Suffering for Good
After all this talk of submission, love, and unity, we have a reminder that even if we do everything we can to achieve these, we might still be hated and abused. That is part of life. The truth of God offends the sinner. Peter reminds us that even in the midst of suffering, if we are doing God’s will with a clear conscience, God will bless us. Many have been brought to the Lord because of a righteous person’s suffering; perhaps, even more than by someone who has never experienced unjust pain. If it is the will of God that we suffer, let us do so with the mind of a humble, submissive servant. God has a plan that we are not guaranteed to understand. If we obey even when we cannot fathom the reason or understand the method, God will bless us for our faithfulness. Evidence of this fills the Bible. Page after page tells us of people who obeyed even when they didn’t understand or perhaps even want to in their flesh. These are the ones we remember as the heroes of faith and the blessed of the Lord.
Because our faith will naturally ruffle the feathers of those who have hardened their hearts towards God, we are told to “Always be prepared to make a defense to anyone who calls you to account for the hope that is in you…” (1 Peter 3:15) We have the promise that God will give us the words to say (Luke 12:11), but we should know what we are talking about. How do we prepare? The same way we do for any test, we study. We make a point to examine our live and the part God plays in our every day. We practice telling people about what He has done so the message is not foreign to us. We learn the scriptures so that the Holy Spirit can bring them to our mind when someone needs to hear them.
In as much as we need to “make a defense” for anyone asking us about our faith – even if the asking is a thinly veiled accusation or insult – we need to never forget the second part of Peter’s instruction in verse 15. He continues by writing, “… yet do it with gentleness and reverence.” Remember the wisdom of Proverbs 15:1, “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but harsh words stir up anger.” God does not need to us fight His battles with fists and insults. He will never ask us to behave contrary to His commands or Jesus’ example. Again, this ties right back to the humility and assurance of faith required to submit to authorities or to live in unity with a diverse group of people and ideas. The underlining truth of how a Christian can withstand undeserved suffering is love. We stand because God loves the sinner. We endure because we love God. We do what we do because we trust Him and His ways even when we do not understand them. When we learn submission, we learn humility and faith. Both of these, when exercised in love, give us the strength to suffer for righteousness’ sake.
(Written by Keegan Harkins.)
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