A Faith More Precious Than Gold

As we dig a little further into Peter's letters, we discover that believers in the 60s were not so different than believers in 2015. In the same way that the early church anticipated Christ's return at any moment, we wait eagerly for the day when He comes back for His bride, the Church. We are living in the end times just as they were. So the advice that Peter offers the church in Asia Minor is advice that the church in America, even two thousand years later, can take and put into practice.

In 1 Peter, Peter explains to the church that their focus should be on Christ as they experience trials and suffering of many kinds. Peter was writing to Christ-followers who were a part of the Diaspora, or “Dispersion”, which derives from the Greek word for “strangers.” That's a fancy word that means this: As the message of Christianity spread to new countries, the gospel message was no longer limited to the nation of Israel. Under the Old Covenant, the children of Israel were God's chosen people. But since the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, a New Covenant came into play. God's chosen people are no longer limited to the Jewish nation, but now include any believer, Jew or Gentile, who chooses to follow Jesus Christ.

As people came to faith in Jesus Christ as Messiah, they spread throughout the earth, taking the gospel message with them, first into areas like Asia Minor, where Peter sent these letters, and later to the ends of the earth (like America!). Since the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, God’s chosen people were no longer in one physical, geographical nation. They are scattered among the nations!

As the gospel spread, persecution became rampant. Many believers suffered physical persecution, even to the point of death. At the hands of the Roman Emperor, Nero, many believers were tortured, burned alive or fed to hungry, wild animals. Many other believers suffered in lesser ways through social, financial, professional and familial persecution. While we may not be suffering physical persecution today, we have many trials in our lives. We all have various “burdens” that we carry. 

I want to encourage you to make a list of your top five trials. We'll come back to it in a moment.

One of the most common questions people have regarding this life is "Why do we suffer?", especially as believers. 1 Peter 1:7 gives us an answer – “so that the tested genuineness of your faith – more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire – may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”

We suffer so that God will be glorified through our genuine faith during our trials. When we fix our eyes on these light and momentary afflictions that plague us, our vision becomes quite narrow. Our world gets smaller as our problems are magnified in our minds. But if we fix our eyes on Jesus, these trials and sufferings don't seem insurmountable at all. A gaze fixed on Jesus puts everything into the right perspective.

Peter would eventually die a martyr’s death at the hands of Nero. The man that had denied Jesus three times, the man that Jesus referred to as Satan, the man that chopped off the ear of a Roman soldier…This man, Peter, would eventually give his whole life so that Jesus would be glorified.

As our 24 hour news cycle shows images of refugees fleeing their homeland and tells stories of innocent people being shot and killed, we can rest assured that there is a reason for our suffering - His Glory. So we have a choice to make. We can focus on our trials and use them as excuses or we can focus on our Savior and give Him the glory during our suffering.

A slight shift in theme occurs when we close 1 Peter and open 2 Peter.  In 2 Peter 3:15-18, Peter points to Paul’s writings. Last year we studied 1 & 2 Timothy and Titus, which are writings of Paul’s. If you want to refresh your memory on some of Paul's teaching, I wrote about it here in my blog post, A Life Poured Out.  Peter and Paul both emphasize over and over again that we must be aware of false teachers. This causes us to make two assumptions:

1. False teachers exist.

Paul’s words in 2 Timothy 4:3-4 say “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.”

2. We must judge our Bible teachers to discern if they are true or false.

                  1 Corinthians 5:12 – We are to judge those inside the church, especially our teachers.

Matthew 7:5 – We are to remove the plank from our own eye so we can clearly see the speck in our brother’s eye. 

"How do I know if a teacher is true or false?" you may ask! 2 Peter 3:18 gives us the simple answer– “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” You will be able to stand firm and not be carried away by lawless people if you are continually growing in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ.

So that begs the question, "How do I grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ?"  There are several ways. First, refuse to use your trials as excuses. Remember all those trials we talked about before? Look at your list. You can choose to focus on your suffering. You can focus on your trials. You can focus on all the things in your life that are hard. Or you can endure those trials, not let them get you distracted and give God the glory by growing in the grace and knowledge of Him. 

Second, you must not neglect the habit of meeting together! You can quit going to church because you're busy or tired or because you can't find one that you "like" OR you can come even when it’s hard. You can give up meeting together with other believers in fellowship and Bible study or you can continue through your suffering, knowing that God will get the glory. 

Third, spend time in His Word! It's a habit that requires discipline and dedication and drive. Sometimes you'll run for your Bible first thing in the morning, but other times you just won't want to. So the choice is yours: You can focus on all the reasons you can’t or you can honor God by spending time in His Word. 

You can use your trials as excuses or you can glorify God through them by growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Last week we looked at Peter's life through the lens of four gospel authors. We saw a man who failed over and over, even to the point of denying his relationship with Jesus Christ. Did Jesus give up on him? No way. Peter allowed God to work in his life and as a result, Peter was a changed man. The Peter that we see in 1 & 2 Peter is not the same Peter we see in the Gospels. He has grown in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ and is changed. Are you changed? Does your life look different now than it looked before you began following Jesus? Celebrate the ways He has changed you and ask Him to work in your life to continue your metamorphosis. 

So how are 1 and 2 Peter connected? 1 Peter reminds us that we are in the last days. Trials, persecution are suffering are headed our way! 2 Peter shows us that false teachers will attempt to deceive us. Some will deceive us in slight, subtle ways, while others are downright heretical! That's why it is so important for believers to KNOW the WORD and stand firm in it all the more as we see the day approaching. Hebrews 10:19-25 is a great encouragement in this. Go find your Bible and check it out for yourself! 

For those of you completing your book study with us, please make sure you read the Lesson One Commentary as well as complete the Lesson Two reading and questions. Save the Lesson Two Commentary to read next week after our session! May God bless the time you spend with Him this week.

Amber