Sharon Reformed Presbyterian Church · Sermon study sheet

Honorable Conduct

Bryan Schneider · October 12, 2024

1 Peter 2:11-12

sharonrpc.org/sermons/honorable-conduct

Summary

Christians are beloved pilgrims whose lasting citizenship is in heaven, so they live within the world without belonging to its sinful way.
The first enemy in spiritual warfare is within: fleshly desires such as pride, hypocrisy, covetousness, self-gratification, gossip, and lust wage war against the soul.
Believers must both abstain from sinful desires and practice honorable good works, even when unbelievers slander those works as evil.
Sanctification follows justification and regeneration; holy conduct cannot earn acceptance but grows from having first been declared righteous in Christ and born again by the Spirit.
True repentance puts specific sins off and turns toward corresponding obedience, while avoiding pride, external-only change, complacency, and self-reliance.
Christians examine themselves through God's law, the contrast between flesh and Spirit, and the character of Jesus, fighting sin with hope that God will complete his work.

Do I live as though my final citizenship is in heaven or as though this world is my permanent home?
Which inward desire is presently waging the most persistent war against my soul?
Am I more preoccupied with critics outside me than with sin still operating within me?
Have I confused sanctification with the justification that can only be received through faith in Christ?
Is my repentance producing changed desires and conduct, or only regret and a better outward appearance?
What do the Ten Commandments, the fruit of the Spirit, and Jesus' character reveal about where I need to grow?
How can I continue doing good when my conduct is misunderstood or falsely criticized?

Sojourner: A temporary resident whose lasting citizenship lies elsewhere, describing Christians who live in this world while belonging finally to heaven.
Fleshly lusts: Sinful desires arising from fallen human nature, including far more than sexual sin—pride, envy, materialism, self-glorification, and other self-centered passions.
Justification: God's once-for-all declaration that the believer is righteous through faith in Jesus Christ, which precedes and grounds Christian growth.
Regeneration: The Spirit's act of giving new life and a new heart, enabling a sinner to believe and begin a renewed life.
Sanctification: The progressive work of the Spirit making a justified believer more holy and increasingly like Jesus.
Repentance: Seeing and grieving sin, turning from it to God because of mercy in Christ, and pursuing new obedience.
Honorable conduct: Visible Christian goodness that reflects Christ before unbelievers even when they misunderstand or slander it.