What Persecution Brings

Good morning, church. It's good to see you this morning.

I was blessed to be here yesterday for Amy and Brian's wedding, so if you think about it,

pray for them as they begin their married life together. And one other announcement,

and this is not Tom's fault because we didn't tell him to do this, but if you are leaving,

please let sure you let us know so we can celebrate you in a couple of weeks at our

send-off Sunday. So if you're graduating or if you are leaving town, please let us know for those

things. Okay. We read the headlines of the state of the church around the world. There are times when

these headlines are fearsome. We read of churches burned. We read of pastors imprisoned.

We read of police raids on gatherings of believers. We read of missionaries who are attacked.

Places like Myanmar, Afghanistan, China, Nigeria, North Korea, and others, such things are happening.

All five of these countries are in the top 20 watch list for the most dangerous places in the world

for Christians to live. How do we respond to this? Maybe we're filled with compassion and moved to prayer

and to giving. Maybe we're filled with outrage and moved to advocate for human rights and for intervention.

And these are good responses. But what if it comes home? What if it were you? What if it were us?

What if we woke up one morning and Trinity had been raided and burned? What if your pastors were put in

prison for preaching the gospel? What if your small group was in fear of being raided by police?

How would you respond? Hopefully we'd be prayerful. We might be outraged and seek redress and

some sort of help from the government. But you know, we might also wonder, did we do something to deserve

this? Have we done something wrong? Is God judging us? Or has God abandoned us?

These are some of the questions that the early church asked themselves as they saw persecution

rise against the early church. As we've been studying in the book of 1 Peter, Peter writes this

letter to a group of churches in Asia Minor that either have been or are now or will soon be suffering

from various forms of persecution. As Peter writes a letter, it was not a matter of if but a matter of when

they would face these kinds of trials.

How do we respond? What kinds of attitudes are we to have in the face of persecution?

What does God want to bring to us in the midst of persecution? These are the questions that our passage

looks at this morning. So if you want to turn to me, we're in 1 Peter chapter 4 starting in verse 12.

1 Peter 4 · chapter mention

That is page 950-something in your pew Bible, and that'll get you close enough

to find it. 1 Peter chapter 4 verses 12 through 19. As we come to this, recognize that this is often seen

1 Peter 4:12–19

as a beginning of the last section of the book. The last section that Pastor Nick preached on last

week ends with a doxology, what seems like a wrapping up of a thought, and Peter now comes back

with his pastoral heart to encourage the churches that he's writing to as he writes these things.

1 Peter chapter 4 verses starting in verse 12.

1 Peter 4 · chapter mention

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. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ's

sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted for

the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.

But let none of you suffer as a murderer, a thief, or an evildoer, or as a meddler.

Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed.

But let him glorify God in that name. 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?

And if the righteous is scarcely saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?

Therefore, let those who suffer according to Christ's will—sorry, according to God's will—entrust their soul

to a faithful creator while doing good.

Will you pray with me?

Lord Jesus, we look at this passage. We come to it this morning.

Lord, we ask for your Holy Spirit, Lord, to open our minds to understand your word,

to soften our hearts to receive your word.

God, we pray this morning that you would shape us, our hearts and our souls,

Lord, so that we might be those who walk through suffering

in ways that bring glory and honor to you.

Lord, I pray for my words and for your help,

that I might speak your words this morning, Lord,

and that you would use them in all of our lives.

We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.

Amen.

So how does God want us to see this kind of suffering?

This kind of suffering that comes from persecution, suffering for Christ's sake.

Three things we're going to look at.

Verses 12 and 13 tells us that persecution brings not surprise, but joy.

Verses 14 through 16 tells us that persecution brings not shame, but blessing.

Verses 17 through 19 will tell us that persecution brings not fear of condemnation, but confident faith.

So that's your outline.

For those of you who are taking notes, that's what we'll be looking at in order.

We'll just walk through the passage, and we'll explain it and seek to apply it to our lives a bit as we go.

So first, verses 12 and 13, persecution brings not surprise, but joy.

There are two imperatives here.

Paul is exhorting the congregation to think about two things and to do two things.

The first one is, do not be surprised by the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you.

Right?

This imagery brings to mind very, you know, for anyone who's read the Old Testament, Meshach, Shadrach, and Abednego,

the three men who were thrown literally into a fiery furnace

because they would not bow down and worship a different God,

but that they would maintain their fidelity to their worship of God alone.

But it says here, Peter says, this fiery trial has come to test you,

to reveal the character of your faith.

What kind of suffering is it?

It's important to see here as we think about this fiery trial.

It is not just hardship of living in a fallen world.

It's not just the trials of living around other people who make your life difficult

or living with natural disasters or diseases.

Those are a different kind of suffering.

There are passages that tell us to rejoice in those too.

Places like James 1 and Romans 5.

But here in particular, Peter is talking about suffering for persecution.

Suffering that is for Christ's sake.

We'll see that more in verses 14 and 16.

This is suffering that is being identified as loyalty to Christ

that is provoking or causing the trial that we are going through.

And it might be physical harm.

It might be verbal or relational.

You may be maligned or reviled or spoken against or insulted.

You may be excluded.

You may be discriminated against.

All of these things are ways that we suffer persecution.

That is the negative effects of others upon us

because we are followers of Christ and publicly identifying with Him.

And Peter says, don't be surprised.

For those of us who live in the Western world,

this is not an easy thing because we've grown up in a world

that for hundreds of years has been undergirded by a welcoming

or by a general embracing of a Christian worldview.

And so there's been a lot of places where being a Christian

has been in sync with our culture,

been in sync with the worldview of our neighbors around us,

regardless of what faith they profess.

But that presumption is not a one that Christians should hold broadly.

We see this in the rest of the world where Christians suffer deeply

because their Christian faith is out of line so much

with the worldview of the culture that they live in.

And we find ourselves in a culture that is increasingly at odds

with a Christian worldview as well.

And we have to remember that Christ Himself predicted this.

In John 15, 20, He says,

A servant is not greater than his master.

If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you.

And we see that this was true from the very beginning of the church.

The passage that Tony read earlier from Acts 5.

Remarkable, isn't it?

The early church suffering, being beaten,

being accused, being arrested, being threatened,

and yet they counted it worthy.

They rejoiced because they were counted worthy of suffering for the name of Jesus.

We are tempted when facing persecution to be surprised, I think.

We are tempted to fall into self-pity.

Oh my gosh, I can't believe this is happening to me.

This is so terrible.

Or self-justification.

Well, I'm right and they're wrong.

And we become proud and arrogant.

Sometimes we go on the attack.

Well, those people are doing wrong for attacking me.

Why can't they be tolerant to me the way I'm trying to be tolerant with them?

But Peter says,

Don't be surprised and fall into these heart attitudes.

But instead, his second imperative,

Rejoice.

And he gives a reason.

Look in verse 13.

He gives a reason.

Rejoice insofar as you share in Christ's sufferings,

that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.

You see, the key, according to Peter,

for our ability to rejoice even in the face of persecution

is that our joy now is a part of our joy later.

That our suffering now is a part of the glory that will come later.

This is the pattern of Jesus,

that his cross comes before the crown.

Jesus, who, according to Hebrews 12, says,

For the joy that was set before him endured the cross,

despising the shame,

and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

Peter says,

Don't be surprised because Christ suffered as well,

and your union with him,

because of your faith in him,

you are joined with him.

And as you are joined with him in your suffering,

you are also joined with him in his joy.

And this joy is now that you can have in the midst of suffering.

And this is joy that you can have

knowing that there will be a future that will be only joy

and no more suffering in his glory.

Peter is suggesting that our fellowship with Christ,

our union with Christ,

is deepened through persecution.

And we enjoy a depth of fellowship with Christ that we never could have had

in the same way if we had not suffered.

Because only when we suffer do we know this Christ-like joy in the midst of persecution

that allows us to see the glory of the joy that is to come.

So Peter says,

Persecution brings not surprise to Christians,

but joy because of Christ.

And then he goes on in verses 14 to 16.

He says,

Persecution brings not shame,

but blessing.

We might wonder,

Why shame?

Why is he talking about being ashamed in this context?

Well,

Peter is writing to a church that's living in a largely non-Christian culture.

People would walk out their doors

and they would see the Roman pantheon

lived out in all sorts of big and small ways in their everyday life.

Right?

Something that we as Americans find it hard,

even in a place like New England

where there are churches on every corner.

Half of them are now condos,

but there are still churches.

And we see all of those things.

Right?

We see how much that's been a part of our culture.

But Peter is writing to a place where Christians were small and despised,

not highlighted,

not seen.

Peter's saying,

You may feel like your faith is being diminished and dismissed in your culture.

You may feel marginalized and discriminated against.

You may feel the threat of violence and physical harm.

And these things are real.

The privilege that I had of meeting believers in China

who lived in a much more of this kind of a culture

and to see them,

it was easy at times for them to become so discouraged and overwhelmed.

Is this really worth it?

Should we really do that?

They become ashamed of the gospel

because it feels so out of step with the world around them.

You believe that there's something wrong with you because of your faith.

The day may be coming when we're close to that here in the West as well.

You might feel it in small ways and in large ways.

You might feel it when you're not up on the latest TV shows and movies

because you've chosen to fill your mind with things that are profitable.

Maybe you're suffering as a parent

because your child can't sign up for community sports

because they have all their games on Sunday morning

and you've made a prior commitment to be a part of attending church

and being a part of the church community.

Maybe you're a student

and you know that the views that you're expressing in your term paper

that flow from your Christian convictions and worldview,

you know that you're going to get docked points

for not the argument,

but for the content of what you say.

You know that you will suffer a lower grade because of that.

It's easy in these contexts to feel ashamed,

but Peter says don't.

Don't be ashamed.

He goes on and he warns us,

but make sure that we're not suffering those things for the wrong reasons.

You see, this is what verse 15 says, right?

But my summary is like,

suffer for Christ, not for being stupid.

What he really means is,

don't suffer for doing wrong, right?

Don't be rude, ungodly, hateful.

Don't be a murderer, a thief.

I love this word meddler.

It means getting your nose into other people's businesses

in the wrong way,

in an unhelpful or ungodly way.

You don't have to fix the whole world.

You don't have to make everyone do what's right in the world.

Even if you know it because of Christ,

you don't have to make everyone—

that's not your job.

So let's not fall into those things

and find ourselves on the back end of persecution and backlash

for being ungodly people.

Because look, we can do it.

Christians, out of zeal for certain truths,

can do terrible things.

We can even justify violence against others

on the basis of upholding Christian values.

We can cheat or steal

because we claim self-righteous ownership of things.

We can compel others to conform to Christian ethics

in a world that we can invite them to do it,

but to compel them to do it?

Peter says,

let us not be suffering for the wrong reasons,

but if we suffer in the name of Christ,

if we suffer for being a Christian,

if we suffer because we identify with Jesus

and his gospel of grace,

we will always feel like we don't totally belong.

We will always feel that we will be misunderstood.

And increasingly in our world,

we will be assigned false motives.

Friends, let us not be unwise about our moment today.

There are places where a Christian worldview

is increasingly out of step with our culture.

In ethics, as we think about the beginning of life

and the end of life,

as we think about things like abortion and euthanasia,

Christians will uphold a pro-life stance.

Not in a political sense,

but in a sense of God loves and cares about life

in a way that will be out of step.

We know this,

but in areas of sexuality and gender,

our understanding of what humans are

and how they're created by God,

how they're affected in their created goodness,

in their fallen brokenness,

and in their potential for redemption and glory.

We are out of step with a world

that will tell us different things

about how we can be self-determinative

in these things.

Religious tolerance is something

that increasingly has boundaries.

We have religious tolerance for tolerant people,

but we have religious intolerance

for people who hold to beliefs that are exclusive.

And friends, we believe in exclusive gospel,

not because we choose to be hateful to others,

but because Christ alone has done

the only thing that can save us.

And even the most gentle and gracious

and kind orthodoxy will be condemned

and we will be called hated,

hateful and bigoted and cruel and oppressive

for our following of Christ.

And we should expect that there will be times

when we will be excluded,

disrespected, marginalized,

and discriminated against

because we follow Christ.

We need to avoid a culture war mentality.

We need to not see that there's an enemy

that we have to win the culture war

in our world,

but we are to hold the truth of God

with humility and grace

and belief and practice.

We are to love our enemies

and we are to fight to live

as citizens of a kingdom

that is unshakable

and cannot be broken

in the midst of a world

that is increasingly

going to be difficult to live in.

So Peter says,

let us not be ashamed of the gospel.

Why?

Because he says,

you are blessed.

You are blessed by God

in the midst of this persecution.

This is what Jesus said

in the Sermon on the Mount.

Blessed are those

who are persecuted

for righteousness' sake,

for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are you

when others revile you

and persecute you

and utter all kinds of evil

against you falsely.

On my account,

rejoice and be glad,

for your reward is great in heaven.

For so they persecuted the prophets

who were before you.

God looks at you

as one walking in Christ

and suffering for Christ

and says,

you are blessed.

And how do we know that?

Because he pronounces your favor,

his favor on you publicly

because you have,

this is what the end of verse 16 says,

because you have

the spirit of glory

and of God

resting upon you.

You see, friends,

we might feel ashamed

like we're doing something wrong

when we suffer persecution,

but God looks at us

and says,

as you suffer persecution

and as you stand firm

in humility and steadfastness,

you are proving

that the spirit of God

is on you

and you are displaying

the spirit of the gospel

and of Christ

in the world.

And he looks at you

and he says,

this suffering

is revealing to the world

what I have already done,

which is I have pronounced upon you

a blessing

by giving you the spirit

by virtue of your faith

in Christ.

This is what verse 16 says.

Karen Jobes,

this commentator,

we keep quoting

because her commentator

is really excellent

on 1 Peter,

notes that the suffering here

is not productive.

Sometimes we want to say

our suffering

and our persecution,

they're only worth it

when we can see

what good it produces.

But here,

Peter's not saying

the suffering here

doesn't produce the blessing.

The suffering

simply reveals it.

The suffering

is a testing fire

that shows

what is really there.

Friends,

this is what

Helen Rosevear found.

If you don't know

Helen Rosevear's story,

you should.

She was a missionary

in the 20th century.

She went to

Central Africa,

to the Congo,

to serve as a medical missionary.

She suffered deeply

as a missionary.

In the midst of civil war

and the Simba rebellion,

she was imprisoned,

she was beaten,

she was raped,

she suffered immeasurably.

And in the midst

of her

faithful service

and seeking God

in the midst of her

terrible,

terrible circumstances,

as she reflects back

on that season in life,

she writes this.

One word became

unbelievably clear,

and that word was

privilege.

privilege.

He didn't take away

pain or cruelty

or humiliation.

No,

it was all there.

But now it was

altogether different.

It was with him,

for him,

in him.

he was actually

offering me

the inestimable

privilege

of sharing

in some little way

the edge

of the fellowship

of his suffering.

Friends,

this is what it means

to have the glory

of God revealed

in a believer

who stands firm,

who is not ashamed

in the midst of,

but who knows

that they are blessed

because the Spirit

of God resides

in them

because they can see

this.

Suffering is an opportunity

for fellowship

with Christ.

So persecution

brings not surprise,

but joy.

Brings not shame,

but blessing.

And finally,

verses 17 through 19,

persecution brings

not fear

of condemnation,

but confident faith.

So I don't know

if you felt it

when we read through it,

but verses 17 through 19

strike me

as you read through

the logic of this

as a bit of a non sequitur.

What is he doing here?

He's talking about

suffering for Christ.

He's encouraging

the believers.

This all makes sense.

And then verse 17,

he says,

for it is time

for judgment

to begin

at the household of God.

And if it is

to begin with us,

what will be the outcome

of those who do not obey?

And why does he turn to this?

Why does he turn to judgment?

And I think that

to get this right,

I think Peter may be

using judgment

in a slightly different way

than we usually think of it.

Usually we think of judgment

as condemnation.

We think of judgment

as bringing punishment.

And so it often is

in the New Testament.

It means that judgment is,

and for believers,

it can be judgment

that comes to refine people

so that they might be purified

of their sin.

There's a final judgment

on the whole world

where there will be

a final reckoning

and accounting

for our standing

before God

and where God

will vindicate

the righteous

and where he will condemn

and punish evildoers.

But it doesn't seem like

this is the sense

of judgment here.

because there's no sense

of Peter saying,

hey, you guys are falling short

in holiness

and you need to grow in this.

And there's no sense

that Peter's saying,

hey, there's a final judgment

that's going to come,

so hold on for that

because in verse 17 it says,

for the time is now

that this judgment is happening.

So what is Peter talking about?

Peter's talking about

the persecution

that the church is suffering now,

not as a condemnation

on the church,

but as a test.

This is what we saw

in verse 12

and I think he's coming back

to this idea.

A test in God's hand

that is a trial

that as we stand firm

through it,

we see

and what God sees

is who are truly

his people.

So judgment here

is not the condemnation,

but it's rendering a verdict,

whether good or bad.

And then he explains

that the verdict

could be good or bad.

Right?

For judgment,

that is this testing,

starts with the house of God.

God comes

and through this fiery trial

that's happening now

of persecution,

the true church

is being revealed.

Those who are

falsely claiming Christ

or those who are

saying they want

to follow Christ,

but only when it is easy

and when it doesn't

include suffering,

those people are winnowed

out of the church.

Yes, that's a true thing.

And so the church,

the true church

will be revealed

in its glory.

Peter says,

well, if that's what's happening

with those who know Christ,

what about those who don't?

When he says

those who do not obey

the gospel of God,

this is a different language

for saying

for those who have not

put their faith in Christ.

It's going to happen

and those who are in Christ

are going to be preserved,

then the message

for those who are not

in Christ

is a fearsome one.

And the persecution

that the church

is feeling now

is of a piece

of that final judgment

that will come

and that final verdict

that will come

upon all people.

This is why he quotes

Psalm 11, 31,

if the righteous

are scarcely saved,

that is,

if the righteous

are saved

through a great trial,

what will become

of the ungodly

and the sinner?

That is,

those who don't know God

and don't care about God.

The great sorting

of humanity

is prefigured

in persecution.

Who will endure

and stand to the end

and who will not?

If those who claim Christ

may waver and fall,

what about others?

Without Christ,

when we face God's trial

and his judgment,

there is condemnation

for sin.

God's wrath

is poured out.

There will be

an eternal punishment

for those

who are outside

of Christ

because a holy God

cannot suffer

to overlook sin.

And only in Christ,

only in Christ,

has those sins

been dealt with

and taken away.

with the gospel,

there is hope

to persevere.

Without the gospel,

there is only

condemnation

and fear

and death

for all people

at all times

who do not know Christ.

This is why Peter

ends with this exhortation

in verse 19.

Therefore,

let those who suffer

according to God's will

entrust their souls

to a faithful creator

while doing good.

He's saying,

friends,

I know that there's

a fiery trial.

You're either in it

or it's about to come.

Don't be surprised.

Don't be ashamed.

Don't be afraid.

But entrust yourself

like a little child

who runs

to his daddy's arms

and who's enveloped

by the grace

of the gospel

and protected

from all the harm

and all the trial

and all the hardship,

all the condemnation,

all the attack

on them

from the outside.

So we run to Christ

and trust ourselves

to our creator

who knows us

and what he's made us for.

We run to this one

and find in him

refuge

and strength.

And as we entrust ourselves,

not trusting in our own ability

to manage

or to navigate

or to take care of ourselves,

but to give ourselves over

to him

and to his purposes

in our lives,

this is how we endure

suffering.

This,

it's with these attitudes

that we are able

to face the fiery trials

of living as aliens

and strangers

in a world

that does not know us.

Friends,

we do this

because we know Christ.

We are able to do this

because Christ

is our treasure.

and in Christ

we find joy

and blessing

and hope.

We find a place

of refuge

where we can hide ourselves,

where we can be

what Peter

exhorts us to be.

And friends,

if we're here this morning

and we don't know Christ yet,

or we're not sure

how we stand with Christ,

if we are wondering

whether Christ is worth it,

if the cost may be too high,

if the suffering

may be too hard,

this word has

a warning for us as well.

There is no hope

outside of Christ

and the hard things

and the trials

that are facing,

that you may be facing now

are nothing compared

to the final judgment

when you will stand

before God.

And Peter would implore you,

turn to Christ,

put your hope in him,

put your trust

in him today.

And then you will be able

to endure

these fiery trials.

Let's pray.

Lord, we thank you

this morning.

We thank you this morning

for this word,

Lord,

that

Lord,

is meant to encourage us

to give us strength

in our inner being.

Lord,

we know that

when you called us

to yourself,

you called us

out of this world

and that

as long as we live

on this earth

as your people,

we will feel

like aliens

and strangers,

like exiles

whose home

is somewhere else.

Lord,

we pray

you would give us

endurance

and patience

and steadfastness

to embrace this life.

And Lord,

when we do

suffer persecution,

when we do

suffer for Christ's sake,

Lord,

we pray

that you might bring us

the joy,

the confidence,

the blessing.

Lord,

that our faith

may be tested

and found

to be true.

Lord,

the faith

that you have given us

and so we might

stand firm.

Thank you,

Lord.

We pray in Jesus' name.

Amen.