Faithful Witness 1 Peter 3v8-22

Our reading today is in 1 Peter chapter 3, verse 8 to 22.

1 Peter 3:8–22

In the Church Red Bible, it's page 1219.

Okay, I hope you find the verse.

1 Peter chapter 1, verse 3, chapter 3, verse 8 to 22.

1 Peter 1:3

Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another.

Be sympathetic.

Love as brothers.

Be compassionate and humble.

Do not repay evil with evil, or insult with insult, but with blessing.

Because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.

It's going to harm you if you are eager to do good.

But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed.

Do not fear what they fear.

Do not be frightened.

But in your heart, set apart Christ as Lord.

Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.

But do this with gentleness and respect.

Keep a clear conscience so that those who speak maliciously against you, against your good behavior in Christ, may be ashamed for their slander.

It is better if it is God's will to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.

For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous.

To bring you to God, he must put to death in the body, but made alive by the Spirit.

Through whom also he went and preached to the spirits in prison, who disobeyed long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built.

In it, only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water.

And this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also.

Not the removal of dirt from the body, but the pledge of good conscience towards God.

He saves you by the resurrection of Christ Jesus, who has gone into heaven and is at God's right hand with angels, authorities, and powers in submission to him.

Amen.

Amen.

Thanks very much, Kevin.

We'll keep your Bible open there at 1 Peter 3.

Before we start, I just want to say that it's a longer passage than we've normally been dealing with on a Sunday morning.

So we're not going to cover everything.

So there may be questions that arise, things that weren't covered, or you just want to come back on.

Please feel free to talk with me afterwards.

Let's pray.

Father, thank you for your word.

Thank you for this letter written all these hundreds of years ago to a people belonging to you, yet scattered, feeling alone, isolated, struggling.

And Father, so we identify as people who belong to you, struggling to fit in this world and knowing how to live.

And so we ask that as we look at your word today, it would equip us and encourage us to be faithful witnesses in our communities, in our work, in our schools, wherever we are during the week.

That we would be a faithful witness, pointing to you through what we say and in how we live.

We ask for your spirit's help to us all today, in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Well, I want to introduce you to Pastor Alim.

Alim lives in the city of Aleppo in Syria, which you know from watching the television has been turned into a pile of rubble following constant bombing and shelling.

While mothers have left, Alim remains to care for the church.

He explains,

The other day as we finished our meeting on Friday, a bomb exploded next to the church, killing a young girl and her brother.

On Sunday, when we were getting ready for church, bombs exploded around our house.

But I feel a calling from God.

He wants me to be here till the end, as long as there is work to do in Aleppo.

Part of that work has been to provide food and basic needs for up to 2,000 people in their community, half of whom are from the Muslim background.

In the face of severe opposition and persecution, they bless others.

They pray for them, they care for them, they speak of the certain hope that they have in Christ.

And many who saw that church as the enemy have now found a warmth and a welcome.

And as a result, in that bombed city, people are turning to Christ and are being baptised.

Alim is seeking to be a faithful witness in what is a hostile world.

Now that is the big message of 1 Peter.

As we stand up for Christian values, as we speak out for Christian truth, we will get hit.

We mightn't live in Aleppo, we mightn't face being bombed, but if we are followers of Christ, we will face opposition.

Look at verse 9.

You will suffer insult.

Verse 14.

You will face their threats and you will be frightened.

Verse 16.

There will be those who will speak maliciously against you.

The reality is, if you are a follower of Jesus, you will get hit.

So, how do we live in this world that is hostile to Christ and to his church?

Well, look at verse 8.

Finally, all of you, it's as if he's bringing to conclusion what he has been talking about all the way from chapter 2, verse 12.

Having shown us what it is like to be a faithful witness in society, in chapter 2.

What it's like to be a faithful witness in our work, chapter 2, verse 18.

What it's like to be a faithful witness within the home, chapter 3.

He now shows us that this is the calling for all of God's people.

Verse 8.

Finally, all of you, whatever circumstance of life we find ourselves in, all of you, live in harmony with one another.

Be sympathetic.

Love as brothers.

Be compassionate and humble.

If people who are against Christ are going to turn to Christ, we need to respond by being faithful in our witness.

So, what's that going to look like for you and for me?

Well, first, we are to bless those who stand opposed to us.

Bless those who stand opposed to you.

Look at verse 9.

Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called.

If we're followers of Jesus, we are to bless those who would stand opposed to us.

Why?

Well, look at the rest of verse 9.

So that you may inherit a blessing.

Now, we need to be clear what that is.

This is not tip for tap.

This is not, I bless you and God is going to bless me in return.

So, if I bless five people, then God is going to bless me five times.

No, we have already been given a blessing.

We have already received an inheritance.

Have a look back at chapter 1, verse 3.

Chapter 1, verse 3.

Just starting into the verse.

You see what it says?

In his great mercy, he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead

and into an inheritance, a blessing that can never perish, spoil or fade, which is kept in heaven for you.

So, we have an inheritance that is guaranteed.

So, our blessing of other people is a sign that we have already inherited a blessing from God.

So, in response to this undeserved blessing of this inheritance that will never perish, spoil or fade,

the response to that or the sign that we have that is in turn to bless other people.

That's what chapter 3, verse 9 is saying to us.

You see, it's so natural to retaliate and want revenge.

A colleague at work makes fun of you with a snide comment.

You want to retaliate.

A friend speaks aggressively against what you believe and you want revenge.

You get hurt, so you want them to hurt.

You suffer, so you want them to suffer.

But not so for the Christian.

Because we are blessed.

Because we have an inheritance, we in turn bless those who stand opposed to us.

We are to be a blessing.

We are given an example of what this looks like in verses 10 to 12.

This is a quote from Psalm 34.

Now, Psalm 34, you can read it all at home, is at a time when Saul is king.

Saul was the people's choice.

David, who was God's choice as king, is being pursued by Saul.

He's being chased down by Saul.

And David's life is in danger.

But how does David respond to this threat?

Well, look at verse 10.

For whoever would love life and see good days,

so whoever has the blessing and has that inheritance to come,

must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from deceitful speech.

He must turn from evil and do good.

He must seek peace and pursue it.

For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,

and his ears are attentive to their prayer.

But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.

You see, in the face of extreme opposition,

David sought to bless rather than repay or take revenge.

So a colleague speaks against you,

slanders your name,

spreads a nasty rumour for no other reason than they find your Christian values irritating.

But don't gossip.

Don't look for the next opportunity to belittle them.

Look at verse 10.

You must keep your tongue from evil and your lips from deceitful speech.

You take a stand for Christian values.

You speak up for the right of the unborn.

You take a stand not to cover for your boss or to tell lies.

And as a result, well, you lose out on promotion.

You get all the rotten jobs to do.

But don't fight back.

Don't plot how you can take revenge.

Instead, verse 11,

We must turn from evil and do good.

We must seek peace and pursue it.

You see, it's not our job to get back at others.

It's not our place to retaliate and seek revenge.

It is our role to bless.

It's to do good to those who hurt you.

Have you been hurt by someone else?

Bless them.

We are to speak kindly to those who malign you.

Have you ever felt ostracized or pushed away by somebody else?

Speak kindly to them.

Of course it's hard.

Of course it's tough.

But like David, we pray and we leave things with God.

Verse 12,

For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,

and his ears are attentive to their prayer.

We can hear David praying in the midst as he's being pursued by Saul,

crying out to God for help,

that he might bless rather than retaliate.

For the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.

We have been incredibly blessed.

We have an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade.

So do not repay evil with evil,

or insult with insult,

but with blessing.

So first,

bless those who oppose you.

Second,

speak hope to those who threaten you.

Verse 13,

Who's going to harm you if you are eager to do good?

But even if you should suffer for what is right,

you are blessed.

Do not fear what they fear.

Do not be frightened.

Now I don't know about you,

but I suspect it's true.

I get frightened all the time as a Christian.

I fear that if I speak out for Jesus,

if I stand for what the Bible teaches,

I really fear I'm going to lose some of my friends.

I fear that people will think I'm weird.

They probably think I'm weird anyway,

but they might just think I'm a bit more weird.

I fear that I'll be talked about.

You might fear that if you associate with Christians,

you'll be insulted and laughed at.

And so for an easier and more comfortable life,

we just put the head down and keep quiet

and hope that nobody sees or nobody asks.

But, what does it say in verse 14?

Do not fear what they fear.

Do not be frightened.

Literally, it's saying to us,

do not fear their threats.

Don't be intimidated by what people might say to you

or what they might do to you.

Well, you say, that's easier said than done.

That's easy to read.

The theory is fine.

Don't fear.

But we all fear what people think about us.

But genuinely, really, there is no need to fear.

The reason, look at verse 14 again,

even if you should suffer for what is right,

you are blessed.

It's the reminder again that if we are Christians,

if we're followers of Jesus,

we are blessed.

Let's go back to chapter 1, verse 4 again.

Let's remind ourselves of that blessing,

that inheritance.

Verse 4.

Because of the resurrection

and our faith in Christ,

verse 4,

we have an inheritance that can never perish,

spoil or fade,

kept in heaven for you.

But there's more.

Verse 5.

Who through faith are shielded by God's power

until the coming of salvation

that is ready to be revealed in the last time.

The blessing that we have received

is that heaven is kept for us

and we are kept for heaven.

Nothing can take us from our inheritance

and no one can take our inheritance from us.

So, people can say what they like.

People can think what they like.

They can do whatever they want to us

because we will always be blessed

and that inheritance and that blessing

cannot be taken away.

It's this blessing

that keeps Pastor Alim in Aleppo.

It's what keeps many

travelling into North Korea.

It's what keeps thousands of Christians

talking about Jesus

even when it's not safe.

Yes, people can be imprisoned.

At worst, their lives can be taken

and it does happen.

But even if someone should lose their life for Christ

it will mean that they receive

their promised inheritance.

So, people can say what they like

do what they like

because we will always be blessed

and it's because of this inheritance

because of this blessing that we have

that we too do not need to fear the threats.

We do not need to fear what people think of you

if you stand up for what the Bible teaches.

Do not be frightened.

We have a blessing.

So, don't fear.

Instead, we can speak of the great hope

that we have.

How do we do that?

Look at verse 15.

Chapter 3, verse 15.

But in your hearts

set apart Christ as Lord.

Christ is your King,

not your boss.

Christ rules over your life.

He controls your destiny.

He has given you the inheritance

and the blessing.

God has made you a child.

Make Him your Lord.

Make Him the reason for your life.

Verse 15.

Always be prepared to give an answer

to everyone who asks you

to give the reason for the hope

that you have.

You see,

when we bless those

who speak against us,

when we repay hurt

with kindness,

when we do good

to those

who speak maliciously

against us,

it is so counter-cultural.

It is so different

to how the world responds.

that a time will come

when someone

is going to ask of you

or speak to you

and say,

why?

Why do you not get angry?

Why do you care

for those people

that insult you?

Why do you respond

in kindness

when you've been

so desperately wronged?

Why do you respect

your boss

even when they

disrespect you?

Why do you still

love your spouse

even when

they speak bad of you?

Why do you not

repay evil with evil

and insult with insult?

Answer.

Look at verse 15.

Because of the hope

that we have.

Because Jesus

has died for me

and forgiven me,

I can forgive others.

I don't need

to hold a grudge.

Because Jesus

has risen

from the grave

for me

and has given me

an inheritance

and a blessing,

I've got everything

to look forward to

so I can give my life

to serve those

who may stand

against me.

Because Jesus

has blessed me,

because I belong

to him,

because I am

part of his family,

because I am

a royal people,

that royal priesthood,

a people belonging

to God,

I can now

bless.

I can speak

of the hope

that I have.

So in the face

of opposition,

do not fear.

Always be prepared

to give an answer.

Be ready.

Have it on the tip

of your tongue

to talk about Jesus

and what he means

to you.

End of verse 15,

but do it with

gentleness

and respect.

I was talking

to someone recently

who had made

the decision

not to play

matches

if it clashed

with their times

of their church

gathering.

An important match

had come up

and they told

the rest of their team

and their coaches

I'm not able

to play

today.

Inevitably,

they were asked

why?

And their answer

was really simple.

They just said

because I'll be

going to church.

The response

caused the group

of friends

to laugh

and ask

why would you

go to church?

And very simply

they said

Jesus

is more important.

He's a hope.

He's the reason

for our life.

So don't be afraid

of people's threats.

Don't fear

what they may

think about you

or what they may

say about you.

Instead,

speak confidently

of the hope

that we have

in Jesus.

Bless those

who oppose you.

Speak hope

to those

who threaten

you.

And third,

look to Christ

who will

vindicate you.

You see,

being a faithful

witness in the world

is not easy.

It's really,

really tough.

Look at verse 17.

It is better

if it is God's

will to suffer

for doing good

than for doing evil.

But why?

Are you mad?

What's the point?

Why would we

be so stupid

and be so willing

to suffer?

Why bless

those who insult

you if all

you're going

to get

is more insults?

Why speak

hope to people

if all we're

going to get

is abuse?

Why be

a faithful witness?

Why bother?

Why suffer

for doing good?

Why?

It doesn't

make sense

unless

Christ

vindicates

you

and he will.

Christ

will put

the record

straight.

Christ

will correct

every rhyme.

Christ

will see

that you

taste

victory.

Let me

explain this

in three

ways.

First,

Christ

suffered

and now

rules.

So we

are to

keep going.

We are to

bless those

who oppose

us.

We are to

speak hope

to those

who threaten

us because

verse 18

for Christ

died for

sins once

for all

the righteous

for the

unrighteous

to bring you

to God.

Christ

suffered

for you.

He didn't

repay evil

with evil.

He didn't

retaliate

with insult.

He blessed

those who

opposed him.

He spoke

to those

who threatened

him.

In fact,

he died

for those,

for people

like us

who also

stood

against him.

He died

for our

sins,

for my

sin,

for your

sin,

the righteous

for the

unrighteous.

He took

all our

unrighteous

behaviour

on himself,

suffered the

punishment

that we

deserve so

that we

might have

his

righteousness

and be

treated

as Jesus

deserves

to be

treated.

End of

verse 18,

he was

put to

death

in the

body,

crucified

on a

cross,

but made

alive by

the Spirit,

risen again

from the

dead.

Verse 22,

who has

gone into

heaven

and is

at God's

right hand

with angels

and authorities

and powers

in submission

to him.

Yes,

Jesus

suffered

and died.

He was

mocked

and ridiculed,

laughed at,

spat upon,

but now

he lives

and he

reigns.

The powers

and authorities

that stood

against him

now bow

in submission

to him.

Jesus

has been

vindicated.

The record

has been

put

right.

Now,

what is

true of

Christ

will be

true

for you

if you

follow

him.

Look,

what happens

when Christ

died for

us in

verse 18?

What does

it do?

The end

of verse

18,

it brings

us

to God.

We are

united

with him.

His life

becomes

our life.

So,

what is

true of

Christ

will become

true for

you.

We too

will die,

but we

will live.

We too

will suffer,

but we

will reign

with him.

The victory

that Christ

enjoys

will be a

victory that

we too

will share

and enjoy.

Vindication

will come.

And this

is true

for all

God's

people.

Noah

suffered

but was

saved.

Do you

remember

Noah?

Called by

God to

build an

ark,

that great

big boat

in a

landlocked

country,

and to

preach to

the people

and tell

them that

God was

going to

judge by

sending a

flood in

the world.

Can you

imagine

the abuse

and the

mocking

that Noah

faced as

he built

this ark

with no

water in

sight and

preaching?

And yet

Noah was

faithful in

his witness.

This is how

Peter describes

it.

Follow

closely.

They're

difficult

verses,

but we

can work

our way

through

them.

Look at

the end

of verse

18.

This is

speaking of

Jesus.

He,

that's

Jesus was

put to

death in

the body,

but made

alive by

the Spirit,

through whom,

so through

the same

Spirit,

Jesus also

went and

preached to

the spirits

in prison.

So,

at the time

of Noah,

Jesus,

before he

ever came,

the pre-incarnate

Jesus,

was preaching

through Noah,

warning them

of God's

coming

judgment.

He preached,

we're told,

in verse 19,

to the

spirits in

prison.

It's a

strange

phrase.

Who are

the spirits

in prison?

Well,

read on

verse 20.

They are

they who

disobeyed

long ago

when God

waited patiently

in the days

of Noah

while the

ark was

being built.

The spirits

in prison

are the

people,

those who

are,

if you like,

are entrapped

enslaved

to their

sin,

who

disobeyed

God

and ignored

God.

It was

not an easy

task for

Noah to

preach this

message to

a hardened

bunch of

people,

but he

kept on

preaching,

even though

they didn't

want to

listen,

even though

they ignored

everything he

said.

And Noah

suffered for

doing good.

He faced

abuse,

he faced

mocking,

he laughed

at,

he was

ridiculed,

it was

really tough.

But what

happened to

Noah?

End of

verse 20,

in it,

in the

ark that

he built,

only a

few people,

eight in

all,

were saved

through

water.

Noah

suffered,

but yet

he was

saved,

he was

vindicated.

now it's

not just

true for

Noah,

it's true

for all

of God's

people.

You see,

we suffer,

but we

are saved.

Look at

verse 21,

follow with

me,

keep closely

to the

text and

we'll work

our way

through.

Verse 21,

and this

water

symbolises

baptism

that now

saves you

also.

So the

flood of

God's

judgment,

back at

the time

of Noah,

and the

ark of

salvation,

the flood

of judgment,

the ark

of salvation

is a

picture,

he's saying,

of Christian

baptism.

The water,

the rain,

the flood

brought judgment,

death,

and separation

from God.

The ark

which carried

Noah through

the waters

brought salvation,

life,

and eternity

with God.

Now when

we are

baptized,

it is a

picture of

being saved

from the

judgment of

God.

Being baptized

is going

down into

the water,

under the

water.

water.

It is as

if God's

judgment is

falling on

us,

but the

point is

we don't

stay under

the water,

we come

up,

we come

out through

the water,

symbolizing

our rescue

from God's

judgment.

Now we

must be

very careful

not to

think that

this simple

act of

baptism

saves us.

No,

look at

the end

of verse

21.

it saves

you by

the

resurrection

of Jesus

Christ.

Just as

Jesus was

raised to

life,

so by

faith in

his

resurrection,

we too

are raised

to new

life.

As we

come up

out

through

the water,

we are

demonstrating

our trust

in Christ

for our

salvation,

just as

Christ was

raised,

so we

too will

rise with

him.

you go,

what's he

talking about

baptism for?

What's

this

baptism

got to

do

with

when I'm

being

laughed at

when I'm

at school?

How does

baptism help

me when

people ignore

me at work

and speak

against me?

What's the

point of

baptism

when I

suffer as

a Christian?

How is

this going

to help

me?

Well,

when we

face

opposition,

when we

face

unjust

suffering,

insult,

abuse,

malicious

talk,

whatever it

may be,

he's saying,

I want

you to

look back.

I want

you to

remember

your

baptism.

Because

baptism

is something

visible,

something

tangible.

It is

something that

we physically

experience.

As we

look back

to our

baptism,

we remember

that just

as we

came up

out

through

the

water.

So a

day will

come when

we too

are going

to rise

and we

will

experience

salvation

in all

its

fullness.

The

suffering,

the

struggles

that we

go through

right now

are not

going to

be

forever.

We

will

rise.

So

think

back,

remember

the time

when you

were

baptized.

That's

why

baptism

is so

important.

if you

are a

Christian

here today

and you

are claiming

and saying

yes,

I follow

Jesus

and you

are not

baptized.

Well,

you ought

to be.

You ought

to be.

Because in

this context

it's going

to be a

tremendous

help to

you as

a Christian.

As you

seek to

live the

Christian life

and as you

find it

difficult to

be a

Christian

where you

are,

this

baptism

that you

look back

to is

going to

help you

and bring

to memory

and remind

you that

yes,

it is a

struggle.

But it's

not going to

be like this

forever.

I too

am going

to rise.

You see,

for the

Christian,

baptism

becomes that

defining

moment in

our lives

when we

publicly

align

ourselves

to Christ,

when we

declare

yes,

I am

with

Christ.

Where

he goes,

I will

go.

What is

true of

Christ

is true

of me.

In

times of

struggling

and suffering

we can

look back

and remember

just as

Christ

suffered,

we too

will suffer.

Just as

Christ was

raised,

we too

will rise.

Just as

Christ was

vindicated,

so we

too will

be vindicated.

The

victory

that Christ

enjoys

today

will be

ours to

enjoy

forever.

I don't

know every

circumstance

where you

will be

this week,

but as

you

go,

bless

those

who may

stand

against

you.

The

person who

you find

difficult to

work with,

the person

who you

find it

hard to

be a

friend to,

bless

them.

For

those that

may

threaten

you,

those who

may speak

against

you,

speak hope

to them.

Speak

speak about

Jesus.

Don't fear

what they

say.

You have

a blessing

to come,

an inheritance

to come.

You have

everything to

look forward

to.

And we

can keep

on doing

it because

we will be

vindicated.

We will

share in

the victory

that Christ

has.

Look back

and remember

your baptism.

remember

that day.

Feel it,

picture it,

think of it.

I went

down,

I rose,

I will be

vindicated

with Christ.

Let's pray

together.

Father,

we recognize

that it's

so easy

to be a

follower of

Christ in

this room,

in this

gathering.

It's easy

to sing

songs about

you.

It's easy

to declare,

I believe

in God

the Father.

God,

we all

fear

leaving

this

building,

going to

work

tomorrow,

going to

college,

going to

school,

going into

our families,

what people

will think,

what people

will say.

Father,

remind us

today,

fill us

with the

hope of

that inheritance,

that blessing,

that we

will not

fear,

but that we

will be

confident to

speak out

for Jesus,

knowing

that just

as Christ

suffered

and now

reigns,

so we

too will

reign with

him.

We will

be vindicated,

the record

will be set

straight,

we will

receive glory

and we

will be

with you.

So,

Father,

fill us

with that

vision today.

May it

be the

vision for

our week,

that as we

go forward,

we would

live for

you.

Thank you

that you

are our

saviour

and ruler

of the

world.

Amen.