Pain and Persecution
1 Peter 4:12-19
Good morning everyone, if you would turn to 1 Peter 4:12-19 we will continue in our study of the Christian life and what Peter and Paul have to say about it in their letters to the churches.
Let’s Pray-
1 Peter 4:13-19 Read clearly
There are things that must keep in mind as we read these passages.
You have to remember what is being said to the church.
What the church was going through when Peter wrote them the letter.
What the end result was to be after they read the letter.
Who….what…where- knowledge from the word of God and the application of the word of God into our lives.
Peter is talking about church people experiencing persecution.
He is talking to the new found churches as they were experiencing great persecution and he is telling them what they need to do to get through the persecution and maintain their relationship with the Lord.
They say the book of 1 Peter was written in 64AD.
If you know a little about church history, it was 64AD that the city of Rome was set on fire by their emperor Nero. He wanted to redo the city in his image and bypass the senate for how he was to do it so he set the city on fire. If the guards saw people putting it out, they forced them to stop and the guards set it back on fire. He got heat for his actions, so what did he do? He blamed that new sect of religious people the Christians and set out to destroy them while blaming them for something they did not do. He actually strung them on light poles and set them on fire alive to illuminate the city. He was a horrible and wicked emperor.
The King James Version of 1 peter 4:12 says “fiery trial” and most believe that the Christians would know exactly what Peter is talking about as they were being persecuted.
“Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you.”
It is a two edged sword- pagans thought it strange that believers do not participate in their sinful lifestyle. Believers Peter said should not think it strange that they would be persecuted for not wanting that lifestyle.
Why is it that we find it hard to embrace injustice until it happens to us or to someone we know?
Why aren’t we surprised by others until they do something to us?
We don’t do anything about bullies until we are bullied.
We don’t help people in need but expect when we are going through something for people to helps us.
Peter is giving warning signs to the church that was being persecuted for their faith.
Danger Will Robinson!
Low bridge sign yet we see trucks with peeled back tops stuck under a bridge…why? Because they didn’t take the warning.
Road closed- for everyone but…
Be careful…slow down….I can handle it!
Bump ahead… we don’t listen and were mad for the damage.
Peter says don’t be surprised church, take heed of the warning signs I am showing you and don’t be surprised when it happens.
Life is full of bumps- do I really need to tell and explain that to you?
Illustration-
We all know that one day we will die…wither by old age, sickness, accident, violence. We will if Jesus tarries die even though we know Jesus as Lord of our lives. But when it happens, just like it has happened to billions of people since Adam- it is never the right time. It is not fair. He/she was only__. So and so lived to be _.
Sometimes we have our face and heart toward God in prayer and we are taught to believe wholly with our heart and yet they die. This week a dear colleague 77 years old went home and a friend with cancer who was only in his early 60’s.
There are a lot of mysteries we don’t know or understand now.
Apostle Paul says 1 Corinthians 13:12 that we look at life right now through a glass darkly- meaning we do not see all…it’s distorted -NIV says we see only a reflection of what God is seeing and one day face to face we will be shown all things.
Only the Lord sees the big and full picture of what is happening at any given time in our life. This is why it is so important to be sure we are trying to see it through God’s eyes and His word and those times when things don’t make sense that we are able to trust Him because we know that He has our best interest.
Questions-
Why do some have to suffer?
Why does He answer some prayers and not others?
Why do good people die and it seems like the mean and ugly get blessed and live long?
Doesn’t He know that this person was doing things for the kingdom?
That people here need them? Don’t you care God?
The right question as a believer is;
What can I learn through this experience?
How can the Lord be glorified?
How can I keep joy in my life?
Don’t think it strange- like nothing bad should ever happen to you- Jesus tells his followers that to follow Him would be a sacrifice of all- deny yourself and pick up your cross daily and follow me.
Evil in this world is because of the fallen state of mankind.
Pain in this world is because of the fall and the choices that people make.
Some other people’s decisions do hurt us. That is why when someone says that what they are doing is not hurting anyone else is a lie that is from the pit of hell because our actions and words do affect other people.
Romans 5:12:1- “Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men because all sinned.”
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”
We are all aware that some of the pain we are experiencing today is because of bad decisions we have made in the past. For some a bad decision many years ago has left a mark on us we cannot change.
There is only one way to look at this- because of the sin and the fallen nature of man, there is going to be pain.
There will be pain because we are sinners in need of a savior.
There will be pain for the bad choices we have made-
There will be pain for the choices other people have made that has affected each of us.
“The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?
Psalm 34:18 says “The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”
Jesus himself endured the ultimate pain for us so we can be assured that God never leaves us alone. As believers, we have this source of comfort in our pain: God is with us.
We must understand the pain and sacrifice that Jesus made so we can understand that in this fallen world that has sin there will be pain but one day the pain will be gone.
So the foundation of this passage is that we should not be surprised by persecution and we should not be surprised that the world is surprised that we do not want to participate in their sinful lifestyle.
Pain purifies us
Once we understand why there is pain in this world and that it was not God’s intention but result of the fall- Peter tells us (2) “But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ.” “For the Spirit of God rests on you”
That we would be found worthy to be called Christian-
Pain/persecution purifies us! Makes us more in the image of Christ
How else would we know where we are spiritually if we never had any pressure put on our faith and lives?
Illustration
There is a certain tension between suffering and comfort. The Bible often associates suffering with fire that either destroys everything in its path or fire that refines and purifies. One we should avoid at all costs; the other produces something good, though through a painful process that might cause us to question our identity, our future, our source of strength and hope, perhaps even our very life.
Let me tell you the story of the refiner’s fire that speaks to this ‘good’ kind of suffering:
A young man happened upon a silversmith who refined silver and gold from raw materials, sitting in front of his fire. “Why do you heat the metal?” he asked?
The Refiner answered, “In order to make precious silver I have to remove all the impurities that make it worth less than it really is.” The young man thought about his own life and how one time of fiery suffering or another was required to remove some of the ‘junk’ in his own life.
“Why do you sit while you work?” inquired the visitor?
The Refiner replied, “I have to watch the fire closely. Too little heat and the impurities will not be removed; too much heat and the precious metal will be destroyed and made worthless.” The young man reflected how his life of comfort had brought a sense of complacency that led him to abandon his dreams, settling instead for a humdrum life. But he had also come through painful fiery times with character and strength that he would not have found elsewhere.
Then the young man asked The Refiner, “How do you know when the silver is at the right temperature?”
The Refiner smiled and answered, “I know the purifying is complete when I can see my reflection in the silver.” The young man marveled at the answer thinking, “That is true in my life. My own fiery trials were only complete when My Refiner’s image could be seen in me.”
Pain will humble us
(15) “If you suffer, it should not be as a murderer or thief or any other kind of criminal, or even a meddler.”
Wow! He put meddling in being a thief and a murderer. I think he takes that seriously.
“However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name.”
I think the word Christian gets tossed around loosely in conversation today- Christian is a follower of Christ! One who has picked up his cross and is following Jesus. There are too many secret agent Christians- He is looking for some who are not ashamed to be called Christian and are willing to lay down their lives. Because they have surrendered themselves to the Lord and humbled themselves so that Jesus can be lifted up!
Most heartbreaking of all is the suffering of a child. Children are as close to innocence as we ever see in this world, and for them to suffer is truly tragic. Sometimes, innocent children suffer because of the sin of others: neglect, abuse, drunk driving, etc. In those cases, we can definitely say that the suffering is the result of personal sin (just not theirs), and we learn the lesson that our sin always affects others around us. Other times, innocent children suffer because of what some might call “acts of God”: natural disasters, accidents, childhood cancer, etc. Even in those cases, we can say that the suffering is the result of sin, generally speaking, because we live in a sinful world.
Pain will cause us to depend on God
Paul fought the throng in the flesh- he prayed diligently for the Lord to take it and he chose not to heal him.
Chronic deseases like arthiritus, dietbetus, reminds us that there will be pain in this world, but it will not always be that way for the believers. Those who suffer accidents, sickness, disabilitites remind us that we have to depend on ‘God when we have done all that we know to do and he has chosen not to heal. For a believer, the ultimate healing is to be brought home into the kingdom where there will be no more pain.
Close
As a believer from God’s holy Word that Jesus loves us and He sees the things we are going through and it breaks His heart!
It this world there will be tribulation (suffering) but be a good cheer because I have overcome the world. THIS IS NOT ALL THERE IS!
Wherever you are at right now, would you just bow your head…I believe the Lord wants to speak into your life and into that situation. He cares deeply.
Prayer-
