Glorious Suffering with Pastor Athol Barnes | 9.8.2024

Grace Point Baptist Church's Podcast

Today over 365 million believers are persecuted for being a follower of Jesus. Some estimates state that 1 in 7 believers face physical persecution.

In 1 Peter, the apostle is writing to the persecuted church in modern day Turkey, preparing them for more extreme persecution.

In America, we are blessed to be able to worship freely without fear of persecution; however that is changing as people are standing against the culture with Biblical truth. One may lose a promotion, a job, or key opportunities, and the day might be coming when if you and I stand for the truth of God’s Word, we may very well face legal action and even prison.

Fearless Living

According to God’s Word, there is real hope and blessing in times of trial. In fact, persecution and trials are always the fuel that God uses to build His church. There is a divine grace and comfort that only those who have experienced real suffering will be able to understand. The key to this grace is that the fear of the Lord conquers every other fear.

In verse 13, Peter encourages his readers to be zealous in doing good (see also Hebrews 10:24-25). Followers of Jesus are called to be “salt and light”, living counter culturally and sacrificially blessing others with our time and resources.

Peter continues to write that even if his readers are persecuted, they should not fear (1 Peter 3:14). Fear is pervasive in our culture. Jesus taught us not to fear— in fact there is only one healthy fear (see Matthew 10:28). What fear is holding you back today?

In verses 14 and 15 we read, “have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy”.

The word “holy” means to be set apart. Fear tempts us to make unholy alliances and compromise our faith. As Christians, when we face a crisis that is forcing us into a corner, we are tempted to give in to fear and make a hurried decision. Decisions made in fear are often the wrong decisions and are outside of the will of God for our lives.

The Bible reminds us today that as we honor Christ as Lord over our lives, we never have to fear any circumstance. In fact, we bring greater harm to ourselves if we fail to trust God.

Making a Defense

Verse 15 continues, “but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect”.

When we face a crisis, people are watching to see how we respond under pressure. Do we really believe what we profess?

To honor Christ as holy means that we turn every situation and decision over to him. One of the characteristics of submitting our lives to the Lordship of Jesus is that we witness about him. We tell others about what he has done in our lives, and we invite others to become followers of Jesus.

Every Christian should be able to make a Biblical defense for their hope in Christ, especially when the situation looks hopeless. It is in those crisis situations that opportunities for witnessing come about.

Peter challenges us to witness with gentleness and respect. We are not called to win arguments. When people are suffering, there come those moments when there simply are no words. When you have lost everything, when that loved one dies, when the cancer returns… it is in that moment that the only thing that has any value is the grace of God. Let the grace of God shine through you as you victoriously proclaim the hope that you have in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

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