- One theme throughout Peter’s letter is the division of people based on the whether or not they obey God. Christians obey the Word, and non-Christians do not.
Peter continues his writing concerning Christian relationships within the family.1Wives, in the same way be submissive to your husbands so that, if any of them do not believe the word, they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives, 2when they see the purity and reverence of your lives.
Okay, I know the men are smiling, and the women are frowning after reading these two verses. But let’s try to determine what Peter is really saying.
- He begins by saying “in the same way be submissive”. In the same way as what? Peter has just finished writing about how Jesus did not argue with His captors. He did not retaliate when others hurled their insults at Him. Peter tells the Christian to accept situations when handed a raw deal. Do not fight back. Do not retaliate. Accept your God-given place without protest in all of your relationships.
The same Greek verb used here, which is translated as “submission”, is used in 2:13 & 2:18, a term that calls for submission to a recognized authority. Peter is not saying a woman is inferior to man. The submission is one of role or function necessary for the orderly operation of the home. This statement must be read in context. Some try to construe these verses to mean abject slavery to her husband, when in reality it is indicative of unselfish devotion in order to win her husband’s admiration and affection, and if he is an unbeliever, to win him to Christ through her loving tact.
As discussed in the last lesson, the reason Peter says to be submissive is to set an example as a Christian in order to encourage others to want to praise God. If we are argumentative, this will cause people to turn away from Christ and Christianity. So if your husband is not a Christian, a wife should lovingly acknowledge her husband’s value as a person and have a cooperative spirit in order for him to be won over to her Christian ways.
Submission is "voluntarily cooperating with someone out of love and respect for God first, and then out of love and respect for that person." Although submitting to non-believers is difficult, it is necessary and a vital part of leading them to Jesus Christ. We must continuously look for opportunities to show God’s love and be a witness for him. That is why Peter is telling wives to be submissive to their husbands.
Peter is assuring Christian women that they do not have to preach to their husbands, but their best approach would be to show their husbands the kind of love that Christ showed the church. By being good obedient wives, they would please their husbands, and in the very least their husbands may allow them to continue practicing their strange religion. At best, their husbands would join them and become Christians also.
3Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. 4Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight. 5For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to make themselves beautiful. They were submissive to their own husbands, 6like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her master. You are her daughters if you do what is right and do not give way to fear.
A changed life is often the most effective means of influencing a family member. Peter does not mean that outward adornment is wrong, only that inner beauty is more important in influencing others. Husbands are more likely to be won over by a wife’s love rather than by her beautiful clothes and jewelry. If you live your Christian faith quietly and consistently in your home, your family will see Christ in you.
Okay ladies, now it’s your turn to smile.
7Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers.
Submission should be mutual as in Ephesians 5:21 – “submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” But even when it is one-sided, it can be effective strategy so others can see Christ in us. One sided submission requires a lot of strength; strength we can only have through the power of the Holy Spirit working in us.
Note: Christian submission NEVER requires us to disobey God or to participate in what our conscience forbids.
When Peter speaks of women as the weaker partner, he is not implying moral or intellectual inferiority, but is recognizing her physical limitations. Women of that day, if not protected by men, were vulnerable to attack, abuse, and financial disaster. In spite of the fact that today’s woman sees herself as more of an equal, the truth is she is still the weaker sex. She is still vulnerable to abuse and attack. In most cases, she still earns considerably less than most men (the vast majority of the poor are single mothers).
A man who honors his wife will protect, respect, help, and stay with her. He will not expect her to work a full time job and then come home and do all of the housework. He will lighten her load by helping wherever he can, be sensitive to her needs, be courteous, considerate, and tactful.
If he is not respectful to his wife, a man’s prayers will be hindered because a living relationship with God depends on right relationships with others. Jesus taught if you have a problem with a fellow believer, you must make it right with that person before coming to worship (see Matthew 5:23-24) This principal carries over into family relationships. If men use their position to mistreat their wives, their relationship with God will suffer.
Women experience the saving grace and mercy of God on equal terms with men (see Galatians 3:28). Husbands and wives are partners in this grace and when there is friction between them, their prayers will suffer. Nothing extinguishes the flame of prayer like marital friction.
Peter continues his writing concerning Christian relationships in unfair circumstances:
8Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another;
be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble.
- We should love and show humility within our church family. Peter challenges his readers to live in harmony with one another, to be sympathetic, loving, compassionate, and humble.
He lists five key elements that should characterize any group of believers:
- harmony (having the same goals);
- sympathy (being helpful to others in need);
- love (treating each other as brothers and sisters, for we share a Heavenly Father and are His adopted children);
- compassion (being sensitive and caring);
- humility (encourage each other and rejoice in each other’s successes).
9Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.
Peter continues to widen his topic. He began with how to behave within the family unit, then how to treat our Christian family, and now moves on to how to behave in society. What we have is precious, but we can’t convey that to the rest of the world if we exhibit a poor attitude.
Peter was impulsive and strong-willed in his early days with Jesus. But the Holy Spirit changed him, molding his strong personality for God’s use, teaching him humility and compassion.
It is human nature (our sinful nature) to retaliate whenever we are hurt by someone. Peter remembers Jesus’s teaching to turn the other cheek and encourages his readers to pay back wrongs by praying for those who have wronged us. In God’s eyes, revenge is unacceptable behavior. Insulting someone, directly or indirectly is also unacceptable. Rise above this human response by praying for the offender.
Peter’s letter follows a pattern characteristic of New Testament letters: they routinely tie references to living a principled life to reminders of eventual reward, including assurances of Christ’s return, the resurrection of His followers, and eternal life.
Christians don’t have to wait for Jesus to come in order to experience reward. There’s a peace and joy that comes from a life of principle and integrity. Knowing we’ve done the right thing, even in times of anxiety, gives a sense of fulfillment that the unsaved cannot comprehend.
10For, "Whoever would love life and see good days must keep his
tongue from evil and his lips from deceitful speech. 11He must turn from evil and do good; he must seek peace and pursue it. 12For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil."
- Peter wrote this letter to encourage the bewildered Christians who were being persecuted and gives them practical guidance as to how they should react even when their suffering is unwarranted.
Once again, Peter refers to scripture, of which his readers are familiar. He uses the Old Testament Psalm 34:12-16 to drive home his point, which is "If you want to love life and see good days, here's how...". He doesn't preface, qualify or put conditions on his statements. He simply writes it matter-of-factly with great simplicity and clarity.
He lays out the requirements plainly:
- Keep your tongue from evil: Our mouths typically cause us the most grief. The Bible is very clear about the evil potential of the tongue. In James 3 you'll find that you will be perfect and have control of your whole body if you can tame your tongue. It is such a small part of us but can cause great destruction. No man can tame the tongue. It is evil and unruly. We praise God and curse men with the same mouth. Controling your tongue by not speaking evil or being deceitful and not uttering insults to those who insult you, will cause you to have a more fulfilling and blessed life. Life will be more gratifying and God will bless the righteous and will hear their prayers, but will turn his face away from those who do evil.
- Turn away from evil and do good: Christians are identified by their good works and love towards others. Turning away from evil is much more difficult in today’s society. Evil has become acceptable and pleasurable in many forms of entertainment and media. We are so desensitized to it, that only the "worst" evil gets our attention. Psalm 101:31 says “I will set nothing wicked before my eyes” .
- Seek peace and pursue it: Peace in the Bible is not like the world's version. It's not the absence of conflict. Godly peace comes from being in line with God.
Sometimes that takes hard work. This type of peace is also found in a forgiving and patient attitude towards others. This peace comes with personal sacrifice giving preference to others over yourself.Matthew 5:9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, For they will be called sons of God.”
An effective peacemaker actively builds good relationships, knowing peace to be a by-product of commitment. Peacemakers anticipate problems and deal with them before they occur. When conflicts arise, a peacemaker will bring things into the open to deal with them before they become unmanageable. We should all practice being a peacemaker.
Romans 12:18 “If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.”
- Everyone wants to know if it is truly possible to have a happy and peaceful life. Often the unspoken implication is "can I have it with little or no effort?"
No. It takes hard work, commitment and obedience. But it is available. Peter didn't say that we would have a chance, a shot, or possibility of loving life and seeing good days. He said "if you want it, here's how".Why? The end of the passage answers that. Because "the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, And His ears are attentive to their prayer; But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil."
- It is God's nature to love the righteous. There is only ONE source of guilt, discontent, confusion and unhappiness: being out of line with God. If you are experiencing any of those feelings, there is only one solution and that is lining up in obedience with God's Word.
Christians more than any other people should be full of joy. Every day IS a good day no matter what circumstances surround us. We are saved. We are going to spend an eternity in inconceivable happiness with our Lord.
13Who is going to harm you if you are eager to
do good? 14But even if you should suffer for
what is right, you are blessed. *"Do not fear what
they fear; do not be frightened.”* 15But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always
be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for
the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, 16keeping a clear conscience, so that those who
speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their
slander. 17It is better, if it is God's
will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.*vs. 14 note: some tranlations say “do not fear their threats”.
Peter continues his teaching on how a Christian should respond when wronged. First we should be sure we are suffering for the right reason. In other words, make sure you don’t give non-Christians anything to use against you.
The original Greek used here, which is interpreted as “even if you should suffer” refers to something that is an extremely remote possibility. People are not generally harmed for acts of kindness. But IF it does occur, it brings a special blessing to the sufferer.
Rather than fear our enemies, we must trust that God is in control. When we allow Christ to rule our thoughts and emotions, nothing our enemies do can shake us.
Some believe that faith is a personal matter to be kept to oneself. Although we should not be boastful or obnoxious in sharing our faith, we should always be ready to give an answer when asked about it. Be prepared at all times to share what Christ has done in your life so when you are asked, you will be ready to share in a gentle and respectful manner.
Keep your conduct above criticism so when others accuse you of wrong-doing, they will have no mmunition to use against you, but only make themselves look foolish.
Peter urges Christians to stand firm because we have hope. His advice is based on the nature of our salvation and the example set by the Savior. We should always be prepared to defend our faith and explain it to others, but do it with love, gentleness, and respect.
I’m repeating the 17th verse so you can read it again in conjunction with verse 18. Christians may suffer for doing good just as Christ did. He was pure, without sin, yet was ridiculed, tortured, and crucified. We see Jesus through the Christian’s example.17It is better, if it is God's will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil. 18For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit, 19through whom also he went and preached to the spirits in prison 20who disobeyed long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water, 21and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a good conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22who has gone into heaven and is at God's right hand—with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him.
Peter is making clear that the good news of salvation and Christ’s victory has been preached in the past as well as in the present. It has gone to the dead as well as to the living.
Christ preached to spirits in prison: in the interval between his death and resurrection, Jesus visited the depths of hell and preached to those from the days of Noah who had disobeyed God.
- The problem with this interpretation is that the Greek
word used here for “spirits” refers to supernatural beings. Some believe it is referring to fallen angels who disobeyed God during the days of Noah.
I must admit here that I do not know what Peter is writing about in verse 19 when he writes of Jesus preaching to the spirits in prison. I’ve read several interpretations of this verse, none of which make a lot of sense in the context of this letter. Why Peter mentions this at this point in his letter is a mystery to me.Peter relates the symbolism of Noah’s salvation from the flood to that of baptism. The flood symbolizes baptism, and baptism symbolizes salvation.
During the days of Noah, sinners met a watery grave – water represents buriel – coming up from the water represents resurrection and renewal. Noah and his family were on the ark which caused them to be “saved”. When we rise up from the water of baptism, God places us on the “ark” of salvation.
The flood was the watery judgement for the death of the wicked; baptism is a watery symbol for the death of Christ and the believer. Baptism symbolizes the death, buriel, and resurrection of Christ.Peter then explains how all of those in heaven, including angels, and those in authority and power, are submissive to Christ who sits at the right hand of God.
Peter has now come full circle with his message of submission.
_____________________________
Chapter 4 to be posted on or about July 15!
Thank you for visiting!
No comments:
Post a Comment