Full Transcript

Welcome to Share the Word. In 1 Peter, he encourages believers to have a strong spiritual mindset in the face of persecution. He reminds Christians that they are to live their lives reflecting their commitment to God, even in the face of opposition or even unto death. 1 Peter chapter 4: Purposeful suffering. This is a hard lesson for me to tackle because I have not had to experience very much suffering in my lifetime. I’ve been through some physical things, sure.

One year in particular, I lived through some pretty severe pain with cancer treatments that went wrong. I’ve gone through some emotional pain from losses too. But the kind of abnormal, unjust suffering that Peter is having to address in this epistle, no, I’ve not experienced that. I wish I mean there is suffering that is universal and the natural result of living in a fallen world. Then there is suffering that is unjust, when a person is targeted and those who want to inflict deliberate pain on them. That’s a whole different thing.

Although the concepts we explore today, to an extent, may apply to the normal kinds of suffering as most of us will experience in our lifetime, they have a much sharper application to those like those Peter was first addressing in this letter, Christians who had experienced targeted and unjust suffering, suffering just because they were followers of Jesus. By the way, suffering is mentioned 20 times in 1 Peter. Today we’ll focus on exactly what Peter says about it. I wondered as I thought about this section how common suffering is for Christians in the world today. I knew it existed, but it seems far away and rarely comes to my mind, to be honest. I found a website of an organization that tracks this, and they not only try to shine a light on it, but actually help Christians who find themselves living in such places where followers of Christ are suffering unjustly.

The organization is called Open Doors. I read on their website a report of an atrocity that happened just this year in Kazakhstan in Central Asia. Government agents, goon squads really, have been attacking unregistered Christian churches there. On one Sunday this past January, three congregations were raided right during their services, and women were sexually assaulted right there in their meeting places just to terrorize these believers. Then more than 20 young unmarried women were taken away from their families and forced to marry Muslim men. That kind of thing is pretty hard for us to even imagine.

I read another story about a Christian medical team that was working in remote villages in Afghanistan, providing free health care in Jesus’ name to villagers who’d never seen a doctor before. They had actually traveled by foot with pack horses to reach some remote villages because of the rugged terrain. On their way out, they were attacked by militant mujahideen, and all 10 team members were killed, six of them Americans. I don’t remember hearing that news report about that, do you? If you’re unfamiliar, mujahideen means holy warriors. When I read that story, I remembered Jesus once saying, A time is coming when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service to God.

Crazy. So, although what was happening to Christians in the Roman Empire who Peter was writing to may seem like ancient history, it’s not. Is still happening today in places. Open Doors knows of 5,621 Christians that were killed for their faith just in the year 2023 alone. How many more are terrorized in different ways, arrested, imprisoned for no reason, shunned by their families, unable to find work because of active discrimination against them? The answer is millions.

It seems outrageous, doesn’t it? Why must people suffer just for what they believe? Seems irrational on a purely human level. But we need to factor in that there’s a spiritual dimension to what goes on in this world, which is very real. And I think the answer is going to be found there. And here it is, simply put: darkness hates the light.

In John 15, Jesus is recorded as warning his disciples, If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. For if you were of the world, the world would love you as their own. But because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, this is why the world hates you. Remember these words I say to you: a slave is not greater than his master. They persecuted me; they will persecute you as well. If they follow my word, they will follow yours as well.

But all these things they will do to you on account of my name. So although it seems irrational and certainly unjust, hatred and persecution of Christians is part of the cosmic struggle between light and darkness, which God is allowing to continue. And as long as he does, some will be drawn to the light and choose to follow Christ, but many others will hate even his name. Jesus told his followers to expect this. Peter was there when he said it. And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God and are called according to His purposes, right?

That’s a favorite scripture for many people. Okay, so what good could possibly come from the kind of suffering those whom Peter addressed in this epistle were experiencing? I’m going to try to do my best to explain how he saw it, how even suffering can be valuable for a follower of Christ. And these are all ideas from Peter’s letter. In chapter 1, verses 6 and 7, he framed suffering as a test of our faith. He said it will refine and purify a believer’s character and commitment to God.

Listen. You now rejoice in this hope, even if it’s necessary for you to be distressed for a short time by various trials. This is necessary so that your faith may be found genuine. Your faith is more valuable than gold, which will be destroyed even though it’s tested by fire. Your genuine faith will result in praise, glory, and honor for you when Jesus Christ is revealed. He likens suffering to the process of refining gold.

Just as fire purifies gold, our faith, which is much more precious than gold to God, is purified and strengthened through the fire of trials. The suffering tests its genuineness, and genuine faith will result in, he says, praise, glory, and honor when we see Christ. Peter promises these early believers, and he’s looking forward here. We’re to be foreigners here, remember. He’s talking about heaven and the time when every believer will be evaluated by Jesus. Those with genuine faith who have suffered unjustly will get praise, glory, and honor from Jesus Christ Himself on that day.

Picture that if you have suffered for Christ. Picture Jesus in front of the glorified saints in heaven, grabbing you by the shoulders, looking into your eyes and saying, Well done, you’ve been a good and faithful servant. It’s time to enter now into your rewards, and the throngs in heaven will clap and cheer for you. That’s a real day that’s coming. Peter here is passing on a promise he heard from Jesus’ own lips in the Sermon on the Mount. Blessed are you when men insult and harass you and speak all kinds of evil and false things against you because of Me.

Be glad and full of joy, because great is your reward in heaven. The apostle Paul, who we saw in the Acts suffered unjustly far more than most, wrote to another group of early Christians, Our momentary light afflictions are achieving for us an absolute incomparable weight of glory. The apostles clearly believed this. Do we? I mean, enough to endure unjust suffering without losing heart? Then in chapter 3, verses 13 and 14, Peter makes another point about responding to unjust suffering.

He writes there, But even if you should suffer for the sake of righteousness, you’re blessed. Don’t fear the intimidation and don’t be in dread, but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you. Ready to make a defense. I’ve often challenged classes I’ve taught and congregations of Christians I’ve spoken to from those verses, especially the part that says, Always be ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that you have. That is, be prepared to give a good answer as to what you believe and why you believe it.

In the safe confines of the West, where religious liberty exists, these verses are often used as a challenge to understand our Christian faith well enough we can reasonably respond to detractors, that we can defend what Christians believe intelligently. And that’s an appropriate enough application for those sitting in classrooms or church auditoriums in America. But that’s not exactly the context of Peter’s challenge, is it? He’s challenging believers who are being persecuted for their faith to stay faithful to Christ as Lord of their lives and answer their persecutors with a clear testimony. I’ve often wondered if I’d be ready to do that. I think I would.

But then again, I’m not anxious to find out. I’m not saying that every true Christian would either. That’s going too far. Remember, Peter himself caved under pressure in the high priest’s courtyard and denied even knowing Jesus. But that was many years before he wrote this. What we know of Peter in his latter years is that, when questioned as a leader of the Christians at Rome, he was willing to suffer and die rather than renounce Christ.

A great deal of that change, I am sure, had to do with witnessing the resurrection of Jesus, which he was sure happened. When a person is sure of resurrection, the greatest threat anyone could hold over them, the fear of death, the threat of death, it loses much of its power. When under threat of torture or death, many early Christians still confessed their faith that Jesus is Lord. The enemy had no answer for that. A lot of the growth of early Christianity can be credited to the steadfast testimonies and courage of the martyrs. What else did Peter tell these early Christians about suffering?

Well, in chapter 4, verses 1 and 2, he mentions one unintended side effect. He writes there, Since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same purpose, because the one who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, so as to live the rest of their time in the flesh, that is, the rest of their lifetime on earth, no longer for human desires or lusts, but also for the will of God. Ceased from sin. I’m certain that persecution had a sobering effect on the early Christians. When the suffering started and persisted and persisted, life’s interests and pursuits, I am sure, radically changed for them. In the following verses, Peter says, The time is over to be indulging in all kinds of foolish and short-sighted living.

Not just the kind of suffering these people were experiencing, but I think this is true of any serious suffering. It makes you reevaluate things. Those of us who’ve been through life-threatening sicknesses or certainly near-death experiences usually come out of that with a very different perspective. Doing something with our lives that matters to God becomes much more pressing. Eternity seems closer and more real, and that’s a good thing as far as Peter is concerned. A couple more things he tells them about suffering that I want to share with you.

The first is from chapter 4, verses 12 and 13, where Peter offers them an interesting and profound way of considering their trials. Listen. Beloved, don’t be surprised at the fiery ordeals among you, as though something strange were happening to you. But to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that at His revelation you may rejoice and be overjoyed. Share in the sufferings of Christ. One of the significant themes Peter emphasizes is this concept of sharing in the sufferings of Christ.

This passage highlights a pivotal aspect of Christian suffering, and that is that it’s not random, it’s not purposeless, it’s a sharing in the very sufferings of Christ. This way of looking at suffering, I think, can transform a believer’s perspective. Through this lens, it’s seen as creating a vital connection with Jesus, a profound spiritual bond forged by sharing experiences that He had. By enduring hardships for the name of Christ, believers are drawn closer to Him and understand much better and with much more appreciation the depth of His sacrifice for us. Remember when Jesus said, If you want to come after me, take up your cross and follow. What could He have meant but to be prepared to suffer along with Him and for Him, to be willing to share in the sufferings of Christ, as Peter put it.

This might be a terrible illustration, probably a very unworthy one, but I think what Peter is getting at when he tells them to think of their suffering as sharing in Christ. It is sort of like the old days. Sorry for a football analogy here because training camp will be starting in a few weeks. In the old days, I remember reading about extreme training camps held under Coach Chuck Noll. The Steelers held their training camp in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, where I grew up. Still do, actually.

There were no restrictions then from collective bargaining agreements and players’ unions, and Coach Noll really drove those players hard. Two-a-days in the summer heat, morning practices going all out, then afternoon practices which were even worse, a practice in pads too with full contact. Players got exhausted. They struggled together to try and make the cut. They competed, but they supported each other. Out of the hardships and sweat, a team was formed.

Men were bonded together, and they won a lot of Super Bowls in that era. Peter is extolling the value of shared suffering with Christ. If we suffer for Christ and with Christ, we are bonded together with Him, he is saying, and with each other in a real way, connected in a very deep sense. And there is certainly strength in that realization, in that reality. We are part of Christ’s suffering, and if we have shared in His suffering, He promises we will share in His glory. Finally, in chapter 4, verses 14 to 16, he writes, If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you’re blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.

Make sure that none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer, but if anyone suffers as a Christian, he’s not to be ashamed, but is to glorify God in having that name. Glorify God in having that name, the name Christian, he means. The name Christian was originally one of derision. It meant little Christs. But the followers of Jesus grew to wear it proudly. My favorite New Testament verse on this same theme says, I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation for everyone who believes it.

Not surprisingly, in the very last writing we have from Paul, written at the same time as this letter, he is giving his protege Timothy exactly the same instructions. Timothy, God has not given you a spirit of fear, but one of power, love, and sound judgment. So don’t be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, or of me, his prisoner. Instead, share in the sufferings for the gospel. I have to ask, if you’re a Christian, are you ashamed? Do you go into a shell and clam up when someone starts ridiculing your faith, or in some way disparages Christianity in your presence?

Or do you wear the label of Christian boldly and proudly, even when it might bring some ridicule on you or cause some people to disassociate from you? If we’re ashamed of him, Jesus said, he will be ashamed of us before his heavenly Father. But if we’re not ashamed, here we’re promised, the glory of God will rest upon us. That line makes me think of the young deacon Stephen when he was testifying before the Jewish Sanhedrin during the earliest days of the Jerusalem church. It says in Acts chapter 6 that when the leaders looked on Stephen, they saw his face radiant like the face of an angel. He was boldly testifying to them about Jesus, to the very men who had arranged his crucifixion, and he was not ashamed and he was not intimidated.

And the Spirit and the glory of God was upon him. As Christ’s furious opponents rushed at Stephen to drag him out to be stoned, he was heard to say, Look, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God. Jesus was standing ready to greet him, and Stephen became the first Christian martyr that day. I like hymn stories, the stories behind great Christian songs and what led to them being written. One of the simplest but most loved Christian songs sung around the world is called I Have Decided. One early version of its backstory I’ve heard is that it was first written in 19th century India.

According to the man who put the words to music, he took the words from a story of a Christian family in northern India who had been converted to Christ under British missionaries. But Hindu extremists in the area did not like it, and a group of them, with the village chieftain’s blessing, began persecuting them. When their efforts at intimidation didn’t work, things escalated, till one day the family was called out of their home to face an angry mob: a husband, his wife, and two children. The man, whose name was Noxing, was told he must renounce his faith in Christ. He answered that he had decided to follow Jesus, and there would be no turning back from that. In rage, the village chieftain had two men strike down his children right in front of him.

You will deny this Jesus now, or I’ll have your wife killed as well. He looked at his wife. His first instinct, of course, to protect her, but she shook her head no, and she shook her head no continually. I’ll kill her, and you’ll be alone, the chieftain said. Noxing said through tears, Even if there is no one to join me, I will still follow Jesus. The chieftain motioned, and his wife was killed, just as the children had been.

Noxing was given one last chance to save himself, but he answered with words to the effect, There’s no one in this world for me now. I believe Jesus died on a cross for me, and I will die for him today if I need to. And at that, the chieftain himself pulled out a pistol and shot him dead. Word of that atrocity, but also heroic testimony, spread throughout the Christians in all India till a man named Sandu Sandhar Singh fitted his words to a simple Indian folk tune: I have decided to follow Jesus. Though no one joins me, still I will follow. The world behind me, the cross before me.

No turning back, no turning back. Stories like that one are replete throughout Christian history, from the era of Nero’s persecution, which included the martyrdom of Peter himself, clear through to the present day. I know there will be special rewards for those who are faithful unto death, for any Christian that suffers anything or loses anything on account of Christ. Their stories challenge and inspire me. I hope they inspire, challenge, and embolden you too. The final verse of chapter 4 reads, So then, let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust themselves to their faithful Creator.

This is Paul for Share the Word. Thanks, Paul. Throughout all of the wonderful insights that Paul brings to this lesson, I can’t help but be reminded of the fact that the persecution and suffering he talks about is at the hands of unbelievers and those who will be separated from God and His love for eternity. Ultimately, as foreigners of this world and citizens of heaven, we are but a breath away from paradise. And I, for one, pray that if I am ever put to the test like Knoxing, that I would be blessed to hear, Well done, good and faithful servant.