Entrust Your Soul to Your Faithful Creator

Introduction

Will you please open your Bible and turn with me to ? This morning we are going to be studying together. Before we dive in, let’s read this passage together. If you don’t have a Bible, you can follow along by looking at the screens in front.

Read . Pray.

Constant reminders can be annoying or they can be helpful. We’ve experienced the annoying reminders, that friend who over-communicates a deadline so that you will not forget. You get annoyed and say to yourself, “Does this person think I’m a child?” The annoying reminder from a doctor’s office about your upcoming appoint, that never comes at the right time - always when you are busy. Or the reminder that your dog needs shots or your oil needs changing. So soon!? I feel like we did this last week!

But constant reminders can also be helpful. We’re prone to forget. We forget about that appointment or deadline and so we need those constant reminders. Reminders are not just helpful because we’re forgetful though, they’re also helpful because we’re reluctant. Because of the sin that still remains, we can resist doing what we know needs to be done so we’ll procrastinate, ignore, and avoid. Isn’t it sad? We’ll resist the minor inconveniences of a doctor’s appoint, can you imagine what we’d do if we were faced with suffering?

As we have studied this letter from Peter, a theme has come up often: the theme of suffering. Throughout this letter we have been challenged and encouraged to face and endure suffering and trials. In every chapter this theme has come up. Over and over again we have been reminded that disciples of Jesus who live in a world that opposes him will inevitably suffer. We will suffer because of the fallen world we live in and we will suffer because of the evil that surrounds us.

Do you know what happens when we suffer? We shrink back. We give up. Human nature has an aversion to everything that is difficult. We avoid everything that is hard, and we especially avoid suffering. People love Jesus when he makes their lives easier. People follow Christ as long as his demands are easy. But when suffering knocks on our doors, we turn and run. We hide. Which is why we need these constant reminders in 1 Peter. As we read our verses you may have thought to yourself, “Suffering again?” Of course! Because in order to be faithful, we need to be constantly reminded of God’s purposes in our suffering.

This morning, we have yet another reminder. The people that Peter was writing, people who were facing pain and persecution for the faith in Jesus, needed another reminder of God’s purposes in suffering so that they would be faithful. What does Peter tell us here, at the end of chapter 4? We are told:

Entrust your soul to your faithful God so that you may rejoice as he purifies you through suffering.

The aim of this passage is to help you entrust your soul to your faithful Creator as you suffer according to his will. The goal of these verses is to keep you from doubting God and running away from him when you are faced with trials and suffering. What God wants you to know is that the pathway to faithfulness while suffering is not to throw your hands up and doubt God, but to entrust your soul to him, your faithful and sovereign Creator. When you do, when you entrust your soul to him, you will rejoice in suffering. So this passage is for everyone of us today. It is teaching us about suffering.

Suffering Happens According to God’s Will and Works to Purify His People

I know that this is a massive statement. “Suffering happens according to God’s will?” If you don’t feel the weight of that statement, you may not be hearing me. Suffering happens according to God’s will - yes. This could not be more plain in our passage. Look at verse 19

1 Peter 4:19 ESV

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

In this massively weighty verse, one thing is clear: suffering happens according to God’s will. There are many questions that come up when we hear this that I cannot answer. How is God at work through the suffering that happens through Satan? Or evil people? Some of these answers we are unable to know, but one thing is clear, all of your suffering happens according to the will of God.

This is true of you, just as it was true of Jesus. It was in obedience to his Father’s will that Jesus faced his own crucifixion. As he prayed in the garden of Gethsemane:

Matthew 26:38–39 ESV

Then he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me.” And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”

The prophet Isaiah, prophesying about the coming Savior that would suffer for the sins of his people said:

Isaiah 53:10 ESV

Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.

The salvation that was purchased for you and for me by our Savior as he suffered on the cross for our sins, happened according to God’s will. Above all of the schemes of the enemy and of evil men, it was God’s will at work. And the same is true of your suffering.

And while there is a lot that may be unanswered by this truth, this means one thing: there is no suffering you encounter that does not come through the mind and heart of your heavenly Father. Every suffering you face only happens according to God’s will. Everything that comes to you only comes by passing through your loving Father’s heart. All of your suffering was first considered by your all-knowing Father, who knows exactly what you need, to the degree that you need it, and for the time that is good for you. Suffering happens according to God’s will.

But why? Why does God ordain suffering in the lives of his people? Our passage tells us (1) to test us and (2) to refine us. God wills suffering in our lives to test us:

1 Peter 4:12 ESV

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.

Trials are tests, they are tests of faith, as James says:

James 1:2–4 ESV

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

This test of faith is not a test with an expected failure. No, this is a test that expects a positive result. You are being tested in trial because God wants to prove to you and to others that your faith is real, that you are not holding onto a superficial, meaningless, and unsustainable faith.

Who doesn’t have faith when you get everything your flesh desires!?? But genuine faith lasts through the tests of trials. Why does God will suffering for you? So that your faith will be proven and so that your faith will be refined. Trials also refine our faith, look at verse 17

1 Peter 4:17 ESV

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?

Here we are told that judgment begins with us. But what kind of judgment is this?? For God’s people, this is the judgment of purification. We know that this is not the judgment of ultimate condemnation because verse 18 says that the righteous are saved, but God works - through suffering - to purify us from sin. God chisels off sin that lives deep in us through suffering.

If you are suffering today, know that your suffering is only happening by the will of God. This means that there are limits to your suffering. He is a loving and good heavenly Father, you will not suffer one second beyond what is absolutely good for you. Not one thing has come into your life that is not intended to prove your faith and refine your soul.

Suffering Happens According to God’s Will and Works to Purify His People.

So how should we respond to suffering?

Do Not Be Surprised By Suffering But Rejoice In It

You might think that knowing our suffering happens according to God’s will would make a person angry, depressed, or bitter. Of course, that has happened to some. As Charles Spurgeon is quoted as saying, “Suffering will either soften a man or harden a man.” Some have responded with bitterness toward God and doubted his love for them.

But this is not the response of Jesus’ beloved. No, we should expect suffering and rejoice! This is what verses 12-16 are saying:

1 Peter 4:12–16 ESV

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.

God does not want you to be surprised or knocked off balance when your faith is tested by trials. Of course, the original readers of this letter were experiencing the trials of persecution, yet Peter does not want them to be surprised by it. We will face insults, criticism, and slander because of our allegiance to Jesus. Do not be surprised by this! Expect it.

It has been said that every person is either walking out of or into a trial. While I don’t think this is always the case, we should live with an awareness of the reality of suffering in this world. We will walk through trials and suffering. You have never been promised ease and comfort in this life. Rather, you have been called to follow a man that the Bible says what made perfect through suffering. As followers of Jesus we should expect to suffer.

Are you surprised when Christians are misrepresented in the media? Why are you surprised? Don’t be surprised by suffering! Suffering as a Christian in this life is normal.

Don’t be surprised but rejoice! When you suffer for Christ’s name, you should rejoice. When you experience the refining fires of suffering, you should rejoice. But how in the world can you do that? We rejoice when we suffering because our suffering is preparing us for joy at Jesus’ return.

Did you see that at the end of verse 13? We rejoice now so that we may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. Not only that, but when we suffer we are blessed because the Spirit of God rests upon us. What verses 13-14 tell us is that responding to suffering by rejoicing proves that we truly belong to God. Those that respond to suffering by rejoicing prove that they will have joy on the day of ultimate judgment. Those that respond to suffering by rejoicing prove that the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon them.

So church, do not harden your heart when you face suffering but rejoice! The Spirit of glory rests upon you. God is preparing you for the last day. Do not be ashamed, but glorify God by rejoicing in your suffering.

In case you may be thinking, “But you don’t know what kind of suffering I’m facing.” remember that I’m not the one saying it. Peter is. A man who rejoiced in suffering, which we read about in Acts 5:

Acts 5:40–42 ESV

40 and when they had called in the apostles, they beat them and charged them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. 41 Then they left the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name. 42 And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they did not cease teaching and preaching that the Christ is Jesus.

Believer, you too can rejoice in the refining work of suffering.

And to sustain your rejoicing you must entrust your soul to a faithful Creator.

Entrust Your Soul to a Faithful Creator

Look again at verse 19:

1 Peter 4:19 ESV

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

What this understanding of suffering is intended to do is summarized in this final verse of chapter 4. God wants you to understand suffering so that when suffering comes, you will entrust yourself to him. Don’t trust your own strength, entrust yourself to a faithful Creator.

To entrust means that you commit yourself to the care of your faithful Creator. You give yourself over to him. In fact, this word is the same word Jesus used when he yielded himself to his Father on the cross. Having suffered for his people Jesus said:

Luke 23:46 ESV

Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” And having said this he breathed his last.

Christian, commit your soul to God when you suffer. Peter refers to God here as a “faithful Creator”. He is reminding us of God’s absolute sovereignty over everything, including our suffering. But not only that, he is also reminding us of this Creator’s faithfulness. God’s faithfulness to his promises: to give us strength to endure fiery trials, to work even our suffering for our good, to draw near to us through the Spirit as we suffer, and ultimate relief when Jesus returns. Your faithful Creator will never abandon you. And if you suffer at the hands of the wicked, he will vindicate you.

So, are you suffering? Entrust your soul to your faithful Creator. Rejoice, because your suffering is happening according to God’s will and he is at work proving your faith and making you more like Jesus.

Now, there is one final question that this passage addresses: What will be for the disobedient? What happens to people that live for the world and never suffer for the sake of Jesus? Do not think that they are in the favorable position:

What will be for the disobedient?

1 Peter 4:17–18 ESV

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?”

Peter is clear, the suffering of Christians today does not even compare to the suffering that the ungodly will face on the day of judgment. So are you here and do not consider yourself a Christian? There is a warning for you in this passage. And we plead with you today, entrust your soul to a faithful Creator. Know that you can be saved from your sins and the judgment to come through Jesus Christ. Believe in him!