Devotions—I Peter
I Peter 4:12-19
Beloved, do not be surprised atthe fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.13 But rejoiceinsofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be gladwhen his glory is revealed.14 If you are insultedfor the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of gloryand of God rests upon you.15 Butlet none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer oras a meddler.16 Yetif anyone suffers as aChristian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify Godin that name.17 For it is time for judgmentto begin at the household of God; andif it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those whodo not obey the gospel of God?18 And
“If the righteous is scarcely saved,what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?”
19 Therefore let those who suffer according to God’s willentrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good.
Sometimes when folks are going to say something hard, they begin with a compliment or in this case a reminder of something important so as to offer comfort before the sting. Here, Peter begins by calling us “beloved”. We are a fellowship of love. We are a community that is bound together because we are loved. We are in this together, united, not by something IN us but by something outside of us: The love of God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
There are fiery trials that come to test us, how are we to view them? Peter says they should not be a surprise to us. This is the point he has already made in 1:6-7. The verb: “to be surprised” is the same one already used in 4:4. In the context there is a very interesting comparison; The pagans are surprised that the Christians won’t join them in their sins; (4:4) the Christians, however, should not be surprised that living in this fallen world means trials, sufferings and tribulation especially if righteousness and the pleasure of the Lord is heartbeat of our lives. In Peter’s context the trials and sufferings are the direct result of people hating the Christian church and seeking to persecute believers.
And here is where the plot thickens. Peter says these trials are to test you. Well, who is doing the testing? It is not the unbelievers; their goal is not to “test us”. And it is not the inanimate circumstances of life that have no consciousness that desire the testing of Christians. This is our God…He is testing us. God is refining us. His desire is to make sure we are real, genuine and true; To make us like our Savior.
Paul says something similarly surprising: “…if we are children, then heirs – heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.” [Romans 8:17]: You’ve got to think about why it is that this subject of suffering in the Christian life, and suffering that God has appointed for us and suffering as a test of our faith, as a means of us growing in the grace of God, appears as frequently as it does. Paul even says in Philippians 3 that he wants to share in Christ’s suffering!
Verse 14 points out that the blessedness that comes to those who suffer while submitting to the Lord is not only for the future. He says we “are blessed”. We are to know ourselves as having God’s favor in and during our sojourn and most profoundly in the midst of what we are called to suffer for Christ’s sake.
Peter hurries on to say that it is only suffering as a Christian and for Christ that brings such blessing. There are many trials that come to people, many difficulties that have nothing at all to do with righteousness. We certainly understand that if someone suffers because they are a murderer or a thief that is hardly cause for blessing. But then Peter uses the term meddler. tThis is Peter’s gentle reminder that there are good ways and foolish ways to bear witness to one’s faith and to condemn the pagan culture.
Sometimes Christians are foolish, unkind, and arrogant. When suffering comes to us because we are gossiping, or meddling in other people’s business or holding our Christianity in a way that discredits Christianity’s virtues then we bring upon ourselves the disgust of pagans and other Christians as well. For someone to hold up a sign that says, “God hates fags” in the name of Christianity, is an abomination. Terrible and utterly fruitless as a testimony to the truth of the Word of God.
At the same time, Peter knows how horrible the world can be and how difficult life often is for those seeking the honor of the true King. James had been dead for years by now. Peter had probably been present at Stephen’s stoning and had himself been in jail and threatened with death more than once. And Peter links the suffering of the people of God to the suffering of Jesus Himself. (2:21)
Peter knew about the suffering of Jesus. He had seen it with his own eyes. Peter knew how horrible it had been for a sinless man to be considered by other men not only not the Messiah, but not even a good and righteous man. He knew what pain and humiliation it was for the Lord to have the world deny and reject everything that he was and heap scorn on all that he lived his life for. Peter was in the Garden the night before the crucifixion when the Lord Christ. The last thing in the world it was possible for Peter to think was that such suffering as Christians suffered, such suffering as was a kind of partnership in the Lord’s own suffering, was a small thing. When he speaks of their “fiery trial” he means what he says. He knew how terrible it was, how devastating and how heart-breaking.
He also knew what it was as a Christian man to reject that suffering, to deny Jesus so as to avoid being mocked. He knew the pain in his own heart and hurt he had caused the Savior when he, Peter the Rock, denied that he even knew Jesus and all to avoid suffering at the hands of men.
So, is it such a surprise that we would hear Peter say, “rejoiceinsofar as you share Christ’s sufferings”? What an outlandish thing to say…or is it? Peter knows and will know in greater detail what suffering for the Lord entails. But he also knows the pain of refusing to suffer when suffering is called for. Which pain, which suffering do you think Peter would implore us to dodge? No biblical writer ever trivializes human pain. This rejoicing is not a giddiness or a shrug of the shoulders, but a mind-set that believes something greater than the suffering. And what is it that Peter knows, what is it that he believes? Peter believes that:
–God is in direct control of this world and that these sufferings also are under his control and so are his purpose for your life and the life of others; perfect wisdom has appointed this trial for you;
— God loves his people with an unchangeable love; he hasn’t stopped loving you because you’re suffering, but has appointed the trial because he loves you;
— In Christ there is forgiveness of sins and eternal life in the new heavens and the new earth
–This life is followed for the one who believes in Jesus Christ with a life so much better, happier, and more glorious than we are able to conceive; our trials are for a moment; our joy is forever;
— God the Father will not fail to reward those who suffer for the sake of His Son. Loving His Son, even unto death, enduring all that sin and brokenness can muster and to refuse to betray Him even when our faithfulness costs us dearly…this is the Christian’s crown.
Prayer: Father, for endurance to persevere in the face of trial, suffering and sorrow, I humbly ask. To continue to fight against indwelling sin that brings much grief to my life, I pray. To humbly embrace whatever You send for the testing of my faith, that it may be pure and that I might be faithful, Father for this I submit myself to You and Your wisdom, through Jesus Christ my Lord, Amen.
Hymn: My Song is Love Unknown.