Study of First
Peter Chapter 2 Lesson 35
Peter now
supports very powerfully the exhortation just given by citing Christ's example
of endurance in the face of UNDSF.
He begins by
saying that UNDSF is something to be expected by the believer!
For you (pl) have been called for this purpose,
- verse actually begins with a
prepositional phrase eivj tou/to to this i.e. to face and have to deal with
UNDSF; this takes us back to the initial
point of vs:19.
- you can count on it that
to live the Christian life will include suffering 1 Tim 3:12
since Christ also suffered for you
- The fact that Peter says
Christ suffered "for you" and uses the preposition u`pe,r makes His example both personal and
compelling (motivator):
Huper pictures 2 things:
#1 Christ bending over the
believers addressed to shield them from danger and destruction. He acted for their good and their personal
advantage.
#2 Huper
also conveys the idea of substitution a truth Peter deals with later in vs:24
Peter's point here in bringing into view His suffering is
to point out how He dealt with it is an example for us in time.
leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps,
Christ and how He patiently endured much UNDSF is the
original, the example and to day we as believers living our lives in f2 according to the N&S of the Word and dealing with
the UNDSF in our life is the copy.
- so
the purpose of the example is so that we are able follow the pattern He
established as He dealt with UNDSF
What Peter is saying here is that we are to
follow in His foot prints that is move in the same direction that He is going,
to follow His example of patient endurance while under UDSF.
2:21 For you have been
called to this (UNDSF) because Christ has also suffered on behalf of you,
leaving behind for your advantage an example for you to follow closely in His
steps. (same
patter He exhibited)
Summary
1. Part of our calling as believer's is to patiently deal with UNDSF.
- suffering
may be either physical or mental pain/pressure
2. With this direct address
to the servants in the churches, with this calling God has given them a new
dignity in suffering as His people, a new motivation that is to follow the
example of their Savior.
3. The call is actually to
them not as slaves but as believers.
4. Need to remember that all
UNDSF is designed to test for approval the content of one's thinking and
willingness to apply the truth in it. 1
Pet 1:6-7
5. Christ's handling of
UNDSF during the first advent is the perfect example that we as believers
should copy as we also face UNDSF, what ever it might be.
6. We should also remember
that He was tempted in all respects as we, but without sin and therefore able
to meet our need in the test. Heb
7. His suffering was real
and indicates that He was indeed true humanity.
Rabbit Trail
1 Thes 3:3-5 a church which was also facing UNDSF.
“so that no one would be shaken by these
afflictions,”
So far Paul reminds us that God
intends for all believers to become
spiritually strong and stable in the midst of the often perplexing problems of
life.
Not only are we each to know that
affliction, UNDSF, is often God’s will for our lives, but that we can
experience His strength and provision in the midst of the affliction.
But what are some of the resources
God uses to provide us stability?
They include such things as:
1. The Word which is alive, powerful, and active, and which teaches us
about who God is and what we have in Christ—security, significance, capacity
(Heb.
2. The ministry of the Spirit who is described as the Helper or
Comforter or Enabler (John 14:16), the Spirit of Truth (John 14:17), and the
anointing whom God uses to teach us, guide us, and assure our hearts of His
love as our Father (2 John 2:20; Rom. 8:14-16).
3. God’s plan for each of us is to learn the Word, to grow up
spiritually so that we have discernment as we are faced with the pressures of
life.
4. The privilege of prayer as a priest and as child of
God.
Verses 3b-4 point to the reasons
why they should remain stable.
There are two things we should
note here:
(1) They should not be shaken
because Paul and his helpers had taught them about the subject of suffering,
especially suffering for their faith in Christ UNDSF
(2) They were to remember that the
trials or testing that come to us as believers are appointed by God.
Afflictions or UNDSF are not
accidents.
“Destined” is keimai, which has the idea of “appointed,” or as “destined.”
Paul
stresses two things here that are a part of God's gracious gifts for our
advantage:
#1 - salvation -
to believe in Him
#2 - suffering,
persecution in time > undeserved in the sense that it is not a result or
consequence of any personal sin on our part
What's the implication then of this kind of suffering? It's for our benefit!