1 Peter 2:1
Rid yourselves,
therefore,
of all malice, and all guile, insincerity, envy, and all slander.
According to the Google, “guile” is defined as “sly or
cunning intelligence”. And Peter says to
rid ourselves of it. Because while the
Christian faith can be many things, sly and cunning are two things it need not
be. Open and direct would be better
considerations for this faith of ours.
Tricking someone into accepting the faith, dancing
around them with well-cast tales about Jesus, instead of the presentation of
the truth of the gospel, that is what Peter turns against in this instance. What he has sought to present to us thus far
in his letter is the truth of the gospel as he has received it. It is that gospel that he then turns over to
his readers, in the first century and today.
Because, in the end, faith in Jesus is a heart thing,
not a head thing. I can convince someone
of the truth of the faith with brilliant logic, flawless rhetoric, and a
hundred examples that will cause their head to spin. “But if I am without love, I am a banging
gong or a clanging cymbal.”
Pair this with malice and we are to rid ourselves of
the intention to do evil and sly intelligence.
Those two go hand in hand.
Fooling someone, setting them up for something, that is stock in trade for
so many religious charlatans, desiring to exploit the religious sensibilities
of the masses for their own gain.
Our faith and the sharing of that faith is never for
such an intent. It is to bring the love
of Christ, the promise of freedom that comes from him, and the possibility of
life eternal. Anything else, we are
called upon to get rid of.
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