Conduct In Suffering - Part 2
1 Peter 3:13-17 · Roy Smith · Jun 28, 2020
1 & 2 Peter (2020-21), No. 23
Holly Hills Bible Church
https://www.hollyhillsbiblechurch.org/teaching/messages/49261919181773

Transcribed from the recording by SermonAudio, so expect the occasional misheard word.

Hopefully we'll be able to get through that part today. God's message through Peter shows us that what's real right now, and boy are we experiencing that aren't we, is based totally on his plans for time as well as eternity. So far we've studied the first two sections of 1 Peter, dealing with salvation and submission, and today we're going to get into the third section. Verses 13 through the end of the book is this section of chapter 3. We've titled these lessons number 22 and 23, Conduct in Suffering. These are the verses that potentially we'll be going through today, but I'm going to review the very first verses as well for those that may not have gone online and taken advantage of our upload there. Verse 13 reads this way.

Who is there to harm you if you prove zealous for what is good? But even if you should suffer for the sake of righteousness, you are blessed. And do not fear their intimidation. and do not be troubled. But sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence. Keep a good conscience so that in the thing in which you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ will be put to shame.

For it's better, if God will it to be so, that you suffer for doing what is right rather than for doing what is wrong. Who is there to harm you if you prove zealous for what is good? Reviewing my literal translation of that from the oldest Greek sources, it is, now who will harm you if you become passionate for the good.

The fact shown to us in verse 12, just before this, is that God sees and hears us, his righteous ones. So based on his care, God asks us this question. It's not a statement, but a question from God about the possible results of bad being done to us and good being revealed through us. Negatively, he does not imply that we will not suffer from bad actors, but God told us that we would suffer like he suffered in John 15, 20. And also, if you remember back in chapter two, verse 21 of first Peter, the focus here is, but will that suffering bring harm? Make us less than what God wants us to be. And that's the negative focus in the first part of God's question.

Positively, he does say that we can become passionate for the good. And that's the positive focus given in the second part of God's question. There are some specific effects of Jesus Christ's work together to those who are called according to his purpose. whom to the end would be the firstborn among many brethren. Those whom he predates he also can fortify these words that Jesus spoke.

There is no good tree which produces. Okay, well this is where I'm being told that this is about where we broke. In looking at verse 13 negatively, this is one of the factual principles that are here. Nothing can stop God's plan for his own being conformed to the image of his son, our Lord Jesus Christ. God makes all things work together to fulfill his purposes.

And to save a little time, I'm not going to reread Romans 8.28, okay? I'll go on.

Positively out of Luke 6, 43 through 45, Peter was here when Jesus said, For there is no good tree which produces bad fruit, nor on the other hand a bad tree which produces good fruit. For each tree is known by its own fruit. Men did not gather figs from thorns, nor did they pick grapes from a briar bush. The good man, out of the good treasure of his heart, brings forth what is good. The evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what's evil for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart.

You and I have the life of Christ living in us and when we are passionate for the good, it's when God's spirit in us is showing his goodness. It says that in Colossians 3, 4, but also in Galatians 5, 22-23. We read that the fruit of the Spirit, notice the fruit is singular. All of these things are His production. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, the word that we're looking at here. Faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such things, there's no law.

And the word good is the same word as in 1 Peter 3.13. There are some general principles.

Our response of good in return for good or good in return for evil tends to bring about but doesn't guarantee a good response from others. Not responding with evil in return for evil, but instead being zealous for what is good, stops the revenge and retaliation circles that come from our sin natures. Generally speaking, people will respond with how we respond. Notice that human government should maintain order and limit the expression of evil behavior.

We're told about that in Romans 13, 1-7, but also here in 1 Peter 2, verses 13 onward, it talks about that. We are being zealous for what is good here. We are model citizens in the biblically legitimate form of government. Notice also that the if here is grammatically a condition with a likely outcome so that God's question reveals his view of his good likely being seen through each of us.

And looking ahead a little bit in this review, verse 14 gives us a bit more about the results of the harm done to us. Verse 15 gives us more about becoming passionate for the good. Continuing the review here, the but used is a strong contrast to verse 13. This verse 13 deals with possible suffering beyond harm. I'm sorry, this is verse 14 in my literal translation at the top. I'm sorry, but I'm a little confused here this morning by the circumstances. I apologize. Let me read my literal translation of verse 14a.

But even if you suffer unto death because of righteousness, you are blessed. Again, that but is a strong contrast. This verse deals with possible suffering beyond harm. It's the possible suffering even to physical death. Verse 13 is suffering while we live in bodies being used by God to reveal His good. Verse 14 is suffering unto death. which would not end his goodness being seen through us. God's good seen through us may be stopped by death, but we're still blessed. What sometimes looks awful to us is really a blessing from God's perspective. We might even suffer if we have done what is right with our actions coming from a heart of righteousness, which is actually Christ himself revealing himself through us.

That's spoken about in Acts 7.52 and 1 John 2.1, but the phrase, because of righteousness here, makes righteousness pivotal to suffering. God uses this figure of speech called an ellipsis to show his view of this kind of suffering.

This verse says that he can suffer as Christians. So it adds information to verse 14. Our Lord's brother, James, wrote, Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials. And he said that in James 1 too. God, through Peter and Jonathan here, he expressed through these two men the correct responses to trials and suffering. The responses that are correct are blessed. and all joy. Isn't that something? Verse 14a again, even if you suffer unto death because of righteousness, you are blessed.

And that but here is a strong contrast in two different ways because of grammar. There are two if clauses in these verses. Verse 13, the if is a third class condition with an uncertain fulfillment. but likely, if and likely will. Verse 14 is one of those rare fourth-class conditions. It's a possible fulfillment, but it's not likely.

Looking at these two contrasts regarding the results of these sufferings in each verse. In verse 13, negatively, we will suffer being harmed, but Will that make us less than what God wants us to be? Positively, God's question reveals his view of his good likely being seen through each of us. And verse 14, the negative is man thinks suffering to death will stop his good being seen. Positively, God reveals that suffering will not stop His good being revealed as a blessing.

And I couldn't help resist including James in the perspective given to us there, not with the contrasting of clauses, but with contrasting words. This reveals also negatively God uses paroxo, a word used as a general testing by men designed to bring us to harm. Positively, God uses DocuMazo to test by God to reveal to us what is his good. James also adds the information that God never paradozes us, tests us to harm.

How careful God is. And the older I get, the more I'm appreciative of the way the grammar and the way the words the Lord has chosen to use to reveal truth to us. brings out the clarity of his thoughts. Peter heard these words of our Lord recorded in John 14, 27.

Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. Not as the world gives to you, I give it to you. Don't let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful. We're using this as a principle from the part B of verse 14, translated also, the terror of theirs should not frighten nor intimidate you.

Note that in the verse of John, God used the imperative command mode. He uses Peter to say the same thing, but in the subjunctive mode of potential with the passive voice. And that indicates that we could be affected. by their terror, but that's not God's will for us. God never tells us to make us fearful, only to refine what we believe to be true as his blessed ones.

Our fear is based on his facts that leads us to his peace and to respond with joy. Their fear is based on their own false imaginations that leads them to no peace and a response of terror. Going on to verse 15, but Lord the Christ set apart in the hearts of you is my literal rendering of that. The remedy and godly alternative to fear in a troubled heart is Christ. When suffering for the sake of righteousness, Christ is the answer.

The command set apart means to set him apart in our hearts as perfect, the I am, the Christ, the promised anointed one. Now, the purpose of this command is that our heart, who we really are now, we as new and kind creations that he's made are to reveal His glory. That's the focus.

We're told this in 1 Peter 1.9, but you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation of people for God's own possession. So that you may proclaim the excellency of Him who has called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Again, carefully reading this verse, is that not the focus of God?

For us as well as the world, that we may proclaim the excellency of him, that his truth may be seen through us. Our hearts need this focus. So God provided the Holy Spirit to dwell inside us, to give us the things of Christ. In John 16, 4, we read, Jesus said, he, that referring to the Holy Spirit, will glorify me for he will take of mine and will disclose it to you.

Paul, in 1 Corinthians 3.16, God moves to say, do you not know that you are a temple of God? The word temple is naos, holy of holies of God, and that the spirit of God dwells in you. When faced with suffering because of righteousness of God being revealed through us, Our logical response to this command is to take the essence of Christ as revealed to us by God the Holy Spirit as reality.

Note that in 2 Corinthians 3.18 God says, But we all with an unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image. from glory to glory, justice from the Lord, the Spirit.

The examples in scripture for this process are shown in Stephen, as recorded in Acts 7, 54 through 56, where after him revealing to the crowd that Christ came in the flesh and that they had crucified God himself, Now, when they heard this, they were cut to the quick and they began gnashing their teeth at him. But being full of the Holy Spirit, he gazed intently into heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. And he said, behold, I see the heavens opened and the son of man standing at the right hand of God. What a comfort that must have been to Stephen. And what a testimony to say those words. Before this crowd, in that crowd was Saul, who later became Paul, who was consenting to Stephen's death.

Two of my favorites are 1 Corinthians 1.30, but by his doing, you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption. Notice who does the doing. It is God the Father. It is His doing that we are in Christ Jesus, who became to us as passive. He has made Christ the wisdom of God, and righteousness, sanctification, and redemption.

We just went over this, if you remember, in our worship hour. Also in First Corinthians, the second chapter, verse 12, it says, Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God.

Last week's text in review, who is there to harm you if you prove zealous for what is good? But even if you should suffer for the sake of righteousness, you are blessed for do not fear their intimidation and do not be troubled, but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts and my literal rendering. Now, who will harm you if you become passionate for the good? But even if you suffer unto death because of righteousness, You are blessed. Also, the terror of theirs should not frighten nor intimidate you, but Lord, the Christ, set apart in the hearts of you.

Now that's where we left off, and boy, it's 36 minutes and we better move. Verse 15, I literally gave the rendering, always being ready to make a defense To everyone who asked, I'm sorry, this is not the literal, that's the New American Standard at the top. And I'm giving you the Greek analysis that I used only for your info, if you're interested. My literal is at the bottom.

Prepared always with a view to answer everyone demanding you. And again, at the bottom, explanation for the in you confidence expectation. but with gentleness and respect. And tying this all together, the literal is at the top with these principles being revealed.

Peter wrote, with a connection, being ready, grammatically, with set apart. The significance of this is that being ready is not necessarily founded on studying or education and preparation of intellectual arguments. But it begins with holding Christ as Lord. And after telling the believers that they must set Christ apart as Lord in their hearts, the Holy Spirit is telling them that they have a readiness.

Though this verse is often used by Christians as justification for intellectual ability to defend the Christian faith, Notice here, Peter's intent is more to the heart. It is the hope that is in you. Or more literally, the in you hope. It's not just that a believer is hopeful or has some sort of hope of some kind or another, but rather it's a specific hope that's centered on what's inside us, not the externals. That hope that is in you is that of the living Jesus Christ.

Remember the living hope in 1 Peter 1.3? We're going to come back to that in a moment. There's more principles in verse 15. He also conditions this readiness upon two primary things.

The unbeliever asks for the reason of the in you hope. This answer is not shoved down the unwilling believer's throats, but only those who legitimately ask you, why do you hope the way you do? The response of the believer is to be asked, conditioned by gentleness and reverence.

And this gentleness, it's like in Galatians 5, 22 and 23, which is the fruit of the spirit resulting from walking under the control of the spirit. This gentleness also results from having set apart or sanctified Christ as Lord in our hearts. The reverence is a regard for the momentous character of the message that we as believers have to convey, including recognition of the awesome nature of the opportunity before the believer. and make a good conscience as the American standard literally the rendering of that is conscience keeping good I put in brackets a clarification having awareness of God's good the literal is at the bottom here of part B of verse 16 so that in the thing which you are being spoken against and continuing, that they may be put to shame, those who are slandering your good by Christ behavior. And summarizing that verse literally, conscience keeping good, having an awareness of God's good, so that in the thing which you are being spoken against, They may be put to shame, those who are slandering your good by Christ's behavior. Conscience having good rather than in the imperative is a present active participle. This is not a command, but it's the idea of keeping a good conscience. It's not good used here in the same word in verse 13, Agathos. This is raising a question. What's the place of conscience?

Well the conscience of an unbeliever can be severely damaged we read in 1st Timothy 4 verses 1 through 4. The Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will fall away from the faith paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience. as with a branding iron, men who forbid marriage and advocate abstaining from foods which God has created to be gratefully shared by those who believe and know the truth.

Everything created by God is good and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with gratitude. More principles from this verse 16. Most New Testament epistles urge believers to keep a good and a clear conscience. Now this is far more than just doing everything right and not doing everything wrong.

It is God who does the cleaning of our consciences. Look at Hebrews 9 verse 11 through 14. When Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, as referring to the heavenly tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation, and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through his own blood, he entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. For if the blood of goats and bulls and of the ashes of an heifer, sprinkling those who have been defiled, sanctify for the cleansing of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

Notice that it is God who does this cleansing of our conscience. God's purpose for us here is that there could not be any truth that the claims of the accusers would find truth in. So that the accuser would be found guilty or slain in slander for false charges.

It's not just good behavior by the believer's efforts that's called for here, but the good behavior of the believer out of the believer's position in Christ. This hope is in the believer by means of Christ. The believer's good behavior is because of the believer's position in Christ. Quite a bunch of principles here, aren't there?

This is a good example of the results of that living hope mentioned back in 1 Peter 1.3. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who, according to his great mercy, has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. I'm looking at the time and it is moving. I'll try to speed this up a little.

For it is better, says the New American Standard at the top, my literal translation, it's better to be doing good if the unlikely want is the desire of the God to be suffering rather than doing what is bad. Principles in this verse, the phrase, it is better carries with it a value judgment. Peter has communicated God's assessment of value in this verse. And he says that it's better for the believer not to suffer for doing wrong. And God does not will that the believer do wrong. The grammar in the if clause says it's unlikely, but that God may will us to be suffering for doing what's right. God shows us here His highest value that it's upon doing what's good regardless of our circumstances to show His glory through us.

And He repeats the purpose in 1 Peter 2.9, that you may proclaim the excellency of Him. God also reveals here that our doing what is right is based on our fixed position in Christ being revealed by our present condition. of Christ being held as the Lord in our hearts.

My literal translation of this Greek source, now who will harm you if you become passionate for the good? But even if you suffer unto death because of righteousness, you are blessed. Also, the terror of theirs should not frighten nor intimidate you. But Lord the Christ set apart in the hearts of you, prepared always with a view to answer everyone demanding you explanation for the in you confident expectation. But with gentleness and respect, conscience, keeping good, having that awareness of God's good. So that in the thing which you are being spoken against, they may be put to shame, those who are slandering your good by Christ behavior.

For it is better to be doing good if the unlikely want is the desire of God to be suffering rather than doing what is bad. Now I have a lot of things here to share personally, but I want to focus our thoughts for a moment before that, and before I conclude with these words from 2 Peter. You see, Peter, James, and John all saw Jesus in the radiance of his glory, and yet God says through Peter that we have a more sure witness of what is real. and that is the written record of God. Look at 2 Peter 1 verses 16 through 19.

For we did not follow cleverly devised tales when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. When he received honor and glory from God the Father, Such an utterance as this was made to him by the majestic glory. This is my beloved son with whom I am well pleased. We ourselves heard this utterance made from heaven when we were with him on the holy mountain. So we have the prophetic word made more sure to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place until the day star dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts.

I'm not going to read these verses but If you want to know about the five missionaries who were martyred in Ecuador, there's a good review here at this link and this will be in the handout on the web if you'd like it. A review of the book Missionaries are Complex People by Catherine Long. I hardly recommend this.

God shows us and our daughter Ruth while we were in Guatemala. a lot of himself there. God's written about it in her autobiography. I've kept much of that time in Guatemala to myself because of the inside of me living hope that I have from our Lord. But like Peter, I can honestly tell you this is not anywhere close to the most trustworthy example of God's message. In these verses in 1 Peter, In the verses that follow today's lesson, there is another much better example of God's message to us. And I believe that this is true because we plan to examine in God's word, the more sure Bible, the very best example of God, of his ways with us.

We're planning to look at God's divine son, the promised man, our savior, our Lord Jesus, the Christ, God's anointed one. How did he handle? being falsely accused and killed for revealing God to us. Now there's some problems in understanding these coming verses. Just keep your God-given correct focus on our alive from the dead Christ, i.e., in other words, keep in guard with the shield of faith, our God-given heart knowledge, our living hope, which is about Christ by his resurrection from the dead. So when you look at these verses that are coming, he'll reveal himself to and through us in the process of each moment, both studying these words and also living right now with him as our focus.

Even as these verses teach us, even if we are taken to death during the remainder of our time here, on this earth because we'll be into eternity with Him glorified. I want to leave with these words before you of the text and close in a word of prayer. I don't know if we have time even for questions, Roger, but that's where we're at. Not a whole lot of time. Not a whole bunch of time. Why don't we close with prayer.

Father, thank you for the revelation of your word. How precious you are to be so careful in showing us what is the correct response, Lord, to your grace being shown to us in the inner man that you have made us to be. How thankful we are, Lord, that you are actively showing us Christ And Father, how thankful we are that you have made your Son, our Savior, so precious to us like Peter, so that we can say thank you that you've given us your written word that clearly shows us even things that we might physically see are not as important as what you have written down in your words about yourself. Thank you for that written knowledge. as well as the personal knowledge of you that you made true to each of us. We thank you and praise you for these things in Christ's name. Amen.