1 Peter 4:12-19 - The Path of Perseverance

Introduction

If your goal were to train someone to be resilient and to persevere, would you give them easy or hard circumstances?

When you want to know what real commitment looks like, do you measure it when everything is going well, or when the wheels seem to be falling off?

In 1914, an evolutionary biologist named George William Hunter published a biology textbook, which the schools of Dayton, TN, put to use. Hunter’s textbook mildly (but clearly) affirmed the theory of macro-evolution. Charles Darwin’s theory had been prominent in academia for decades, but at the beginning of the 20th century, it was making its way down to the popular and local level in America.

In 1921, William Jennings Bryan (an American lawyer and prominent politician) led an anti-evolution movement, which soon provoked action by the Tennessee House of Representatives. (This was back when Christians in America used to think that it was right and good to make public arguments and push for laws in support of Christian doctrine and ethics… a Christian way of thinking that I hope many will recover in our own day.)

On January 21, 1925, Tennessee Representative John Washington Butler proposed a law (called “the Butler bill”) that would prohibit the teaching of “any theory that denies the story of the Divine Creation of man as taught in the Bible, and to teach instead that man has descended from a lower order of animals.”

Six days later, the Tennessee House approved “the Butler bill” (71 to 5), and about 6 weeks after that, the Senate approved it too (24 to 6). Thus, “the Butler bill” became “the Butler Act,” which was then the law of Tennessee.

(Imagine that… Christians in America collectively acting with political force and legal strategy to pass state legislation that promoted what they believed to be Christian teaching in America’s public schools…)

A month later, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) started publicly inviting any willing Tennessee teacher to accept their legal services in a court battle that would aim to overturn “the Butler Act.” Almost immediately, a 24-year-old science teacher and football coach, named John Thomas Scopes, agreed to be indicted in order to bring the case to trial.

This trial became famous, and some may know it as the “Scopes Monkey Trial.” It was a sensational event, and defense attorney Clarence Darrow openly mocked Christian beliefs. Two courtrooms were hearing all the same arguments – one legal and the other public opinion – and everyone knew it.

On July 21, 1925 (exactly a hundred years ago tomorrow), John Scopes (the indicted teacher) was declared guilty in the Tennessee court of breaking the law by teaching Darwin’s theory of evolution in the public school. That day, the Butler Act was upheld by the Tennessee court.

But the public damage to Christian doctrine and teaching had been done. Those who believed that man was a special and unique creation of God were lampooned for their foolishness and their anti-scientific faith.

About 40 years later, in 1967, the Tennessee court repealed the Butler Act. John Scopes became a hero (not a villain) in Dayton, TN. And the Supreme Court of the United States went on to strike down a similar law in Arkansas, signaling to the rest of the country that state laws against teaching naturalistic evolution in public schools are unconstitutional in America.

In twentieth-century America, the traditional view of biblical creation became marginalized and ridiculed in the courts and in the public square. Christians could still believe the biblical creation story in their hearts, but if they publicly affirmed that belief, they faced tremendous backlash.

Today (a hundred years later), almost no one cares what Christians believe about creation, about God, about salvation, or about Jesus Christ. Doctrine does not seem to be of any interest to many non-Christians in America.

What animates ridicule and mockery and court rulings today is not Christian doctrine, but Christian ethics. Will you bow the knee to public opinion and court ruling and civil law on matters of marriage, or gender, or sexuality?

Earlier this month, a public library employee was fired in Louisiana for not using the preferred pronoun of his fellow employee (a female who wants to be treated as a male). Most of the adults in the room are probably aware of the cake baker, Jack Phillips, who has been sued twice now for refusing to celebrate a same-sex wedding. And Colorado passed the “Kelly Loving Act” in May of this year, which may or may not require parents to affirm their child’s transgender “identity.”

(There are conflicting opinions about whether or not parents of young children can be legally required to do this, but I’m sure court cases will come.)

These are formal headwinds Christians face in our society today, but there are a thousand informal ways that Christians are pressured every day to compromise with the beliefs and practices of the wicked world.

Are these pressures unique to our society?

Are the trials (both the literal trials in courtrooms and metaphorical ones with family, friends, neighbors… and with gatekeepers in political, educational, professional arenas)… are these trials to be expected for Christians in the world?

What are Christians to do when they find themselves in the pressure-cooker of secularism or paganism or anti-Christianism in the world?

Our passage today speaks to all of this. Human nature has not changed since Genesis 3, and the same teaching and commands we find in this 2,000-year-old letter from the Apostle Peter to Christians scattered about in the ancient Roman world are still relevant for us today.

May God encourage us by His word today… may He help us to adjust our expectations according to His instructions… and may He help us to be the sort of Christians who will persevere through whatever trials we may face… so that we will be able to rejoice… now and on the last day.

Let’s read our main passage together – 1 Peter 4:12-19.

Scripture Reading

1 Peter 4:12-19

12 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. 13 But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.

14 If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. 15 But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler.

16 Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name. 17 For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? 18 And “If the righteous is scarcely saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?”

19 Therefore let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good.

Main Idea:

Christians should expect trials, rejoice to be like Christ, glory in the Spirit’s work, and trust God’s faithfulness to preserve His own and punish the wicked.

Sermon

There are four main imperatives or commands in our passage today.

“do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you” (v12).

“rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings” (v13).

“if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name” (v16).

“let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good” (v19).

These are my four points – (1) expect trials, (2) rejoice sharing with Christ, (3) glory in the Spirit’s work, and (4) trust God’s faithfulness.

1. Expect Trials (v12)

Our passage today is the start of the conclusion of this letter from the Apostle Peter to Christians scattered about in the ancient Roman world. So, it is no surprise that Peter ends by emphasizing the same themes he did at the beginning.

Remember back to the opening greeting of Peter’s letter. It was written to “those who are elect exiles… according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of [God] the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ [who is God the Son in human flesh] and for sprinkling with his blood” (1 Pet. 1:1-2).

Referring to the distinct work of each person of the Godhead – Father, Son, and Spirit – Peter reminded those Christians that they were set apart as holy in a world of sin and sinners, and he reminded them that this was and is exactly as God intends. (And, friends, this is true of all Christians of every generation… Christians are always set apart as holy in the world of sin and sinners.)

Peter also reminded them of the Christian hope – (A) “resurrection” from the dead, (B) a glorious “inheritance” of all that God has promised in Christ, and (C) a “salvation ready to be revealed in the last time” (1 Pet. 1:3-5). Peter said, “In this [i.e., in this Christian hope] you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith… may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Pet. 1:6-7).

In other words, the present reality that Christians are saved (and united now with Christ) and also the future reality that Christians will be saved (and united with Christ fully or ultimately in the end)… this already and not yet possession is what sustains Christians – and even makes them to rejoice – through the various trials… which prove their faith as they persevere all the way to that final day… that day when Christ Himself will receive “praise and glory and honor,” and those who remain faithful to Him will somehow share in all of that with Him.

Friends, the Christian hope is not that we will escape or avoid hardship or trials or suffering in this life. Rather, the Christian hope is that God will bring us through various trials, He will preserve us through them, He will demonstrate His faithfulness and prove our genuineness through them… Thus, we are to trust Him, and we are to persevere with Him through our trials.

So, Peter says again here (in our passage this morning), “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you” (v12).

Let’s consider two things in this first point: (1) the fiery nature of the trial, and (2) the purpose of the fiery trial.

The trial is “fiery” (v12).

The idea here is exposure to fire.

This is a painful suffering, an experience of severe burning.

The only other times this word appears in the NT is in Revelation 18, and it refers to God’s final judgment (Rev. 18:9, 18).

This shows up on our own passage in v17, when Peter says, “it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God” (v17).

Friends, there is a sense in which God’s judgment comes to both the sinners and the saints of this world.

God makes a fiery division between that which is “wood, hay, [and] straw” and that which is “gold, silver, [and] precious stones” (1 Cor. 3:12-13)… between that with is consumed by the fire and that which is refined by it.

This is not an antagonistic or condemning judgment (at least not for faithful Christians), but a proving and refining judgment (those who persevere are praised and rewarded).

The purpose of “the fiery trial” is “to test you” (v12).

The clear call or command or exhortation here is to expect “the fiery trial” and to endure it, so that you will be able to “rejoice” on the last day “when [Christ’s] glory is revealed” (v12-13).

In other words, the “trial” Peter is talking about here is not general hardships that are common to man in a fallen world – sickness, poverty, relational dysfunction, etc. – but specific hardships that Christians uniquely face precisely for being faithful to Christ.

Friends, the Bible is calling for resilient and tough and enduring faith, not a weak or soft or fleeting faith – the kind that doesn’t last.

How many times have we seen what once appeared to be faithful Christians give up on following and trusting Christ when the going got tough? when it became difficult? or when it was inconvenient?

There are numerous warning passages in the Bible that ought to teach us not to place too much weight on one’s mere profession of faith or one’s apparent faithfulness when following Christ is easy.

It is the persevering Christian (the one who endures through various trials and hardships) who makes it to the end, not the fair-weather Christian (who only gives Jesus lip-service or only pulls “the Jesus card” when their faithfulness is in question).

Just this last week, Chip and Joanna Gaines got a lot of criticism from some of their fans when the Gaines’s advertised their attempt to normalize same-sex marriage and families.

The Gaines’s are celebrity “Christians” who became famous with a home renovation show and by presenting themselves as an all-American, Christian couple.

In their upcoming TV series, they are presenting a same-sex couple in positive light, and their Christian bonafides are in question – Christians are not to walk around being jerks to sinners, but Christians cannot endorse sin.

In response to criticism, Chip said it’s judgmental Christians who are to blame and not his and Joanna’s obvious moral compromise.

He condemned Christians for their biblical ethics, not sinners for their immoral behavior.

Friends, this is exactly the sort of thing we are being warned about.

Do not be surprised when the sinners around you condemn you for standing up for what is true and right…

Sinners will condemn you for saying marriage is a man and a woman, committed for a lifetime.

Sinners will rebuke you for saying that human life should be honored and preserved at every stage – from conception to natural death.

Sinners will mock and dismiss you for saying that gender is God’s good design, and that males and females should look and act as God intended them.

Sinners will attack you for saying that Jesus is the only savior for sinners, and that anyone who is not believing and following Christ is on their way to hell.

but whatever you do, you must not deny the clear teachings and commands of Christ in order to avoid the trial…

Do not deny what the Bible teaches in an attempt to appease those sinners who are eager to condemn you.

Do not deny what Christ commands in an attempt to soften the sharp edges of the gospel for those who want the blessings of Christ without obeying Him.

You are being tested, and only the persevering Christians will make it to the end.

These trials Christians face for being faithful to Christ are the very path which God intends persevering Christians to walk.

There is no road to glory except right through the middle of the fiery trial…

Indeed, Christians should expect to endure them… “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you” (v12).

2. Rejoice in Sharing with Christ (v13)

All this talk about expecting trials for Christian faithfulness, and the command to endure is not enough to sustain Christians through those trials. What we need is a rationale… a reason… a thoughtful justification to stay the course when we might have every desire to take the easier path.

And this is exactly what we get here in our passage this morning!

The second command is the beginning of three exhortations that come along with good reasons to persevere. First, we must “rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings” (v13). But how can Christians actually “rejoice” in “sufferings”? Peter gives us at least two reasons which are connected to the Christian’s union with Christ.

We can rejoice because suffering the world’s condemnation and persecution gives us a share in what Christ has already suffered before us.

Jesus said, “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you… Remember… ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you” (John 15:18-20).

Friends, one way to know that we are truly united with Christ is that we share in His suffering.

This is the opposite of the prosperity gospel.

Prosperity preachers will tell you that faithful living will produce worldly prosperity – good health, abundant wealth, and good circumstances.

And there is a kernel of truth here – faithful living will produce good results… clear conscience, ordered-life, good reputation with those who value virtue.

But the Bible teaches the opposite of the prosperity gospel –

Christians who live faithfully for Christ… who don’t shy away from speaking the truth and who don’t stop short in their pursuit of practical holiness…

those Christians will (in one way or another) suffer the mockery, the shame, and even the brutal opposition that Christ Himself suffered in this world.

Once again, this is not the general hardships of life in the world, but the specific hardships of faithfully following Christ in a world that hates those who stand for Christian teaching and living.

We ought not be fools or jerks, but when we suffer for humbly and faithfully following Jesus, we can rejoice that we are being counted worthy to suffer as our Master has done at the hands of the same sort of opponents.

We can rejoice because Christ’s glory is going to be revealed on the last day, and we will share in that with Him too.

Not only may Christians rejoice now that we share in Christ’s suffering, but we may also be assured that we shall rejoice in Christ’s glory.

Friends, the Christian path in this world may be full of all sorts of shame and difficulty, but there is coming a day when our reward will not be worth comparing to all that we have suffered.

Consider what the Apostle Paul said to the church in Philippi. He urged them to “stand firm” and to “strive side by side for the faith of the gospel” and to “not [be] frightened in anything by your opponents,” because “this is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but [also] of your salvation” (Phil. 1:27-28).

Then Paul went on to say, “I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord… that I may know him and the power of his resurrection” (Phil. 3:8, 10).

Brothers and sisters, for those of us to know Christ now, and share in His suffering (as He suffered before us)… we can be assured that we shall also know Christ in the end and share in His glory – His resurrection and the full salvation He has promised.

3. Glory in the Spirit’s Work (v14-16)

Our passage is full of God’s work in the life of the believer through the midst of fiery trials. The point Peter is making is that trials and hardships are the very path through which God produces perseverance in the life of the Christian.

And Peter turns next to the particular work of God’s Spirit. He says (in v14-16), to be a “Christian” is to have the “Spirit of glory” or the “Spirit… of God” “resting upon you;” therefore, the Christian does not have to be “ashamed” in his or her suffering for Christ’s sake… but he or she can and should “glorify God” when he or she is associated with His “name” through suffering (v14-16).

Peter says, “if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name” (v16).

Friends, the second reason we can “glorify God” and even find “blessing” amid our trials is because “Christian” suffering is an affirmation of God’s dwelling in us. Let’s briefly consider this rationale from the two directions Peter presents it here: first, that Christians must avoid sin, and second, that Christians can perceive a blessing through the midst of suffering.

We must avoid sin and the consequences of it.

Peter says, “let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler” (v15).

Brothers and sisters, the fact that Christians should expect suffering or trials or persecution of various kinds at the hands of sinners is no license to go on sinning…

nor should we presume that all the hardships that we face are to be blamed on the sinful words or deeds of others.

When we sin, we have no one to blame but ourselves for the consequences.

But we should also be aware that even sinners (those who reject God’s law and turn against Christ’s people)… even those obstinate sinners have a conscience that knows the difference between right and wrong… and sinners seem to love nothing more than pointing out the faults and failures of Christians.

Think of the public way in which non-Christians almost celebrate the flaws of Christians who stand for truth.

Pastor John MacArthur died last Monday, and many have written or spoken of their gratitude for his faithfulness as a prominent public witness.

MacArthur wasn’t my favorite pastor or theologian, but I appreciate a lot about him.

His books The Gospel According to Jesus and The Murder of Jesus were especially good at getting to the heart of the gospel.

His preaching was part of my initial discipleship, when I used to listen to hours and hours of preaching (from him and others) on podcasts (back in my 20s).

Without question, MacArthur was a Christian leader you could trust to publicly speak and act according to his Christian conviction, and he delighted in encouraging everyday Christians toward deeper love for Christ and more consistent living for Christ.

John MacArthur was the Senior Pastor of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, CA, for 56 years.

His faithful pastoral ministry (as well as his writing, radio and TV appearances, and his conference speaking) made him a leading Evangelical in the 20th and 21st centuries.

Though much good has been said of MacArthur over the last week, many non-Christians (and even some Christians who love the praise of the world) have come out to speak a negative word about him.

Despite nearly six decades of faithful Christian living in the public eye (facing scrutiny that none of us will likely do in our lives), some only want to focus on what they perceive to be a flaw in MacArthur’s life.

Friends, this is just the way it is – sinners seem to love when Christians make a mistake or when they appear to sin.

We cannot help what sinners do, but we ought to strive for personal holiness… (at least in part) so that when sinners come against us with their words or actions, it will not be a consequence we deserve.

But if we do suffer for doing right…

We can find blessing even in trials because God indwells us by His Spirit.

Peter says (in v14), “If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you” (v14).

And (v16), “if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name” (v16).

Friends, when the sinners around us condemn us for our faithfulness to Christ (for our speaking and acting “as a Christian”), it is evidence that we are indwelt by God’s Spirit, and this is a blessing indeed!

What change has been brought about in my life for the good that has not been the result of God’s Spirit at work within me?

What holiness or faithfulness in me has been the result of my own effort or natural desire or personal virtue?

If I am being persecuted “as a Christian,” then I can count it as a badge of honor or “glory”… and I can also count it as a great “blessing” of God’s grace, since this is evidence that He is at work in me by His Spirit.

Friends, Christians should expect trials in this life, because we are still surrounded by those who do not love Christ and do not love faithful disciples of Christ. And Christians can rejoice even in their trials, because they are sharing in Christ Himself when they are suffering for righteousness’ sake.

So too, Christians can glory in the Spirit’s work in them when they suffer for the name of Christ, because it is only the powerful and transformative work of God’s Spirit within us that could make us worthy to be associated with His name… And there is no shame in that!

4. Trust God’s Faithfulness (v17-19)

Finally, friends, we end where we began – with a call to expect “the fiery trial” as part of God’s intentional plan to create resilient and persevering Christians by sending them down the path of perseverance.

As usual, there is more here in these verses than we can unpack in our short time this morning, but let me close our time with this third and final reason Peter gives us for why we can endure and even rejoice in suffering for faithfulness.

Peter says (in v19), “let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good” (v19).

Peter has emphasized the special work of each person of the Godhead in our passage – sharing in Christ’s suffering and glory, and the blessing of the Spirit’s indwelling power to transform us toward more and more Christ-likeness – and now Peter turns to the particular work of God the Father on this path of perseverance.

Here we see a call to know that this path is “according to God’s will,” and a call to trust that God is “faithful” to bring us through it.

I asked a couple of questions at the very beginning of our time this morning.

If your goal were to train someone to be resilient and to persevere, would you give them easy or hard circumstances?

And, when you want to know what real commitment looks like, do you measure it when everything is going well, or when the wheels seem to be falling off?

Friends, our passage this morning teaches us that God the Father has set out to train His people to be resilient – He intends to make Christians who persevere through various hardships and trials. And our passage also teaches us that God has set out to prove the genuineness of our faith by taking us right through the middle of the fiery path.

There is a fiery judgment to come on the whole world, and Peter reminds us that God’s refining and sifting judgment “begins at the household of God” (v17). The purpose is not to strike fear in the hearts of those who love and follow Christ, since Peter also says (citing the OT), “If the righteous is scarcely saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?” (v18).

The whole point Peter is making here is that God is dead serious about what it means to be saved in the end. God brings His own people through the fiery trial and He will destroy “those who do not obey the gospel of God” by His fiery judgment in the end (v17).

Some of you may know the OT story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. These three faithful men were sent to the fiery furnace for their refusal to bow down to worship like the pagans did in Babylon. Just before King Nebuchadnezzar sent them into the fire, the king demanded their compromise once more and asked them, “who is the god who will deliver you out of my hands?” (Daniel 3:15).

The three faithful men answered, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If [you send us to the fire], our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand… But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up” (Daniel 3:16-18).

On that day, like our own, there is a visible and tangible fire that burns in this world. It is the fiery trial that demands our compromise – it demands our capitulation, our fear, our apostasy. The sinners around us sometimes want us to give up our foolish love of Christ, our repulsive beliefs, and our intolerable ethical standard.

But so too, both back then and today, there is an invisible fire that burns even now and will become visible on the last day. It is the fire of God’s ultimate judgment upon a rebellious world that stands in opposition to Christ and His people. God’s fiery judgment also makes demands – demands of obedience, faithfulness, and perseverance.

For those (like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego) who face the visible fiery trials of this world, trusting in God’s faithfulness to deliver them (today or tomorrow, or the last day), they shall endure and be spared from God’s fiery judgment to come.

We get to choose, brothers and sisters, to share in Christ’s suffering now, to glory in the Spirit’s work now, to trust in God’s faithfulness now… and endure the fiery trials of this life… or face God’s fiery judgment on the last day.

The only way out of this is through it, and the triune God will preserve us all the way if we will trust Him for it.

May God help us to adjust our expectations about trials. May He help us to rejoice in His work and preservation of us. And may God help us to trust Him all the way through to the end.