KEEP A SOUND MIND
"But the end of all things is at hand," wrote the apostle Peter in his first letter (4:7). Although the then existing Jewish system of things was to end a few years after this letter was written (because in the year 70 CE the Romans destroyed Jerusalem and its temple and thus put an end to the Jewish priesthood, including its official acts and sacrifices), these inspired words of the apostle are nevertheless mainly relevant to us and refer to our time, in which an entire world order is to end. The many references in the apostle Peter's letter to the time of the "revelation" of Jesus Christ confirm this. - 1 Peter 1:5, 7, 13; 2:12; 4:13.The apostle himself followed his advice to 'expect and keep firmly in mind' "the presence of the day of Jehovah" - that is, God's time for the end of the present world order and the beginning of the righteous new order. It is a protection for us to 'keep this time firmly in mind, and not to think that it is still a long way off, that we still have plenty of time to pursue selfish goals, and that in the end we can still turn around at the right time and do justice in order to escape worldwide destruction. We are still alive now; we don't know if we will be alive tomorrow or next week. Therefore, we should prepare ourselves now for God's new order. - James 4:13-15.
What should we focus our attention on now in view of the rapidly approaching end? "Therefore be of sound mind," is the advice of the inspired Bible writer, "and be watchful with regard to prayers." (1 Pet. 4:7) Instead of "be ... of a sound mind", other translations read: "Be ... prudent" (Elberfelder Bibel), "be temperate" (Albrecht) and "be ... understanding" (Zurich Bible). The apostle Paul used a similar expression when he wrote the encouraging words: "So let us not sleep on like the rest, but let us keep awake and be sensible." (1 Thess. 5:6) It would certainly not be good to be unreasonable, reckless or imprudent in this day and age. On the contrary, we should think and act soberly now.
We should also be of sound mind regarding our hope for life in God's new order. Why do we strive for it? Why is this hope attractive to us? Is it mainly because of the material and physical benefits it promises us? Would that be right? Perhaps we are thinking of a text such as Isaiah 65:21, which says: "And they will certainly build houses and live in them; and they will certainly plant vineyards and eat their fruit." Based on this text, should we imagine ourselves living in a magnificent mansion or palace, and should that be attractive to us? Doesn't the text simply speak of "houses"? And most of us live in a house today. This prophecy was fulfilled for the first time when the Israelites returned from exile to the desolate land of Judah, where there were no more houses and no more vineyards. After their arrival there, they built houses and planted vineyards.
