1 Peter 4:17-19, Judgement begins in the house of the Lord
We live in a society that has become masters of shifting the blame off themselves and on to others. We have politicians who have been in power for decades, yet it is not their fault our nation looks the way it does, it is the other political party’s fault. It is not your or your child’s fault that they are disobedient and rebellious in school there must be something wrong with the teacher, they just don’t like your child. It is not the churches fault that our nation looks like it does, the world just doesn’t care. Wait a minute could it be the church’s fault our nation looks the way it does. Could America look the way it does today because the church is in the shape it is in today? The world may play the game of passing the buck, but the church has no room to do so. Peter says that it is time for judgment to begin with the God’s house. The church needs to look inwardly to make sure that everything is right inside before we start pointing fingers at the world around us.
Peter says that before we ask the world to obey the gospel of God, we better make sure that we are obeying the gospel ourselves. He quotes Proverbs 11:21 where it says, “if it is hard for the righteous to be saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?” In other words, if the church cannot get it right is there any hope for the world. It is time that judgement begins in the house of the Lord, we need to wake up and look ourselves in the mirror and be honest with ourselves with what we see. We need to take ownership that the world looks the way it does because we haven’t done our part in the body of Christ. We haven’t been the hands of the feet of Jesus and we have neglected to carry His love and gospel message to a lost and dying world. We must purge the church of sin and start living as the light of the world; it is time for a spiritual makeover into the image of Christ.