Dearly
loved by God,
I address you often at the beginning of a
sermon as “dearly loved.” It is this heartfelt description, translated here as “dear friends,” that the apostle Peter
used in writing to Jewish Christians. They were the people of God scattered
across Asia Minor about three decades after Jesus’ Ascension. They were
suffering greatly because they followed Christ.
Peter’s message to them was a message of
hope; hope that would give them endurance in their sufferings. The apostle
included this Benediction toward the close of his letter, “And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in
Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and
make you strong, firm, and steadfast.” 5:10
The one great truth Peter intended to impart in
this portion of that epistle is our theme: There
is No Shame in Suffering for Christ. First, nothing strange is happening to
us; second, judgment begins with the family of God.
Almost every time you turn on the news today,
a reporter or commentator is relating another incident of attacks on Christianity
or Christians. The principal demanded the elementary school girl to remove or
cover up her cross necklace. The professor mocked the college student for his
belief in Creation. Somewhere the atheists or followers of some other religion
said, “You can’t have a Bible here,” or, demanded the removal of yet another
cross from the public square.
Many Christians seem surprised by this. They
are offended that God would expect them to suffer the slings and arrows of
outrageous opposition. What is going on? The same thing that was going on in
First Century Asia Minor. “Dear friends,
do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something
strange were happening to you.” There is no shame in suffering for Christ. Suffering
as a direct result of following Christ is not foreign to the Christian. Why
would we act offended or surprised that God would ask us to suffer for Christ?
Suffering comes with the territory.
These Christians were suffering “painful trial,” literally, trial by
fire. The Lord allowed them to undergo purifying fire for the benefit of their
faith. Peter had written earlier about these trials, “These have come so that your faith-of greater worth than gold…may be
proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is
revealed.” 1:7
Rather than be offended or outraged that
unbelievers are causing us to suffer, “rejoice
that you participate in the sufferings of Christ.” We participate in the
sufferings of Christ in the mistreatment, insults, rejection, and indignities
his enemies placed on him which they continue to place on us.
Here in America, that usually means being
made to feel a bit uncomfortable or embarrassed. In Peter’s day, it meant
someone skinned you or roasted you alive. An unbeliever might kill you. The
writer to the Hebrews in chapter 11 wrote, “others
were tortured…faced jeers and flogging…they were stoned, sawed in two. They
were put to death with the sword.” Fellow believers in other parts of the world
continue to suffer in these ways for Christ. In 2009 Ri Hyon Ok suffered death
for distributing Bibles in North Korea.
Peter reminded his readers and reminds us that
when we suffer as a direct result of our confession of faith in Jesus Christ
and living as his disciples, it is a privilege without shame. It is a blessing. “If you are insulted because of the name
of Christ you are blessed for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you.”
Do not be surprised this happens. If, on the
other hand, I suffer because I have the name murderer, thief, or busybody in
another’s business where I do not belong, then I should be ashamed. Not,
however, when I suffer as a Christian. Then, “praise God that you bear that name.”
Peter went on to make a second point. There is
no shame in suffering for Christ because judgment begins with the family of
God.
The Christian suffers because of my
connection to Christ. Peter is not talking about life’s inconveniences that
come into my life daily because I live in a fallen world; you know, my car
breaks down, the kids need braces, and I just can’t get a break. Those things
really are not suffering. We must endure suffering for Christ because it is
God’s judgment that this is good for us. We endure God’s judgment and his will
as loving discipline and a refining of our faith.
If we have to endure suffering even as
Christians, it goes much worse for unbelievers. Peter uses a proverb, “If it is hard for the righteous to be saved
(that is, saved from God’s judgment), what will become of the ungodly and the
sinner (unbelievers)?” The outcome of God’s judgment for them “who do not obey the gospel,” another
way of saying do not believe in Christ, will be eternal damnation.
Peter expresses the certainty of God’s divine
justice. For believers that is a call to complete serenity in our faith. God
disciplines his children for our good as a loving father disciplines his
children. This does not cause us to think we should be spared. This does not
lead us to be offended whenever I determine God has dared to treat me unfairly
at the hands of the ungodly. Rather it speaks to the great price God’s Son,
Jesus Christ, paid for us so that we might be his own children.
Because Jesus paid the price of his blood on
the cross, and the Spirit has called us to faith, we enjoy the privilege of a
loving Father in heaven who takes care of our faith even through the words and
actions of our enemies. We are in that familial relationship. We are the “dearly loved.” St. Augustine adds this
thought that helps, “If the sons are being chastened, what will happen to
the slaves?”
Peter’s exhorts, “So then, those who suffer according to God will should commit
themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.” There is no
shame in suffering for Christ. He committed himself completely for us in
suffering and dying on the cross. Jesus endured God’s justice as punishment for
our sins. We endure suffering as a loving refinement of our faith. Suffering
for Christ causes us to rejoice. It is a blessing. The outcome of that
suffering will be the greatest of all blessings by God’s grace “And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you
will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away.” 5:4 Amen.
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