"A Slave to the Flesh No Longer" - 1 Peter 4:1-2

"Therefore, since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same purpose, because he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, 2 so as to live the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for the lusts of men, but for the will of God." - 1 Peter 4:1-2

     Again, Peter directs us to emulate Christ.  Christ suffered in the flesh, and He did so because He was submissive to God's will, and because He loved others to the point of sacrificing Himself.  We are to arm ourselves with that same attitude.  It's hard, but we should view suffering as an opportunity to submit to God and love others.
     He talks about how fleshly suffering makes sin cease.  This is interesting.  I think what he is trying to communicate is that choosing to suffer in the flesh is robbing it of it's power.  If our flesh is naturally bent towards what it likes, and a lot of the things our flesh likes are sinful, then when we submit our flesh to God and even allow it to suffer, then God has the power and not our flesh.  Living for the will of God means denying our flesh and no longer being mastered by our lusts but by what God desires.