Page 30 - The Christian Life and the Church Life_Government of God

The Christian Life under the Government of God 29

or some consciousness that we are children of God and that we should live
our life just like a Christian. But we often neglect the fact that we must live
under the government of God. This is what the Epistles of Peter are telling us.
Here we are talking about two things. Firstly, the Triune God has gone
through a process to become the life-giving Spirit. As the life-giving Spirit,
He is also the Spirit dwelling within us to make us a Christian and a believer
of God, so that we can have His divine life and so that we can live a proper
Christian life. But we must also be cognizant of the fact that this Triune God
is the Creator and the Ruler of the universe. He is not only the life-giving
Spirit who came into us to be our life. He is also the Creator of the universe
and the Ruler of the universe. As the Ruler of the universe, He has His divine
government. I am really glad that we have Peter’s Epistles. It seems as if Peter
is the only one who connected these two things: the Christian life and the
government of God. I hope that we would all see both the Christian life and
the government of God. We should also see how these two things go together.
First Peter 4:13 says, “But inasmuch as you share in the sufferings of Christ,
rejoice, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice exultingly.”
In 4:16, it says, “But if as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him
glorify God in this name.” Then verse 17 says, “For it is time for the judgment
to begin from the house of God; and if first from us, what will be the end of
those who disobey the gospel of God?” Also, in verse 19, it says, “So then let
those also who suffer according to the will of God commit their souls in well-
doing to a faithful Creator.” We will speak further about this later.
First Peter 5:6-8 say, “Therefore be humbled under the mighty hand of
God that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your anxiety on Him
because it matters to Him concerning you. Be sober; watch. Your adversary,
the devil, as a roaring lion, walks about, seeking someone to devour.” When
we talk about the government of God, on the one hand we need to have the
fear of God. But Peter also talks about the need to be humbled under the
mighty hand of God and the need to cast all of our anxiety on the Lord. Many
Christians have told me that they do not like to read the book of Revelation
because it is a book on judgment. But Peter, in telling us about this judgment,
also reminded us that we can cast all our anxiety on the One who cares for
us. It matters to Him concerning you. As we go through these messages
concerning God’s government, we must remember to turn to the Lord. Yes,