By Nathan Harris, Ph. D.
Vice President for Strategic Initiatives, University of Mobile
BE PREPARED
1 Peter 4:12–19
Be Ready (12–14)
The call for Christians to be ready is not a foreign concept. Being ready to work with our hands to the plow is a common theme we find in the New Testament. In fact, Jesus Himself calls for us to be ready as we wait for His glorious return (Matt. 24:42).
As we come to our passage today, Peter lays out plainly for us another reason to be ready. We are to be ready for suffering and persecution as Christians. Yes, suffering and persecution may look different in our context, but this timeless call should still sober us to the reality of what we can and will face as believers.
Peter urges his fellow Christians not to be surprised by the fiery ordeals that come to test them. More so, he says that they should not consider the fiery ordeals as “unusual.”
This tells us something very important about suffering as believers — that it is normal. If something isn’t unusual, that means it happens often enough that it isn’t a surprise when it happens. Peter is calling for Christians to know suffering well and embrace it as it comes.
This is supported in the next verse as Peter shares with them the call to rejoice in their suffering, for they share in the sufferings of Christ.
Our inclination is to bemoan suffering, but because it is in Christ’s name that we suffer and face ridicule, we know that we are blessed as we live with the indwelling Spirit in our lives.
Be Righteous (15–16)
Beyond the call to be ready, these verses provide us with another set of instructions for the Christian life: Be righteous! Throughout the entire letter, we have heard the refrain from Leviticus 19:2, to “be holy because I am holy” (1 Pet. 1:16).
Here it is explicitly taught to us as Peter tells believers to refrain from all ungodly behavior. Suffering for the sake of righteousness is a good thing, but suffering for the sake of worldly desires is vanity. Peter says that none of us should suffer as a murderer, thief, evildoer or meddler.
Suffering for those actions is not a godly endeavor but is the consequence of sinful actions. But the corollary stands that suffering for the sake of godliness is something we should not be ashamed of but something to be rejoiced in, for God is glorified in it. If we suffer for being Christians, we are pursuing righteousness unto the Lord.
Be Assured (17–19)
We are called to be ready, we are encouraged to be righteous and in the last few verses in this section, we are exhorted to be assured.
We are assured knowing that God will one day judge the living and the dead — the wicked and the righteous. Believers facing persecution for their faith ultimately rest in the saving work of Christ for their comfort and yet also know that God will execute His final judgment on those who disobey the gospel of God.
Both Christians and unbelievers will face God’s judgment, both experiencing different outcomes. The righteous are saved while the ungodly and sinner receive their just punishment.
Christians face their persecution with this confidence by placing their trust and lives in the goodness and mercy of God.
EDITOR’S NOTE — The Sunday School lesson outlines are provided by Lifeway.
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