If you are a parent of children old enough to talk, you have heard them complain, “But that isn’t fair!” And you responded, “Life isn’t fair!” We are born with a strong inner sense of fairness and a strong desire to fight for our rights when we have been treated unfairly. Although we know that life isn’t fair, we’re prone to fight back when we’re the victims of unfair treatment.

Let’s assume that you are a conscientious worker on your job. You get to work early, you’re careful not to extend your lunch breaks, and sometimes you stay late on your own time to finish a job. You’re careful not to waste company time with excessive chit-chat. You work hard and produce for the company. Because you’re a Christian, you don’t go out drinking after hours with the boss and you don’t swap the latest dirty jokes with him.

Another worker is, in your opinion, a goof off. He often comes in late, he spends a lot of time chatting with the secretaries, he takes long lunches, and he does sloppy work which you often have to correct. But he also goes out drinking with the boss and he always has a new dirty joke that sends the boss into hysterics. When a promotion opens up, he gets the better job and you are overlooked.

Life isn’t fair! The important question is, “How do you respond when you’re treated unfairly?” How should you respond? How should a Christian respond when treated unfairly, especially on the job?

That is the question Peter addresses. My guess is that you’re not going to like his answer. (I can guess that because I don’t like his answer either!) His answer is, When treated unfairly by a superior, we should submissively endure by entrusting ourselves to God, the righteous Judge.

Be subject … This means “submit, or obey”; and “It is the key word in this epistle, occurring 6 times in all.”

In this text Peter is talking about submission—submission to authorities in government, submission to masters, and all of this is in the context of suffering. When people look at Christians, they shouldn’t find those who are slandering their leaders or starting riots to overthrow government, even in the case of injustice, such as persecution or slavery.

Remember, in this context Nero is on the throne and Christians are being thrown to the lions and burned at the stake. It seems like an ideal time to fight back, but that is not what Peter teaches the Christians to do. He tells them to submit to the unjust authorities in leadership.

The situation for submission is one in which we are under authority. Peter was writing to slaves but much in this section applies to our work relationships. Because God is in control, we face each day with his power and love. If you receive some hard knocks today, turn them over to God. If you’ve been cheated, give the problem to God.

If employees do not fulfill their responsibilities, admit your loss and trust God fully.

Christians must never seek revenge, no matter how bad the circumstances. The impulse for revenge comes from people who think that systems or bosses or powerful people are in control.

Christians believe that God has ultimate power. Be careful. This verse does not advocate passivity or weak-willed submission to cruel people.

God’s way is for us to identify the nature of the relationship: Am I under the authority of the person who is treating me unfairly? That is the first question I must ask to determine how I should act in a given situation.

God has ordained various spheres of authority. He is the supreme authority over all, of course. But under God there is the sphere of human government (1 Pet. 2:13-17; Rom. 13:1-7). Also, there is the sphere of the family, in which husbands have authority over wives (1 Pet. 3:1-6; Eph. 5:22-24) and parents over children (Eph. 6:1-4).

There is the sphere of the church, in which elders have authority over the flock (1 Pet. 5:1-5; Heb. 13:17). And there is the sphere of employment in which employees must be subject to employers.

2. The motives for submission are to please God and bear witness to the lost.

Twice (2:19a, 20b) Peter says that submitting to unjust treatment “finds favor with God.”

Many of the readers of this letter would have known all too well what it meant to “bear up” under the pain of unjust suffering.

By being conscious of God when they suffered, they were remembering God’s care and love for them.

They focused on the fact that they were suffering injustice as Christ had suffered injustice, and they knew that one day God would right all wrongs. This gave them the proper attitude, enabled them to persevere, and kept their practice from being mere passive acceptance.

The idea is that God gives grace to the humble, not to the defiant, assertive, and self-reliant. If we defy an authority which God has placed over us, we are, in effect, defying God Himself. Thus, conscious of God, we should seek to submit to please Him, trusting Him to deal with the unjust authority.

If you’re being treated unfairly at work, you may be looking at a tremendous opportunity to bear witness for Christ by your behavior. If you yield your rights in a Christlike manner, people will notice and may wonder, “Why doesn’t he fight for his rights?” Maybe you’ll get an opportunity to tell them.

THE FACE OF SUFFERING. We may suffer for many reasons. Some suffering comes as the direct result of our own sin; some happens because of our foolishness; and some is the result of living in a fallen world.

Peter writes about suffering that comes as a result of doing good. Jesus never sinned, and yet he suffered so that we could be set free.

When we follow Christ’s example and live for others, we too may suffer. Our goal should be to face suffering as he did—with patience, calmness, and confidence, knowing that God controls the future.

3. The pattern for submission is Jesus Christ. Christ left an example for us to follow in His steps (2:21).

When we patiently suffer injustice, we are following our supreme example in Christ. He suffered great injustice in order to obtain our salvation:

• He endured the unbelief of his own people (John 1:11).

• He endured a trial by religious leaders already committed to his death (Mark 14:1; John 11:50).

• He endured the lies of false witnesses (Matthew 26:59–60).

• He endured beating and mockery from his people and from the Roman soldiers (Mark 14:64–65; 15:16–20).

• He endured merciless flogging (Mark 15:15).

• He endured an excruciatingly painful death by crucifixion (Mark 15:22–37).

• He endured the insults of bystanders as he suffered on the cross (Mark 15:29–32).

• He endured a time of separation from God (Mark 15:33–34).

Peter set up Christ as the model for the believers to follow.

They should face injustice from harsh masters or from other authorities with supreme dignity, trusting God’s control.

The word example is literally, “underwriting.” It was a school word. Teachers would lightly trace the letters of the alphabet so that students could write over them to learn how to write.

Or, as in our day, teachers would put examples of the alphabet up in the room for students to look at to copy as they formed their letters. Christ is that kind of example for us. If we follow how He lived, we will form our lives correctly.

Following “in His steps” pictures a child who steps in his father’s footprints in the snow. Where the father goes, the child goes, because he puts his feet in those same footprints. Peter says that we are called to the same purpose as Christ was (2:21).

If our Master’s footprints led to the cross where He suffered unjustly, so we can expect to die to self and suffer unjustly. If we respond as He did, people will see our Savior in us.

Many people will never read the Bible, but they do read our lives. They should see Christlikeness there, not a defiant spirit of self-will that characterizes those who are living for themselves and the things of this world.

4. The principle of submission involves not retaliating when we are wronged. 2:22 “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.”

Peter quoted from Isaiah 53:9, Isaiah’s prophecy about the suffering of the coming Messiah. Christ’s suffering was completely unjust because he never committed any sin or spoke any lies; there was no good reason for his being condemned to death.

Isaiah 53:7: “He was oppressed and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so He opened not His mouth” (nkjv).

Jesus did not return abuse nor did he threaten. How tempting it must have been to expose the liars at his trial, to come down from the cross in a great display of power, or to blast his enemies with God’s wrath.

Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. Jesus suffered patiently because he knew that God would have the final say. Jesus regarded God as sovereign, so he put the outcome of his life in God’s hands. He was confident of God’s righteous judgment.

As Jesus entrusted (the verb is imperfect, he “kept entrusting”) himself and his sufferings to God, so all believers can entrust themselves and their suffering into God’s hands.

Knowing that God will ultimately right all wrongs is a great comfort to believers who are suffering, and it helps them respond correctly in their sufferings.

Don’t minimize or deny a person’s cruel behavior, for that will only encourage the person to continue to be abusive and discourage him or her from getting help.

You may need to confront the problem in order to protect innocent family members from danger. Don’t rationalize or excuse abuse. Seek help from the professionals God has given us. Those who don’t stop the cycle of abuse may live to see those victims become abusers themselves.

When Jesus was wronged, He did not retaliate in kind. He could have called legions of angels to strike down His enemies. He could have selfishly stood up for His rights (after all, He is Lord of the universe!). But He didn’t. He always acted selflessly, even when He did confront His accusers. While we’ll never be as unselfish as Jesus, it is a goal we should strive for.

There are four things mentioned which we need to keep in mind when we are treated unfairly.

First, Jesus did not commit sin. He always acted in obedience to the Father, never in self-will.

Second, there was never any deceit in His mouth. He didn’t bend the facts to win the argument or get His own way. When He defended Himself, He was always truthful.

Third, when He was reviled, He didn’t revile in return. He didn’t trade insults.

Fourth, He uttered no threats. He didn’t say, “Just you wait! I’ll get even with you!” In other words, Jesus didn’t respond to verbal abuse with more verbal abuse. Neither should we.

5. The means of submission is to entrust ourselves to the Righteous Judge.

Jesus made it through the cross by continually entrusting Himself to the Father who judges righteously. He knew that He would be vindicated by being raised from the dead and enthroned at the right hand of the Majesty on high.

He knew that His persecutors would be judged and dealt with according to their sins. So He “delivered Himself up” (the literal translation of “entrusted”) to God.

Jesus entrusted Himself to the Father, knowing that even though the way led to the cross, it also led through the cross to the glory beyond.

Even so, we can entrust ourselves to God. The way will lead to the cross; but also, it will lead through the cross to the glory that awaits us in heaven.

God is the righteous Judge who will someday right every wrong and bring vengeance on those who resist His authority. Our task is to trust Him by submitting to human authority, even when we are treated unfairly.

I read a fictional story called “Johnny Lingo’s Eight‑Cow Wife” (by Patricia McGerr, Reader’s Digest [2/88], pp. 138‑141) that is a parable on our text. It took place on a primitive Pacific island, where a man paid the dowry for his wife in cows. Two or three cows could buy a decent wife, four or five a very nice one. But Johnny Lingo had offered an unheard of eight cows for Sarita, a girl whom everyone in her home village thought rather plain looking. The local folks all made fun of Johnny, who they thought was crazy to pay so much for a wife.

But when the teller of the story finally sees Johnny Lingo’s wife, she is stunned by her beauty. She asks him how this could be the same woman—how can she be so different? Johnny’s reply shows that he’s nobody’s fool:

“Do you ever think,” he asked, “what it must mean to a woman to know that her husband has settled on the lowest price for which she can be bought? And then later, when the women talk, they boast of what their husbands paid for them. One says four cows, another maybe six. How does she feel, the woman who was sold for one or two? This could not happen to my Sarita.”

“Then you did this just to make your wife happy?”

“I wanted Sarita to be happy, yes. But I wanted more than that. You say she is different. This is true. Many things can change a woman. Things that happen inside, things that happen outside. But the thing that matters most is what she thinks about herself. In Kiniwata, Sarita believed she was worth nothing. Now she knows she is worth more than any other woman in the islands.”

“Then you wanted—”

“I wanted to marry Sarita. I loved her and no other woman.”

“But‑‑” I was close to understanding.

“But,” he finished softly, “I wanted an eight-cow wife.”

People tend to live up—or down—to how we treat them. If we offer repeated praise and affirmation, the person responds by living up to it. If we run the person down, they oblige us by meeting our negative expectations. Peter tells husbands that, like Johnny Lingo, they should treat their mates as eight-cow wives. Husbands should understand and honor their wives.

The reason Peter gives this command may startle you, if you aren’t overly familiar with the verse. We are not to treat our wives well so that we will have happy marriages, although that will be one result. Rather, we are to treat our wives properly so that our prayers will not be hindered! Isn’t that startling—that there is an undeniable connection between how you treat your wife and your prayer life! Since effective prayer is at the heart of a walk with God, this means that if a man mistreats his wife, I don’t care what he claims, he cannot be enjoying close communion with God.

Husbands are to understand and honor their wives so that they will have an effective prayer life.

Although it is only a single verse, it is brimming with profound truth that will transform every marriage if we husbands will work at applying its principles. I would translate it freely like this: “Also, husbands should dwell together with their wives according to knowledge, assigning to them a place of honor as to a delicate instrument, namely, a feminine one, as a fellow‑heir of the gracious gift of eternal life, so that a roadblock will not cut off your prayers.” There are two commands and one result: (1) Live with your wife according to knowledge; (2) Grant her honor as a fellow‑heir of the grace of life (= salvation); (3) The result: So that your prayers will not be hindered.

1. Husbands are to understand their wives.

We all have a deep-seated longing to be understood by at least one other person who cares for us and accepts us for who we are. We all enter marriage with high hopes for a deepening understanding to be built between us and our mate. And yet, all too often, a couple grows increasingly callused toward one another.

In American culture, for some reason, men are often inept at understanding their wives on a deep level. So there are disappointments and hurt feelings that never get resolved. The husband shrugs his shoulders, ignores his wife whom he doesn’t understand, and pours himself into his job, which seems to be something he can handle. She shares her feelings with women friends and gets caught up in the frenzy of raising children and running a household. And then the nest starts emptying and the wife starts thinking about going back to school and getting a fulfilling job at about the same time the husband realizes that he isn’t fulfilled through his job and what he really wants is intimacy with his distant wife (or with a younger version who excites him more). It’s no surprise that the divorce curve shoots up at this point in life.

A. Understanding your wife involves developing and maintaining togetherness in your marriage.

Peter says that you should “live with” your wife. You say, “I’ve got that down! We both live at the same address and share the same bed and eat many meals together.” But the Greek word means more than just sharing living quarters. It is used only here in the New Testament, but in the Greek Old Testament it is used several times to refer to the sexual relationship in marriage. Peter uses it to refer to the aspect of togetherness. A husband is to promote a spirit of emotional, spiritual, and physical closeness that is only possible in the commitment of marriage.

It’s significant that Peter puts the responsibility for togetherness on the husband, not on the wife. In our culture, women are often the relational ones. Men aren’t real communicative; they just sort of grunt. But the Bible puts the burden for intimacy in marriage primarily on the husband, not on the wife. If there is a drift in your marriage, men, you are to take the initiative to bring things back together. This doesn’t mean that a wife can’t act first if she notices a distance in the relationship. But it does mean that as men we are to be active, not passive, in developing and maintaining a close relationship with our wives.

It may sound perfectly obvious, but one way to develop and maintain togetherness in your marriage is to do things together. So many couples live in their own separate worlds. Men, help your wife with the dishes sometimes, not just because she needs the help, but to be together. Take walks together, go shopping together when you can. If you can’t tolerate shopping, at least drive her there sometimes and sit in the mall and watch the people or read a book. The idea is, to be together so that you intertwine your lives. As Simone Signoret observed, “Chains do not hold a marriage together. It is threads, hundreds of tiny threads, which sew people together through the years.”

B. Understanding your wife involves knowing her well.

“Dwell together with your wives according to knowledge.” This comes partly through spending time together. The Greek word means to grasp the full reality and nature of the object, based upon experience and evaluation. It is the apprehension of truth, especially (in the N. T.) of spiritual truth (see point C). But here it refers not just to spiritual knowledge, but also to a knowledge of your wife based on careful observation.

Every husband needs to become an avid student of his wife. You need to know her personality, her likes and dislikes, her needs, her strengths, her weaknesses, her fears, her hopes, her joys. Such knowledge is a personal trust to be guarded with great care. You should never bring up a vulnerable point as artillery in a disagreement.

C. Understanding your wife involves knowing God and His truth well.

To dwell with your wife “according to knowledge” means knowing her well. But also it has the nuance of knowing spiritual truth well. This is implicit in the phrase, “as fellow‑heirs of the grace of life.” This points to the vast spiritual riches that are ours equally as men and women through faith in Christ (1 Pet. 1:4, 13). As a husband leads his wife spiritually into a fuller knowledge of all that God has prepared for those who love Him, they will grow together in a depth of intimacy the world can’t know. In knowing God and His Word, we will come to know ourselves and our wives and thus be able to relate to them more adequately.

This means, men, that if you’re spiritually passive, you’re not being obedient to what God wants you to be doing as a husband. A lot of men feel inadequate spiritually. Their wives spend time going to Bible studies so that they know more about spiritual things than their husbands do. Many men leave early for work and come home late, too exhausted to spend time alone with God. I know it’s tough. But you can do what you want to do, and if growing and leading your family spiritually is a priority, you can do it.

Thus our first responsibility is to understand our wives, which means developing togetherness, knowing her well, and knowing God and His truth well.

2. Husbands are to honor their wives.

The word “grant” means to assign or apportion that which is due. A wife deserves honor (the Greek word has the nuance of value or worth). Grammatically, the phrase “as a delicate instrument, namely, a feminine one” can go either with “dwell together according to knowledge” or with “assigning her a place of honor.” I take it with the latter, the sense being, rather than take advantage of your wife because she is physically weaker, you should treat her carefully as you would a valuable instrument. A doctor would never think of taking an expensive, delicate instrument and using it to pound a nail. He would “honor” that instrument by treating it well.

In my opinion, if Christian husbands had practiced this well, we wouldn’t have the backlash of the so-called “evangelical feminist” movement. Notice the fine balance that Peter lays out: On the one hand, the wife is the “weaker vessel,” who should submit to her husband (3:1) for the protection and care she needs. On the other hand, she is a fellow-heir of the grace of life, which means that she is not inferior personally or spiritually. Her husband is not to dominate her, but rather to assign to her a place of honor. Thus the Bible maintains a distinctive role for the sexes, but it does not put down women as second-class citizens.

A major part of honoring your wife involves how you speak to her and about her. There is no room for jokes or sarcasm that put down your wife. Also, if you have children, it is your job as head of the household to make sure that they honor their mother. You model it by treating her with honor, but you enforce it by disciplining them for disrespect toward her. You should join the husband of the virtuous woman (Prov. 31:10‑31) in singing her praises. One of the things I often say to Marla and about her behind her back is that she makes our home a refuge for me. She serves you as a church by doing that, so that I get recharged for the ministry by being at home with her.

So the two commands are, Understand your wife; and, honor your wife. The result is:

3. The result of understanding and honoring your wife will be an effective prayer life.

As I said, this is a somewhat startling conclusion. I would think that Peter would have said, “so that you will have a happy marriage,” or “so that God will be glorified.” Both will be true, of course. But Peter is calling attention to something we often forget or deny: That there is always a correlation between your relationship with your wife and your relationship with God (Matt. 5:23-24; 6:14-15). If you don’t want a roadblock thrown up in your prayer life, then you must understand and honor your wife. It’s also interesting that if the Greek word translated “dwell together” has a sexual connotation, then both here and in 1 Corinthians 7:1-5, Scripture brings together that which we invariably separate, namely, sex and prayer. (I’ll let you explore the theological implications of that!)

But please note: If your prayers are not effective, your life is not effective in the ultimate sense. Prayer is at the very center of life, since it is our link with the living God. Everything else in life hinges on having an effective prayer life. Yet, sadly, many Christian couples never pray together. If you don’t pray with your wife, men, why not swallow your pride or fear and begin?

Conclusion

Husbands, your work is cut out for you: To make your wife an “eight-cow” wife! You are to understand her and honor her so that your prayers will not be hindered.

The late Bible teacher Harry Ironside once had a super-spiritual young man come to him and say, “Dr. Ironside, I have a spiritual problem. I love my wife too much!” He probably thought that Ironside would commend him for his great dedication to God. But instead, Ironside wisely asked him, “Do you love her as much as Christ loved the church?” When the young man stammered, “Well, no, I don’t love her that much,” Ironside said, “Then go get on with it, because that’s the command.”

1 Peter 3:1-6 (ESV)
¹  Likewise, wives, be subject to your own husbands, so that even if some do not obey the word, they may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives,
²  when they see your respectful and pure conduct.
³  Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear—
⁴  but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious.
⁵  For this is how the holy women who hoped in God used to adorn themselves, by submitting to their own husbands,
⁶  as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord. And you are her children, if you do good and do not fear anything that is frightening.

These verses are tough to explain and apply in light of our modern culture. It’s tough enough to teach about the submission of wives to godly husbands. But to teach that wives should submit even to husbands who are ungodly seems cruel and insensitive.

Wife abuse is widespread…even among Christians. Furthermore, we live in a society that values individual rights, especially of those who are pushed down by the system (such as women). We’re constantly encouraged to stand up for our rights and to fight back when we’re wronged.

Self-fulfillment is a supreme virtue in America, and those who are unfulfilled because of a difficult marriage are encouraged to do what they have to do to seek personal happiness. Submission to one’s difficult husband is not usually one of the action points!

To understand our text, we must see that Peter’s theme (which began at 2:11) is still Christian witness in an alien world. Peter didn’t want to compound the problem with a wife’s defiant behavior. So he gives instruction on how Christian women could live with their unbelieving mates in a way that would bear witness for Christ.

We need to understand several things in approaching this text. First, the qualities Peter encourages these women to adopt apply to all Christians, both men and women. We all are to develop a submissive spirit, to be chaste, reverent, gentle and quiet, with an emphasis on the inner person rather than on outward appearance.

Second, Peter’s comments do not encourage a Christian to enter a marriage with an unbelieving mate. Scripture is clear that believers are not to be unequally yoked with unbelievers (2 Cor. 6:14; Exod. 34:12‑16; Ezra 9:1‑4). Also, the Apostle Paul clearly states that if an unbelieving mate consents to live with a believer, the believer must not initiate a divorce (1 Cor. 7:12‑13).

What do these verses NOT say?

• Do not leave.
• Do not lead.
• Do not nag him to death.

Rather, the believing wife should follow the principles Peter sets forth here, namely, that …

A Christian wife should live with a difficult husband so that he is attracted to Christ by her behavior….without words.

Peter’s point is that godly conduct is a powerful witness, much more powerful than words without conduct. He does not mean that verbal witness is not important. In the proper context, words are essential to communicate the content of the gospel. Peter’s point is that disobedient husbands are more likely to be won by godly practice than by preaching from their wives. They will notice attractive behavior and through it be drawn to the source of that behavior—a relationship with Jesus Christ. I want to look at seven aspects of such attractive behavior and then answer three practical questions that arise.

1. Attractive behavior involves submission.

Paul recognizes a sense in Christian marriage in which each partner submits to the other under Christ, but he also goes on to state that the husband is the head of the wife, just as Christ is the head of the church. There is a sense in which Christ submits Himself to the church in self‑ sacrificing service, but at the same time, clearly He is in authority over the church.

Two things about authority and submission. First, the purpose of authority is to protect and bless those under authority, not to benefit the one in authority. Because of sin, those in authority commonly abuse it and God will hold them accountable.

Second, God never tells husbands to get their wives to submit to them. All the commands to submit are directed to wives. A husband who focuses on his authority is out of line. His responsibilities are to love his wife sacrificially (Eph. 5:25) and to live with her in an understanding way, granting her honor (1 Pet. 3:7).

What, then, does submission mean? The Greek word is a military term meaning to place in rank under someone. But the biblical spirit of submission involves far more than just grudgingly going along with orders (as often happens in the military). Rather, submission is the attitude and action of willingly yielding to and obeying the authority of another to please the Lord.

Attitude is crucial. A disobedient little boy was told to sit in the corner. He said, “I may be sitting on the outside, but I’m standing on the inside.” That’s defiance, not submission.

Submission involves an attitude of respect and a recognition of the responsibility of the one in authority. Rather than trying to thwart his will through manipulation or scheming, a submissive wife will seek to discover what her husband wants and do it to please him, as long as it doesn’t involve disobedience to God.

The source of many marital problems is that the wife is seeking to control the husband to meet what she perceives as her needs and the husband is seeking to dominate the wife to meet what he perceives as his needs. So you have a constant tug of war going on. That’s not the biblical pattern for husbands or wives.

2. Attractive behavior involves purity.

This means that a wife who wants to win her husband to Christ must live in obedience to God. She will be morally pure. Her husband won’t distrust her because she’s a flirt with other men. She won’t use deception or dishonesty to try to get her own way. She will learn to handle anger in a biblical way. Her hope will be in God (3:5) so that she will have a sweet spirit, even toward a difficult husband. He will see Christlikeness in her.

3. Attractive behavior involves reverence.

The idea is that a godly wife will live in the fear of God, aware that He sees all that is going on (“in the sight of God,” 3:4). To live in the fear of God means that we recognize His holiness and wrath against all sin and therefore live obediently, even when it’s hard.

4. Attractive behavior involves not nagging.

Nothing will drive a man further from the Lord than a nagging wife. Solomon said it 3,000 years ago, and it’s still true, “It is better to live in a corner of a roof, than in a house shared with a contentious woman” (Prov. 21:9). And, “the contentions of a wife are a constant dripping” (Prov. 19:13b). Nagging will drive your husband crazy, but it won’t drive him to Christ.

Nagging will do one of two things to men: Either it will make him resist and become obstinate, or he will give in to keep the peace.

Either response is not good for the wife. If the husband becomes more obstinate, he can become abusive. This creates distance in the relationship. If he gives in to keep the peace, he becomes passive and the wife is put in the role of the decision maker, out from under the covering of blessing and protection that God designed proper authority to be.

Thus attractive behavior involves submission, purity, reverence toward God, and not nagging.

5. Attractive behavior involves a gentle and quiet spirit.

 “Quiet” does not mean mute, but rather tranquil or calm, not combative. A quiet woman exudes a confidence in her role and giftedness. She is not out to prove anything, because she is secure in who she is in the Lord. She may be “quiet” and yet be articulate and persuasive in presenting her point of view.

6. Attractive behavior involves doing what is right.

You have become Sarah’s children “if you do what is right.” Peter emphasizes this concept (2:12, 14, 15, 20; 3:6, 11, 13, 16, 17; 4:19). It always occurs in the context of others doing wrong toward us and points to the fact that our behavior shouldn’t be determined by how others treat us. We’re so prone to react to wrong treatment with more wrong treatment and then to blame our sin on the other person’s sin. But God wants us to be prepared to respond to wrongs against us by doing what is right.

7. Attractive behavior involves an emphasis on the inner person over outward appearance.

The point of 3:3‑4 is not that a woman should neglect her outward appearance, but rather that her emphasis should be on the inner person. He is not forbidding all braiding of hair or wearing of jewelry, or else he’s also forbidding wearing dresses!

A young officer who was blinded during a war met and later married one of the nurses who took care of him in the hospital. One day he overheard someone say, “It was lucky for her that he was blind, since no one who could see would marry such a homely woman.” He walked toward the voice and said, “I overheard what you said, and I thank God from the depths of my heart for blindness of eyes that might have kept me from seeing the marvelous worth of the soul of this woman who is my wife. She is the most noble character I have ever known; if the conformation of her features is such that it might have masked her inward beauty to my soul then I am the great gainer by having lost my sight.” (Donald Barnhouse, Let Me Illustrate [Revell], p. 156.)

We’re working from the theme of Peter’s words in verse 11: Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world…”

As Christians, our focus in primarily on our future heavenly home, so we understand the idea that “I am not from around here.”

We are responsible for many things in our life, but it all revolves around the fact that we are Christians first! And our behavior is everything to us, since it is the way friends and family see Christ in us.

¹²  Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.

The concept of “behavior” is used 10 times in this letter to Christians in Peter’s day.

The Roman historian Tacitus: “These are a class hated for their abominations, for incest, and cannibalism.” (choosing to label “love your one another” and “communion around the body of Christ” in false ways).

For centuries, the Christian’s relationship to civil government has been a matter of critical importance. In the Old Testament, the nation of Israel spent 400 years under Egyptian rule.

Later God gave the Jews over to Gentile rule as a consequence of their rebellion against Him.

The prophet Jeremiah spoke to the people of Israel, directing them to submit to Nebuchadnezzar and to Babylonian rule. They were to serve the king of Babylon and live.

The false prophets, however, promised the people that God would quickly deliver them from their bondage (see Jeremiah 27). As a result, over a period of time through a sequence of rebellions and defeats at the hands of the Babylonians, almost the entire population of those dwelling in Jerusalem and the territory of Judah were taken as captives to Babylon.

This same spirit of rebellion against foreign domination, even though divinely imposed, was evident in the Jews of Jesus’ day. Contrast their words with those of Nehemiah: Nehemiah 9:36 (NIV) “But see, we are slaves today, slaves in the land you gave our forefathers so they could eat its fruit and the other good things it produces.”

John 8:31-33 (NIV) ³¹  To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples.  ³²  Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” ³³  They answered him, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never been slaves of anyone. How can you say that we shall be set free?”

In the New Testament, the Jews were once again subject to foreign rule though they refused to acknowledge their sin or their subjection. This rebellious attitude posed a danger for the Jews of Jerusalem and a danger for New Testament churches such as those to whom Peter had written.

As Peter has indicated, Christianity is the fulfillment of God’s Old Testament promises (1 Peter 1:10-12).

The problem was that Rome had become increasingly displeased with Jews and Judaism (see Acts 18:2, 14-17), and the Jews were persistently resisting Roman control. This led to the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus just as our Lord forewarned (see Matthew 24:1-2; Luke 19:41-44).

Since Rome viewed Judaism and Christianity as closely related, the church might be falsely accused of opposing Rome. Church history provides much evidence that Rome did eventually begin to accuse the church of crimes against the state.

Peter’s words in our text are meant to avoid any unnecessary charges against the church and to arm the church with attitudes and actions which would show these charges to be false.

We Americans live in a country that was founded on a revolution and in which defiance of government authority is viewed as a basic constitutional right.

Those to whom Peter wrote lived with a government and society that was not favorable toward the Christian faith. Both Peter and Paul were executed at the hands of the Roman tyrant Nero. It was not until the fourth century, under Constantine, that Christianity was afforded official legitimacy and protection by the government.

It would have been easy for his readers to conclude that we therefore have no civic responsibility here on earth. Perhaps they would have concluded that they could disregard and disobey human government, since they were citizens of heaven, not of this earth. So Peter anticipates and counters this wrong conclusion by showing how Christian citizens must live.

¹³  Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every authority instituted among men: whether to the king, as the supreme authority…

Christians must live as good citizens by submitting to human government.

“Submit” is a favorite with Peter. In fact, it dominates much of the rest of this epistle. It is a military word, meaning to put oneself under another in rank. Submission is an attitude of respect that results in obedience to authority and positive good deeds.

1. The purpose of human government: To promote justice and peace in society.

The government should promote justice and peace by upholding law and order and by maintaining reasonable national defense.

¹⁴  or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right.

This points to the power of the state to bring about justice for all.

The government does this (in part) by legislating morality. Don’t let anybody sell you the idea that we shouldn’t legislate morality. Laws against murder and theft are moral and biblical. Laws against racial discrimination reflect the biblical teaching that God is no respecter of persons. Laws should protect citizens from sin (for example, pornography and prostitution laws, drug laws, etc.). The fact that something is illegal will restrain many who otherwise may be tempted to engage in the particular activity.

The real debate is, which morality should we legislate? We can work to legislate many biblical standards which have broad social value and can be argued for apart from an appeal to the Bible. Laws against abortion, laws protecting the handicapped and the elderly, laws against pornography and child abuse, and many other such issues, can be argued for on the grounds of basic human rights, apart from Christianity.

Most unbelievers recognize the inherent “rightness” of the Golden Rule. We can use this biblical ethical standard as the basis for legislating proper morality in our democratic, pluralistic country.

What does it mean to submit to human government? Peter includes three elements:

SUBMISSION MEANS OBEDIENCE TO THE LAWS OF THE STATE.

The basic meaning of the word “submit” is “obey.” Christians must obey the laws of their government unless those laws force them to disobey God. “Kings” we can apply to federal laws; “governors” we can apply to state and local laws.

SUBMISSION MEANS SHOWING RESPECT TO GOVERNMENTAL AUTHORITIES.

You can’t obey with a rotten attitude. Peter says that we are to “honor all men,” and specifies, “Honor the king” (2:17). Since God ordained government authority, to despise such authority is to despise God Himself.

SUBMISSION MEANS POSITIVE GOOD DEEDS.

¹⁵  For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish men.

Peter is not referring to the government leaders as “foolish men,” but rather to the willfully ignorant who slander Christians as evildoers (2:12). “To silence” means, literally, to muzzle. The idea is that by our active good deeds, we take away the basis for criticism of Christianity from those who oppose it.

When Christians live like that in the midst of a pagan culture, it is a powerful testimony. On the other hand, when professing Christians disrespect authority, when they disobey the law, or when they just withdraw from society and live unto themselves without doing good deeds, it leaves a bad taste in the mouths of those who are prone to criticize Christianity.

When Israel was sent into exile in Babylon, their situation was parallel to that of Christians today, in that they were strangers and aliens in a foreign land, looking to be restored to their promised land.

God told Jeremiah (29:5-6) to “tell the exiles to build houses there, plant gardens, take wives and raise children. Then He added, “And seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf; for in its welfare you will have peace”.

That’s good counsel for Christians who are exiled as strangers and aliens in this wicked world: Build houses, live in them, plant gardens, raise families, seek and pray for the welfare of the cities where we live. Buy property, work to improve the schools, help out in community projects, be good citizens. Submitting to government means that we obey the law, respect authorities, and do good deeds in our communities.

2. The reason for submission to government: For the Lord’s sake.

“Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake” (2:13). There are at least two ideas inherent in this phrase.

SINCE GOD ORDAINS CIVIL GOVERNMENT, BY SUBMITTING TO IT, WE SUBMIT TO HIM.

Both Paul and Peter wrote when the debauched, godless Nero was on the throne. Daniel lived under the ruthless Nebuchadnezzar. Since both rulers obviously fell far short of the ideal, we must conclude that we cannot make exceptions to the biblical principle of obedience to government authority based on how bad the ruler may be.

Peter knew that his readers (including us!) would not inherently gravitate toward the idea of being submissive to pagan rulers. He could hear us object, “But we’re free in Christ! We don’t have to obey a pagan tyrant!”

¹⁶  Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God.

¹⁷  Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king. 

SINCE CHRISTIANS ARE IDENTIFIED WITH GOD, OUR SUBMISSION TO GOVERNMENT BEARS WITNESS FOR GOD.

Peter singles out our love for the Christian brotherhood because if Christians fight among themselves, the watching world shrugs its shoulders and says, “Why become a Christian? They’re no different than anyone else.” The same is true if we do not show proper honor to all men, including those in civil authority.

Our love for fellow Christians and our submission and honor toward government officials is a powerful witness. Thus we submit “for the Lord’s sake.”

3. The limits of submission to government: When honoring the government violates the fear of God.

Peter differentiates between God and the king: “Fear God, honor the king.” The emperor deserves appropriate honor, but he is not on the same level with God.

There is a fine balance that Christians must maintain, between respecting the man and his office, but not respecting him more than God. If it comes to a tug of war between God and government, we must follow God.

If the government forces us to disobey God, we first appeal to the government, if possible. If we have opportunity, we confront the government with its wrong. But if all that fails, we disobey the government and submit to our punishment.

Conclusion

J. I. Packer wrote, “It is a paradox of the Christian life that the more profoundly one is concerned about heaven, the more deeply one cares about God’s will being done on Earth.”

Christian citizens should be good citizens. The main way we do that is by submitting to our human government.

“Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles…”

Have you ever relied on the expression “I’m not from around here?” It’s something I’ve said quite often when someone stops me wanting information or directions when I am visiting another city, state, or country. They understand and are quite comfortable “moving on” to find someone who can help them.

Our subject is the pilgrim life (sojourners/exiles) – the fact that we are just passing through this life, journeying toward heaven. We are on this earth only for a short while and we should feel as settled in this world as we would feel if we were traveling in Mongolia. It may be a fascinating place to visit, but you wouldn’t want to sink down roots there.

Being a pilgrim just isn’t the dominant model of the Christian life for our times. Our view of Christianity is often geared to the here and now: What will it do for my marriage? How will it help me raise my kids? Will it help me succeed in my career? Will it help me overcome personal problems?  Will it help me feel fulfilled as a person?

For some, heaven is thrown in as a nice benefit at the end of the ride. But heaven is not our focus. We want to enjoy life now and cling to it as long as we’re able. We don’t view death as the gateway to everything we’ve been living for. We see it as something to be postponed and avoided at all costs. We often don’t view ourselves as pilgrims.

There’s nothing wrong and everything right about enjoying God and the blessings He freely bestows on us in this life. But if we don’t hold the things of this life loosely and aren’t focused on God Himself and on being in heaven with Him as our goal, we are holding to a shallow form of Christianity.

If we’re just living for the good life that being a Christian gives now, we won’t last very long under persecution. We wouldn’t endure much suffering. Nor would we withstand the many temptations to indulge in fleshly desires. The only thing that can steel us to endure suffering and to seek holiness in this wicked world is to live as pilgrims, bound for heaven.

Part #1: Getting Into The Word (1 Peter 2:2-3)

In his book, A Quest for Godliness J. I. Packer reports that a Puritan preacher named Laurence Chaderton once apologized to his congregation for preaching for two hours. They responded, “Sir, Go on, go on!” Ah! Every preacher’s dream! At 82, after preaching for 50 years, Chaderton decided to retire. He received letters from 40 clergy begging him not to, testifying that they owed their conversion to his ministry of the Word (p. 57).

Packer states (p. 98): Puritanism was, above all else, a Bible movement. To the Puritan the Bible was in truth the most precious possession that this world affords. His deepest conviction was that reverence for God means reverence for Scripture, and serving God means obeying Scripture. To his mind, therefore, no greater insult could be offered to the Creator than to neglect his written word; and, conversely, there could be no truer act of homage to him than to prize it and pore over it, and then to live out and give out its teaching. Intense veneration for Scripture, as the living word of the living God, and a devoted concern to know and do all that it prescribes, was Puritanism’s hallmark.” (at a seminar at Harding University, we were told that Martyn Lloyd-Jones spend MANY years teaching just from the book of Romans.)

I assure you that I won’t preach for even 35 minutes this morning. But I this will be my feeble attempt to motivate each of us to get into God’s Word consistently. More than the food we eat, we must have God’s Word!

We must have God’s Word to grow in our salvation. 1 Peter 2:2 (ESV)

²  Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation—

God’s Word not only imparts life to us, it nurtures and sustains it. Apart from God’s Word, we shrivel and die like a starving child whose mother’s milk has dried up and who has no other source of food. Therefore, we must have God’s Word.

What the Word is like: The word is pure (2:2).

The Greek word means, literally, not deceitful. It means unadulterated, not watered down. Dishonest merchants in that day would add water to their milk to make more profit. This was “deceitful” milk. Peter tells us to long for the pure, not-deceitful milk.

This means that the Bible, if you take it straight, tells you the honest truth about yourself. It exposes the very thoughts and motives of your heart so that you have no where to hide.

It is not uncommon, after I preach, to have someone come up to me and ask, “Did anyone tell you about what I went through this past week?” When I assure them that no one told me anything, they say, “It seemed like you knew everything and you were aiming that sermon directly at me.” It isn’t me; it’s the Bible!

We tend to deceive and flatter ourselves. But the Word of God cuts through the deception and lays out the honest truth so that we can deal with our problems.

That’s like going to a doctor who doesn’t talk about sickness, but who gives his patients sugar-coated pills that make them feel good without dealing with the root cause of their problems.

The Bible declares that the root cause of our problems is our sin. By confronting our sin and presenting God’s remedy for it, the Bible brings lasting healing.

The word is rational.

The literal translation of verse 2 is that we should long for “the pure, spiritual milk.” The word “spiritual” also means “rational” (Greek = “logikos,” from “logos”). The only other time it occurs in the Bible is in Romans 12:1, where Paul says that presenting our bodies as a living sacrifice to God is our “spiritual (or rational) service of worship.”

He means that it is a spiritual thing to do, since we don’t do it literally (as a burnt offering), but rather spiritually by yielding ourselves to the will of God. And, it is the reasonable thing to do in light of God’s great mercies to us.

This spiritual milk is rational–it is grasped with the mind.

Thus Christianity is essentially rational, but not rational in the worldly sense, but rational in a spiritual sense. Human reason must be subject to the written revelation God has given of Himself in the Bible. But you cannot know God without using your mind, since He has revealed Himself in the propositional revelation of the written Word.

This balance would correct many of the excesses of our day. Some Christians who are heavily subjective. They operate on a feeling level, devoid of solid theological content. Others emphasize theological content, but they’re afraid of emotions. The Word of God ought to fill our minds with the knowledge of God and move our hearts with His majesty and love.

The word is nourishing.

Peter is referring to a mother’s milk, as the analogy of newborn babes makes clear. He isn’t contrasting the milk of God’s Word with meat, as Paul does (1 Cor. 3:2). We are always to be feeding on this nourishing milk. It is simple enough for the youngest infant in the faith, but solid enough for the most mature saints.

God has designed a mother’s milk as the perfect food for newborn babies. It will immunize her baby from many illnesses and nourish her baby for growth. God’s Word will protect Christians from the many spiritual diseases which abound and nourish them to grow in the Lord.

A mother’s milk will make her baby grow for months without any other food. God’s Word will nourish Christians so that they “grow toward salvation” (2:2). Peter means salvation in its ultimate sense, which includes everything that God has provided for us who are His children. We never reach a place in this life where we can stop growing.

One thing about kids is that they’re excited about growing. Just about every home with children has a growth chart. Every few months you measure your kids and say, “Wow, look how much you’ve grown since last time!”

That’s what the Word of God is like: It’s pure; it’s rational; it’s nourishing milk that will make you grow toward salvation.

I didn’t understand this analogy until we had children of our own. Newborn babies have an intense craving for their mother’s milk! It doesn’t matter if it’s 3 a.m. If they’re hungry, they let you know about it and don’t stop letting you know about it until they get what they’re after! You can stick your finger in their mouth and they’ll suck on it for a minute (and what powerful cheek muscles they have!).

How do you get that kind of motivation for the Word of God?

NEGATIVELY, PUT OFF RELATIONAL SINS THAT HINDER THE WORD’S EFFECT IN YOUR LIFE (2:1).

So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander.

   In the context, it is clear that these relational sins (2:1) will hinder your motivation for the Word (2:2). To “put off” means to cast aside like you take off dirty clothes. They are standard operating procedure for many people in the world, especially when they get into a tough situation. But Peter says that they are opposed to spiritual growth and they must be discarded like dirty clothes.

Let me quickly go over the list:

“Malice” is a general word for wickedness of every kind, but especially having it in for someone.

“Guile” originally meant “bait” or “snare,” thus came to mean deceit. It means to tell someone something that isn’t true, so that you trick or mislead them. It involves having ulterior motives in your communication.

“Hypocrisies” (plural) comes from a word meaning to wear a mask and refers to the many ways we can project a false image to people. If we are inconsistent between how we behave at church and how we behave at home or at work, we are engaging in hypocrisies.

“Envyings” refers to the attitude behind much deceit and hypocrisy. It means being jealous of another person or their things. It was the motive behind the crucifixion of Jesus: the religious leaders were envious of His popularity (Mark 15:10).

Envy often works itself out in all sorts of “slanderings.” This word means to speak against someone. The slanderer says nice things to the person’s face but disparaging things behind his back, with the motive of making himself look good in everyone else’s eyes.

POSITIVELY, FOCUS ON THE KINDNESS OF THE LORD (2:3). …if {since} indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.

Since this is a quote from Psalm 34:8 (LXX), it shows that Peter believed Christ to be God (“Yahweh” for the psalmist).

Psalm 34 must have been Peter’s favorite–he quotes from it again in 3:10-12. Also, the theme of Psalm 34 is roughly the same as that of 1 Peter.

Peter here is referring especially to the Lord’s kindness or grace that was shown to us when we trusted Him as Savior and Lord and followed faith that takes us to a burial in water (immersion) in order to have our sins forgiven.

If you’re saved, you have tasted of the Lord’s kindness, because you know that though you deserved His judgment, He showed you mercy.

The cross of Christ, where a holy God made provision for me, the sinner, so that I could experience His forgiveness and receive eternal life as a free gift, ought to be the focus of every Christian every day.

If you don’t have a craving for God’s Word, there could be several reasons. Maybe you’ve never tasted the Lord’s kindness in salvation. You need to believe that He died for your sins and that He offers His salvation to you as a free gift. Take it! And start feeding on the Bible.

You may not have a craving for God’s Word because of sin in your life. Someone has said that God’s Word will keep you from sin or sin will keep you from God’s Word. Confess and forsake it! And get back into the Bible.

You may have ruined your appetite by feeding on the junk food of this world. Read your Bible! Hunger for God’s truth. Drink it in like a nursing infant. You’ve got to have it above all else if you want to grow in your salvation.

The result?

⁴  As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious,
⁵  you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
⁶  For it stands in Scripture: “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.”
⁷  So the honor is for you who believe, but for those who do not believe, “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,”
⁸  and “A stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense.” They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do.
⁹  But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
¹⁰  Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

He closes this first major section of his letter by showing that our salvation must be lived out by being built upon Christ, in Christian community, with witness to the world: God’s people must keep God central, be built together as His people, and proclaim His excellencies to others.

Peter portrays the church as a living, spiritual house, with Christ as the foundation and cornerstone and each believer as a valuable element.

Paul portrays the church as a body, with Christ as the head and each believer as a contributing member. Both pictures emphasize community.

One stone is not a temple or even a wall; one body part is useless without the others.

When God calls us to a task, remember that he is also calling others to work with us. Together our individual efforts will be multiplied.

Look for those people and join with them to build a beautiful house for God.

This passage begins the longest section of First Peter. Remember: the believers were suffering terrible persecution. They had lost their homes, property, money, possessions, and friends.

They were being persecuted because of Christ. They were living for Christ and proclaiming the salvation and hope of eternal life in Him. People were willing to hear about salvation, hope, and eternal life in Christ; but they did not want to hear about repentance, that they had to repent in order to be saved and to receive eternal life.

They were just like people of all ages: they did not want to hear about a Lord to whom they had to give all they were and had.

There was only one message that could encourage and strengthen them: the glorious message of the gospel of salvation. They needed to keep their eyes upon the grace and salvation of God.

1. Get Your Mind Ready, 1:13–16

1:13 Therefore prepare your minds for action.  The word therefore ties Peter’s following challenge with the previous passage. Because the prophets had foretold the great privileges of the gospel and, with even the angels, long to understand them better, believers should show the same kind of earnest and alert concern regarding the way they live.

Peter challenged these scattered believers to prepare your minds for action or “roll up your sleeves.” Obedience does not always come naturally or easily. In Greek, the phrase is “gird up the loins of your minds,” picturing a person “girding up his loins” by tucking his long robes into the belt around his waist in order to run (see, for example, 1 Kings 18:46; 2 Kings 4:29; 9:1).

The word “minds” refers to spiritual and mental attitudes. To lead holy lives in an evil world, the believers would need a new mind-set. Like “robes” that are already “girded up,” their minds should be set and prepared, ready for “action” at God’s prompting.

 Be self-controlled. The believers needed to monitor and restrain their sexual and material desires, anger, and words. “Be self-controlled” is also translated “discipline yourselves.” Even “good” things in life can take control if they are allowed to—such as one’s career, education, or creative pursuits.

 Set all your hope on the grace that Jesus Christ will bring you when he is revealed.  This sentence forms a bridge from the first section to the remainder of the letter.

The effective Christians of history have been men and women of great personal discipline—mental discipline, discipline of the body, discipline of the tongue, and discipline of the emotions.

1:14    As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance.  All believers are part of God’s family; we are his children. Children all have different character traits; parents often marvel at how different each of their own children are. Yet despite the many differences among God’s children, we ought to all have one characteristic in common: We are obedient.

Peter first explained what obedient children do not do (he then explains what they should do in this verse). Believers ought not to live in the same manner that they lived before they were saved. They must break with the past and depend on the power of the Holy Spirit to help them overcome evil desires and conform themselves to God’s will.

1:15    But as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct.  After people commit their lives to Christ, they usually still feel a pull to return to their old ways.

God’s holiness means that he is completely separated from sin and evil. Holiness pervades his character—he is holiness. He is the opposite of anything profane.

1:16    Because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.”  Peter quoted the Old Testament Scriptures, which would be familiar to the Jewish Christians in his audience, to confirm his words in 1:15.

2. Live on Earth in the Fear & Reverence of God, 1:17–21

How can we stand against the trials and temptations of life? When we are severely attacked to such a point that we cannot understand, how can we bear it? Is there anything anyplace that can help us to bear it? Yes! There is the fear of God. If a person fears God and fears Him enough, he will stand against temptation and he will endure the trials of life.

Scripture proclaims that man must fear God or else he will be doomed forever. Therefore, whatever is causing man’s psychological and emotional problems, it is not the fear of God, not the true fear of God.

What does Scripture mean by the fear of God? It means two things.

• To fear God means to hold Him in fear, dread, and terror.
• To fear God means to hold Him in awe, to reverence the holiness, power, knowledge, wisdom, judgment and wrath of God.

1:17 If you invoke as Father the one who judges all people impartially according to their deeds.

God judges and disciplines all people impartially according to their deeds. God hears all prayers and sees all sin. Reverent fear is not the fear of a slave for a ruthless master, but the healthy and fervent respect of a believer for the all-powerful God.

It is fear of offending him, of taking him for granted and becoming sloppy in our Christian lives. We should not assume that our privileged status as God’s children gives us freedom to do whatever we want.

There is no fear like that which love begets. We fear God with the fear of the love that cannot endure the thought of giving pain to the one loving and loved.

1:18–19 For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers. Another reason that we should fear displeasing God is that he paid the enormous price to buy us back from sin. The word redeemed was used when someone paid money to buy back a slave’s freedom. In Old Testament times, a person’s debts could result in that person’s being sold as a slave. The next of kin could redeem the slave (buy his or her freedom), a transaction involving money or valuables of some kind. Yet all valuables are perishable—even silver and gold are susceptible to corruption. The transaction God made to buy us back from sin is not refundable; it is a permanent transaction.

From the very beginning God said, “For the life of a creature is in the blood, and I have given it to you to make atonement for yourselves on the altar; it is the blood that makes atonement for one’s life” (Leviticus 17:11).

But the blood mentioned here is the precious blood of Christ. Only the sacrificial death of Christ on the cross was effective atonement for our sins. Christ stands in our place, having paid the penalty of death for our sin, having completely satisfied God’s demands.

1:20    He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. Christ’s sacrifice for the world’s sins was not an afterthought, not something God decided to do when the world spun out of control.

This plan was set in motion by the all-knowing, eternal God before the creation of the world. In eternity past, God chose his people (1:2) and planned that Christ would redeem them. Christ has always existed with God (John 1:1), but was revealed in these last times to the world in his incarnation.

1:21    Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God. Only through the death of Christ on the cross could sinful humanity approach the holy God.

3. Love One Another Fervently (1:22-25)

There is no greater force than love. If two people truly love each other, they will do anything for the other. There is no greater bond on earth than true love. This is especially true of the love between believers.

Believers are to have a different kind of love than neighbors have for one another. The love that believers are to have for one another is what the Greek calls philadelphia love, a very special kind of love. Philadelphia love means brotherly love, the very special love that exists between the brothers and sisters within a loving family, brothers and sisters who truly cherish each other.

⇒ We are to have unfeigned love for our Christian brothers. Unfeigned means genuine, sincere, without pretension, hypocrisy, or play-acting. We are not to pretend, play, and act like we love one another; we are to love one another genuinely and sincerely.

“See that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently.” The word fervently (ektenos) “does not mean ‘with warmth’ but rather ‘with full intensity’.” It literally means to stretch love fully out or to love one another in an all out manner.

This is the love believers are to have for one another, a philadelphia kind of love. Now note: there are three reasons why we are to love one another fervently.

Reason 1: you have purified your souls (vs. 22)

Reason 2: you are born again through the Word of God (vs. 23)

Reason 3: your flesh withers and falls away (vs. 24-25)

1:22    Now that you have purified your souls by your obedience to the truth so that you have genuine mutual love, love one another deeply from the heart.  Believers ought to be holy because of who God is and what he has done on our behalf. Peter was pointing out that their conversion had changed their lives. The transformation that Christ had made in their lives was toward purity and holiness.

This change was not meant to be internal only; it must be acted out in their daily behavior, attitudes, and conduct. This is one of the strongest statements of brotherly love in the New Testament, for it virtually makes brotherly love the goal of our conversion. Peter expected that growth in purity and holiness would result in deeper love among Christians. Not merely outward appearance or profession, genuine mutual love for our Christian brothers and sisters comes from the heart.

In order to do this, we must willingly let go of evil thoughts and feelings toward fellow believers. Peter used the word philadelphia (love of the brothers) in the phrase “genuine mutual love,” and then changed to the more intense form of the word love, agapao, to describe strong and deep love in the next phrase, love one another deeply.

1:23    For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.  Peter gave the second reason to love others: Believers have a common ground in Christ. We have all been born again; we are sinners saved by grace. Because we have all received new life in Christ, we should be motivated to live to please God, obey the truth, keep ourselves pure, and love our Christian brothers and sisters.

The change that took place in our lives is eternal. Our new birth was not of perishable seed, meaning of human origin, so that we will one day wither and die; rather our new birth originated from imperishable seed, described as the living and enduring word of God.

1:24–25        For “All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord endures forever.” Quoting Isaiah 40:6–8, Peter reminded believers that everything in this life—possessions, accomplishments, people—will eventually fade away and disappear.

Only God’s will, word, and work are permanent. We are mortal, but God’s word is eternal and unfailing.

 That word is the good news that was announced to you. What gives reason for life? What gives peace and patience in the middle of suffering and persecution? Why have hope? Because they believed the good news that had been announced (or proclaimed) to them through the apostles or other believers.

When life strikes it most severe blow into your life, what is it you most need (want) to hear?

It might be a difficult question answer, because we’re often not thinking clearly and our spirituality and emotions are in conflict, to some extend.

And yet when the Spirit of God inspired Peter to write to these suffering Christians, after his opening greeting, the first thing he does is to burst forth in praise: ³ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, ⁴ to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you…

The message of the resurrection will not erase your grief and your pain right now, but through Christ, you can experience grief differently.

As Scripture says, those who place their faith and hope in Christ do not “grieve as others do who have no hope” (1 Thessalonians 4:14). The resurrection is God’s reminder that although our suffering is real, it is also temporary.

The resurrection is the only reason I have something to say when I look into the eyes of those who are experiencing the worst tragedies this life can offer.

The resurrection represents the historical fact that death has been conquered. For all of human history, death had a perfect record. It was unbeaten. From the strongest and most powerful to the weakest and most vulnerable, death got them all in the end. Until Jesus.

Christians have insisted from the very beginning that Jesus died and was truly resurrected from the dead. This wasn’t a fable. As Peter said, “we did not follow cleverly devised myths” (2 Peter 1:16). 

Paul underscored just how essential the resurrection was to the Christian faith, “If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:14). 

The resurrection is a fact in the past that offers hope for the future. It means death is not the end for us or our loved ones.

If we believe in Christ, we will one day receive the very same type of body he has–one that will not age or get sick or die again. We will receive a body fit for a New Creation.

This world will be wonderfully freed from its bondage to sin and renewed to the abundant life God intended. The resurrection affirms that this future hope is not a fantasy. It’s real.

Whatever our problems, we can praise God as Christians because He has saved us unto eternity.

But maybe you’re thinking, “Now, wait a minute! That’s really a superficial approach to my very complex problems. If you knew the things I’m facing, you wouldn’t be so glib as to say that I should praise God because someday I’ll have pie in the sky when I die. I need help right now!”

Maybe you’re saying, “I’m being treated unfairly at work.” Or, “I’ve been fired because of my Christian testimony.” Or, “I can’t find work and I’m facing severe financial problems.” Or, “I have a mate who’s not a Christian, who makes life miserable for me.” Or, “A good friend turned against me without cause and runs me down behind my back.”

Or, “Since I’ve begun to follow Christ, problems have multiplied to the point where I’m overwhelmed.” Or, “I’m facing death itself.”

I’ve just described those to whom Peter wrote this letter.

• Christian slaves were being treated unfairly by their masters, even though they had done no wrong (2:18-20).
• Christian wives were being mistreated by their unbelieving husbands (3:1-6).
• Many of the believers had lost former friends who now were slandering them (2:12; 3:16, 17; 4:4, 13-14, 16).
• Some were being threatened and it’s likely that some even were facing martyrdom (3:14; 4:12).

Peter knew all about these problems and yet he proclaimed to them, “Blessed be the God … who has caused us to be born again to a living hope ….”

We need to stop and think about what salvation means. Salvation means that we who justly deserve the eternal wrath of God have been delivered from that wrath through the death of Jesus Christ on our behalf.

If we are not saved, we’re lost, under the terrible condemnation of God. One of our problems today is that we’re trying to get people saved who have no concept of how terrible it is to be lost.

And we’re trying to coax people who have forgotten what it feels like to be eternally lost into enduring hardship in living the Christian life. They don’t appreciate what God has done in saving them.

———-

In recent years, our culture has taken a very unhealthy turn, embracing a perspective which predisposes our collapse under life’s adverse circumstances rather than causing us to persevere through them. The essence of this new perspective may be summed up in the word “victim.”

No longer are we responsible for our attitudes and actions when we have been wronged or abused—we are now “victims.” Whatever happened is no longer our fault nor are we responsible for the way we choose to respond.

Large segments of our society have built an entire party on the game of victimhood. The whole premise of this delicate system is that it is unsolvable. It must remain unsolvable because the power derived from victimhood will cease to exist if the problems are solved.

The Scriptures make it very clear that Christians will be the recipients of unjust treatment because of our faith in Jesus Christ and the godly lives we are to live in a sinful world.

While the Bible promises that we will experience innocent suffering for the cause of Christ, it nowhere speaks of our being “victims” in the contemporary sense of the word. Rather, the Bible forthrightly speaks of us as “victors.”

Peter introduces the subject of innocent suffering for Christ’s sake in 1:6: In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials…

But he will not mention the trials and testing of our faith until he has first set down the essential truths which should shape our perspective on suffering.

If God had left Jesus in the grave, our salvation would not be complete. In His death on the cross, Jesus bore our sins. But if He had not been raised bodily, He would not have conquered sin and death.

We find God’s mercy always at the center of any discussion of salvation. Only God’s mercy would allow him to have compassion for sinful and rebellious people.

Salvation is all completely from God; we can do nothing to earn it. Salvation is given to us because of God’s great mercy alone. Peter’s words offer joy and hope in times of trouble.

He finds confidence in what God has done for us in Christ Jesus, who has given us hope of eternal life. Our hope is not only for the future; it is “living.”

Eternal life begins when we trust Christ and are added to God’s family, when we were baptized in order to have our sins forgiven.. Regardless of our pain and trials, we know that this life is not all there is. Eventually we will live with Christ forever.

In the new birth, we become dead to sin and alive to God with a fresh beginning. People can do no more to accomplish their “new birth” than they could do to accomplish their own natural birth.

Believers are reborn into a living hope. The “hope” refers to our confident expectation of life to come. “Living” means that it grows and gains strength the more we learn about our Lord.

It is not dependent on outward circumstances; it is dynamic and vital. Hope looks forward in eager anticipation to what God will do. We have hope based on our conviction that God will keep his promises.

We base our hope in a future resurrection on the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is living because Christ is alive. By rising from the dead, Christ made the necessary power available for our resurrection.

Christ’s resurrection makes us certain that we too will be raised from the dead. We shouldn’t be discouraged by earthly trials, for we have the Resurrection to be our backup.

Peter’s words indicate that he is writing more here than simple instruction to give comfort and assurance in times of suffering; he is also indicating the basis for praise toward God.

Christ’s resurrection is the assurance that we have a future, and that future is our hope. As Christians, this should be our desire and our expectation.

Christ’s death and resurrection accomplished an inheritance for which every saint waits. Christ’s resurrection from the dead assures us God was well-pleased with Christ’s atoning work.

Since His resurrection is the basis for, and assurance of, our own resurrection, we know we will enter into God’s eternal blessings.

All Old Testament saints died without entering into the promised blessings, but they were assured they would experience them after their death: All these died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having seen them and having welcomed them from a distance, and having confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth (Hebrews 11:13).

All Old Testament saints, like Abraham, had a resurrection faith which enabled them to hope for blessings after death: He considered that God is able to raise men even from the dead; from which he also received him [Isaac] back as a type (Hebrews 11:19).

Through Christ’s death and resurrection, we have a future inheritance. This inheritance will be ours because Christ died. Because our hope of future blessings rests in the finished work of our Lord, it is a certain hope.

Peter gives a three-fold description of this hope: it is imperishable, it is undefiled, and it will not fade away.

William MacDonald says it is death-proof, sin-proof, and time-proof.

The Security of our Salvation (1:5)

… who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

God is our refuge and strength. He is our strong tower. His power protects us. Because He is all-powerful, nothing can cause us to lose that which God has provided, promised, and preserved.

Many of the benefits and blessings of our salvation are yet to be experienced in the future. It is important to note that Peter very clearly states we have not obtained all of the benefits and blessings accomplished through the death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord.

Salvation is the vantage point from which we must view suffering.

How unfortunate that many Christians look at their salvation from their circumstances, rather than looking at their circumstances through their salvation.

When some saints suffer, they begin to doubt their salvation and the certainty of their future hope. Other Christians may even encourage such doubts.

Peter wants us to view our suffering from the standpoint of our security as saints, based upon God’s mercy, grace and power.

Peter teaches us that saints are not “victims” but “victors” in their suffering. The “victim” mindset has become a dominant note in our society. We look to our past, and to the abuse of others, or to the “genes” passed on to us from our parents as the cause of our sin and suffering.

Peter turns our eyes toward God and toward the shed blood of His Son, in whom we have not only forgiveness of sins, but victory in Christ.

We were not saved merely to cope with life; we were called to be conquerors in Christ. We are overcomers, especially in the trials and tribulations of life. Let us believe and behave accordingly.