Introduction:
A. The story is told of a man who went to the perfume counter and told the clerk he'd like a bottle of Chanel No. 5 for his wife's birthday.
1. The clerk smiled and said, “A little surprise, eh?”
2. “You bet,” answered the customer, “She's expecting a cruise.”
3. Won’t she be surprised?! Probably not pleasantly surprised!
B. There was another couple who had been debating the purchase of a new car for weeks.
1. He wanted a new truck. She wanted a fast little sports-like car so she could zip through traffic around town.
2. He would probably have settled on any beat up old truck, but everything she seemed to like was way out of their price range.
3. “Look!” the man’s wife said, “I want something that goes from 0 to 200 in 4 seconds or less. And my birthday is coming up. Why don’t you surprise me.”
4. So, for her birthday, he bought her a brand new bathroom scale – It goes 0 to 200 in 4 seconds or less!
5. Not a very joyful surprise!
C. I have stolen the title for today’s sermon from the title of a book by C.S. Lewis.
1. Lewis stole the title from the opening line in one of William Wordsworth’s poems.
2. Lewis’ book describes his pursuit of joy in life, and his surprising turn from atheism to Christianity.
3. He was surprised to find the joy he was seeking in a belief in God.
4. I’m using the title today to convey the counter-intuitive relationship between suffering and joy.
5. Suffering and joy seem to be diametrically opposed to each other.
6. “Suffering joy” or “Joyful suffering” should be an oxymoron, but it is not when the suffering is for Christ sake.
D. We are nearing the end of our series from Peter’s first letter.
1. We have noticed throughout the series that one of Peter’s themes has been Christian suffering.
2. He has spelled out how Christians are to live honorably within the context of a hostile society.
3. As Peter addresses the subject of suffering, in a major way, one last time, he adds a note of urgency and intensity.
E. Every Christian who lives a godly life will experience a certain amount of persecution.
1. We may face persecution on the job, in school, in the neighborhood, or perhaps even from our family.
2. We will likely encounter people who resist the truth and oppose the Gospel.
3. No matter what we Christians do, some people are going to find fault and criticize.
4. Peter has addressed this kind of “normal persecution” in the previous sections of this letter.
F. In this final section, Peter addressed a special kind of persecution that he calls a “painful trial” or other translations put it “a fiery trial.”
1. This painful trial was about to overtake the entire church.
2. It would not be like the occasional, personal persecution they had experienced from those around them.
3. This painful, fiery trial would be official persecution from those above them – the government.
G. Let me remind you of the historical background, I have mentioned previously.
1. For nine days during the summer of A.D. 64, a huge fire raged in the city of Rome.
2. The flames spread rapidly through the city’s narrow streets.
3. Because of Nero’s well-known desire to refurbish Rome by whatever means, the populace believed the Emperor Nero was responsible for the blaze.
4. As the fire destroyed most of the city’s districts, Nero watched gleefully from a tower.
5. Roman troops prevented people from extinguishing the fire and even started new fires.
6. The disaster thoroughly demoralized the Romans because many lost everything.
7. With public resentment toward him on the rise, Nero diverted the hatred away from himself by making the Christian community the scapegoat for the fire.
H. Nero’s ploy was a clever one, because Christians in the Roman Empire were already the unjust targets of much hatred, slander and suspicion.
1. Following the burning of Rome, Nero capitalized on that anti-Christian sentiment and instituted an official persecution of Christians.
2. The apostle Peter likely wrote this letter just before Nero’s persecution began.
3. Peter’s major reoccurring theme in this letter is how his readers should respond to unjust suffering – especially this painful, fiery trial they are about to face.
4. Let’s look at the verses in this final section on suffering and see how Peter summarized the proper response in the face of a fiery trial.
I. The Command (4:12)
A. Peter began: 12 Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you.
1. Peter exhorts his readers to avoid being surprised by the painful trial they are suffering.
2. There’s no reason to be surprised by what we should expect.
3. It would be like Peter saying to us, “Don’t be surprised when it snows in Syracuse, N.Y.!”
4. Presumably, the early Christians were not generally surprised by opposition to the gospel, but the actual turn of events among Peter’s audience may have caught them off guard or shocked them.
3. Nero’s persecution was so different and intense from what they had previously experienced.
4. Many may have wondered how God could allow such violence and injustice.
5. Nevertheless, Peter’s simple command was for them to not be surprised.
B. Suffering for Christ has been a painful reality since the beginning of Christianity.
1. Did you know that more than 43 million Christians have been killed for their faith since the crucifixion of Jesus?
2. Would it surprise you to know that it is estimated that more Christians were martyred in the 20th Century than in all the prior 1900 centuries?
3. There have been more than 26 million documented cases of martyrdom in the 20th Century.
4. More than 200 million Christians in over 60 nations face persecution every day, 60% of them are children. This is happening right now in the present.
5. Christians today are the most persecuted group in the world.
6. Persecution is on the rise because of the expansion of Islamic and Hindu extremism, and because of the anti-Christ spirit that is prevalent throughout the world.
C. Here in the United States we have enjoyed such a freedom from major persecution, that we might be surprised if that changed.
1. But we must be ready for it to change, and we must not be surprised when it does.
2. When and if painful persecution becomes our reality, we will join the ranks of so many of those who have gone before us.
3. Peter began this section with the command not to be surprised, then he gave a counter-proposal.
II. The Counterproposal (4:13)
A. Peter continued: 13 But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.
1. Instead of being shocked by these events and turning inward to wonder and doubt, Peter’s readers are told to “rejoice.”
2. Why? Because their very lives were being tied into the experience of Jesus.
3. The persecution they experience gives them an opportunity to “participate” in the sufferings of Christ.
4. Do you remember how Paul taught in Colossians 1:24 that his own sufferings completed the sufferings of Christ?
5. Peter sees the sufferings of ordinary believers as a special bond with their Lord.
6. One of my favorite Biblical pictures is the one we have of the apostles rejoicing after suffering for Christ.
7. Acts 5:40-42 reads: They called the apostles in and had them flogged. Then they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. 41 The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name. 42 Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Christ.
8. They rejoiced because they had been counted worthy to suffer for the name of Christ.
B. But this attitude is only a preparation for more rejoicing.
1. Being able to rejoice now in the midst of suffering prepares us for being overjoyed when Jesus’ glory is revealed.
2. What seems presently unjust and terribly difficult to face can be turned into a celebration of joy when we are with Christ in all His glory and receive our rewards.
III. The Condition (4:14-16)
A. Peter continued: 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.
1. Now that Peter had lifted his reader’s spirits, he reminded them of one important condition for enjoying that final, inexhaustible glory – They must remain faithful and not incur suffering because they deserve it.
2. Suffering for the name of Christ is acceptable and will be rewarded, but suffering for sinful behavior is unacceptable and is deserving of punishment.
3. Christianity was under assault unjustly, and any kind of evil behavior that added to an already difficult situation needed to be eliminated.
4. We, Christians, should live godly and good lives so that there may be no just cause to our persecution and suffering.
B. When we suffer for what is right, rather than for what is wrong, Peter says we are blessed.
1. And the Spirit of glory and of God rests on us – how about that!
2. I thought of Stephen, who while being stoned to death, had a glow about him that was angelic.
3. We should not be ashamed of suffering for Christ, but we should praise God when you bear that name.
IV. The Consideration (4:17-19)
A. Peter concluded: 17 For it is time for judgment to begin with the family of God; 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.
1. The consideration that creates a foundation for all things is the fact that we will someday have to answer to God.
2. While the reality of judgment is for everyone, Peter says that the actual judgment would begin with God’s people.
3. The early church saw persecution as the first stage of the coming judgment.
4. God uses persecution as a way to purge his people and prepare them for eternity.
5. Those who are purged through suffering are the ones who will inherit eternal life.
B. Peter’s question about the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel is frightening.
1. Though God disciplines His own people now through persecution, His future judgment of the unbelievers will be infinitely more devastating.
2. It is much better for us to endure suffering now, than to later bear eternal torment.
C. Peter concludes by commanding Christians to submit themselves to God by living a good life.
1. God is our faithful creator, and He deserves nothing but the best from his children.
2. The word translated “commit” can also be translated “entrust” and is actually a banking term.
3. When it is used in a banking context it refers to someone depositing something for safe keeping.
4. God is the faithful, trustworthy banker of our salvation, and we need to continue to entrust ourselves to Him, trusting that in the end our suffering for Christ will pay great dividends.
Conclusion:
A. Let’s conclude our discussion of suffering for Christ with the following lessons that Peter is trying to teach us.
1. Lesson 1 – Christians ought not to be surprised if they suffer because of their faith.
2. Lesson 2 – Christians ought to welcome the opportunity to share in the sufferings of Christ.
3. Lesson 3 - Suffering for Jesus should be understood as a test to prepare us for God’s final judgment.
4. Lesson 4 – Christians ought to be able to transcend their present pain by reflecting on the transcendent glory that awaits God’s people which causes us to rejoice.
5. Lesson 5 – When facing suffering in the name of Christ, Christians must continue to do good works as an expression of our trust.
B. The story is told of a young son who came home with $25 which he had earned by selling magazine subscriptions.
1. His father asked him, “How many sales did it take to collect the $25?”
2. “Only one,” the boy replied. “I sold all the subscriptions to one man.”
3. “Really,” his father surprisingly asked?
4. “Yes,” the boy answered, “the man’s dog bit me.”
5. Rarely does our suffering turn into blessings that quickly, but all of our suffering for Christ will receive its reward.
C. At the Nicene Council, which was an important church meeting in the 4th century, of the 318 delegates attending, fewer than 12 had not lost an eye or lost a hand or did not limp on a leg lamed by torture for their Christian faith.
1. Praise God for those faithful ones who have gone before us who have suffered for the faith.
2. Jesus has given us an example to follow: “ Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. (Heb. 12:2-3)
3. Oh, God help us to not grow weary and lose heart!
4. Help us to fix our eyes on Jesus.
5. Help us to see the joy that comes as a result of faithfulness in the midst of suffering.
6. We should not be surprised by persecution, nor by the joy we experience as we suffer for Christ.
Resources:
The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, 1 Peter, by John MacArthur, Moody Publishing, 2004
The Bible Exposition Commentary, 1 Peter, by Warren Wiersbe, Victor Books, 1989
1 Peter, The NIV Application Commentary, Scot McKnight, Zondervan, 1996
Persecution – Then and Now, Sermon by Donna Karenske, SermonCentral.com
Surviving Your Suffering, Sermon by Kelly Grant, SermonCentral.com
