Month: February 2024

5Now as an elder myself and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as one who shares in the glory to be revealed, I exhort the elders among you ² to tend the flock of God that is in your charge, exercising the oversight, not under compulsion but willingly, as God would have you do it—not for sordid gain but eagerly. ³ Do not lord it over those in your charge, but be examples to the flock.
⁴ And when the chief shepherd appears, you will win the crown of glory that never fades away. ⁵ In the same way, you who are younger must accept the authority of the elders. And all of you must clothe yourselves with humility in your dealings with one another, for
“God opposes the proud,
but gives grace to the humble.”

⁶ Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, so that he may exalt you in due time. ⁷ Cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you. ⁸ Discipline yourselves, keep alert. Like a roaring lion your adversary the devil prowls around, looking for someone to devour. ⁹ Resist him, steadfast in your faith, for you know that your brothers and sisters in all the world are undergoing the same kinds of suffering.
¹⁰ And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, support, strengthen, and establish you. ¹¹ To him be the power forever and ever. Amen.

Final Greetings and Benediction

¹² Through Silvanus, whom I consider a faithful brother, I have written this short letter to encourage you and to testify that this is the true grace of God. Stand fast in it. ¹³ Your sister church in Babylon, chosen together with you, sends you greetings; and so does my son Mark. ¹⁴ Greet one another with a kiss of love.

Peace to all of you who are in Christ.  NRSV

Get into the Word

1. How does Peter describe himself? What experience does he mention? How does this support his direction to the church? How are elders supposed to do their “work”? What model should they follow? What is the consequence of doing this work.

2. What guidance does he give the younger followers? What characteristic does he emphasize? How should they respond to their situation in society? How should they deal with adversity? Who else does Peter reference? What is their ultimate future?

3. Why has Peter written this letter? Who else is working with Peter? [See Notes]

Get Personal

How does God help you deal with adversity? Do you tend to give him your anxieties or do you tell God, “I got this!” Are you confident that God will “establish you”?

5:1. Elder – a leader in a local congregation. The early church followed the Jewish tradition of older members providing leadership and support to younger members.
Witness . . . shares – Peter was also one of Jesus’ first followers and directly involved in his entire earthly ministry.
5:2. Tend the flock – Jesus directed Peter to “tend my sheep,” [John 21:16]. Jesus referred to himself as the “shepherd” as well [John 10:1-16]. A shepherd, often the youngest male in the household, was responsible for feeding, caring for, guiding and protecting the sheep. Also check Psalm 23.
5:3. Lord it over – Literally “act like the lord” or lead by force and power. Christian leaders should be the best possible example for others to follow, just as Jesus was the best example for the disciples.
5:5. God opposes the proud – Peter paraphrases Proverbs 3:34.

5:6-9. Humble yourselves – Peter’s final instruction begins with establishing the right relationship with God, which will lead to the other characteristics: not anxious, disciplined, alert, resisting sin, and steadfastness (or consistency).
5:12. Silvanus – the Greek name of Silas, a leader of the early church who accompanied Paul on his second missionary journey through Asia Minor, and evidently also assisted Peter with writing and/or delivering this letter to the local churches.
5:13. Sister church in Babylon – Babylon was the capitol of an ancient empire that persecuted the Israelites, but early church writers used it as code so they would not be accused of criticizing the Roman emperor (John used it extensively in his Revelation).
Mark – also John Mark – was another early church leader, who worked with both Peter and Paul, [check Acts 12:12, 25, 15:36-39].

Memory Verse
And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, support, strengthen, and establish you, [1 Peter 5:10]

4Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same intention (for whoever has suffered in the flesh has finished with sin), ² so as to live for the rest of your earthly life no longer by human desires but by the will of God. ³ You have already spent enough time in doing what the Gentiles like to do, living in licentiousness, passions, drunkenness, revels, carousing, and lawless idolatry.
⁴ They are surprised that you no longer join them in the same excesses of dissipation, and so they blaspheme. ⁵ But they will have to give an accounting to him who stands ready to judge the living and the dead.
⁶ For this is the reason the gospel was proclaimed even to the dead, so that, though they had been judged in the flesh as everyone is judged, they might live in the spirit as God does.

⁷ The end of all things is near; therefore be serious and discipline yourselves for the sake of your prayers. ⁸ Above all, maintain constant love for one another, for love covers a multitude of sins. ⁹ Be hospitable to one another without complaining. ¹⁰ Like good stewards of the manifold grace of God, serve one another with whatever gift each of you has received. ¹¹ Whoever speaks must do so as one speaking the very words of God; whoever serves must do so with the strength that God supplies, so that God may be glorified in all things through Jesus Christ. To him belong the glory and the power forever and ever. Amen.

Suffering as a Christian

¹² Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that is taking place among you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. ¹³ But rejoice insofar as you are sharing Christ’s sufferings, so that you may also be glad and shout for joy when his glory is revealed. ¹⁴ If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the spirit of glory, which is the Spirit of God, is resting on you. ¹⁵ But let none of you suffer as a murderer, a thief, a criminal, or even as a mischief maker. ¹⁶ Yet if any of you suffers as a Christian, do not consider it a disgrace, but glorify God because you bear this name. ¹⁷ For the time has come for judgment to begin with the household of God; if it begins with us, what will be the end for those who do not obey the gospel of God? ¹⁸ And “If it is hard for the righteous to be saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinners?”

¹⁹ Therefore, let those suffering in accordance with God’s will entrust themselves to a faithful Creator, while continuing to do good. NRSV

Get into the Word

1. 1. What type of suffering does Peter begin with in this section? Who does he point to as our model? What results from suffering like Christ? How does this change our life?

2. Who does he contrast our new life with? How does he describe their life? What does he say about their reaction when we change. What can they expect from their lifestyle? What can change this cycle? Why would they do so?

3. What does Peter bring up next? How should believers respond to this situation? How should they interact with the people around them. What characteristics should describe believers? Why do you suppose the author stresses these?

4. How does he describe the believers’ current living situation? What makes it different for Christians? How can a person “rejoice” in such a situation? What must they avoid? How should they deal with suffering? Why is this urgent for believers?

Get Personal

How are you doing with “being an outsider” because of your faith, living differently that others in your community? How is God helping you follow Christ even though you are suffering?

4:1. Therefore – links this section back to chapters 2 and 3.

Arm yourselves – the Greek means “put on armor” – we should have the same intention or commitment to follow God’s will that Jesus had.

4:2. Human desires – Peter lists several “sins” that all come down to “doing what I want to do.” 

4:4. They are surprised – non-believers will not understand why the believer no longer acts the way they do or makes the same choices they make.

Blaspheme – non-believers will criticize and ostracize Christians from their social group.

4:5. Accounting – non-believers will ultimately have to answer to God for the choices they have made in their lives. Peter, like Paul, uses this transactional or judicial metaphor to describe what happens to non-believers when they meet God – similar to a debtor explaining why he has not paid back what he owes.

4.6. Proclaimed even to the dead – an echo from Peter’s statement in Chapter 3, with the same ambiguous and conflicting possible interpretations (see Notes on page 8).

4.7. The end of all things is near – the apostles believed that Jesus would return sooner rather than later.

4.8. Above all – Love is the central feature of Christians’ lives and relationships. In the Gospel “love” (Greek agape) is a decision, not an emotion.

Covers a multitude of sins – “covers” in the sense of “pays for” as in covering the bill for lunch, 

not in the sense of “hiding” the sins.

4:10. Good stewards – a steward is the person responsible for managing the household or the kingdom when the owner or ruler is away.

4:11. Speaks . . . serves – the two categories of Christian evangelism: telling others about the Gospel and ministering to (or serving) others with the gifts God has given the believer.

4:12. Fiery ordeal – Peter returns to his main subject: suffering. Christians should not be surprised that the secular world is against them, nor should they be afraid of it; and the model for suffering is Jesus himself, who suffered the ultimate pain on the cross and now gives believers the strength to endure what they are going through.

4:15. Murderer, thief, criminal, mischief maker – Peter reminds his audience that suffering because of what non-believers do does not justify a criminal response, even interfering in other’s business is retaliation.

4:17. Judgment – “correction” might be a better term here. The idea of God correcting his people appears throughout the Old Testament {check Jeremiah 25:29, Ezekiel 9:6, or Malachi 3:1-3].

4:18. “If it is hard . . .” – Peter is quoting Proverbs 11:31.

4:19. Entrust – on the cross Jesus committed (“entrusted”) himself to God’s hands [Luke 23:46]. Believers should do the same thing when they are suffering because of their faith.   

Memory Verse
Let those suffering in accordance with God’s will entrust themselves to a faithful Creator, while continuing to do good, [1 Peter 19]