From Suffering to Glory with Pastor Athol Barnes | 4.14.2024

Grace Point Baptist Church's Podcast

No one is immune to suffering, but Christians have the hope of glory to look forward to in and through their suffering. If you are experiencing extended periods of hardship, you might struggle to hope in that future glory, but the promises of God’s Word do not fail.
The apostle Peter knew that the early church was going to experience trials of persecution, and he wanted them to be prepared. As he ended his letter, Peter gave the church family three important instructions to obey so that they could glorify God in the difficulties to come
Be Humble (1 Peter 5:5-7)
Submitting to Elders
Peter exhorted the young people to submit to their elders in humility. A healthy church honors the voice of all generations. Submission requires humility (see v. 6). As we submit to God, we are to humbly submit to and prefer one another in love.
Clothing in Humility
Peter exhorts all of us to clothe ourselves in humility, the same humility that Jesus displayed as he walked the earth (see Philippians 2:6-8).
Pride is the root of all sin; therefore, humility is the most powerful weapon in our arsenal. Humility is not thinking poorly of ourselves; it is simply thinking of ourselves less and preferring others first.
Treating Our Pride
Verse 6 begins with the following phrase, “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God…” When God begins to do a powerful work in our lives that brings Him glory, sometimes we feel God’s mighty hand as a heavy weight. God allows us to feel the heavy weight of suffering, which is naturally humbling. Suffering can serve as a remedy for pride.
Learning Patience
The glorious hope we have is the promise of the rest of that verse, “…so that at the proper time he may exalt you” (see v. 6b). The key, of course, is the phrase “at the proper time.”
The hardest part of suffering is learning patience. Our impatience is a remnant of pride that God is working out through suffering.
Giving Over Our Worries
God doesn’t simply put us under His heavy hand like a cruel master; He gives a promise in verse 7, “casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.”
Giving God our anxieties must come from the realization that we cannot handle them ourselves. God does not forcefully take our worries and our anxieties; He invites us to hand them over to Him in humility.
Holding on to our anxieties is prideful, and the heavy hand of God lovingly gets heavier until we release our burdens to Him.
When we are suffering, we struggle to believe what Peter says in verse 7—that He cares for us. We don’t trust that He is good. These are lies from Satan.
As we give Him our concerns, God promises to minister to us in four ways:
(a) He gives us the courage to face our cares honestly and not run away (Isaiah. 41:10).
(b) He gives us the wisdom to understand the situation (James 1:5).
(c) He gives us the strength to do what He has called us to do (Philippians. 4:13).
(d) He gives us the faith to trust Him to do the rest (Psalm. 37:5)
Be Watchful (1 Peter 5:8-9)
We have an enemy who comes to steal, kill, and destroy (see John 10:10). Peter writes, “be sober minded”. In other words, he wants us to think rightly about the situation we face. This is hard when we are suffering, but it is crucial. To have right thinking is to have God’s perspective, keeping His promises and the scope of eternity in view.
We give the enemy a foothold when we are not watchful. Satan devours by bad thinking: discouragement, hopelessness, pridefulness, and arrog

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