What is right

“Therefore, let those also who suffer according to the will of God entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right.”  1 Peter 4:19

What is right – Peter made it up.  Not the rule, the word.  When he came to the end of this verse, he needed a word that would express something important.  But he just couldn’t find one.  So, he made up his own word.  Agathopolia.  This is the only place it is used.  It means, “to do good works”.  It comes from the words for “make” and “good”.  It’s quite a bit bigger than our usual idea of “doing what’s right”.  It’s not just following the rules.  It’s following the Master.

Christianity is not another version of rule keeping.  It is not a replacement of Jewish orthodox behavior with an ethics based on a new orthodoxy.  Christianity is total commitment to the Lordship of Jesus.  It is a complete sell-out to his way of life.  Not rules, but righteousness.  So, when Peter says that those who endure the events that happen to them as the intersection of God’s will and circumstances, he means that we are following in the footsteps of Jesus.  Jesus endured events in order to do the will of the Father.  We endure events for the same reason.  Jesus trusted his life to the Father.  So do we.  And Jesus did exactly what the Father asked.  That is doing good works.  It’s not rule-keeping.  It’s relationship maintaining.

Oswald Chambers often says that the clear requirement is to never let anything come between Jesus and you.  Nothing.  Ever.  Do you want to do what is right?  Then do everything possible to maintain the relationship.  Keep it unsullied, unhurried and open.  All of the “rules” will just fall naturally into place. 

There is one more thing to notice about Peter’s comment.  Peter says that when life gets traumatic, the believer trusts God’s faithfulness as he or she continues making good works.  Trauma is not rest and recovery time.  It is time to keep on keeping on.  It is time to make those good things happen that Jesus so patiently demonstrated in His passion.  Forgiveness.  Peace.  Acceptance.  Humility.  Commitment.  All good works done in the moments of suffering.

Have you moved beyond rules?  Do you display the character of the Savior in the trauma that besets you?