1 Peter 3:1-7

Jonathan McGuire
1 Peter 3  •  Sermon  •  Submitted
0 ratings
· 5 views
Notes
Transcript
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
View more →

1 Peter 3:1–7 HCSB
1 In the same way, wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands so that, even if some disobey the Christian message, they may be won over without a message by the way their wives live 2 when they observe your pure, reverent lives. 3 Your beauty should not consist of outward things like elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold ornaments or fine clothes. 4 Instead, it should consist of what is inside the heart with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very valuable in God’s eyes. 5 For in the past, the holy women who put their hope in God also beautified themselves in this way, submitting to their own husbands, 6 just as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord. You have become her children when you do what is good and are not frightened by anything alarming. 7 Husbands, in the same way, live with your wives with an understanding of their weaker nature yet showing them honor as coheirs of the grace of life, so that your prayers will not be hindered.
Pray
1 Peter 3:1 The theme of submission continues in the text from last week.
1 Peter 3:1 HCSB
1 In the same way, wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands so that, even if some disobey the Christian message, they may be won over without a message by the way their wives live
In the same way or Likewise, wives be subject.
The word Likewise refers us back to the previous text.
The previous text instructs us to submit or be subject to
Every human authority
1 Peter 3:13 HCSB
13 And who will harm you if you are deeply committed to what is good?
Slaves to their masters
1 Peter 3:18 HCSB
18 For Christ also suffered for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, that He might bring you to God, after being put to death in the fleshly realm but made alive in the spiritual realm.
And here he addresses wives to husbands
1 Peter 3:1 HCSB
1 In the same way, wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands so that, even if some disobey the Christian message, they may be won over without a message by the way their wives live
A few things on all this submissive talk in scripture.
Notice that it is scripture that calls us to this.
When we think of the word submit, we often associate this with negative ideas in the English language.
We hear the word submit and think we have to set our beliefs aside, our minds aside and our faith aside and just take whatever from whomever we are to submit to.
Submit: Prioritize the interests and well-being of others above your own.
You put yourself under the other person and seek their well being.
When is it ok not to submit?
It is not ok to submit if the person you are submitting to is asking you to sin.
Said another way...
If seeking the well being of others above yours causes you to sin, then you should not submit.
Wives if submitting to your husbands means that you will sin, then you should seek Jesus rather than your husband.
Same for slaves to their masters and Christians to every human authority.
Final thing before we move into today’s text.
All this submission text is written after Peter has shared about the hope we have in Jesus
1 Peter 1:3–5 HCSB
3 Praise the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. According to His great mercy, He has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead 4 and into an inheritance that is imperishable, uncorrupted, and unfading, kept in heaven for you. 5 You are being protected by God’s power through faith for a salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.
So much good news here. Of course this is not the only thing before we get to these text about submission but this is so so good.
Remember he called them elect exiles or temporary residents.
Jesus is coming back and the hope is that when he returns he is going to redeem and restore everything back to himself.
1 Peter 3:1 HCSB
1 In the same way, wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands so that, even if some disobey the Christian message, they may be won over without a message by the way their wives live
Submit yourselves to your own husbands so that...
Submit that is prioritize the needs of your husband over your own self interest.
The reason you submit is
some disobey the Christian message
He is writing here to some wives who have husbands that are not believers. He says you submit to your unbelieving husband so that they may be won over by their actions
He goes on to explain their actions
1 Peter 3:2 HCSB
2 when they observe your pure, reverent lives.
Notice here that as John Piper pointed out in a message of this passage that notice Submission is not the believing wife setting her faith aside in order to submit.
She is clearly submitting to win her husband over into the faith.
So submission is not throwing your faith or beliefs out in order to submit.
When the unbelieving husband observes your pure, reverent lives
Pure: modest, innocent, blameless
Notice that it is not the words of the wife that wins the husband over but it is the pure reverent actions of the wife.
Today words are everywhere. Reminds me of the email chains…forward this and Jesus will love you. Share this and you get a blessing.
Our actions mean so much and here he encourages these wives to use their actions to win their husbands over.
1 Peter 3:3–5 HCSB
3 Your beauty should not consist of outward things like elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold ornaments or fine clothes. 4 Instead, it should consist of what is inside the heart with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very valuable in God’s eyes. 5 For in the past, the holy women who put their hope in God also beautified themselves in this way, submitting to their own husbands,
v. 3 Your Beauty should not be
The focus of your beauty should not be on outward appearance
Such “external ... adorning” can be witnessed in portraits and sculptures from the first century, where the elaborate braiding of women’s hair and the wearing of ostentatious jewelry was common in upper-class Roman society.
I also love John Piper’s thoughts on this piece in that the women could be tempted to try and use their outward beauty to manipulate their husbands in order to win them over.
Here Peter speaks out against this and says it is not the outward beauty that will win them over but..
v.4 Instead it should consist of what is inside the heart.
Imperishable quality:
wife’s inner beauty is described as imperishable. This ties back to chapter 1. What else is described as imperishable? Our inheritance in Christ. Our living hope. Our new birth. Our faith. So, that inner beauty comes from Jesus and His Spirit.
The inner beauty is something that does not fade. It is eternal (makes me think of many saints who have went on before us, their inner beauty was something special that did not fade)
Gentle: meek
Described of Jesus in
Matthew 21:5 HCSB
5 Tell Daughter Zion, “Look, your King is coming to you, gentle, and mounted on a donkey, even on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.”
Quiet Spirit: tranquil Peaceful, restful
1 Peter 3:5–6 HCSB
5 For in the past, the holy women who put their hope in God also beautified themselves in this way, submitting to their own husbands, 6 just as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord. You have become her children when you do what is good and are not frightened by anything alarming.
He gives us a look back and encourages the women to look back into the past and see how the holy women who put their hope in God also beautified themselves in this way
Submitting to their own husbands.
v.6 just as Sarah...
Genesis 18:12
Genesis 18:12 HCSB
12 So she laughed to herself: “After I have become shriveled up and my lord is old, will I have delight?”
Kind of an odd passage. But it is when God promises to give them a child, and Sarah laughs. Even in the midst of this, she maintained a respectful view of her husband. So much so, that Peter uses this as an example of her being a holy woman who put her hope in God, revealing inner beauty.
1 Peter 3:7 HCSB
7 Husbands, in the same way, live with your wives with an understanding of their weaker nature yet showing them honor as coheirs of the grace of life, so that your prayers will not be hindered.
This is so counter culture during this time. In society at this time, it was common for men in their 30’s to marry women in their teens. Wives could be treated as property.
Paul writes to the husbands.
Something else that stands out to me in all these submission passages here in 1 Peter is that Peter does not address the one who is being submitted to except here when it comes to wives submitting to husbands.
Live with your wives with
Understanding: Be considerate of wives’ spiritual, emotional, and physical needs.
honor: Show wives respect
(Weaker nature refers only to physically) It does not refer to intellectually.
1 Peter 3:7 HCSB
7 Husbands, in the same way, live with your wives with an understanding of their weaker nature yet showing them honor as coheirs of the grace of life, so that your prayers will not be hindered.
Notice that women are equal to you as coheirs into the grace of life. So respect them honor them.
They are God’s daughters
You honor them so that your prayers will not be hindered.
Christians are called to a higher calling in marriage. Christians are called to a higher calling when it comes to respecting women.
This was very counter culture when it comes to marriage.
Related Media
See more
Related Sermons
See more
Earn an accredited degree from Redemption Seminary with Logos.