Following the Suffering Shepherd

Read: 1 Peter 2:18–25

Pray!

Just a reminder that 1 Peter was written to exiles facing unjust suffering under earthly authorities.

Today, believers still wrestle with unfair workplaces, unjust systems, and situations that feel impossible.

Peter doesn’t minimize suffering—he magnifies Christ in the midst of it.

By end of this sermon today i was us to understand that  Christian submission in unjust suffering isn’t passive weakness—it is active Christlikeness.

I. THE CALL TO SUBMISSION (vv. 18–20)

“Household slaves, submit to your masters… not only to the good and gentle but also to the cruel.

-Before we make application from this passage,

-we must acknowledge something deeply uncomfortable but absolutely necessary: 1 Peter 2:18–25 was tragically twisted and weaponized during the North American transatlantic slave trade.

A. The Painful Historical Abuse

-Slaveholders in America used verses like these to:

justify the kidnapping, brutalization, and forced labor of Africans

demand that enslaved people be “submissive”

silence any desire for freedom

claim divine endorsement for one of the greatest atrocities in human history

-Here me loud and clear on this…..This was not merely bad theology. This was sinful manipulation of Scripture to keep people in chains.

B. The Biblical Text Was Never Written to Justify Race-Based Slavery

-The slavery of the ancient Roman world and the race-based chattel slavery of North America were not the same thing.

Here are a few Key differences:

Biblical slavery was not race-based. American slavery was explicitly racial and built on white supremacy.

Biblical servitude had legal protections, rights, and paths to freedom.American slavery treated humans as property with no rights whatsoever.

Kidnapping a person to enslave them was punishable by death in Scripture.Exodus 21:16 “Whoever kidnaps a person must be put to death, whether he sells him or the person is found in his possession.” The entire transatlantic slave trade was built on kidnapping.

NT instructions for slaves were pastoral guidance within an unjust system—not moral endorsement of that system.Peter is teaching Christians how to respond when they suffer under unjust authority, not telling masters they have a right to own people.

C. Why This Text Was Twisted

-Slaveholders did what all oppressors do: They weaponized Scripture to protect their power.

-They ignored everything God says about:

justice

human dignity

the image of God

liberation

the wickedness of oppressing the vulnerable

God’s judgment on those who mistreat others

-They conveniently preached “Slaves, submit…” but never preached “Masters, treat your slaves justly…” (Col. 4:1) or Jesus’ words: “Do to others as you would have them do to you.”

-Where slaveholders read permission, enslaved believers read promise:

Jesus is the suffering Servant who understands their pain.

God sees their tears and injustice.

Christ is the Shepherd who restores the oppressed.

True justice belongs to God, not the plantation owner.

The same Jesus who suffered unjustly would one day judge all unjust masters.

-They heard not bondage—but hope. Not oppression—but the promise that God is on the side of the suffering.

How We Preach This Passage Faithfully Today

-We do not skip hard texts. But we do not preach them blindly.

-To teach 1 Peter 2 faithfully, we must say clearly:

1. This text does not justify slavery—past or present. 2. Suffering as a Christian is never an excuse for someone else to inflict abuse. 3. Submission is not silence in the face of oppression. 4. Peter is calling believers to emulate Christ’s character—not accept injustice as moral.

-Peter’s words are about how a Christian responds when suffering comes, not about giving moral license to the person causing the suffering.

And ultimately The cross shows us that:

God does not side with oppressors.

God judges injustice severely.

God enters the suffering of the abused and mistreated.

God vindicates the righteous and brings down the proud.

-The same Jesus who bore our sins on the tree is the One who said: “The Lord has sent me to proclaim release to the captives” (Luke 4:18).

-In Christ, slavery is not sanctified—it is shattered.

-Oppressors are not excused—they are confronted by the holiness of God.

-And the abused are not abandoned—they are carried by a Shepherd who sees, heals, restores, and vindicates.

Now that we have covered that… Lets look at The Historical Context for this text.

1. “Household slaves” = domestic servants within a Greco-Roman household

-The Greek term used in 1 Peter 2:18 is oiketai, which refers specifically to slaves who worked inside a household. These are different from agricultural slaves or laborers who worked in mines or fields.

What did they do?

-Household slaves commonly served in roles such as:

Cooking, cleaning, and general domestic labor

Childcare or tutoring children (if educated)

Accounting, financial stewardship, or assisting in business

Running errands or managing the household

Serving meals and caring for guests

Some were highly trusted and managed the entire estate.

What were their rights and limitations?

-In the Greco-Roman world:

They were not considered legal persons—they had no full legal standing.

They could not marry legally (though they could have recognized unions).

They had no legal recourse against mistreatment.

They were under the authority (“masters,” kyrios) of the household leader.

Their social mobility was possible but limited, usually through:

Manumission (being freed)

Purchasing freedom (if allowed)

Being granted freedom at a master’s death

-Despite this, household slaves were better treated than field or mine slaves, who often faced brutal, deadly conditions.

2. Why Did People Become Household Slaves?

-There were several pathways into slavery in the ancient world, and they were not identical to the chattel race-based slavery of the transatlantic era. People became household slaves primarily through:

A. Economic hardship

Families unable to pay debts could sell themselves or their children into slavery.

Poverty and famine drove people to seek survival through servitude.

This was called debt bondage, and it was extremely common.

B. Being born into slavery

-Children born to enslaved mothers typically inherited that status.

-Unwanted infants or orphans might be taken in as slaves and raised within a household.

C. War and conquest

-When Rome conquered a region:

Prisoners of war were often enslaved.

Educated captives sometimes became tutors, accountants, or administrators in households.

E. Criminal punishment

-Some were enslaved due to crimes, though this was more common for harsher slave labor (mines, galleys).

4. Why Does Peter Address “Slaves” Directly?

Because:

Many early believers were from the lower classes.

Christian gatherings were one of the only places slaves and free people mixed as equals.

Slaves found the gospel compelling—a God who sees the lowly was revolutionary.

Their conduct in the household had the power to impact the reputation of the early church.

-Peter isn’t endorsing the institution—he’s forming a distinctly Christian ethic within the broken social structures of the ancient world.

This applies today to employees, subordinates, and believers who live under broken leadership.

Suffering for doing good finds favor with God.

God takes notice when His people endure unfair treatment with His character.

Submission is not agreement with injustice; it is allegiance to Christ.

This section is not about the power of the oppressor—but the witness of the believer.

II. THE CALL TO IMITATION (v. 21)

Read Vs.21.

1. “For you were called to this” — Called to what?

-In context (vv. 18–20), Peter is speaking about enduring unjust suffering.

-So when he says “you were called to this,” he means:

Believers are called not only to salvation, but also to a life shaped by Christ, which includes:

enduring mistreatment without retaliation,

responding with righteousness,

trusting God in suffering.

-This does NOT mean God delights in your pain. Rather, it means suffering—especially unjust suffering—will be part of the Christian journey because we follow a suffering Savior (cf. John 15:18–20).

-The calling is not to be abused, but to be faithful when suffering comes.

2. “Because Christ also suffered for you” — Substitution

-This is the heart of the gospel.

-Peter reminds them:

Christ’s suffering was on your behalf,

in your place,

for your salvation.

-This grounds our endurance not in moralism (“be tough”) but in the cross (“He endured for you”).

Two layers of Christ’s suffering here: A. Substitutionary Suffering Christ bore the penalty for our sin (v. 24). His suffering is redemptive. Exemplary Suffering Christ’s suffering also serves as a model. His suffering is instructive.

-Peter never separates the two.

3. “Leaving you an example” — The pattern to trace

-The word Peter uses for “example” (hypogrammos) refers to:

a writing template for children learning to write,

letters you trace by putting your hand over the teacher’s.

-This means:

Christ is not just an inspirational story;

His life provides the lines upon which we trace our own responses to suffering.

-We don’t follow our feelings—we follow His footsteps.

4. “That you should follow in His steps” — The way of the suffering Savior

-Peter uses imagery of walking in the footprints of Jesus.

Christ’s “steps” in this context include:

Read Vs.22-23

-He committed no sin (v. 22)

Christ suffered though He did nothing wrong.

Our suffering is rarely 100% undeserved—His was entirely undeserved.

He did not retaliate when insulted (v. 23)

He did not threaten when He suffered (v. 23)

He entrusted Himself to the Father (v. 23)

So to follow His steps means:

-We respond with holiness, not vengeance.

-Not because injustice is acceptable, but because Christ shows a better way.

-Christ’s trust in the Father carried Him through suffering— and we follow that same path.

1 Peter 2:21 teaches:

Christians are called to endure suffering faithfully.

Christ suffered in our place to save us.

Christ’s response to suffering is the pattern for our response.

We follow His footsteps—holiness, humility, trust.

-This verse is not about accepting abusive systems as God’s will— but about how believers imitate Christ when unjust suffering does come.

-Suffering Is Not Contrary to the Christian Life—It Is Part of the Call

The early church understood this deeply.

The modern church often rejects it fiercely.

Peter brings us back to a cross-shaped lifestyle.

Christ shows a better way: entrusting ourselves to the One who judges justly.

Read Vs.24-25

VERSE 24 — THE HEART OF THE GOSPEL

-Peter uses strong, personal language:

He Himself — Jesus didn’t delegate your salvation.

Bore (anēnengken) — to carry a burden, to take responsibility.

Our sins — not generic evil, but your specific sin.

-This is Day of Atonement language (Leviticus 16): the scapegoat carrying the sin of the people.

-Peter is saying:

Jesus did not die as a martyr but as a substitute. He didn’t die as an example instead of salvation, He died as an example because His death saved us.

“In His body on the tree” — The cursed cross

In His body — His suffering was physical and real.

On the tree — Peter uses Deuteronomy 21:23 language (a person hung on a tree is cursed).

-By calling the cross a “tree,” Peter emphasizes:

Jesus took the curse we deserved (Galatians 3:13).

His death fulfills the curse of the law so we can receive the blessing of God.

-He bore:

your guilt,

your penalty,

your curse,

your judgment.

“So that, having died to sins…” — Salvation produces transformation

-The cross does not only forgive sin; it breaks sin’s rule over your life.

-“Having died to sins” means:

sin no longer owns you

sin is no longer your master

sin’s penalty is canceled

sin’s power is broken

-Christ’s death brings both freedom from guilt and freedom from bondage.

“…we might live for righteousness” — A new way of life

-The purpose of salvation isn’t merely escape from hell— but a transformed life.

-To “live for righteousness” means:

to reflect Jesus in character

to pursue holiness

to obey God out of joy

to embody justice, mercy, humility

to live in alignment with God’s kingdom

-Grace changes the direction of your life.

“By His wounds you have been healed” — Isaiah 53 fulfilled

-This is a direct quotation from Isaiah 53:5.

Read Isaiah 53.

-Peter applies the prophecy to:

spiritual healing (the context is sin, not sickness),

the restoration of our relationship with God,

the healing of the soul broken by rebellion.

-This does not exclude physical healing, but Peter’s meaning is clear: The deep wound of sin is healed by the deep wounds of Christ.

VERSE 25 — THE RESULT OF SALVATION

“For you were like sheep going astray” — Our natural condition

-Sheep going astray are:

vulnerable

foolish

unable to find their way back

in danger without realizing it

-This is Peter’s picture of us before Christ:

spiritually lost

morally wandering

self-led and self-deceived

distant from the Shepherd

unable to save ourselves

-This is not a flattering image—but it's true.

“But you have now returned” — Repentance and redemption

-This is the language of repentance:

turning from sin

turning toward God

restored to relationship

-The verb is passive in flavor: “You have been returned”—highlighting God’s initiative.

-You did not find your way back. He came and brought you home.

“To the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls” — Christ’s ongoing care

-Two beautiful titles for Jesus:

A.Shepherd

Jesus guides, feeds, protects, and nurtures.

Think Psalm 23 and John 10.

He is gentle with the wounded and firm with danger.

B.Overseer

guardian, protector, watcher over

He ensures your soul reaches its eternal destination

He watches over your spiritual condition

Together: Jesus is both the tender Shepherd and the vigilant Guardian of your soul. He not only saves you—He keeps you.

CONCLUSION: FOLLOW THE SUFFERING SHEPHERD

Jesus suffered for you,

Jesus suffered before you,

Jesus suffers with you,

And Jesus shepherds you through it.

Call to Action:

Entrust your suffering to Christ.

Live differently than the world in the face of injustice.

Bear witness to the Shepherd who bore your sins.