Now, the most appropriate interpretation is also the most consistent with the context. What does the context tell us? We must recall several ideas. First, following from 3:18, the suffering in 4:1 refers to death. Also, 3:18 mentions that Christ was "put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit." Then, Peter mentions Noah, who was a preacher of righteousness to his generation. When the flood came, Noah was saved by the ark from the water, but from another perspective, the water saved him from the wickedness and corruption that surrounded him. In this sense, baptism saves us as well. The work of Christ cumulated in his resurrection and ascension, or exaltation. In all of this we are identified with him.

Right after this comes 4:1. Peter does not suddenly change the subject, but there is a natural progression that leads to application. The attitude and insight that we are to have is that Christ suffered to the point of death, and that we are identified with him in this redemptive work. Just as he died for sin, in him we have died to sin. Thus we are now "done with sin" – released from its power. Paul expresses the same truth in Romans 6 – note the parallels to Peter in thought and expression:

What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection. For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin – because anyone who has died has been freed from sin.

In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness. For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace. (v. 1-7, 11-14)

The ideas in these two passages from Paul and Peter so closely correspond that we will not take time to point out the obvious.

Nevertheless, there are objections to this interpretation of 4:1. We will mention only one here. In arguing for another view, Davids writes, "Sin in 1 Peter always indicates concrete acts of sin, not the power of sin over people (i.e., the evil impulse…or the sin principle of Paul). Thus it is not a breaking of a power, but the ceasing of concrete acts that is intended."

We may grant the point about Peter's usage; however, to suppose that this destroys the parallels to Romans 6, so that we cannot use Paul to explain Peter, is to say that only rigid and exact parallels are true parallels. But there is nothing wrong with drawing two applications out of the same truth, provided they are both valid implications. This is especially true in this case. How is it that we are set free from having to perform concrete acts of sin? It is because we have been set free from the principle of sin! On what basis do we say that we have died to sins? It is because we have died to sin!

Indeed, what Paul says in Romans 6 is the basis for the ethical instructions that appear later in his own letter. Even in the portion of Romans 6 cited above, he makes it clear that, because we have died to sin, we have died to sins. Therefore, we should stop sinning. And this is exactly the point that Peter is making, so that he says in 4:2, "As a result, he does not live the rest of his earthly life for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God."

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