By Rev. Dr. Brent Russett – Asbury Free Methodist
August 11, 2024 – 1 Peter 4:12-19
We have been working our way through 1 Peter and because of that I have been talking a lot about suffering. Peter was writing to a people who were suffering because it is part of the human condition. Some of the people he was writing to were suffering because they were Christians. It has been good working through 1 Peter because it feels like it was written for us. It is directly applicable to many of our lives.
This morning, our passage continues to talk about suffering. I think it will be helpful to give us an overview of the world we live in. I also want to give you some practical steps on how to live in the middle of trials and pain.
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Come with me to 1 Peter 4. Your attitude towards suffering will determine how you survive it.
1 Peter 4:12 (NIV)
Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.
I told you this a couple of Sundays ago, but as a human and as a Christian, you should expect to suffer.
When sin enter the world, the world broke. It was cursed and that curse has not been fully reversed. Jesus paid the price for our sin, but we still live in a broken world. Sickness, disease, natural disasters happen, and we suffer. It is part of the human condition.
Sometimes when suffering comes out way, we get surprised. We start to ask, “Why me?” But we live in a world where you are unlikely to escape suffering. Don’t be surprised when fiery trials come your way.
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If you are a follower of Jesus, when you suffer, you pray. While I have found that healing and deliverance can happen – it doesn’t always happen. Does God answer prayer today? Of course. Does he always deliver us from our suffering in this life? No, he doesn’t.
In fact, sometimes God uses suffering both to test us and to purify us.
Peter uses the world fiery ordeal, or fiery trial that comes to test us. This is very familiar Old Testament imagery.
Zechariah 13:9 (NRSV)
And I will put this third into the fire,
refine them as one refines silver,
and test them as gold is tested.
They will call on my name,
and I will answer them.
I will say, “They are my people”;
and they will say, “The Lord is our God.”
You have this imagery of being put into the fire for purification. You have this imagery of God testing us. Now when we talk about God testing us – it is not the same as going to school and taking a test so the teacher can find out how well you know the subject. God knows everything. He doesn’t need to test you to find out anything. But here is what I have found. Testing shows me my heart. It tells me about myself. It points out areas that I need to work on.
So, Peter says,
1 Peter 4:12 (NIV)
Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.
What is happening to you is not strange. You are a human and you as a Christian can expect to suffer because it comes to all of us.
Because it comes to all of us, does not mean that God is creating your suffering. We live in a fallen world. We live in a world full of people who chose their own way rather than God’s way. Although we would like to blame God, much of what happen to us is because of those things. So don’t be surprised at the fiery ordeals that come your way.
But Peter goes on to say,
1 Peter 4:13 (NIV)
13 But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.
Jesus died to fix a broken world. Jesus died to remove the curse of sin. When Jesus hung on the cross “He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquity. The chastisement of our peace was upon him and by his stripes we are healed.”
When you are suffering you are experiencing just a little of the sufferings of Christ. Peter says, the fact that you are identifying with and participating in the suffering of Christ is something to rejoice about.
We are not masochist. We do not enjoy pain for pain’s sake. But we do know that the pain and suffering we go through produces something of eternal value. What it produces will be totally revealed when we see Jesus. But Paul gives us a hint. He says
Romans 5:3–5 (NIV)
3 Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.
Paul also says in
2 Corinthians 4:17–18 (NIV)
17 For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
The point is that God is using your pain to show you your heart. In showing you your heart, he will give you the grace to change. That stands you in good stead not only for this life but the next. God hasn’t stopped loving you when you are suffering. In fact, God, in his love, is using your suffering to change you for good.
Not only that, but Jesus has been there. He knows what it means to suffer. He walks with you in your suffering. When he says to you, “I understand,” he really does understand. When he says to you, “My grace is sufficient for you,” it really is.
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Peter then goes on to address the suffering that is unique to the Christian.
1 Peter 4:14–16 (NIV)
14 If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. 15 If you suffer, it should not be as a murderer or thief or any other kind of criminal, or even as a meddler. 16 However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name.
There are a whole lot of reasons why we might be insulted in our world. I have known people who use their Christian faith as an excuse to be weird. Then when people insult them for their weirdness, they feel like they are being insulted because of the name of Christ. I don’t think that is what Peter is talking about here.
But there will be people who think you are stupid for believing in Jesus and will tell you so. There will be people who will try and make things hard for you, just because you are trying to follow Jesus. There will be people who will lie about you because you are a follower of Jesus. Here is what Jesus said,
Matthew 5:11–12 (NIV)
11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Jesus says you are blessed. Peter says the Spirit of glory rests on you. Jesus says, you are in good company because they have persecuted those who came in my name before you.
But Peter warns us, if you are going to suffer, it shouldn’t be for doing wrong.
1 Peter 4:15–16 (NIV)
If you suffer, it should not be as a murderer or thief or any other kind of criminal, or even as a meddler. 16 However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name.
I love the fact that Peter calls out murders and criminals and meddlers.
We get that we shouldn’t suffer as a criminal, but Peter warns us against suffering as busybody – which is another good way to translate the word “meddler.” It is someone who busies him or herself in the affairs of others in an unwarranted manner.
Peter is saying that if you suffer for sticking you nose into a place where it doesn’t belong, that is on you. That is good life advice.
But he says,
16 However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name.
Don’t be ashamed of suffering for Christ.
Peter goes on to say,
1 Peter 4:17–18 (NIV)
17 For it is time for judgment to begin with God’s household; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who do not obey the gospel of God? 18 And,
“If it is hard for the righteous to be saved,
what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?”
It will come as no surprise that all the way through scripture God calls his people to be holy. Sometimes he uses hardship and suffering to call them to holiness. Peter builds on that Old Testament theme and says your salvation cost a lot. It cost Jesus his life. It is hard for the righteous to be saved, because of the great cost of the cross.
If it cost so much for us to be saved then you can know that God takes our holiness seriously. Judgement here is used in the sense that God sees our deficiencies, our places of unholiness, and he uses suffering to make us holy.
He asks the question, what will happen to those who don’t respond to the purifying work of God? What will happen to those who don’t obey the gospel? Then he just leaves the question hang.
Here is what I would say to you. Don’t waist your pain. Let God do what he wants to do I your life. I think that is part of what he is saying in verse 19
1 Peter 4:19 (NIV)
19 So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.
If you are suffering – no drama – just commit yourself to God and continue to do good. I want to take a few minutes and talk about the posture of suffering. How do you live when you are going through trials? How do you grow while you are going through trials. If you have taken the Grow Character course this will be a review. As usual, this message will be posted on the church website if you want to see these points again.
Step 1: worship God, knowing he is working all things out for our good
Paul says that God will work out all things for good in Romans 8:28. Do you believe this? Can you praise him in the good times as well as in the hard times? Try it and see what it does for your soul! As David said, Psalm 42:5 (ESV) Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation. In this way, you’re telling your emotions how they should feel about your situation. This approach can be very effective!
Step 2: go to God daily for comfort and strength to carry on
God will not always give you the reason for your suffering just yet. But in suffering, when you don’t know the WHY, you can learn to be content with the WHO! This is a holy habit – thinking about who God is. Consider this promise, Deuteronomy 33:27 (NIV) The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.
Step 3: set our eyes on eternity by meditating on eternal things
Memorize verses about eternity in order to move your focus from temporary things to fix them on eternal things. This will give you hope and the necessary strength to persevere to the end of your trial. The Word hidden in the heart is powerful! There is little in the world we live in that will prompt us to focus on eternity. We have to provide a counter-narrative to the message to only focus on the “now.”
Step 4: ask God to reveal what his purpose(s) are
Paul asked God for some of the reasons for his suffering. And God answered him! Of course, this caution needs to be repeated – sometimes you won’t get such clarity. Or the answer will come much later on.
Consider when God told Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac – God didn’t tell Abraham that he would supply another sacrifice! HOWEVER, Abraham did find out afterwards what God was trying to do in the middle of the test! Sometimes we find out years later and some things we simply won’t know until we reach heaven. However, not to ask is to dishonor the Lord – for according to James 1, he invites us to ask.
Step 5: pray daily for a character trait
Often God will grow your character through a trial, even if he has other purposes. This can be so stretching for us, isn’t it? Yet all followers of the Way can grow in character! When you realize how your character is being stretched, begin to pray for that specific trait on a daily basis. You will see incredible things happen!
Step 6: confess any sinfulness in the area of character growth needed
The area that God wants you to grow in is the same area in which sinful, unrighteous, or ungodly behavior will be seen. This needs to be confessed.
Step 7: receive inner healing, deliverance, and freedom from harmful family patterns
Perhaps an old wound from your childhood or past is contributing to your suffering. Or there is a bondage you just can’t conquer alone. Perhaps it’s even generational. Turn back to Lessons 4-6 for help.
Step 8: tell someone and ask for their prayers
You can’t survive your trials and suffering alone. God designed you to need others. Ask your spouse or a friend or a small group to pray with you in these days. And when you do, don’t just ask for prayer to remove circumstances; ask for prayer to align with God’s purposes in this, including growth in godly character.
Step 9: be filled with and live by the Spirit
You cannot change your character alone. You’ll need to be filled with the Holy Spirit, so that you can receive the desire and ability to work on your character.
Paul named four ways to be filled in Ephesians 5:18-21. First, when we minister to others – addressing one another in psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Second, when we worship the Lord – singing in our hearts to the Lord. Third, when we are grateful – giving thanks to God always, in ALL circumstances. Fourth, when we submit to one another in reverence to Christ.
Step 10: learn and memorize Scripture about the trait
This will help you remember the trait, but also plant God’s truth in your heart.
Step 11: keep in step with the Spirit
Stop during moments of testing and choose correctly. The Spirit will remind you of the proper responses as you learn in the midst of your trial. [1]
[1] Taken From Grow Character – Church Renewal