Love the Brotherhood (1 Peter 2:17)
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Introduction
Introduction
David E. Briones, Associate Professor of New Testament at Westminister Theological Seminary, Pennsylvania, “Love the Brotherhood: A Delightful Duty” (Vol. 2, Iss. 2, 2022).
Most of what I give you will be from his article.
Some of what I give you will be my own thoughts.
[READING - 1 Peter 2:13-17]
13 Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority, 14 or to governors as sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right. 15 For such is the will of God that by doing right you may silence the ignorance of foolish men. 16 Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bondslaves of God. 17 Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king.
[PRAYER]
Exposition
Exposition
The Broader Context of “Love the Brotherhood” (1 Peter 2:13-3:12)
The Broader Context of “Love the Brotherhood” (1 Peter 2:13-3:12)
Let’s start by reading 1 Peter 2:13-20 and 1 Peter 3:1-12…
13 Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority, 14 or to governors as sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right. 15 For such is the will of God that by doing right you may silence the ignorance of foolish men. 16 Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bondslaves of God. 17 Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king.
18 Servants, be submissive to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and gentle, but also to those who are unreasonable. 19 For this finds favor, if for the sake of conscience toward God a person bears up under sorrows when suffering unjustly. 20 For what credit is there if, when you sin and are harshly treated, you endure it with patience? But if when you do what is right and suffer for it you patiently endure it, this finds favor with God.
1 In the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own husbands so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, they may be won without a word by the behavior of their wives, 2 as they observe your chaste and respectful behavior. 3 Your adornment must not be merely external—braiding the hair, and wearing gold jewelry, or putting on dresses; 4 but let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God. 5 For in this way in former times the holy women also, who hoped in God, used to adorn themselves, being submissive to their own husbands; 6 just as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord, and you have become her children if you do what is right without being frightened by any fear. 7 You husbands in the same way, live with your wives in an understanding way, as with someone weaker, since she is a woman; and show her honor as a fellow heir of the grace of life, so that your prayers will not be hindered.
8 To sum up, all of you be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted, and humble in spirit; 9 not returning evil for evil or insult for insult, but giving a blessing instead; for you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing. 10 For, “The one who desires life, to love and see good days, Must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit. 11 “He must turn away from evil and do good; He must seek peace and pursue it. 12 “For the eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous, And His ears attend to their prayer, But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”
Q: Having read these passages, do you see any themes that connect them?
Theme: Submission
13 Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority,
18 Servants, be submissive to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and gentle, but also to those who are unreasonable.
1 In the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own husbands so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, they may be won without a word by the behavior of their wives,
5 For in this way in former times the holy women also, who hoped in God, used to adorn themselves, being submissive to their own husbands;
8 To sum up, all of you be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted, and humble in spirit;
Theme: Relationships
church-outsiders, 2:13-17
masters-slaves, 2:18-20
husbands-wives, 3:1-7
church-outsiders, 3:8-12
The Example of Christ (2:21-25)
21 For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, 22 who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; 23 and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously; 24 and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed. 25 For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.
[Christ as Gift before Example]
[Christ as Gift before Example]
Martin Luther, “Only after you accept Christ as a gift can you then ‘take him as your example, giving yourself in service to your neighbor just as you see that Christ has given himself for you.”
Peter writes to those who have received Christ as gift (1 Peter 1:1-3; 1:23)
1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who reside as aliens, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, who are chosen 2 according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood: May grace and peace be yours in the fullest measure. 3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
23 for you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring word of God.
[“We love because He first loved us”]
[“We love because He first loved us”]
Augustine prayed, “Lord, command what you will, but give what you command.” And this is what God has done for us in Jesus Christ.
We are commanded to “love the brotherhood” and in Jesus God has fulfilled that command for us.
19 We love, because He first loved us.
We love God and neighbor only because God first loved us with the gracious love of Christ. In this particular context we could say it like this:
Christ loved the brotherhood.
Christ died to pay the price when we didn’t love the brotherhood.
Christ rose from the dead as proof that He loved the brotherhood for us and paid our price when we didn’t.
And the moment we first believed, He empowered us by His Holy Spirit to follow His example in loving the brotherhood.
22 Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a sincere love of the brethren, fervently love one another from the heart,
We purifying our souls in obedience to the truth by believing the Gospel.
Once we believe the Gospel (and only then), we can love one another from the heart.
The Immediate Context of “Love the Brotherhood”
The Immediate Context of “Love the Brotherhood”
Looking at 1 Peter 2:13-14, what do you see as the immediate context of this command “Love the Brotherhood”?
13 Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority, 14 or to governors as sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right.
We submit to every human institution for the Lord’s sake because human institutions are God’s instruments to punish evildoers and praise those who do right. Of course, when these human institutions contradiction God, we must obey God rather than man. But here we are to submit ourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution.
15 For such is the will of God that by doing right you may silence the ignorance of foolish men.
Foolish men are men who say there is no God and follow up by criticizing those who follow God. Living in submission to governing authorities will silence the ignorant who would criticize Christians for being too devoted to God and not devoted enough to city, state, or country.
Certainly Christians are first and foremost devoted to God, but our God calls us to be devoted to city, state, and country so long as city, state, and country operate in the ways He’s designed.
16 Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bondslaves of God.
Certainly we are free in Christ, but not free to do evil by rebelling against human institutions just because we are free in Christ. We are free, but we are bondservants to God, and He has said submit to human institutions.
Now, when we understand this, most of v. 17 makes perfect sense.
17 Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king.
We honor all people by living as good citizens of our particular city, state, or nation.
We fear God by submitting to human institutions that He has ordained.
We honor the king by honoring the human king (or president) that God has set over us.
But what about loving the brotherhood?
How does that command fit in the context of submitting to governing authorities?
Q: So you tell me, what do you think? How does the command to love the brotherhood fit in the context of submission to governing authorities?
[Freed to Love the Brotherhood, but Why?]
[Freed to Love the Brotherhood, but Why?]
One way we understand how this command fits in this context is to understand that the world is watching.
35 “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
The way we love one another will influence the way the governing authorities think about us.
The way we love one another will cause unbelievers to see our good works and give glory to God in Heaven.
The way we love one another is how people will know that we belong to Jesus.
We love like Jesus who was free from all but servant to all.
In the same way, Martin Luther said, “The Christian individual is a completely free lord of all, subject to none. The Christian individual is a completely dutiful servant of all, subject to all.”
This is the way of Jesus who although He existed in the form of God took the form of a bondservant (Phil. 2:6-7).
Another way we understand how this command to “love the brotherhood” fits in the context of “submit… to every human institution” is to understand that your church family needs you.
The word ‘brotherhood’ is only used twice in the NT.
17 Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king.
9 But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world.
'Brotherhood’ refers not only to our brothers in Christ but more generally to the family of God. In 1 Peter 5:9 Peter told his readers to resist the devil, to stand firm in their faith, being encouraged that their experience of hostility was not unique; the same was being experienced by the family of God all over the world.
One of the tools that Satan loves to use to persecute the people of God is a hostile government.
The people of God stand firm in the midst of that hostility by submitting to that government when they can do so in good conscience and by loving one another—loving the brotherhood—loving the family of God—at all times.
This is what 1 Peter is all about—faithfulness in the face of hostility.
And (as 1 Peter 2:21-25 says) the perfect example of faithfulness in the face of hostility is Jesus who, in submission to the will of God, loved us by bearing our sins in His body on the cross.
[Freed to Love the Brotherhood, but How?]
[Freed to Love the Brotherhood, but How?]
In his article, Briones writes, “The command to ‘love the brotherhood’ has at least two purposes: to bear witness to the love of God in Christ toward outsiders and to uphold fellow believers through love as they withstand hostility from outsiders.”
If we would follow the example of our Lord Jesus…
We must Love One Another before a Watching World
We must Love One Another before a Watching World
Briones writes…
“In our current, politically polarized climate, we have allowed masks and vaccinations to breed hostility (even church splits!) rather than promote love. Cultural emphases have, slowly and subtly, crept into our churches, corrupting the ways we treat one another.
“‘Welcome one another’ (Rom. 15:7) becomes ‘exclude one another.’
“‘Tolerate one another in love’ (Eph. 4:2) becomes ‘discredit one another in apathy.’
“‘Outdo one another in showing honor’ (Rom. 12:10) become ‘outdo one another in gaining honor.’
“‘In humility count one another more significant than yourselves (Phil. 2:3) becomes ‘in pride count one another more insignificant than yourselves.’
“Our lives should should exhibit the way of the cross, not the way of the world. Our delightful duty is to display Christ in our lives, not the hallmarks of our culture. For when we ‘love one another’ as Christ has loved us, then ‘all people will know that (we) are (Christ’s disciples)’ (John 13:34-35). But when we ‘hate one another,’ the world won’t be able to distinguish us from unbelievers.”
We must Love One Another against a Hostile World
We must Love One Another against a Hostile World
Briones wraps us his article with this…
“As much as we need to display our love before the world, we also need to love against it. … God, who is love (1 John 4:16), remains the source of all our love. Jesus Christ, the epitome of love, … reigns ‘far above all rule and authority and power and dominion…’ [And] We draw from His inexhaustible resources to love our Christian brother sand sisters amid hostility.
“The government will increasingly become more volatile toward churches and Christian institutions. The state continues to indoctrinate our children with an unabashedly liberal agenda. Unbelieving employers are irrepressibly imposing mandates contrary to one’s Christian conscience. …”
“But none of this should surprise us… (we) belong to the one whom the world hated first, Jesus Christ (John 15:18-19). …our love (must) be the very thing that defines us… as it shines before and against a world diametrically opposed to the gospel of God.”
This is what it means to love the brotherhood.
Conclusion
Conclusion
[PRAYER]