Suffering for Doing Good
Disciples In Distress • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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1 Peter 3:13-22
13 Now, who will want to harm you if you are eager to do good?
14 But even if you suffer for doing what is right, God will reward you for it. So don’t worry or be afraid of their threats.
15 Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if someone asks about your hope as a believer, always be ready to explain it.
16 But do this in a gentle and respectful way. Keep your conscience clear. Then if people speak against you, they will be ashamed when they see what a good life you live because you belong to Christ.
17 Remember, it is better to suffer for doing good, if that is what God wants, than to suffer for doing wrong!
18 Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit.
19 So he went and preached to the spirits in prison—
20 those who disobeyed God long ago when God waited patiently while Noah was building his boat. Only eight people were saved from drowning in that terrible flood.
21 And that water is a picture of baptism, which now saves you, not by removing dirt from your body, but as a response to God from a clean conscience. It is effective because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
22 Now Christ has gone to heaven. He is seated in the place of honor next to God, and all the angels and authorities and powers accept his authority.
INTRODUCTION:
A- RECAP:
I- Enduring Distress as a Christian (1 Peter 1:1–2:10)
A. The Hidden Inheritance, the Hidden Lord. (1 Peter 1:1–9)
B. Preparation for Action (1 Peter 1:10–2:3)
C. The Hidden Spiritual House (1 Peter 2:4–10)
II- At Home, But Not in This World (1 Peter 2:11–3:12)
A. The Christian’s Inner Self (1 Peter 2:11–12)
B. A Life of Submission (1 Peter 2:13–3:7)
C. The Disciple’s Collective Behavior toward Others (1 Peter 3:8–12)
III- Suffering—The Road to Glory (1 Peter 3:13–4:19)
IV- Final Exhortations and Greetings (1 Peter 5:1–14)
B- Where we are today:
III. Suffering—The Road to Glory (1 Peter 3:13–4:19)
A. Suffering for Doing Good (1 Peter 3:13–22)
III. Suffering—The Road to Glory (1 Peter 3:13–4:19)
III. Suffering—The Road to Glory (1 Peter 3:13–4:19)
A. Suffering for Doing Good (1 Peter 3:13–22)
A. Suffering for Doing Good (1 Peter 3:13–22)
13 Now, who will want to harm you if you are eager to do good?
14 But even if you suffer for doing what is right, God will reward you for it. So don’t worry or be afraid of their threats.
15 Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if someone asks about your hope as a believer, always be ready to explain it.
16 But do this in a gentle and respectful way. Keep your conscience clear. Then if people speak against you, they will be ashamed when they see what a good life you live because you belong to Christ.
17 Remember, it is better to suffer for doing good, if that is what God wants, than to suffer for doing wrong!
18 Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit.
19 So he went and preached to the spirits in prison—
20 those who disobeyed God long ago when God waited patiently while Noah was building his boat. Only eight people were saved from drowning in that terrible flood.
21 And that water is a picture of baptism, which now saves you, not by removing dirt from your body, but as a response to God from a clean conscience. It is effective because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
22 Now Christ has gone to heaven. He is seated in the place of honor next to God, and all the angels and authorities and powers accept his authority.
1. The believer is to live a principled life. (1 Peter 3:13-14 ,17)
1. The believer is to live a principled life. (1 Peter 3:13-14 ,17)
13 Now, who will want to harm you if you are eager to do good?
14 But even if you suffer for doing what is right, God will reward you for it. So don’t worry or be afraid of their threats.
17 Remember, it is better to suffer for doing good, if that is what God wants, than to suffer for doing wrong!
a. Living a principled life avoids many pitfalls.( 1 Peter 3:13)
13 Now, who will want to harm you if you are eager to do good?
(Galatians 5:22-23)
22 But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!
b. Living a principled life assures God’s blessing and enables courage. (1 Peter 3:14, 17)
14 But even if you suffer for doing what is right, God will reward you for it. So don’t worry or be afraid of their threats.
17 Remember, it is better to suffer for doing good, if that is what God wants, than to suffer for doing wrong!
(Proverbs 28:1)
1 The wicked run away when no one is chasing them, but the godly are as bold as lions.
(Ephesians 3:12)
12 Because of Christ and our faith in him, we can now come boldly and confidently into God’s presence.
2. The believer is to live with a constant focus on Christ as Lord. (1 Peter 3:15)
2. The believer is to live with a constant focus on Christ as Lord. (1 Peter 3:15)
15 Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if someone asks about your hope as a believer, always be ready to explain it.
(κύριον δὲ τὸν Χριστὸν ἁγιάσατε ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις ὑμῶν…)
(Instead, honor Christ as the holy Lord in your deepest heart [life])
a. Christ is to be Lord at the very core of your being.
This will be reflected in everything that you do and say.
This will govern your desires, attitudes and motives.
It will determine your worldview.
You will have a transformed way of thinking (Romans 12:1-2)
1 And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.
2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.
3. The believer is to always be ready to provide answer for his hope. (1 Peter 3:15-16)
3. The believer is to always be ready to provide answer for his hope. (1 Peter 3:15-16)
15 Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if someone asks about your hope as a believer, always be ready to explain it.
16 But do this in a gentle and respectful way. Keep your conscience clear. Then if people speak against you, they will be ashamed when they see what a good life you live because you belong to Christ.
a. The believer is to always be ready to give an answer (ἀπολογίαν) for the hope (ἐλπίδος) that knowing Christ gives.
This entails knowing what we believe and why we believe it.
This also means that we are to be able to explain (defend) it to those who don’t believe.
The believer’s defense is to be done in the right attitude.
The believer’s verbal witness is to be supported by a godly life.
4. The believer’s hope is anchored to the work of Christ. (1 Peter 3:18-22)
4. The believer’s hope is anchored to the work of Christ. (1 Peter 3:18-22)
18 Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit.
19 So he went and preached to the spirits in prison—
20 those who disobeyed God long ago when God waited patiently while Noah was building his boat. Only eight people were saved from drowning in that terrible flood.
21 And that water is a picture of baptism, which now saves you, not by removing dirt from your body, but as a response to God from a clean conscience. It is effective because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
22 Now Christ has gone to heaven. He is seated in the place of honor next to God, and all the angels and authorities and powers accept his authority.
a. Christ’s atoning work is fully and eternally effective.(1 Peter 3: 18-19)
a. Christ’s atoning work is fully and eternally effective.(1 Peter 3: 18-19)
18 Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit.
19 So he went and preached to the spirits in prison—
(1) Jesus’s death on the cross is an unrepeatable event.
(Heb. 9:27-28)
27 And just as each person is destined to die once and after that comes judgment,
28 so also Christ was offered once for all time as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. He will come again, not to deal with our sins, but to bring salvation to all who are eagerly waiting for him.
(Heb 10:12)
12 But our High Priest offered himself to God as a single sacrifice for sins, good for all time. Then he sat down in the place of honor at God’s right hand.
(2) Jesus’s atoning work was done with a purpose.
(2 Corinthians 5:21)
21 For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.
b. The believer’s baptism is the testimony of the salvation afforded by Christ’s work and to the surrender (pledge) of his life to Christ. (1 Peter 3:20-22)
b. The believer’s baptism is the testimony of the salvation afforded by Christ’s work and to the surrender (pledge) of his life to Christ. (1 Peter 3:20-22)
20 those who disobeyed God long ago when God waited patiently while Noah was building his boat. Only eight people were saved from drowning in that terrible flood.
21 And that water is a picture of baptism, which now saves you, not by removing dirt from your body, but as a response to God from a clean conscience. It is effective because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
22 Now Christ has gone to heaven. He is seated in the place of honor next to God, and all the angels and authorities and powers accept his authority.
(1) The role of baptism is not the washing away of sin, but the answer of a clear conscience by clearly identifying with Christ.
(Eph 1:7)
7 He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins.
(Col 1:19–20)
19 For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ,
20 and through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross.
(Matthew 10:33)
33 But everyone who denies me here on earth, I will also deny before my Father in heaven.
Joyce Florentine chose to be baptized in spite of her physical condition.
CONCLUSION:
Questions To Ponder:
How is suffering for doing good contrasted with suffering for doing wrong in 1 Peter 3:17?
Why is it important to explain your hope as a believer according to 1 Peter 3:15?
How does the passage describe the relationship between baptism and a clear conscience as mentioned in 1 Peter 3:21?
What does 1 Peter 3:14 say about how believers should respond to threats?
What is meant by the statement that baptism saves 'not by removing dirt from your body' but as a response to God?
