1 Peter - Following Jesus Sample

A roaring lion is pacing around looking for breakfast. He has his eyes on you. Christians live in a world where we have a dangerous enemy still on the prowl.

Christians suffer grief in all kinds of trials. Peter has written about many of these trials already. These trials come from a number of sources. But there is one source that Peter has not mentioned, at least not until now.

• What danger is Peter concerned about here (v. 8)?

We’ve seen that the unbelieving world is against believers and our own sinful desires wage war against our souls. Now we’re told we have an unseen spiritual enemy too. The devil is circling around us, looking for a way to destroy our faith in Christ. Peter’s picture of the devil as a hungry roaring lion is meant to make us sit up and take notice. There is terrible danger here. How can we keep safe?

The devil is on the lookout, but Peter says that believers need to be on the lookout too. Again, he calls his friends to: ‘Be alert and of sober mind.’ Peter wants these Christians to stay faithful to Christ all the way to their glorious inheritance. If they are going to stay safe, they need to stay on their guard.

• How else should Christians respond to this threat (v. 9)?

Here is a roaring lion, eyeing you up, looking hungry – what would you do? Our natural response is probably to run away. But Peter wants his friends to stay put. We resist the devil by standing firm in our faith. We win against our enemy when we don’t give up.

The devil is prowling around looking for some way – any way – to take us away from Christ. The devil will stir up opposition to Christ and his people. And when we suffer for Christ, the devil may whisper in our ears, ‘God doesn’t care about you. Why should you care about him?’ But Peter has just reminded his friends that God does care.

Peter wants to encourage these believers to keep going. He reminds his friends that being under attack for following Christ is normal. All God’s children the world over share that experience (v. 9). In a strange way it should actually be reassuring. It shows we are in the family!

Pray

Ask God to help you resist the devil by standing firm in your faith, whatever happens.