but this still should not change the character of who we are. This is not religious behavior. It’s an attitude of the heart that makes our reactions and intentions look different. When pressure is on like these believers were experiencing, how do we respond and react? Does my response look distinctly different in nature? This challenges me to evaluate my life and ask what things make me fit in, and which things make me distinct.

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