An Obedient Child

Let me say a few more words about 1 Peter. I find it interesting that Peter challenges his readers with a series of similes. The first one, the challenge to live “as obedient children” is not exactly what we might think. He says:

1:14 As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance, 15 but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; 16 because it is written, "YOU SHALL BE HOLY, FOR I AM HOLY." 17 If you address as Father the One who impartially judges according to each one's work, conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your stay on earth…

Let’s look first at the call to “be holy in all your behavior.” If we aren’t careful here, we will miss an important distinction related to holiness. The word translated “behavior” is broader than how we act. It really has to do with every part – every dimension – every manner of life. So the implication is that this call to holiness has to do with attitude, and thought, and emotion, and will, and purpose. Then when all of those dimensions of life are given over to holiness, of course behavior will necessarily follow. So the reality of this admonition is that Peter is urging these people to grow into holiness from the inside out.

Another observation I make is that there is a model by which we are to gauge our holiness; we are to be “like the Holy One who called you.” God is not just holy in the way He acts – He IS Holy – every part of his being is holy – Holiness is God and God is Holiness. So if we are to be holy LIKE God is holy, then just focusing on behavior is completely inadequate.
Now, notice that Peter quickly moves from an image of a holy God, which some have understood to be a distant and unapproachable being who is impossible to imitate, to an image they all can identify with “If you address as Father …” He wants them to see that this is not an unattainable calling.

The overall implication of this is that the call to be obedient children is not a call to behave better so much as it is a call to be like their father. Peter basically says, “As obedient children, be like your Father.” Obedience as a child is completely different than obedience as a slave. A slave is obedient when he does what he is told to do. A child is obedient when he is reflecting the character of his father. So an obedient child is not one that does what he is told – an obedient child is one that seeks to be like his Father. And let me hasten to add, that imitation doesn’t have to be perfect – in fact, it won’t be perfect. An obedient child is not a perfect child, but he is a child whose heart is longing to be like his parent.

When I was in seminary, I had an evangelism professor named Robert Coleman. Robert had a young son at the time that loved his daddy and wanted desperately to be like him. One day, he looked out the back door and saw his dad working in the yard under the hot and humid summer sun. Quickly, he did what he had seen his dad do in a similar situation. Whenever he had been out playing hard in the hot sun, his dad had brought him a drink of water. So Robert’s little son did what he had seen his dad do. He grabbed a glass, filled it with water and ran outside to give it to his dad. He ran up behind his dad and tugged on his daddy’s pant leg. His dad turned around and looked down into the face of his son. His son lifted up a glass of water. Robert smiled, bent down, took the glass of water, drank it all and hugged his son.

Now, for the rest of the story… Robert’s son couldn’t reach the cabinet where the clean glasses were kept, so he grabbed one that had been sitting on the counter a while and had curdled milk in the bottom. It also had a fly stuck to the curdled milk. Little Robert didn’t know the difference in the hot and cold water, so he filled the glass with warm water. So when Robert drank down that entire glass full of water, it was coming from a dirty glass, filled with hot water, tainted with curdled milk, and had a fly floating on top. Was that a perfect reflection of the kind of drink the son had received from the father? No! Was it a reflection of the Father’s heart? Absolutely!

Obedient children in the context of 1 Peter are children who have looked at the holy character of God, and are seeking to emulate the character they have seen in Him. We want to be Holy, not because God told us to be holy, but because we want to be like our heavenly Father. Will we be able to do it perfectly? Absolutely not! But God is not interested in perfect behavior – He is interested that our hearts respond to and seek to imitate His holiness.