Transcript & Slides: Suffering and Glory (1 Peter 5: 10-14)

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Suffering and Glory (1 Peter 5: 10-14)
By David Feddes

¹⁰ And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. ¹¹ To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen.¹² With the help of Silas, whom I regard as a faithful brother, I have written to you briefly, encouraging you and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Stand fast in it. ¹³ She who is in Babylon, chosen together with you, sends you her greetings, and so does my son Mark.  ¹⁴ Greet one another with a kiss of love. Peace to all of you who are in Christ.

When we look at how Peter wraps up this letter, we first want to think for a moment about Peter’s authorship, then about Peter’s companions who are with him, and then we’ll spend most of our time on Peter’s purpose in this letter—communicating the suffering and the glory of Jesus Christ and the suffering and the glory of Jesus’ followers.

First, just a few words about Peter’s authorship, because not everybody believes that Peter wrote this letter. The first word of the letter is “Peter,” so that’s a hint that Peter wrote it. But there are those who say, “Well, he couldn’t have,” and they give a variety of reasons why Peter didn’t write First Peter.

One is that a Jewish fisherman could not possibly have written such polished Greek. A second reason is that Peter speaks much about suffering, and the official empire-wide persecution of Christians didn’t really get launched until after Peter died. A third reason is that Peter agrees too much with Paul. They sound too much alike, and everybody knows—if you’re a good scholar—that Peter and Paul had different factions who disagreed with each other very much, and Peter and Paul couldn’t get along and didn’t think alike. A fourth reason is that this letter has more church teaching aimed at people and their church life and living as Christians than it has direct sharing of memories of Jesus. After all, Peter was there, so you’d expect him to be reminiscing a lot about what his personal experiences were when he was living together on earth with the Lord Jesus Christ.

Those are four of the major reasons why the authorship of the apostle Peter in this letter has been doubted, and we’ll just look at how each of those falls apart rather badly.

First of all, Peter was bilingual. Most people in Palestine at the time were; they spoke Greek and they spoke Hebrew or Aramaic, so they were fluent in more than one language. To think that somebody who’s a fisherman had to be a dummy may reveal more about the nice scholar in his ivory tower writing about fishermen than it tells us about what laborers are capable of. I’ve known farmers who were part of a congregation, didn’t have any formal education, and yet knew more theology than the preacher did because they studied a lot on their own. There are some people who just have great gifts.

He was bilingual. He was mentored by Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh, personally for three years—that’s not a bad education. He spoke in tongues on Pentecost when he was filled with the Holy Spirit. He was given the ability to speak in languages he had never learned and to do so fluently, so that people who heard him said he sounded like a native speaker of their language. He was inspired to write by the Holy Spirit of the living God.

Now, the Holy Spirit didn’t always inspire people to write in a different style than their usual spoken or written style—he could have, had he so chosen—but there’s also this fact: often the writers of the New Testament letters would not actually be writing with their own pen. They would be dictating, speaking to someone else who was writing it down, and then they could look over the letter. We know that the apostle Paul wrote some of his letters, at least, using a writer, and it’s very possible that Peter did too. He says, “I’m writing to you through Silas.” It’s probable that Silas was the one who brought the letter, but he may also have been the one who wrote the letter and did so because he was very skilled in Greek style.

So those are some reasons to say, “Well, a fisherman couldn’t have written this thing.” Peter was not just another fisherman. For one thing, fishermen are a little smarter than some people might give them credit for. He was running a business before he became a follower of Jesus and running it with a lot of people who spoke different languages.

Another objection is that the empire-wide persecution officially didn’t start until after Peter’s death. That’s not quite as big an objection as you might think. For one thing, Christians were already suffering; they were already being insulted. Let’s face it: Jesus was crucified—that’s not nice. Stephen was stoned to death. There were other Christians who were being imprisoned and persecuted all the time, and just because it was not official Roman policy to kill every Christian in the empire did not mean that nobody was getting persecuted. Peter himself was executed by the Romans. They were already suffering, and do you think that God, knowing what was coming at the empire-wide level, might have had special purposes in having Peter write this letter to prepare them for what was coming? At one point Peter says, “Don’t be surprised at the painful trial that’s coming” (1 Peter 4:12), so he may have been writing not just to the present sufferings but to the future ones.

As for the fact that this letter sounds too much in agreement with Paul, that’s more a figment of scholarly imagination than reality. Peter and Paul disagreed once, and Peter backed down because he was wrong. For a short time, he had strayed away from what he knew to be the gospel of grace and had stopped eating with some Gentile people, and Paul called him out on it. They got right back on the same page with the grace of God and the welcoming of people of all nations, and they were partners in the gospel. It tells you more about the scholars than about Peter and Paul when they say they couldn’t have sounded alike. The apostles preached undivided truth focused on Jesus Christ and guided by the Holy Spirit.

Why didn’t Peter reminisce more about his time with Jesus in this letter? For one thing, he was meeting the needs of the particular churches that were in Asia, and that’s why he wrote the letter. For another reason, Peter already shared a lot of what he recalled with his assistant Mark, who wrote the Gospel of Mark using Peter’s memories of Jesus’ preaching, miracles, death, and resurrection.

So again, I apologize for spending any time on this at all. When you read that word “Peter” to start this letter, just take it to the bank—it was Peter—and move on. But just in case you come across some of these objections, here’s what they are and why they fail.

A quick timeline: Peter became a disciple of Jesus around the year 30. For three years he served with Jesus, and then after Jesus’ death and resurrection, he preached that mighty sermon on Pentecost, probably the year 33. When you read the book of Acts, one of the memorable times is when Peter gets thrown into prison and is scheduled for execution, but an angel rescues him, and then the angel kills Herod—that happened in the year 44.

When you get into the 50s, somewhere between 53 and 55, Peter is with Mark, and he shares his memories with Mark, who writes them down—the memories of Jesus’ words and deeds. So the Gospel according to Mark is written about twenty years after Jesus’ resurrection, and most of those, according to early church fathers, were memories that Peter gave to Mark. Then in about 62 or 63 or so, Peter writes this letter with the assistance of Silas, or else Silas is the bearer of the letter if not the writer. Then in 64 or so, Peter wrote Second Peter and was murdered, crucified under the emperor Nero.

So that gives you just a little timeline of what was going on in Peter’s life.

When we look at the end of First Peter, there are three major companions of Peter: Silas, “she who is in Babylon,” and “my son Mark.” Let’s spend a brief time on each of these companions of Peter who were with him when he wrote this letter.

First of all, there is Silas, also called Silvanus. Those two names refer to the same man, just slightly different versions—just as Peter could be Simon or Simeon, Silas is also Silvanus in some letters. He was a leader among the Jerusalem Christians. When there was a big council in Jerusalem, they voted on who they should send to represent them and carry their letter to the people they were writing to. That council of Jerusalem voted, and one of the two people they chose was Silas. He brought that letter to Antioch, and the Bible says he was himself a prophet, and when he brought the letter, he encouraged them greatly and strengthened their faith (Acts 15:22, 32).

He was a very special man. When you’ve got a whole room full of apostles and prophets and great leaders, and you’re one of the two they pick to send back with Paul to Antioch, you know this was a highly respected man in the church. When Paul and Barnabas had completed their first missionary journey and then parted ways, Silas was the one Paul chose to go with him on his second missionary journey. Silas and Paul together were beaten and jailed until an earthquake broke the doors and the chains in the jail, and Silas and Paul were singing a duet in the jail when that earthquake happened (Acts 16:25–26).

Sometimes we rattle through these letters and read, “I’m Peter, I’m writing, Silas is with me,” and forget who he’s really talking about. We know some of these great names, and Silas can seem like a sidekick who isn’t all that important—kind of like Alexander Hamilton, who was always chief of staff to Washington and a member of his cabinet, no big deal—other than founding the Bank of the United States and implementing all of Washington’s policies. Silas is kind of like that. He doesn’t get as famous as Peter or Paul, but he’s described in detail in Acts 15 and 16.

He helped when Paul wrote First and Second Thessalonians; you’ll see that he’s with Paul when Paul writes. He may have been the secretary of those letters too, which could explain some of the similarities in style. There’s also speculation that not only did he help Peter with First Peter, but he’s one of the leading candidates as author of the book of Hebrews. Hebrews doesn’t name an author, but Barnabas is one top candidate, and Silas is another.

So, some of you may never rise to be the “big dog,” the major person everybody admires, but sometimes the second in command or the third in command can be used by God in wonderful and mighty ways. Silas reminds us of that. So next time you’re jailed and need a duet, you can be the second voice in that duet—you can be Silas.

“She who is in Babylon, chosen together with you, sends her greetings.” Who is “she in Babylon”? It could be Mrs. Peter, Peter’s wife. We know that she traveled with him and served in many of his missions. Early church tradition says she was also killed for her faith. So when Peter refers to “she in Babylon,” he may be referring to the fact that his wife is with him in Rome as he writes the letter.

It’s more probable, though, that he’s referring to the church in Rome—the elect people of Rome who have been called by God just like the people he’s writing to. He’s saying, in effect, “The people here in Rome send their greetings.” The letter is written after Paul has left Rome and gone off on his mission to Spain, and before Nero’s all-out cruelty after the great fire of Rome, which he blamed on the Christians. It’s written in that window of time, around A.D. 62 to 63, roughly thirty years after Jesus’ death and resurrection.

Then there’s Mark. Who’s Mark? John Mark was a young man who was with Jesus probably from almost the very beginning, one of the early followers. His mother, Mary, hosted meetings in her home. In the book of Acts, when Peter was jailed and they thought he was going to be killed, believers were meeting and praying in the home of John Mark’s mother. When Peter was miraculously freed and knocked on the door, they wouldn’t let him in because they were sure he was dead—they were having a prayer meeting for his rescue but didn’t pray with much faith (Acts 12:12–16). God doesn’t always depend on our amount of faith when he decides how to answer our prayers.

Mark helped his cousin Barnabas, the “son of encouragement” and a mighty missionary in his own right. But after going with Barnabas and Paul, Mark quit halfway through that missionary journey, and Paul was not very fond of quitters. When they planned their second missionary journey, Paul said, “I’m not taking Mark along again. You can’t count on the guy.” Barnabas said, “I’ll give him another chance.” Paul and Barnabas had a sharp disagreement and decided to part ways. Paul headed off with Silas; Barnabas headed off with Mark to Cyprus, and they carried the gospel there (Acts 15:36–39).

It’s kind of a sad story that two great missionaries like Barnabas and Paul couldn’t get along, and yet God used it to spread the gospel in multiple directions. Later, Paul’s opinion of Mark changes. When Paul is near the end of his life, he writes, “Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry” (2 Timothy 4:11).

Peter says, “My son Mark is with me” (1 Peter 5:13). So Mark obviously went on to become not a quitter but someone trustworthy. He’s in Babylon (Rome) with Peter, and he’s the one God used to write the Gospel of Mark, based on Peter’s preaching about Jesus.

I’ve made a bigger deal about Mark than just hurrying past his name because maybe some of you need a bit of encouragement. Maybe you failed, you blew it, you quit—and once you’ve failed and not followed through on something you started, Satan will send the message, “You’re a quitter. You’re a loser. You’re never going to be able to do much for the Lord in the future. You’re never going to amount to much.” Well, you don’t have to believe that. You start where you are, not where you wish you were. You start where you are and let God make you who he wants you to be.

Mark became one who was useful to Paul, who had previously said, “I can’t count on the guy.” He became Peter’s right-hand man, his son in the faith, and he wrote one of the great portions of Scripture that we have in our Bibles. So if you need a little encouragement, just bring to mind again Mark—a man who failed. And let’s face it, Peter failed too. He denied Jesus three times, and God made much of him still. So as Peter says at the end of this epistle, he’s “the God of all grace.” Don’t just think about your failure; think about the God of all grace, and then think about what could happen.

The historian Eusebius says, “In the reign of Claudius” (that would be in the 50s), “the providence of the universe guided to Rome the great and mighty Peter, preaching the gospel. But the hearers of Peter were not satisfied with a single hearing, but begged Mark, seeing that he was Peter’s follower, to leave them a written statement of the teaching that had been spoken, and so became the cause of the Scripture called the Gospel of Mark.” So there you have it—Peter and Mark collaborating and producing that great gospel that we still can read today, with all those wonderful works and words of our Lord Jesus Christ.

As we think about this wrap-up, we’ve seen Peter’s authorship, we’ve seen Peter’s companions, but I really want to focus and spend some time on Peter’s purpose, because this really sums up the whole epistle and drives it home for us.

“The God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast. I have written to you briefly, encouraging you and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Stand fast in it” (1 Peter 5:10–12). That’s his purpose. He wants to encourage, and he testifies that this is God’s grace—this is the real deal. Stand firm in it. Don’t let anything shake you.

Remember, he says this right after he says, “Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith” (1 Peter 5:8–9). Now, if that’s all he said, you might think, “Who am I to resist the prince of darkness? Who am I to resist the mighty archangel who fell? How am I supposed to resist the devil?” And he says, “You resist the devil because you’ve got the God of all grace on your side. I’m encouraging you and testifying that this is the true grace of God.”

Peter’s purpose all the way through this letter is this thread of suffering and glory. He wants to encourage sufferers that there’s glory waiting for them, and he wants to reveal the true gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.

So as we think about that theme of suffering and glory in the big picture of Peter, there is Christ, who saved perishing people in a wicked world by suffering and then rising to glory. And then there are the Christians, who witness for Christ in a wicked world by sharing in his suffering and his glory. Both Christ and his followers experience suffering and glory—Christ for our salvation, and we so that we may witness in this wicked world.

Peter says, “God has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3). Resurrection is glory; death is suffering. “The Spirit predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow” (1 Peter 1:11). So Jesus experiences suffering and glory. “You were redeemed with the precious blood of Christ” (1 Peter 1:19)—that’s the suffering. “Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, so your faith and hope are in God” (1 Peter 1:21). He was “put to death in the body” (1 Peter 3:18)—there’s the suffering—“but made alive by the Spirit”—there’s the glory. And more glory: “He has gone into heaven and is at God’s right hand—with angels, authorities, and powers in submission to him” (1 Peter 3:22). Again and again, it’s Jesus’ suffering and glory that are the key to our eternal life.

If you focus on his suffering, Peter explains it as clearly as anyone: “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed” (1 Peter 2:24). “Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God” (1 Peter 3:18). He took all our sins upon himself, and we were unrighteous, but he took our sins and gave us his righteousness. That’s the way the New Testament explains the death of Jesus—substitutionary atonement. He stands in our place and bears the punishment we deserved.

Because he suffered for us, we’re also called to suffer with him. “To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example that you should follow in his steps” (1 Peter 2:21). “You participate in the sufferings of Christ” (1 Peter 4:13). “You are insulted because of the name of Christ” (1 Peter 4:14).

And here you might be thinking, “Why didn’t he just preach a nice Valentine’s Day sermon—a little chocolate, a little romance, come on?” Okay, here’s your chance—here’s your Valentine’s Day sermon. Why do we celebrate Valentine’s Day on February 14?

On that day in the year 289, Valentinus—Valentine—was beaten to death, beaten with clubs, and had his head chopped off on the orders of Claudius the Cruel, emperor of the Roman Empire. Happy Valentine’s Day! That’s the story of Valentine. There are some stories we’re not always sure are true or not, but according to some of them, Valentine was secretly performing Christian weddings at a time when the emperor didn’t want people getting married because he wanted them all serving in his armies, and married men weren’t as trustworthy for military service.

Valentine, when he performed these ceremonies for Christians, would give them a heart-shaped piece of parchment as a reminder of the promises they had made to each other and of God’s love for them. There’s also a story that when he was jailed, shortly before he was killed, he healed a girl who was the daughter of one of the officials and then sent her a note that said, “From your Valentine.” Some of these details we can’t verify, but we are quite sure that on February 14, Valentine was executed for being a Christian. So, there’s your Valentine’s Day message.

“To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example that you should follow in his steps” (1 Peter 2:21).

Christ saved perishing people in a wicked world by suffering and then rising to glory. Peter makes that very clear. And he also makes clear that Christians witness for Christ in a wicked world by sharing in his suffering and in his glory.

We’ve heard the story of Valentine—the real story of the real Valentine—and it reminds us there’s more to it than roses and chocolate when you think about the saints who actually perished for their faith. When we think about the suffering of Christians and their glory, Peter says, “In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials” (1 Peter 1:6). There’s the suffering. “These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory, and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed” (1 Peter 1:7). There’s the glory.

“Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong”—there’s the suffering—“they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us” (1 Peter 2:12). Some of them will be saved and glorify God, and even the unsaved will have to admit that your life shone with the glory of God when they face him on that final day. “Even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed” (1 Peter 3:14). “Since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude” (1 Peter 4:1).

I trust you’re not guessing anymore why I gave the theme for this whole series the title Suffering and Glory. It’s the thread that runs all through this letter by Peter.

Armando Valladares was a Cuban poet who spent twenty-two years in prison under Fidel Castro and the murderous regime of Castro and Che Guevara. Some people today wear t-shirts with Che Guevara on them, thinking he’s a cool guy. But if you know what the dictatorship in Cuba did for all those years, it’s a terrible story of repression, persecution, murder, and bloodshed. Valladares spent those years remembering the tortures of himself and others, the executions of prisoners. He wrote a book about it, and at the end of the book he says that amid all the filth and the grit and the blood, he remembered the skeletal figure of a man wasted by hunger, with white hair, blazing blue eyes, and a heart overflowing with love, raising his arms to the invisible heaven and pleading for mercy for his executioners: “Forgive them, Father, for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34). Then a burst of machine-gun fire ripped open his chest.

That’s the end of his book—after all those terrible things, what Valladares remembers is that man praying, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do,” and then a line of bullets into his chest.

We don’t even know that man’s name. We know Fidel Castro’s name. God knows Fidel Castro’s name too. But God also knows the name of that man who took those bullets in the chest and prayed for his persecutors.

We are the heirs of many anonymous martyrs over the centuries—our brothers and sisters in the faith. Christ suffered in his body. Those who suffer for him are blessed, even if the world never knows their name, even if the world forgets them. “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints” (Psalm 116:15). God says, “I have stored your tears in a bottle” (Psalm 56:8), and he will not forget. “Rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you” (1 Peter 4:13–14).

The sufferings, the glory, the insults, the Spirit of glory—it’s all together. You cannot separate these things in the life of a Christian. When Stephen was stoned, the Bible says he saw Jesus at the right hand of God. He saw the glory of God (Acts 7:55–56). It wasn’t just that he was going to enter into glory—it was in his very suffering that the glory was revealed to him.

I’ve said in previous messages on First Peter that people who have suffered in prison have said there was a joy and a glory that came upon them that they never experienced in their more normal walk with the Lord.

“I appeal as a witness of Christ’s sufferings and one who also will share in the glory to be revealed,” says Peter. “When the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away” (1 Peter 5:1, 4). Suffering and glory. Suffering and glory.

“The God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast” (1 Peter 5:10).

My daughter posted a story earlier about a godly slave, and I thought it fit perfectly with this theme of suffering and glory. The slave’s master was speaking with another slave owner one day. The other man said, “I think the religion of slaves is all hypocrisy. It’s phony. It’s not real.” The master of this godly slave said, “I’m not so sure about that. I have one slave who I believe would rather die than deny his Savior.” The other man said, “Prove it.”

So they sent for that slave and ordered him to denounce Christ and reject his faith. He said, “I can’t do that. I’d rather die than deny my Redeemer whose blood was shed for me.” They threatened him, but he still wouldn’t do it. They whipped him, and they whipped him some more. He still wouldn’t do it. They whipped him until he died. And so the man won his bet.

That’s a slave whose name we don’t know, but God knows. And God knows the name of that master too. Peter tells us God knows how to take care of both ends of that. He knows those who suffered for him. He knows the glory that awaits them. These are the kind of people who have been faithful to God throughout the centuries.

Let’s think about this particular verse: “The God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast” (1 Peter 5:10).

So we’ve got Christ’s sufferings, the sufferings of Christians, and then Peter’s purpose. He says, “This is why I wrote to you—to encourage you and tell you this is the true grace of God.” I want to think with you about each of those phrases in that verse we’ve been focusing on.

He’s the God of all grace. How does Peter start the letter? “Grace and peace be yours in abundance” (1 Peter 1:2). How does he end the letter? “This is the true grace of God. Stand fast in it. Peace to all of you who are in Christ” (1 Peter 5:12, 14). Grace and peace.

He says, “Set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed” (1 Peter 1:13). When he speaks of the different gifts that Christians have—whether gifts of service or of speaking—he says, “Use whatever gift you have received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms” (1 Peter 4:10). When you’re doing that, it’s God’s grace flowing through you. “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” (1 Peter 5:5). The God of all grace will restore you. This is the true grace of God.

Peter was a gospel preacher—a preacher of grace. Grace is God’s kindness and favor toward people who haven’t earned it, who have done nothing to bring it about. As the Gospel of John says, “From his fullness we have all received grace upon grace” (John 1:16). God keeps piling up the grace.

We often speak of the grace of God, and we should, but here Peter speaks of the God of grace—the great God who is gracious in his very nature. Let that sink in again: whenever you’re discouraged, whenever you’ve failed, whenever you’ve done wrong, go to God for forgiveness and remember that he’s the God of all grace. When Satan is attacking and you’re feeling beaten down, remember that you go to the God of all grace, and his grace comes to you—grace upon grace upon grace.

“He called you.” When God calls you, he doesn’t just say, “Hey, I have a suggestion.” When God said, “Let there be light,” there was light (Genesis 1:3). When God called, “Lazarus, come out,” he came out (John 11:43–44). Because God’s call accomplishes what God’s word says. You’re God’s elect, chosen according to God the Father’s foreknowledge (1 Peter 1:1–2). That mighty call of God brings about what he says you’re going to be. You may be dead in sin—he says, “Come out, be alive,” and you are.

You’re called by a holy God to be holy: “Just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do” (1 Peter 1:15). “You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light” (1 Peter 2:9). Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy (1 Peter 2:10). Because God called you out of darkness into light, you went from nobodies to the royal priesthood—to royalty.

God called you to follow in Jesus’ steps: “To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example that you should follow in his steps” (1 Peter 2:21). “Do 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” (1 Peter 3:9).

How can somebody in Castro’s prisons stand there and say, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34), right before a machine gun mows him down? How can he do that? Because he was called. And when God calls, he makes people mighty. You become mighty when that mighty call of God is working within you.

You’re called to eternal glory in Christ. One of the great comforts is God’s election and calling. When his mighty choice and his mighty word have determined that you’re going to be something, you take heart in that and say, “God is making me what he’s declared me to be.” He called Simon “Peter,” and Peter was not a rock at the time Jesus called him that, but because Jesus called him that, that’s what he became. That’s the call of God—when he declares it, it becomes so.

What did he call you to? In this verse, you were called “to his eternal glory in Christ.” What’s that eternal glory? Peter speaks earlier of the believer’s future: “You will receive praise, glory, and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed” (1 Peter 1:7). Jesus will say, “Well done.” You’ll receive the best glory and the best honor of all. Not only are you going to shine like Christ with his glory, but Christ himself will praise you, saying, “Well done.” You’ll receive “the crown of glory that will never fade away” (1 Peter 5:4).

This eternal glory that you’re called to is the enjoyment of his glory. Jesus, when he prayed for his followers, said, “I have given them the glory that you gave me” (John 17:22). He gives his followers the glory that God gave him. And he says, “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am and to see my glory, the glory you gave me before the creation of the world” (John 17:24), “so that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.”

He wants us to see his glory, to experience his glory, to be surrounded with that glory. Sometimes we use the phrase “We’re going to glory someday,” and we think of it as a general label for heaven—a place that’s really nice, heaven on earth, with all the good things God promises his people. But we need to think literally that the best thing about heaven is the glory—enjoying the glory of God: his radiance, his beauty, his vast authority, being enjoyed by Christ, having the Lord God singing over us and rejoicing over us. The Bible speaks of that (Zephaniah 3:17).

The Bible also speaks of being called into God’s divine council—that great council of God with the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures and the mighty angels (Revelation 4–5). The council of God that he consults in his reign over the world, that he appoints to carry out various parts of his rule—you and I are called into that council. We become part of the divine council. We share in that throne. Christ says that the one who overcomes will sit down with him on his throne (Revelation 3:21).

That’s what glory means—nothing less. You are called to God’s eternal glory in Christ.

It’s in Christ that you’re called. There would be no hope for us if it weren’t for Christ. We’re not just called as individuals to become something; we’re called through Christ and in Christ—to see his glory, to share his glory, to delight in it, to see him face to face, and to shine with the same shining that came from his face at the Transfiguration—the same dazzling brightness that no one can look upon and live. We’ll be looking on that brightness and living forever, shining with that same glory.

When God called us, ultimately what did he call us to be? The Bible says in Romans 8, “Those whom he foreknew he also predestined; those he predestined he also called; those he called he also justified; those he justified he also glorified” (Romans 8:29–30). He predestined them “to be conformed to the likeness of his Son” (Romans 8:29)—to be exactly like Jesus. That’s what you’re called and elected to become: to be like Jesus, to shine with God’s eternal glory in Christ.

“After you’ve suffered a little while.” Peter says near the beginning of the letter, “Now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials” (1 Peter 1:6). Then at the end of the letter he says again, “After you’ve suffered a little while” (1 Peter 5:10). The apostle Paul uses the same kind of language. He says, “Our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us” (Romans 8:18). “Our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all” (2 Corinthians 4:17).

“Our light and momentary troubles”—and this from Paul, who also wrote that he had received thirty-nine lashes three times, had been beaten with rods, shipwrecked three times, in constant danger, imprisoned unjustly, and ultimately had his head chopped off (2 Corinthians 11:24–27). “Light and momentary”—those little sufferings! Peter also speaks of suffering “a little while,” and he himself would be crucified upside down. He already knew he would die a terrible death because Jesus had told him so before his ascension (John 21:18–19). And yet he says, “It’s only a little while, and the glory lasts forever.”

Remember that. Some of us suffer more, some less. Not all suffering comes from direct attacks by evil persecutors, but there are still sufferings that Satan may send our way and that God may permit for our good and for his glory.

John Calvin wrote that Satan sometimes attacks through bad economics in the land. He will attack through illness and the terrible suffering that illness brings. He’ll attack through evil and vicious persecutors. All of those may be attacks from the evil one, but they only last a little while, and God is using them for our good and for his glory.

So if you’re going through a time of affliction now—a terrible affliction—I’m not trying to say, “Oh, it doesn’t hurt,” or even that it doesn’t really grind after days turn into weeks, months, or even years. And yet, in the big picture, it’s a little suffering for a little while—for an endless glory and infinite joy and pleasure.

Because he calls us, we can count on him to carry it through. Peter says, “He will restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.” That’s closer to the original wording. Our version says, “The God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you’ve suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast” (1 Peter 5:10).

The words mean much the same thing, and Peter piles them up to drive the point home. “Restore”—he’ll make you like new. Sometimes a vehicle gets really run down and has a lot of problems, but a good restorer will make that car like it was at the very beginning. Or a great artwork, over the years, may get dirty or damaged, but a great art restorer will make it beautiful again, just as it was meant to be.

God will restore you. In this life, he often restores us from illness, setbacks, or failures. And certainly, at the great restoration, he will restore us perfectly.

“He will confirm.” That means he makes your faith secure and gives you an inward assurance of your faith. He’s going to confirm you because he called you, and he started it, and he’s going to finish it. “He will strengthen you.” How do you resist the devil? Because he gives you the power to endure. He gives you the power to win. “He will establish you.” That word literally means he will set you on a foundation. He gives you a rock-solid base. Your life is built on solid rock, and whatever storms come, when you’re built on rock, you’re not going to collapse amid those storms. That’s God’s promise.

The God of all grace will restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. And that is Peter—this first letter in a nutshell: suffering and glory. “The God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast” (1 Peter 5:10). “I have written to you briefly, encouraging you and testifying that this is the true grace of God” (1 Peter 5:12).

This is the writing of a man who died for his faith, crucified upside down, and he testifies that this is the true grace of God. There will be many other voices, many other challenges to the faith, but this is the testimony of the real grace of God—the true grace of God.

And how we need this today. We need this letter, because two of the greatest problems of the church and of our society are both related to worldliness. One problem is simply that, for many of us, our top priority is staying comfortable—chasing pleasures and what feels good, fleeing from anything that might be inconvenient or painful. If you spend your whole life trying to get away from what doesn’t feel good and chasing what does feel good, you’re wasting your life. And if you’re a Christian at all, you’re a miserable, wimpy sort of Christian.

I’m not getting on your case if you did something nice for Valentine’s Day and had a few chocolates and roses and all that, but it’s almost emblematic of what we’ve become. Instead of honoring the martyr for the faith who was clubbed and beheaded, we’d rather have a few sweets. That’s kind of how the church is nowadays—it better taste mighty fine, or I’m off to something else.

We need to re-prioritize and ask, “Is there something I’m willing to suffer for—not just something that tastes good?”

The other problem, closely related to worldliness, is a lack of a sense of glory—a loss of the sense of the glory of God: his greatness, his majesty, his beauty, his worth. And related to that, a loss of our own glory—not knowing how glorious we are in Christ. We don’t expect to be heroes. We don’t expect to do anything that will make an eternal impact. We don’t expect much of ourselves.

Peter says, “You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God” (1 Peter 2:9). You’re the ones God put on this earth to testify to the world. You’ve got the glory. And if God’s glory is going to be seen at all in this world, it’s going to be seen through you.

Do you have an awareness of the glory that’s already yours, because you’re the holy priesthood? Do you have an awareness of the glory that’s waiting for you when you’ve served God faithfully? Do you look forward to that eternal glory—or are you saying, “Lord, just help me be kind of an ordinary person who doesn’t do much, but doesn’t suffer much either. I don’t want to have much pain, and I don’t really mind if I don’t amount to much either. I just hope from day to day I can watch my favorite programs, eat my favorite foods, hang out with my favorite people, and then maybe die in my sleep”? Let’s face it. Too often, we’re wimps and cowards who want to mosey through life on the path of least resistance.

So—suffering and glory. I urge you: take this portion of God’s Word, First Peter, to heart. What suffering are you willing to face for the Lord? What are you willing to sacrifice for him? And what is the glory worth to you—the splendor and glory of God, whom you worship and adore, or at least claim to? And the splendor and glory that God called you to have. He declares who we are—and that’s why Peter always reminds us who God is and who we are:

“The God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast. I have written to you briefly, encouraging you and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Stand fast in it” (1 Peter 5:10, 12).

Prayer

Lord, we may truly stand fast, knowing the God of grace and the grace of God, knowing the Christ who suffered and entered into his glory and who calls us to follow in his steps. Lord Jesus, may we be found worthy of you. Turn us away from our cautious, self-centered, cowardly little plans for ourselves, and lead us into avenues of service to you—to be daring people who will endure challenges, even to be prepared, if that day should come, to bear the insults, tortures, and even death inflicted by the evil one on those he hates. Give us each day an abiding sense of that glory that shines from you and that you’ve given to us, so that even in this world your glory may shine from us and others may be drawn to the wonder of the living Savior, Jesus Christ. We pray in his name. Amen.

Suffering and Glory (1 Peter 5: 10-14)
By David Feddes
Slide Contents

¹⁰ And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. ¹¹ To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen.¹² With the help of Silas, whom I regard as a faithful brother, I have written to you briefly, encouraging you and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Stand fast in it. ¹³ She who is in Babylon, chosen together with you, sends you her greetings, and so does my son Mark.  ¹⁴ Greet one another with a kiss of love. Peace to all of you who are in Christ.

Wrap-up

• Peter’s authorship

• Peter’s companions

• Peter’s purpose

Author challenges

1. A Jewish fisherman could not have written such polished Greek.
2. Official, empire-wide persecution did not come until after Peter’s death.
3. Peter agrees too much with Paul.
4. The letter has more church teaching than direct memories of Jesus.
   
   

Peter’s authorship

1. Peter was bilingual, mentored by Jesus, spoke in tongues, inspired by Spirit. May have dictated to Silas.
2. Christians were already suffering, and Peter prepared them for worse.
3. Apostles preached undivided truth.
4. Peter was meeting churches’ needs.
   
   

Timeline

• 30 Peter becomes disciple of Jesus

• 33 Peter preaches on Pentecost

• 44 Angel rescues Peter; kills Herod

• 53-55 Mark’s gospel records Peter’s memories of Jesus’ words and deeds

• 62-63 Peter writes 1 Peter (with Silas)

• 64 Peter writes 2 Peter; is crucified

Peter’s companions

With the help of Silas, whom I regard as a faithful brother, I have written to you briefly, encouraging you and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Stand fast in it. She who is in Babylon, chosen together with you, sends you her greetings, and so does my son Mark. (1 Peter 5:12-13)

Silas (Silvanus)

• A leader among Jerusalem Christians

• Presented Council’s letter to Antioch

• Prophet, encourager, strengthener

• Chosen by Paul for mission journey

• Beaten, then jailed, but still singing

• Helped Paul with 1 & 2 Thessalonians

• Helped Peter with 1 Peter

• Did Silas write Hebrews?

She in Babylon

• “She in Babylon, elect with you, sends her greetings” (5:13)

♰   Could be Mrs. Peter, in Rome with Peter; later killed for her faith

♰   Probably refers to church of Rome

• Written after Paul left Rome for Spain and before Nero’s all-out cruelty

Mark

• Mark’s mother, Mary, hosted meetings in her home; prayed for Peter’s rescue.

• Mark helped his cousin Barnabas and Paul in mission, quit, but later resumed.

• In “Babylon” (Rome) with Peter

• Mark wrote gospel of Mark, based on Peter’s preaching about Jesus

In the reign of Claudius the Providence of the universe guided to Rome the great and mighty Peter preaching the gospel. But the hearers of Peter were not satisfied with a single hearing but begged Mark, seeing that he was Peter’s follower, to leave them a written statement of the teaching that had been spoken, and so became the cause of the Scripture called the Gospel of Mark. (Eusebius)

Wrap-up

• Peter’s authorship

• Peter’s companions

• Peter’s purpose

Peter’s purpose

The God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast… I have written to you briefly, encouraging you and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Stand fast in it. (1 Peter 5:12-13)

Suffering and glory

• Christ saved perishing people in a wicked world by suffering and then rising to glory.

• Christians witness for Christ in a wicked world by sharing in his suffering and in his glory.

Christ

God has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead (1:3)

The Spirit predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. (1:11)

You were redeemed …. with the precious blood of Christ… Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God. (1:19, 21)

He was put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit… Christ has gone into heaven and is at God’s right hand—with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him. (3:18-22)

Jesus suffered for us

He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree… by his wounds you have been healed. (2:24)

Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. (3:18)

We suffer with Jesus

To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. (2:20-21)

You participate in the sufferings of Christ… you are insulted because of the name of Christ. (4:13-14)

Suffering and glory

• Christ saved perishing people in a wicked world by suffering and then rising to glory.

• Christians witness for Christ in a wicked world by sharing in his suffering and in his glory.

Christians

In this [rebirth and salvation] you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith… may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. (1:6-7)

Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us. (2:12)

Even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. (3:14)

Since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude. (4:1)

But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. (4:13-14)

I appeal as… a witness of Christ’s sufferings and one who also will share in the glory to be revealed… when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away. (5:1, 4)

And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. (5:10)

Suffering and glory

• Christ saved perishing people in a wicked world by suffering and then rising to glory.

• Christians witness for Christ in a wicked world by sharing in his suffering and in his glory.

Peter’s purpose

The God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast… I have written to you briefly, encouraging you and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Stand fast in it. (1 Peter 5:12-13)

God of all grace…

• Grace and peace (1:2; 5:12, 14)

• Set hope fully on future grace (1:13)

• Stewards of varied grace (4:10)

• God gives grace to the humble (5:5)

• God of all grace restores you (5:10)

• This is the true grace of God (5:12)

… who called you…

• God’s elect… called according to God the Father’s foreknowledge (1:1-2)

• Called by holy God to be holy (1:15)

• Called out of darkness into light (2:9)

• Called to follow in Jesus’ steps (2:21)

• Called to repay evil with blessing (3:9)

• Called to eternal glory in Christ (5:10)

…to his eternal glory in Christ…

• Receive praise, glory, and honor (1:7)

• Crown of glory that never fades (5:4)

I have given them the glory that you gave me… Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory. (John 17:22, 24)

… after you have suffered a little while…

… though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. (1 Peter 1:6)

Our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. (2 Cor 4:17)

…will restore, confirm, strengthen, establish you. 

• Restore: make you like new

• Confirm: secure and assure your faith

• Strengthen: power to endure and win

• Establish: set on rock-solid foundation

Suffering and glory

The God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast… I have written to you briefly, encouraging you and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Stand fast in it. (1 Peter 5:12-13)