1 Peter 2:11–12; 3:1–12

Bible Studies for Life
Assistant Professor of Divinity, Beeson Divinity School, Samford University

Relationships Under Stress
1 Peter 2:11–12; 3:1–12

Your Conduct Among Unbelievers (2:11–12)
When life becomes difficult because of trials, our relationships with people also come under duress. It is easy to forget the need for testimony to unbelievers. The relationships within the community of believers give way to anger and resentment. And those closest to us, our families, may be the recipients of behavior aptly described as “unchristian.” While all can understand the difficulty of maintaining Christlike behavior in the midst of adversity, does God still hold us to virtuous conduct or can we see hardship as a pretext for unchristian demeanor?
In spite of the fact that Peter’s readers experienced hardship, he encouraged them to remember that their alienation was not simply within the context of Roman citizenship but heavenly citizenship. As sojourners in this world, the “passions” of this world are to be avoided. Currently the American culture of materialism is anchored just as deeply in the church as it is in the secular society. These “passions” are not simply to be resisted but resisted as in combat.

Then Peter reminded his readers to maintain blameless conduct among unbelievers so that their virtues may be the basis of their praise of God. Believers are testimonies to the unbelieving world, testimonies not to their self-righteousness but to God’s righteousness. And if this high calling to exemplary ethics seems unreasonable, Peter reminded his readers that Christ left them an example to follow. In spite of the fact that Christ was blameless, when He was unjustly persecuted, He did not respond in kind but trusted Himself to God. And through Christ’s sublime behavior on the cross, believers are saved to live in the same mind-set and with the same ethics.

Your Conduct at Home (3:1–7)
But is such conduct necessary within the context of marriage, especially marriages in which one partner is an unbeliever? Peter replied with a strong affirmation for Christlike behavior above all. He began with the wives. This fits the pattern he established in the previous section; he addressed servants before masters. Peter first directed his attention to the powerless. Christ’s example as one who submitted Himself to injustice correlates well with servants and wives; both can reflect His humble submission within their context.  Peter urged these wives to live not according to the standards of their secular world but according to the principles of the Old Testament’s godly women. Christian women should remember that their virtue lies not in external decorations (clothes, jewels, etc.) but in the internal virtue of a gentle and quiet spirit. This particular virtue of a gentle and quiet spirit, rather than words, is the one that bears testimony of Christ to unbelieving husbands. In the modern-day church, where divorce seems to be as common among believers as unbelievers, Peter’s exhortation provides an alternative to the easy escape.

Although the exhortation to husbands is considerably shorter, Peter also encouraged them to honor their wives as co-heirs in salvation. The concept of women as “heirs” would have been rare in the first-century Greco-Roman world; they were considered the weaker sex with respect to physical strength, emotional stability and rational capacity. Peter was advocating a countercultural disposition for Christian husbands; they were not to demean or oppress their wives but to treat them with honor as co-heirs.

Your Conduct Among Believers (3:8–12)
And finally Peter encouraged the entire believing community to live with the primary mind-set of unity and love. Love within the body of Christ should be genuine, embodying His love and willingness to suffer. The mind-set of “eye for an eye” is replaced by a self-sacrificing disposition that renders glory to God in the midst of tribulation. Particularly within the area of speech, where retaliation is the easy path. Unity in Christ is not accomplished by retribution but by the concern to be kind in the face of evil.