Even disciples of Christ that suffer persecution can love life and have good days according to 1 Peter 3. We take a closer look at the details on this edition.
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Good Days
1 Peter 3:8-16
- The Apostle Peter speaks to husbands and wives in the verses preceding our passage of the day
- He has also recently spoken of submission to authority
- And about salvation and holiness in the life of a believer
- When we arrive at our text, he provides a list of general statements about how Christians should think and act
- He has some things to say about our unity
- The way we relate to one another
- Our attitudes and our dispositions
- And the way in which we should deal with persecution
- Or suffering "for righteousness' sake"
- Today, it's 1 Peter 3:8-16
- And the theme "Good Days"
- A phrase we'll discover and explain in this lesson
- The context that we enter today is very important
- Peter is speaking to believers
- And he provides some commands
- Obedience to these commands will be useful for all those facing persecution, which is a reality for all those who live Godly in Christ Jesus
- Let's read the full passage first, then take a closer look…
1 Peter 3:8-16
8 Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous:
9 Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing.
10 For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile:
11 Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it.
12 For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.
13 And who is he that will harm you, if ye be followers of that which is good?
14 But and if ye suffer for righteousness' sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled;
15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:
16 Having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ.
- As you will have noticed, this is for Christ's disciples
- Those who may be doing right and suffering because of it
- This has been common throughout history
- It happens today
- Christians suffer for Jesus' name
- We need to be equipped to face whatever may come
- Here's where we start…
1 Peter 3:8
8 Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous:
- Believers should have unity of mind
- This unity most often comes about when we all know and obey God's word
- The word for "compassion" is slightly different than our modern definition
- It means to be "mutually commiserative"
- Or to be sympathetic
- And we ought to have a brotherly love for one another
- To be tendered hearted toward one another
- And to be friendly or kind
- These are ways of behaving that should characterize Christians
- But we should avoiding acting in certain ways too…
1 Peter 3:9
9 Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing.
- If anyone fails to be sympathetic to us
- Or fails to have brotherly love or kindness
- We ought not to respond in like manner
- Trading insults should never happen
- We should instead bless others
- Doing this because we know God has blessing in store for us
- Behaving in this way and some other ways the passage will describe will bring good things to us
- As the next verse relates…
1 Peter 3:10-11
10 For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile:
11 Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it.
- People who want to enjoy life and experience good days will refrain from speaking evil
- This is certainly in keeping with what has come before
- Things are always better for those who will not speak lies
- And who will turn away from evil
- Instead seeking peace and pursuing after it
- Everything we do, everything we say, and everything we think are observed
- God is the observer…
2 Peter 3:12
12 For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.
- There is wonderful comfort in knowing God watches over us
- But there is also a warning
- Providing we decide to ignore, or worse, deliberately disobey Him
- If we pray, He hears
- But He is set against those who do evil
- We must do right and have confidence He sees
- And avoid doing wrong because He sees
- We should also take that opportunity to pray
- Seeking the One who can intervene and do the miraculous
- There are no downsides to this…
1 Peter 3:13
13 And who is he that will harm you, if ye be followers of that which is good?
- If we are harmed for doing that which is good, it will be temporary harm
- For believers in Christ have a safe, forever-home in heaven
- That's why the passage goes on…
1 Peter 3:14-16
14 But and if ye suffer for righteousness' sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled;
15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:
16 Having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ.
- These are three loaded verses
- It says believers can be happy in the midst of suffering
- That we can overcome fear
- That we can overcome worry
- Even when we are falsely spoken-against by persecutors
- But we should have a ready-heart
- And a ready-answer
- Because the hope that is within us will shine through in times like this
- And we should always proclaim Him with a certain gentleness and respect
- But we must proclaim Him none the less
- With boldness
- And a clear conscience
- Know that, at that moment, they may be speaking evil of us
- But that is to their shame, not ours
- If we are living a Godly life in Christ
- Christians who live like this will love life
- And have good days