Pew Special… Peter addresses Suffering

Jesus never hid from his disciples the truth, that they would suffer by following him. When we read first Peter 4: 12- 19, we see that lesson has traveled along through the apostles down through various disciples. Christianity is not an easy road to travel. Let’s look at first Peter 4:12–19. We see the continuation of that teaching that Christians are not to be surprised by suffering, but to see it as a test that purifies their faith for sharing in Christ’s suffering that brings blessing and anticipation of future glory, and an opportunities to commit their souls to God while continuing to do good, glorifying him rather than suffering as a criminal. Here we learn that suffering is not a curse, but a normal part of following Jesus.we learned that the spirit empowers believers to endure. It helps us to understand that our present trials are temporary compared to eternal glory. In our research of these versus, we discovered a number of key themes, and we want to share those with you today. We are told in verse 12 not to be surprised by fiery trials. The definition of that is intense, testing and prosecution and hardship. All of these things are to be expected. But they have a purpose.  We are blessed when persecuted for Christ,  we find that in verse 14, being insulted and mocked for the name of Christ is a blessing. The simplest way to explain this in my experience would be to simply say that the spirit of glory and God rest upon those who suffer for Christ, I simply explain it as a God thing. It is far better that we do not suffer as a murderer, thief or meddler. When we suffer for Jesus when we suffer as Christians, we are bringing glory to God. When we get t0 verse 17, there’s a message for all Christians that we need to make note of. And that is that God’s judgment starts with his people, purifying them, but it’s gonna be far harsher or for the unbeliever. We who call ourselves Christians need to commit our ourselves to a faithful creator. And the last thing listed in the research that I did was doing good. Continue to do good to trust God to sustain you. When we look back over this passage, we see that it’s a call to radical endurance, teaching Christians to see suffering as a normal, purifying and glorious part of their faith journey, a taste of Christ’s own path and a strong reason to trust God completely as they wait for his returning glory. The path we as Christians follow is not an easy one. In a Layman’s term, Jesus made no bones about what these disciples would go through and he told them directly that they would suffer. So those of us who call ourselves Christian and try to live best we can, make no mistake about it. We are a light to the world…Keep The Faith…

Life is Good 

jk