As I mentioned when I began these sermons on 1 Peter, the situation for the early Christians that Peter was writing to was difficult to say the least.
Nero was persecuting Christians to divert blame from himself for causing the fire that destroyed Rome. Many of these early believers were slaves who faced incredibly difficult choices in carrying out their duties for pagan masters. A number of them had converted to Christianity while their spouses remained pagans.
From the government to their workplaces-- and even in their homes—early Christians faced hardships and difficulties and outright persecution.
While the difficulties we face as Christians here in the United States are different than those of the early Christians, the differences are really a matter of degree--not kind.
More and more the culture we live in is pointedly antagonistic to Christianity and our own government seems to be going out of its way to interfere with the free expression of the Christian faith in the public square. We work in places and attend schools with those who do not share our Christian faith and seem intent on making sure we adopt their godless values. And even in our homes there is tension between those who are truly committed to Jesus Christ and those who are not.
And so the Words that the Holy Spirit inspired Peter to write to the early Christians also apply to your life 2000 years later. The Bible says:
Who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good? But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy,
The sense of these words is that, all things being equal, who is going to trouble us for striving to do good? If we Christians are good citizens and hardworking employees and loving family members--how can anyone be opposed to that? And in fact, that is the counsel that God gives again and again in this letter. Honor those who govern! Be honest and hardworking! Love your family! And all things being equal, not only will you not suffer hardship—but your life will be a blessing to others.
But of course, all things are rarely equal. That’s the sense of Peter’s words—“but even if you should suffer”. The grammatical construction is one of hopefulness about the future—“hopefully you won’t have to suffer—but then again you might”. And if you do have to suffer hardship and persecution—don’t be afraid or troubled about it—but set apart Christ the Lord as holy.
That little verse really is the heart of this whole passage—it is “what” we are to do in the midst of the difficulties of the Christian life-- and it is the “why”.
When you are facing troubles on every side—when it seems like the whole world is allied against you (from the great powers of the world to those you live with in marriage and family) you don’t have to be afraid or troubled because Jesus is Lord.
In other words, Jesus is in charge and there is no power or authority in heaven or on the earth or even the powers of hell under the earth-- that are greater than his rule.
So great is his power and authority that even the worst kind of difficulty you face is shaped by him into a blessing for you and an opportunity to bear witness to others. The Bible says that you are to:
Always be prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God's will, than for doing evil.
When Christians refuse to adopt the values of the world and instead live by kingdom values—when you send material aid to those who hate and despise you—when you turn the other cheek and forgive those who misuse you—when a Christian spouse and parent is kind and loving to family members who are not believers—when you face hardships and difficulties with peace and confidence—you can well imagine the questions that unbelievers might have about that kind of behavior because it is so different from everything they know.
These are your opportunities for witness—to explain why your life and your attitudes and your values as Christians are so different than the rest of the world.
Of course, the assumption is that they will be different. That’s what the Bible means when it says that you are to “have a good conscience”. In other words, you need to make sure that your actions and attitudes really are Christian—to ask yourself: am I acting in accord with God’s Word—do I look and sound like Jesus in this difficult situation. If not, then you are simply receiving what your sins deserve.
But if you are acting in a Christ-like manner—if you are guided by God’s revealed will in his Word—you can be confident that it is those who oppress and persecute you who will be put to shame—not you—and not your faith in Christ.
So far we have heard that we are to be zealous to do good to others and that hopefully, living these kinds of good and decent and hardworking lives, we can avoid much of the travails that come with living counter to God’s Word.
But if and when you are called upon the endure hardships—remember that Jesus is your Lord and the ruler of the universe—that these difficult times are opportunities to bear witness to him—and that you can be confident that there is blessing for you and ultimately shame for those who persecute you.
But why is this so? Why can you be so hopeful and confident in the midst of hard time? Why is it better to have Christ as Lord than submit to the will of the world—even when there is a cost? Why can you be certain that there will be a final reckoning when hardship and persecution will be revealed to have been a blessing for the Christian --and the evidence for the eternal punishment in hell of those opposed to Christ?
The answer to those questions is what we are going to hear about in the rest of the sermon: that the Lordship of Jesus Christ encompasses the whole world—from the highest heavens to the deepest parts of hell to every person, place, and thing on earth. The Bible says that:
Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit,
The central person and event of all human history is Jesus Christ and his saving work. His death on the cross has atoned for the sins of the whole world—the sinless Savior for every sinner and every sin. He did this to bring you back to your heavenly Father whose creation you are. The sense of the word that Peter uses there is not merely bring you back—like a child brought to their father kicking and screaming—but to usher you into the presence of God’s greatness—assured of his gracious approval when you get there.
That is what Jesus did on the cross. Jesus died a real, human in the place of every person—his spirit yielded into his Father’s hands and his lifeless body laid in a grave. But God raised him from the dead and reunited his spirit with his body and in so doing made a promise: that so he would do the same for you—receiving your soul when you die and raising up your resurrected bodies on the Last Day—body and soul, perfectly united, unbroken by sin, never to die again—just like Jesus.
No matter the accusations of your heart—no matter the accusations of the devil—Jesus Christ has won forgiveness and life for you. Let the world say what they will about you—let them slander you and lie about the church—let them persecute you and put us to death—it does not matter-- because God has declared you right in his sight through faith in Jesus and promised you that death is not the end of you.
But God has done even more for you—the risen, victorious Christ descended to the deepest, darkest parts of hell and proclaimed his victory there in such a powerful way that not even in hell can the devil proclaim himself the master. The Bible says:
Jesus was put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison, because they formerly did not obey, when God's patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water.
Jesus did not descend into hell to suffer. He suffered hell on the cross as he was forsaken by his heavenly Father so that you would never have to experience that forsakenness. When he cried out: it is finished—it was. Everything that needed to be accomplished for your salvation was finished on the cross as Jesus drank the full cup of God’s wrath over your sins.
And so when his heavenly Father re-united his Son’s body and soul—before his first resurrection appearance to mankind—there was a promise from God--made in the very beginning and fulfilled on the cross--that had to be proclaimed to the evil one who had caused it all.
That is what Jesus did—he descended into hell and proclaimed his victory over Satan. Just as promised to Adam and Eve, the Seed of a Woman, Jesus Christ, crushed the plans and purposes of Satan by dying on the cross and rising again. Jesus’ victory was proclaimed to the captives in hell--every evil spirit and every sinful, human soul who had every opposed him or his people knew that evil was defeated by Jesus.
Peter especially mentions that those who opposed the saving work of God during the days of Noah heard of Jesus’ victory—not necessarily because they were worse than others—but because the flood was a type of the final judgment and the evil people of Noah’s day were representative of the evil ones in every place and time who work against the saving purposes of God and reject his salvation for themselves.
For 120 years Noah preached the judgment of God against sin and proclaimed the opportunity to repent and believe in God and take one’s place in the salvation he offered in the ark. But his message was almost universally rejected—only his family came aboard the ark of God’s salvation and was saved.
The point for us is this: no matter how bad you think things are---no matter how desperate the situation—no matter how complete the rejection of God and the persecution of his people—even as desperate as it was in Peter’s day—Jesus is in control and he will judge and unbelieving world and he will save his people.
And just as it was in the days of Noah when water was used the vehicle of both God’s judgment and salvation---so it is today in the church today through the waters of Holy Baptism that your enemies are drowned and you are made a part of the true ark of salvation which is Jesus Christ. The Bible says that:
Baptism, which corresponds to this (that is the waters of the flood), now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ…
When the devil accuses you---when the world persecutes you—when your frail human flesh fails you—there is one comfort that avails in all of it—one comfort that lifts you up again and again and empowers your witness to God’s goodness and it is this: Christ died for you. Christ was raised for you.
That promise was made to you in Holy Baptism where the Bible says that you died with Christ and you were raised with Christ and you began to live as Christians. Your baptism is God’s promise that you are his child no matter what befalls you—that your sins are forgiven-- and that you will certainly be raised in a resurrection like Christ’s because he rules heaven and earth for this very purpose: to bring you to himself and cause all things to work for your eternal good. The Bible says that your crucified and resurrected victorious King Jesus:
has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him.
The child of God who sets apart Christ as Lord is able to endure hard times and give bold witness in the midst of it because the reign of Christ extends to all places and circumstances.
The depths of hell have no claim upon you because the Good News of Jesus’ victory over Satan echoed even into its darkest depths. The breadth of the earth and its people and institutions and events must ultimately serve your good because they are ruled by your King. And the heights of heaven are reserved as your dwelling place because Jesus has gone there to prepare a place for you.
The height and depth and breadth of Christ’s rule is complete and full and final and his ascension to the Father’s right hand—a position of ultimate authority and power and might—is your assurance that no matter what hardships and difficulties and persecutions you face in this life will ultimately work to your eternal good and that on the Last Day your bodies will rise from the graves and be raised to heaven just as your King has been. Amen.
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