Suffering for Being a Christian
12 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. 13 But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. 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. 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?"
19 So then, those who suffer according to God's will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.
Dig Deeper
I was expecting it, of course, but she had no idea that it was coming. The high school at which I taught had hired a new teacher and it was her first day. Most of the classes at this school were team taught and I was asked to team up with this teacher for most of her classes during her first semester so that I could mentor her. I knew her first couple of weeks would likely be rough but she was full of idealism and thought all of the kids would treat her with love, respect, and kindness. Only, that’s just not how things worked around there. Kids were suspicious of new teachers and rather than treating them with respect and hospitality that would welcome them into the family, they seemed to like to test and harass new teachers to see what they were made of. On her very first day, several of the students were rude and disrespectful to her in a fairly confrontational way. She didn’t handle it very well and I was forced to step in and reprimand them, which is not the best thing but she had clearly lost control. At the end of the day, when all of the kids had gone home, she broke down into tears and couldn’t seem to understand why that had happened. One of the things I reminded her of was that she should have known this was coming. It simply came with the territory. If you’re going to take a job teaching at an inner-city high school with one of the worst education systems in the entire country, you absolutely have to be ready for rough students and hard times. Being shocked when difficult times come is just plain naiveté that one cannot afford in that situation.
The believers of Peter’s day had died to their old lives and entered into Christ and would have been told from the very beginning that part of that decision would likely entail sharing in the suffering of Christ. What was true of the king, after all, was true of his people and Christ had certainly suffered and been persecuted. It’s possible that the communities to which Peter was originally writing did not face much persecution at first but now it had come on full force. This may haven taken them by surprise or shocked them that it had happened at all. Peter reminds them, though, that they should have known better. Part of the deal, part of the very nature of being a Christian means taking on persecution, suffering and trials. Those who present Christianity as all health, wealth, and prosperity present a false gospel. They were facing suffering, and says Peter, they should have expected it all along.
The trials that had come their way must have been fairly severe because Peter calls it a fiery ordeal that had come to test them. They shouldn’t consider this some sort of strange aberration or begin to question their faith, however. This was part of the life of Christ. It was as natural and normal as could be. Rather, they should rejoice as they participate in the sufferings of Christ, or as James puts it, "consider it pure joy" (James 1:2). This seems strange to one whose thinking is still controlled by the flesh but should make perfect sense to the Christian. Just as a thin person looks at a bodybuilder and knows that he must put himself through some severe tests and strenuous exercise in order to transform his body to become like the muscleman, the Christian knows that our great hope is to be transformed into Christ-likeness. The only way to achieve that completeness is through suffering, tests, and trials. They should not think of suffering as something to be shunned or spoken against the way Peter had so many years before when Christ was introducing the subjects to His disciples (Matt. 16:21-22; Mark 8:31-32). They should, in fact, rejoice in their present sufferings, because they know that as they are crafted, molded, and refined into the image of Christ, they will be overjoyed when His glory is fully revealed in them (cf. 2 Cor. 3:18) at the great renewal of all things and resurrection of the righteous (Matt. 19:28).
In our modern, Western culture we might tend to miss the full force of being insulted because of the name of Christ in the first century. "Name" in the first century could be used almost synonymously with the life or character of someone, so Peter is referring to the life of Christ in which they all participate. But they lived in an honor-shame culture in which being insulted was far more than a bit of verbal criticism. Being shamed in that culture meant having permanent damage done to one’s reputation, status, and social standing.
They needed to learn to cope with the loss of social status and economic opportunities and embrace that they might very well be treated as social outcasts. That should not shame them in their own eyes, however, or serve as some kind of sign that they had made a mistake when they chose the life of Christ. In fact, they should praise God that they bear that name, because the very persecution that they are facing was not a negative thing but a sign that they were indeed living part of the life of Christ. It was an important caveat, subsequently, that they should not suffer for ungodly behavior. They likely would have understood that Christians were not to be murderers or criminals, but Peter says that this prohibition includes even being meddlers, a word that could also be translated "busybodies." His point is that suffering for the life of Christ is appropriate, but suffering for ungodly behavior simply won’t do. They shouldn’t jeopardize a witness that really hinges on upright behavior in the face of persecution. Those types of behaviors should not be tolerated or even excused because of their difficult situation.
After hashing out the reality of facing trials, Peter returns to the topic of judgment, which served as a powerful motivator and regulator for the early church. The judgment of God was important to them as it would be the time when God vindicated His people as being just that. Peter reminds them, though, God’s judgment begins with God’s people, a concept familiar to those fluent in the Old Testament. In fact, the early church viewed persecution as the first, and necessary, stage of the future judgment (cf. Phil. 2:28-30; 1 Thess. 3:3-4:2; 2 Thess. 1:4; Revelation 1-22). The realization of a future judgment served as powerful basis for calling the Christian community to live faithfully to the life of Christ to which they had been called. What they needed to realize was the big picture. The types of persecutions and trials which they were now facing were part of the judgment and discipline of God as He refined His people, molding them into the image of Christ, so that they would be able to withstand the presence of the consuming fire that is our God (Deut. 4:4; Heb. 12:29; cf. Mal. 3:1-4). This is precisely what Paul refers to in 1 Corinthians 11:32 when he says, "Nevertheless, when we are judged in this way by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be finally condemned with the world." Suffering and trials are the "exercise" we need to become like Christ (cf. James 1:2-4). These trials are not easy and they never will be, but they do have a purpose that makes it worth it. Not everyone will stand up to these trials, unfortunately, and those who do will find it rough going from time to time.
Peter once again quotes from the Old Testament (Prov. 11:31) to bolster his point: "If it is hard for the righteous to be saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?" If, in other words, God’s judgment is so stringent that it provides a stiff challenge for even the people of God, what possible chance do those not in Christ stand? The obvious answer is none. Only those who have entered into Christ will be formed into His image and only those in image of Christ will be able to withstand the full penetrating and judging presence of the almighty God. Those in Christ who suffer then, should realize that, although God is not responsible for their suffering, He does allow it as part of His will. They should, simply put, commit themselves to their faithful creator, despite whatever suffering and persecution they may suffer, and continue to do good, regardless of the difficult circumstances they might find themselves.
Devotional Thought
We often sing a song that says, "When trouble comes my way. . . Jesus is gonna fix it, after a while." Have you ever thought about that song in light of what Peter says here. If we are going to align that song with the word of God, then it really hinges on having a proper understanding of "after a while." Spend some times considering what that song, correctly understood, might mean for your own trials, troubles, or ordeals.
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