Grace Means: Submission (Recap)

Grace Means: Submission (Recap)

1 Peter 3:8-12

A wealthy man took a journey carrying a great treasure. A thief joined him to steal the treasure. But the rich man was wise enough to be careful of newfound friends. At night, they stopped at an inn. The rich man let the thief bathe first. Then he hid the treasure under the thief’s pillow. As the rich man bathed, the thief searched for the treasure in vain. He finally gave up. As he departed, the rich man said, “The treasure was closer than you thought.”

This is a sad parable of how many Christians seek to obtain a blessing. In too many times, our search for blessings is no different than the world. 1 Peter 3:8-12 is a needed reminder that the blessed life is closer than you think if you are a Christian. These verses are transitional. They link what Peter has said about Christian submission and what he will say about Christian suffering. The themes of submission and suffering acknowledge that following Jesus does not guarantee an easy life. 

Ephesians 1:3 says, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places.” Without Christ, you cannot be blessed. In Christ, you are already blessed! The text is clear that you can be blessed and burdened at the same time. That is the other side of blessing. Christians are blessed because of and Christians are blessed in spite of. Christians obtain blessings by living like Christ. The blessed life is a life of Christian conduct and conviction.

Verse 8 begins with “Finally.” Our text is the end of the section, not the letter. 1 Peter 2:12 says, “Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable.” Peter fleshes out this honorable conduct by instructing citizens to submit to the government, servants to submit to their masters, and wives to submit to their husbands. After addressing these groups, Peter concludes the section by addressing “all of you.”

Peter says in Verse 8; “Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind.” Peter calls us to practice Christian virtues.

There is “unity of mind.” The nature of this unity is spiritual, not organizational. It is like-mindedness. The call is for unity, not uniformity. We will not agree on everything. That is a cult, not a church. But we should be united in doctrine, purpose, and mission.

There is “sympathy.” The Greek term calls for greater intimacy. It is to share the feelings of another. In joy and sorrow, we are to sympathize with one another. The one who sympathizes does not say, “I know how you feel.” To say that only reveals you do not know how they feel. Sympathy is more about what you do than what you say.

There is “brotherly love.” Here is the fellowship we should enjoy. The four other traits do not necessarily involve Christian fellowship. You can practice them toward non-Christians. Not so with brotherly love. The church should be more than a family. It should be a brotherhood. 1 Peter 1:22 says, “Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart.”

There is “a tender heart.” The Greek term refers to the visceral parts, which were considered the seat of emotions. The language is used in the Gospels to describe Jesus as being moved with compassion. Compassion compelled him to action. Like Jesus, we should have a tender heart. It is the opposite of having a hard heart. The term is also used in Ephesians 4:32: “Be kind to another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.”

There is “a humble mind.” Unity of mind requires a humble mind. Humility is not thinking negatively about yourself. It is not thinking about yourself at all. It is putting others needs ahead of yours. Philippians 2:3-4 says, “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.” It takes a humble mind to offer help without thinking you are better than and it takes a humble mind to receive help without thinking you are less than.

Peter, in Verse 9, instructs believers how to relate to unbelievers: “Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing.” Peter describes a holy life by how you respond when you are wronged.

The Golden Rule is to “Do unto others as you would have them to do unto you.” The common rule is to do unto others as they do to you. But revenge, retribution, and retaliation are not Christian options. We must not “repay evil for evil.” People may do bad, harmful, malicious things to you. But, as Christians, we must not respond in kind. A Puritan wrote, “To return good for evil is God-like; to return good for good is man-like; to return evil for evil is beast-like; to return evil for good is devil-like.” Who are you like? To repay evil for evil accomplishes nothing. An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth only leaves YOU blind and toothless.

Likewise, we must not repay “reviling for reviling.” In many instances, one does not because one cannot. If we can, we don’t want to suffer the consequences of doing so. But we are prone to do with our words what we cannot do by our works. For many troubled Christians to whom Peter wrote, talking back was the only way to retaliate. It is not the Christian thing to do. Remember how Christ responded to those who reviled him. 1 Peter 2:23 says, “When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly.”

Peter says, “Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing.” When you suffer evil or reviling, do not do what comes naturally. Do not give what you get. At the same time, do not do nothing. Do the supernatural. In response to evil and reviling, bless. Bless those who wickedly slander you with kind words, intercessory prayer, and gospel appeal. This call echoes the teaching of Jesus.

Why bless those who curse you? 1 Peter 3:9 answers: “for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing.” “Called” is the effectual call of God in Christ. Peter uses the term several times to emphasize that our salvation has a purpose. We are saved from and for. God called you by His grace that you may obtain a blessing. It is a blessing in the life to come. It is also a blessing here and now. The blessing is experienced fully in heaven and the blessing is experienced freely on earth.

How you treat others is how God will treat you. Take matters into your own hands, and you get what you get. Put it in the hands of God, and obtain a blessing. This is not tit-for-tat legalism. “Obtain” means to inherit. An inheritance is a gift, not a reward. Leave it in God’s hands, you will obtain a blessing.

Peter quotes Psalm 34:12-16 in verses 10-12. He does not cite the reference. The language of scripture flows out of him. He assumes the readers will catch the reference. Peter begins this Old Testament quotation with the preposition “For.” Then he cites scripture. The connection is significant. Christian conduct must be rooted in Christian conviction.

Ecclesiastes 2:17 says, “So I hated life, because what is done under the sun was grievous to me, for all is vanity and a striving after wind.” It does not have to be that way. Verse 10 addresses “Whoever desires to love life and see good days.” John 12:25 says, “Whoever loves his life loses it.” That’s a warning about putting anything ahead of Christ. Loving life is life in Christ, not without him. To love life is to see good days. It is quality of life, not the quantity of life.

Peter defines the good life in verse 10 as Godly conversation and conduct. Verse 10 says, “Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit.” The good life begins with good speech. James 1:26 says, “If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless.” You are not godly if you cannot control your tongue.

Verse 10 says, “Keep your tongue.” “Keep” is a forceful term that means to cease and desist. It is warfare against sinful words. We cannot win this battle alone. We need God’s help to know when to be quiet. We also need God’s help to keep our tongues from evil. Verse 8 speaks of evil acts. Verse 10 speaks of evil words. We must wage war against both. But there is another battle to fight. Verse 10 says to keep your “lips from speaking deceit.” Evil is slanderous speech and Deceit is subversive speech.

1 Peter 2:22 says, “He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth.” To be like Jesus, we must keep our lips from speaking deceit.

Peter in Verse 11 says, “Let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it.” Godly conduct involves doing right before the Lord and toward others.

Do right before the Lord. Saving faith involves true repentance. Repentance is a change of mind that results in a change of ways. In Verse 11 Peter summarizes repentance negatively and positively. We must “turn away from evil.” Our ways and words can be evil. We must “turn away” from both. There are times to fight and times to flee. We should fight evil around us. We should flee the evil within us. Don’t give the flesh an opportunity to do evil. With holy loathing, practice all measures necessary to turn away from evil.

Likewise, we must “do good.” Godliness is not what you do not do. It is about what you seek as well as what you evade. You must do good. It is Peter’s repeated call to practical holiness. Godliness is not the zealous observance of a religious to-do list. Doing good is the best way to turn away from evil. Spiritual development does not happen by merely pulling weeds. You must plant flowers. Galatians 6:10 says, “So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.”

Peter tells us to do right toward others. Verse 11 says, “Let him seek peace and pursue it.” Peace is more than the absence of animosity or hostility. Peace is a positive and productive relationship that is the result of spiritual wellbeing. Peace is elusive because we are sinful. It only took one chapter to devolve from eating forbidden fruit to the premeditated murder of one’s brother. The former was the result of the latter.

We must be like Christ, not like Cain. To be like Christ, seek peace and pursue it. Peace does not happen automatically. We must seek it. Worldly people look for trouble; Godly people look for peace. We have to diligently search for it. When it slips away, we must pursue it, like a hunter chasing its prey. It is a difficult pursuit. But it is worth it. Matthew 5:9 says, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of God.”

Christians can be free from spite if they trust God’s justice. Verses 10-11 are about what the godly do. Verse 12 is about what God does: “For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”

What is God’s position toward the righteous? Verse 12 says, “For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous.” God sees everything. Yet His eyes are on the righteous. God watches over those who honestly trust and obey Him. Verse 12 also says, “And His ears are attentive to their prayers.” The God who has eyes also has ears, which are attentive to the prayers of the righteous. Picture our heavenly Father leaning over to hear the faintest cry of his children.

If this is God’s posture, what an insult the lack of prayer is to God. 

Numbers 6:26 says, “The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.” It means the Lord looks upon you with divine favor. The opposite is for the Lord to turn his face against you. This is the Lord’s posture toward those who do evil.

If you do not know Christ, the Lord’s face is against you. But if you profess faith in Christ but live your way, the Lord’s face is against you. Peter ends his quote without including the second clause of Psalm 34:16: “to cut off the memory of them from the earth.” Because of the finished work of Christ, your failure is not final! You can begin again.