Living With an Eternal Perspective: A Guided Reading of Peter's Letter to the Persecuted Churchਨਮੂਨਾ

Even though we are God’s chosen people, holy and set apart, we are still subject to the world’s human institutions. This is by God’s design - so the rest of the world sees God’s people responding to subjection and even oppression in an uncommon way. We are to respond with a patient and faithful endurance and submission that is clearly supernatural.

Here, Peter tells the church, in both general and specific ways, how to endure persecution and why we endure persecution. First, the how. For the general body, Peter directs them to “Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles” (1 Peter 2:12 NASB). As members of a new family in Christ, we now are called to put on that new family identity, which means we forsake the old ways of doing things. We show we are part of a different family by acting differently than our old one.

Why? Because Christ did the same for us. Jesus “kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously;” (1 Peter 2:23 NASB). Endurance is an act of trust. Jesus endured because He trusted that God the Father would make things right. “For you have been called for this purpose, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you would follow in His steps” (1 Peter 2:21 NASB). He left us a perfect example of conduct to follow, looking forward to the day He returns.

Questions to Ponder:

Create a list of institutions you are subject to in your current life phase. What opportunities are there for you to keep your behavior excellent in a way that might be noticed by non-believers?

What was your response the last time you suffered unjustly or witnessed someone else suffering unjustly? Anger? Withdrawal? Distraction?