1 Peter 2:11-12 ¹¹Beloved, I urge you as foreigners and sojourners to abstain from the fleshly desires that wage war against the soul, ¹²having your conduct among the Gentiles as honorable, in order that, when they slander you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.

The topic shifts as Peter covers how believers ought to live as the people of God in response to God’s mercy. Verses 11-17 address the whole community, while slaves and women are addressed in later verses. The next section of the letter deals with the current difficult situation of the recipients in Asia Minor. They were a small minority who had been called out of their pagan and immoral environment to live in holiness in reflection of God’s own character. Peter helps them understand how to live as Christians in a culture that did not understand and may not even have tolerated their changed lives. The light stands out in the darkness. Even those limited by the larger society, who in that day would have been slaves and women, are called to live above their situation and be examples of the faith they profess.

Peter moves from the resource for holiness to the nemesis, sin. Fleshly desires plague everyone because of our fallen nature. Ever since Adam and Eve, something has been lacking in humans, with a weakened physical and spiritual condition because of the power of death at work in us. In our fight against death, we fight against one another, creation, and ultimately, our Creator. Our worldly thinking deteriorates into selfish living fed by our sinful nature. The result is a war between our evil desires and the gracious promptings of the Holy Spirit, who speaks to our consciences. Fleshly desires fight against our goal of being holy. The darkness tries to encroach on the light in our lives.

Part of this battle comes simply from living in a world influenced by death and sin. Peter calls his readers foreigners and exiles, returning to the theme he started the letter with in 1:1. Christians live in this world as strangers because we follow a different set of values. The answer for sin is to abstain and stay away from those things which entice us. Reject sin and flee temptation. One of the best courses we can take is to change our desires to good things, arm ourselves with new thinking, and associate ourselves with people who can help us and hold us accountable. Sin is not an enemy who will stay quiet and retreat. We must be vigilant and ready.

Verse 12 indicates that the choices we make in how we live will bear witness to our faith in Jesus. Our reputation is very important because how we live verifies what we believe. As God’s holy people in this world, we will stand out from the darkness, and non-believers are looking at us to see what is different. If our lives are no better than theirs, then why should they believe what we say? There must be a qualitative difference between the lives of believers and unbelievers. We can protect our reputations by living good lives and doing good deeds. We can strive to live in such a way that people cannot find anything bad to say about us even though they accus us of such. Paul the Apostle faced that in his many trials as recorded in Acts. Though accused by his Jewish opponents, the Roman officials could find nothing deserving of death. Our witness will make a difference in someone’s life on the day of judgment.