Year 9, Day 219: 1 Peter 4 & 5

Theological Commentary: Click Here

As Peter winds down this letter, he speaks about suffering.  I love how he breaks it down.  He begins by talking about our own internal suffering.  This is the kind of suffering that we feel when we deny ourselves.  As a bit of a silly example, it is the kind of suffering when we check out of the grocery store and walk right past the kit-kats without buying one.  On a more serious note, it is the kind of suffering we feel within when someone slanders us and we want to fight back but instead we turn the other cheek.  We suffer inside when we deny our humanity in order to behave in a godly manner.

Peter then speaks about external suffering.  This is the kind of suffering that we receive when we live in holiness within the world.  It’s the kind of suffering we experience when everyone else is having a beer and we opt out.  It’s the kind of suffering we often receive when someone is being bullied by a crowd and we stand up to defend the victim.  It’s the suffering from not going along with the crowd.

Then, Peter speaks about spiritual suffering. He speaks about the devil as a roaring lion, seeking whom he can devour.  It’s one thing to suffer when we do it to ourselves.  It’s another thing to walk into a situation where our actions bring suffering.  It’s a different thing entirely to think that there is someone out their seeking to bring suffering to us.  That reminds us of spiritual warfare.  It is a daily battle, one we’d do best to not forget.

How we fight, though, is ironic.  We humble ourselves.  We prepare ourselves for battle against suffering by being humble.  We don’t seek our own exultation, we seek opportunity for God to exalt us.  After all, God is the God of restoration.  What can we suffer that God cannot restore?

<><