Strengthened for Suffering - Pt 1

For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit, in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison, because they formerly did not obey, when God's patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water. Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him. (1 Peter 3:18-22 ESV).

If you have been following our journey through Peter’s first letter over the past few weeks, you will notice I have skipped ahead a bit with today’s reading. So, before we get too deep into these verses we should understand how it relates to what goes before and what comes after. The preceding verse is the key: "It is better, if God should will it so, that you suffer for doing what is right rather than for doing what is wrong" (v. 17). The apostle knows they are going to face great persecution under the rule of Nero. He also knows that sometimes it is God's will that we suffer for doing what is right. This is not an easy thing to hear. We need help with this. We need understanding and we need encouragement and hope, if God is going to will that we suffer for doing what is right. Peter begins our reading by saying, "For Christ also died [suffered] for sins once for all” (v. 18). The word "for" shows us that Peter is beginning to explain why it is sometimes God's will for us to suffer for doing what is right. Look at the connection between the paragraph and what follows in 1 Peter 4:1. The next unit begins, "Therefore, since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same purpose"—that is, the purpose to suffer for doing what is right, like Christ did. So just before the text (in 3:17) and just after the text (in 4:1) the point is: get ready to suffer for doing what it right, if that should be God's will. Arm yourselves with that purpose. Ouch! The main point of these verses is to help us get ready to suffer with Jesus for doing what is right, not for doing what is wrong. For all the puzzling things in these verses we must not forget this main point. Peter's intention in this text is to help us arm ourselves with the faith to suffer for the sake of Christ and his kingdom. The truth is as you serve people as you follow the example of Christ in your life, you will give, forgive, forget, release your own will, obey God to the maximum, and wash dirty feet with an attitude of gentleness and humility. And after all those beautiful things, you will often be rewarded with some kind of suffering. It may be as benign as gentle chiding or ridicule; it may be as severe as being horribly tortured or executed. Expect suffering and know peace.