"Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trials you are suffering, as though something strange is happening to you. But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed."
1 Peter 4: 12-13

THE next section of teaching Peter gives is from verses 12 to 19 of chapter 4 of his first letter to the churches. The theme of these verse is suffering for Christ, but in these first two verses I have focused on the word 'rejoice' in verse 13, and entitled this sermon as 'Joy in suffering'. Suffering is never pleasant, and is more a means of depressing our spirits, but still Peter and other apostles, together with Christ, speak of suffering for the believer as something to rejoice in. Although every human suffering we know the comfort, strength and grace of Christ, the suffering here, and as suffering is dealt with in the New Testament, focuses on suffering for our service for Christ, and defence of the Gospel. When Peter says at the end of verse 13 'so that you may be overjoyed when his (Christ's) glory is revealed' he is majoring on the importance of be ready for Christ's return and being welcomed by him as he gathers us into his everlasting kingdom. This is made clear in the parable of the talents (Matthew 25: 14-30). We live for Jesus in order to hear him say when he comes 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful in a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness'. (Verse 21)

The teaching given by Peter in these verses is specially and only for disciples of Jesus. This is made clear in his address at the beginning of verse 12. Peter is speaking to 'Dear friends', that is friends in the Gospel, and friends in Christ. What he says about suffering has no relevance for the people of the world, and no application to those in the visible church whose lives are based on their own wisdom and who treat the Bible as a place which contains the word of God, and by which they seek out, by their own fallen human reason, a selection of what they approve by their own wisdom, which is according to the flesh and not the Spirit. By this means much of the revelation of God is rejected, and only what human wisdom approves is accepted.

The thing that Peter makes clear is that if we are believers in the truth as is revealed in the whole of the Bible revelation from God, then suffering for Christ is inevitable. In the visible church, the wheat, that is these true believers, find themselves amongst weeds sown by Satan, which seek to choke the wheat, and prevent its growth. (Matthew 13: 24-30).

Peter tells us that we must not be surprised at this. Faithful service for Christ will bring suffering and persecution. Jesus warned his disciples of this in John 15: 18-25. He told them that if the world, specially seen in the religious leaders amongst the Jews when Jesus lived and taught on this earth, hated him, then his true disciples should not be surprised when the same hate of the world is brought to bear on them even by the visible church. The more faithful we are for the truth, in proclamation and defence of the Gospel, the greater will be our experience of the opposition of the world, and the suffering that this brings.

However, such suffering is all joy because it gives assurance that we are true disciples of Jesus, and in this evidence suffering should not surprise us.

In the next verse, verse 13, Peter tells us to rejoice in these sufferings. He tells us that we are participating in the sufferings of Christ. This statement must be understood correctly. There is no idea in these words that we can share in Christ's sufferings which he endured in obedience to his Father, in order to atone for sin, and work a perfect righteousness which is imputed to all who savingly believe on him as Saviour. We can contribute nothing to this great and sovereign and saving work of Jesus which he completed for the forgiveness of all our sins and the gift of eternal life for all given him by the Father by his gracious eternal election unto salvation. The suffering spoken of by Peter in these two verses is suffering from the hate of the world which inevitably comes from Satan, who seeks to mobilise all his followers, specially religious ones, to persecute all those who live for Jesus as his saved disciples, and who faithfully teach and live the Gospel as Jesus did. This suffering varies in degree. For some it means martyrdom, others it means real hurt in living, through persecution where imprisonment, starvation, physical and mental abuse, and much more are experienced. For others it means being marginalised by others is different ways. But whatever our circumstances, if we are faithful to Christ in life and speaking, the devil will see that we suffer for it.

However Peter goes on to assure us that living for Jesus faithfully, enduring the cross, that is the attack of Satan by the world, is working for us an eternal hope of glory when Christ returns to judge the living and the dead. Suffering in time, but abundant joy when at last we are brought to the eternal life with Jesus in the dwelling places he has prepared for us in the eternal glory. This is what Paul testified to in Romans 8: 17b-18 'if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing to the glory that will be revealed in us'. We have the same glory particularised in Revelation 22: 1-5 and Revelation 21: 3-4. Where Peter speaks in verse 13 of Christ's glory being revealed, this must be a reference to the return of Christ in great glory, when he will judge the living and the dead.

Having spent time in seeking to understand the meaning of Peter's words in these two verses, let us enlarge our understanding by seeking to suck out the juice of the teaching here so that we may fortify ourselves in dealing with suffering when we experience it.

So let us first of all understand the source of this suffering. This suffering comes to us when we are faithful disciples. Suffering will be experienced when we live holy lives. To live in holiness will mean negatively that we will avoid all those things in life which tend towards exciting our fleshly sinful nature, and dulling our sense of the presence of God; and will mean positively that we will seek treasure in heaven and heavenly things. In such habit of life we will stand out in this earthly life, and the world will react against us as our lives will in some measure be an offence to the worldly spirit of others who live in the world. In days gone by there was a carefulness concerning the ways of the world which were felt to promote worldliness, and dull our spiritual senses and draw us away from the Lord. It may be felt that this carefulness went too far, and much in social life was avoided which were gifts of God for our enjoyment, but in our modern age it is evident we have gone too far in embracing the world, and thus worldliness in the life of God's people has grown, and living in the light of fellowship with Jesus has been eroded.

When we seek to live in holiness suffering will be experienced as the world will despise us, people in the visible church will dislike us, as the church of the Jews in Jesus' earthly life despised him, and opposed him almost in every way they could.

Then the suffering which Peter speaks of will be experienced when we are faithful in gospel witness. Such witness will be offensive to those in the visible church who have departed from the truth; and it will be offensive to others in the world as it offends their way of life in the world. Then suffering within the visible church will be experienced when we seek to defend the truth of God's word in the whole of the Bible, and like the Pharisees towards Jesus those who have departed from the truth will oppose the truth in very serious strength and power. The world in the church in which Jesus lived was virulent against the disciples when they preached the Gospel, and so we must not be surprised when we experience the same opposition and rejection.

It is a fact of the Christian life that faithfulness for the truth of God's word and faithfulness to God will bring suffering. There is ample proof of this in the biblical history, and in history thereafter. In the book of Daniel, when Daniel's friends, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego refused to worship the golden image set up by King Nebuchadnezzar they were thrown into the fiery furnace. There are many idols worshipped in the visible church which are products of selection from the Bible of the nature of God of which they approve. When Daniel refused to worship Darius because it would have been idolatry, and turning away from Jehovah in chapter 6, he was thrown into the den of lions. When Jeremiah was faithful in declaring the word of God he was thrown into a pit of mire. When Abel was faithful to the truth his brother murdered him. At the time of the reformation in the days of Queen Mary, those who refused to affirm faith in the idolatrous Roman Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation, and affirmed the truth of Christ in the sacrament of Holy Communion, they were burnt at the stake. Christians today in Moslem countries and countries where the Roman Catholic church holds sway, suffer in many sufferings, and in Moslem countries face imprisonment and death. Even in countries where there is freedom of worship, where true believers seek to be faithful to the Gospel, they find themselves rejected and abused.

But there are wonderful blessings which are found in being faithful to the truth, and seeking to live faithful to Jesus. One of those testified by Peter in our verses is that such suffering experienced by those who are faithful to Christ and the Gospel, have in this suffering an assurance that we are born again and truly God's children. Suffering shows that we are walking in the way of Jesus our Lord and Saviour. As he suffered so do we. This is an assurance that we are his true disciples.

However we must be careful that our suffering is truly on account of our faithfulness to Christ and the Gospel. If we suffer because of self-righteousness, pride, judgementalism, and such things, then such suffering is not because we are true to Christ, but because we are acting in the ways of the world. This brings discredit on Christ and the Gospel and needs to be repented of and corrected.

Then in suffering for Christ and the Gospel we have the assurance that our Lord Jesus Christ will be with us, defend us, protect us, strengthen us, and keep us faithful. We have this assurance in the history recorded for us in the Bible. Let us consider again the experience of the exiles which we read of in the book of Daniel. When Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego refused to worship the golden image set up by Nebuchadnezzar, they were being faithful to Jehovah and refusing to deny him sole worship by bowing down to the golden image. This brought upon them the wrath of the king and his command that they should be burnt to death. But when they were thrown into the flames, the fire killed soldiers who throw then into the furnace, but they were not harmed, and Christ walked beside them in the flames to save and bless them. When Daniel remained faithful to the Lord in praying to him, and not to Darius the King, he was thrown into the den of lions. But God shut the mouths of the lions so they did not touch him.

This tells us that in whatsoever suffering we experience for Christ and the Gospel, Christ walks beside his people to be their strength and keeper. Although many who have suffered for the Gospel have not experienced such immediate and powerful deliverance from their suffering, and have even gone to their martyrdom, yet Christ was with them to strengthen and uphold them, like those who have been martyred for their faith, the promise of Christ stands sure in that he said he would never leave or forsake us, and that he would be with us even unto the end of the world; and in this we have his assurance that in all suffering for his names sake, he will be with us to strengthen, keep and preserve us to eternal life.

The final blessing in suffering which Peter makes known to us in these two verses is the fact that in the suffering there will be joy when we reach heaven. Peter speaks of this when he speaks of being overjoyed when his glory is revealed. As we have already understood this is a reference to the realisation of the promise of Christ that he made before his ascension that he would return so that his disciples all down history might be with him for eternity.

In Romans 8 Paul speaks of our sufferings in this life as not to be compared with the glory which will be ours after death and when Christ returns. He speaks of our sufferings for Christ as light afflictions when compared with the glory of heaven and eternal life. Our sufferings now may well be hard to bear, and be subjects of great pain in the earthly existence, but Paul points us forward to eternity in heaven with Christ in glory. Compared with this, sufferings now are so short compared with eternal happiness to come.

We are saved for eternal life in heaven. God chose us in Christ before the world was created to be inheritors of this eternal glory. God gave us to Jesus Christ to be saved by his saving work in his life, death and resurrection, and Jesus declared in his prayer of John 17, that of those the Father had given him he had lost nothing. He died to save everyone of us so chosen.

When Jesus commenced his last exhortation to his disciples before his suffering, he began in the opening verses of John 14 to assure his disciples and us who are true to his word now, that he was ascending to heaven, after he had perfectly won eternal redemption for his people, to prepare a place for us in the mansions, dwelling places, in heaven reserved for all the redeemed. He is now presenting his all-sufficient and perfect work of redemption to the Father for all of us who have been given faith to cast our souls on Jesus as our sin-bearer and Saviour. He ever lives to make intercession for us. By this we are assured concerning his promised when he said he would come again to take us to his heaven, that where he dwells for ever we will dwell with him in that eternal and joyous present.

In the last place when Peter tells us we must not be surprised at these painful trials faithfulness to Jesus will bring, this is testing from God that our faith is proved genuine. In 1 Peter 1: 6-7 Peter speaks of the trials of being faithful to Christ as coming so that our faith - of greater worth than gold which perishes even though refined by fire - may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honour when Jesus is revealed.

These sufferings cause us to throw ourselves wholeheartedly and completely upon Jesus in faith and trust, casting all our care on him, because we know he cares for us. So sufferings turn us away from the world and its rewards which fade and never prove of lasting satisfaction, to the sure, certain and all-sufficient blessings of the kingdom of heaven. Satan is always seeking to seduce and deceive us with the attractions he offers in this life. He did this when he tempted Christ, when Christ was driven into the desert for forty days to be tempted by the devil. Jesus defeated Satan by the word of God and the truth of God, proving that Satan always deals in lies. Satan deceived Eve by a lie and this brought death into the world. Sufferings experiences by faithfulness to Christ are the means, by the Holy Spirit, that our faith in Christ and our faithfulness to Christ is tested. Testing bring us to more exceeding glory in heaven.