Yes, it is an inheritance. It is a free gift, and yet we have a right to it. We do not ask for it — we were born into its blessed privilege. The child that lies in yonder cradle, over which the coronet is emblazoned, may claim his broad ancestral estates simply by right of birth: and it is on that tenure that the saints hold heaven. By God’s great mercy we have been begotten again.

Oh, blessed heritage! Incorruptible! The gnawing tooth of decay cannot injure it. Moth and rust cannot consume, nor thieves break through to steal. No spendthrift hand can scatter or over-spend its treasures. Undefiled! Not a stain on its pure robes; not a freckle on its leaves; not a taint of miasma on its atmosphere. Into the city entereth nothing that defileth, or worketh abomination, or maketh a lie. That fadeth not away! To use the Greek word, it is amaranthine. Some of the fairest hopes that ever blessed human vision; the most delightful friendships; the most perfect dreams of delight, have faded and withered before our eyes. That never can.

It is kept for us, and we are kept for it. It is reserved in heaven for you.
“I have a heritage of joy, That yet I must not see; The hand that bled to make it mine, Is keeping it for me.”

Who by the power of God are guarded through faith. — The idea is that we are being brought through an enemy’s country under a strong escortas the women and children from Lucknow, between the double line of English soldiers, till they were safe from the onset of the Sepoys. We are not in heaven yet; but we are as safe as if we were. (Meyer, F B: Our Daily Homily)

1 Peter 1:4a

Amazing Good Fortune - Columnist L. M. Boyd recently described the amazing good fortune of a man named Jack Wurm. In 1949, Mr. Wurm was broke and out of a job. One day he was walking along a San Francisco beach when he came across a bottle with a piece of paper in it. As he read the note, he discovered that it was the last will and testament of Daisy Singer Alexander, heir to the Singer sewing machine fortune. The note read,

“To avoid confusion, I leave my entire estate to the lucky person who finds this bottle and to my attorney, Barry Cohen, share and share alike.”

According to Boyd, the courts accepted the theory that the heiress had written the note 12 years earlier, and had thrown the bottle into the Thames River in London, from where it had drifted across the oceans to the feet of a penniless and jobless Jack Wurm. His chance discovery netted him over 6 million dollars in cash and Singer stock. How would you like to have been making Mr. Wurm’s footprints on that San Francisco beach? What a find!

Now let’s compare Jack Wurm’s inheritance with yours if you are trusting Christ as your Savior. You have become an heir with Christ. Your eternal future is secure! Think about what you have. Think about what it will mean to you 100 years from now. Try to imagine the eternal life, the eternal happiness, the eternal gratitude, the eternal peace, the eternal profit. The psalmist said that this “inheritance shall be forever.” Six million dollars doesn’t even begin to compare with our spiritual inheritance! - M. R. De Haan II  (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

A GOOD WILL - Perhaps you know someone who didn't receive the inheritance intended by a parent because of a faulty will. In an article titled "Money & The Law," attorney Jim Flynn says that if you want your estate to go to your chosen recipients instead of to members of the legal profession, you should avoid do-it-yourself wills. Such documents are usually legal but they are often unclear and fail to make provisions for unforeseen situations. Flynn advises having a formal will to be sure your wishes are carried out.

Man-made wills can fail, but there is no ambiguous language about the inheritance God has in store for us. The apostle Peter affirmed that God "has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you" (1Peter 1:3, 4).

No fluctuation in the economy can reduce this inheritance. It is not subject to review by the courts nor to debate by squabbling families. No amount of suffering or trials can diminish or change what God has in store for us. Our inheritance is certain and eternal (Hebrews 9:15). And as we live for Him, we are assured that His will for our lives today is "good and acceptable and perfect" (Romans 12:2).— David C. McCasland (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

Why do we live like paupers,
When riches we possess?
We have become joint heirs with Christ
With blessings measureless. —Sper

The Christian's inheritance is guaranteed forever!

1Peter 1:4 b
J R Miller
Devotional

The children of God are heirs to a glorious inheritance. It is not an earthly inheritance, but a heavenly. It is not given to them in full possession in this world, but is reserved for them in heaven. They could not receive it here - they have a pilgrimage to make to get to it.

But while the inheritance is securely kept for them in heaven, they have the promise of guardianship on the way. They are kept by the power of God through faith.

All our life in this world is intended to prepare us for receiving our inheritance. If we have troubles, we need not be afraid - we may rejoice in them all. If we have dangers, we need not be dismayed - we have the promise of protection.

Some day we shall see Christ, whom now we love but cannot see. Heaven is sure for all who are faithful in this world. If we do God’s will and do not lose faith, we shall be kept in safety through this world and brought at last home to our inheritance.

1Peter 1:3-9 Reserved for You

Have you ever taken one of those vacations? You planned to arrive at a distant location where you knew you’d have a great time, but on the way you had so many traveling difficulties that you wondered if the journey was worth it.

Car problems. Traffic delays. Getting lost. Sick kids. Irritable fellow travelers. You knew the destination would be great, but the trip was anything but smooth. Yet you kept pressing on because you knew it would be worth the trouble.

That’s a picture of the Christian life. Those who have trusted Jesus as Savior are on a journey filled with difficulties, setbacks, tragedies, and obstacles. Trouble always seems to be present or just around the corner. Yet we know that an indescribably great destination is in our future (1 Peter 1:4). And sometimes the assurance of what’s reserved for us in heaven is all that keeps us going.

Peter understood. He said that as we make our way through life, we will suffer grief as a result of our troubles. Yet we can actually rejoice through our difficulties, because God has reserved something special for us at the end of the journey.

Troubled today? Look ahead. Heaven will be worth the trip.— Dave Branon

It will be worth it all when we see Jesus,
Life’s trials will seem so small when we see Christ;
One glimpse of His dear face all sorrow will erase,
So bravely run the race till we see Christ. —Rusthoi

The gains of heaven will more than compensate us for the losses of earth.

1 Peter 1:5 1:5
Octavius Winslow
Evening Thoughts

Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation… - 1 Peter 1:5

This salvation takes in all the circumstances of a child of God. It is not only a salvation from wrath to come-that were an immeasurable act of grace-but it is a present salvation, anticipating and providing for every exigency of the life that now is, including deliverance from all evil, help in all trouble; comfort in all sorrow, the supply of all want, and through all conflicts, assaults, and difficulties, perfect safety and final triumph. The present and certain security of the believer is provided for in the covenant of grace, made sure in Jesus the covenant Head, and revealed in the glorious covenant plan of salvation. May the Holy Spirit unfold to us this great and consoling truth, that in the midst of all their weakness, waywardness, and tendency to wander, the Lord is the keeper of His people, and that they whom He keeps are well and eternally kept.

The Lord could not in truth be said to be the keeper of His people, if there were anything of self-power in the believer, any ability to keep himself-if he were not weakness, all weakness, and nothing but weakness. Of this the believer needs to be perpetually put in remembrance. The principle of self-confidence is the natural product of the human heart; the great characteristic of our apostate race is a desire to live, and think, and act independently of God. What is the great citadel, to the overthrow of which Divine grace first directs its power? What is the first step it takes in the subjection of the sinner to God? What, but the breaking down of this lofty, towering, independent conceit of himself, so natural to man, and so abhorrent to God? Now, let it be remembered, that Divine and sovereign grace undertakes not the extraction of the root of this depraved principle from the heart of its subjects. The root remains to the very close of life's pilgrimage; though in a measure weakened, subdued, mortified, still it remains; demanding the most rigid watchfulness, connected with ceaseless prayer, lest it should spring upward, to the destruction of his soul's prosperity, the grieving of the Spirit, and the dishonoring of God. Oh how much the tender, faithful discipline of a covenant God may have the subjection and mortification of this hateful principle for its blessed end, who can tell? We shall never fully know until we reach our Father's house, where the dark and, to us, mysterious dealings of that loving Father with us here below shall unfold themselves in light and glory, elevating the soul in love and praise!

What an affecting confirmation do the histories of some of the most eminent of God's saints afford to this most important truth, that the creature, left to itself, is perfect weakness! If the angels in their purity, if Adam in his state of innocence, fell in consequence of being left, in the sovereign will of God, to their own keeping, what may we expect from a fallen, sinful, imperfect creature, even though renewed? Do we look into God's blessed word, and read what is there declared, touching the power of a renewed creature to keep itself? How affecting, and at the same time conclusive, these declarations are: "Having no might;" "Without strength;" "Weak through the flesh;" "Out of weakness were made strong"! Could language more forcibly set forth the utter weakness of a child of God? And what are their own acknowledgments? "The Lord is the strength of my life;" "Hold You me up, and I shall be safe;" "Hold up my goings in Your paths, that my footsteps slip not;" "Yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me;" "By the grace of God I am what I am." And what are the examples? Look at the intemperance of Noah, the unbelief of Abraham, the adultery and murder of David, the idolatry of Solomon, the self-righteousness of Job, the impatience of Moses, the self-confidence and trimming, temporizing policy of Peter. Solemn are these lessons of the creature's nothingness; affecting these examples of his perfect weakness!

But why speak of others? Let the reader, if he is a professing child of God, pause and survey the past of his own life. What marks of perfect weakness may he discover, what evidences of his own fickleness, folly, immature judgment, may he trace, what outbreakings of deep iniquity, what disclosures of hidden corruption, what startling symptoms of the most awful departure and apostasy from God, does the review present! And, this, too, let it be remembered, is the history of a believer in Jesus, a renewed child of God, a partaker of the Divine nature, an expectant of eternal glory! Holy and blessed are they who, relinquishing all their fond conceit of self-power and self-keeping, shall pray, and cease not to pray, "Lord, hold You me up, and I shall be safe!" "Let him that thinks he stands, take heed lest he fall."

1 Peter 1:6

Celebrate bankruptcy? How foolish that seems to us! Yet author Leo Buscaglia's mother did just that. Her husband came home one evening and sadly told the family that his business partner had stolen the assets of the firm. Bankruptcy was unavoidable.

Instead of despairing, Leo's mother went out, pawned some jewelry, and prepared a delectable dinner. When family members protested, she replied, "The time for joy is now when we need it most, not next week."

Mrs. Buscaglia's response to her family's financial crisis reminds me of a New Testament directive: "Count it all joy when you fall into various trials" (James 1:2).

Have you run into difficult circumstances recently? Has some calamity gripped your heart with fear and sorrow? God doesn't want you to wear a hypocritical, smiling face. But He does want you to trust Him through all your circumstances -- including calamities! He wants you to accept failure, sickness, and loss as opportunities for growth in faith and obedience.

Our wise and loving heavenly Father longs for us to submit to His sovereign control. Only as we do that can we agree with James and rejoice even in calamity.-- V C Grounds (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

Though times be dark, the struggles grim,
And cares rise like a flood,
This sweet assurance holds to Him:
My God is near and good.-- Hager

Life's trials should make us better - not bitter.

1 Peter 1:7 That the genuineness of your faith . . . may be found to praise, honor, and glory 

The abrasive experiences we encounter each day help to prepare us for heaven. God uses all of life's troubles to polish and perfect our charac­ter. If we accept our trials with the right attitude and recognize that the heavenly Father is working through them, we will someday shine with splendor before Him.

In the rough, a diamond looks like a common pebble, but after it is cut, its hidden beauty begins to emerge. The stone then undergoes a finishing process to bring out its full radiance. A skilled craftsman holds the gem against the surface of a large grinding wheel. No other substance is hard enough to polish the stone, so the wheel is covered with diamond dust. This process may take a long time, depending on the quality desired by the one who will buy it.

This is similar to the way God works with us. The procedure is not pleasant, nor is it intended to be. The Divine Workman, however, has our final glory in view. We may be "grieved by various trials," as Peter said, but when we understand what is behind them we can rejoice even in adversity. God has one goal in mind during the refining process: that our faith "may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ." Knowing this enables us to look beyond the unpleasantness of "polishing" to see the outcome. P.R.V. (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

A gem cannot be polished without friction,nor a man perfected without adversity.

1 Peter 1:7a Acid Test

A severe trial is sometimes called an “acid test.” this term originated during times when gold was widely circulated. Nitric acid was applied to an object of gold to see if it was genuine or not. If it was fake, the acid decomposed it; if it was genuine, the gold was unaffected.

In God’s view, our faith is “much more precious than gold,” and it too must be tested (1 Pet. 1:7). But these “acid tests” are positive ones. The Lord is working to reveal genuine faith, not to expose false faith.

During hard times, though, we may feel overwhelmed with the fear that our faith is decomposing. Ronald Dunn, a Bible teacher who has experienced much personal tragedy, knows what we are going through. He writes, “I’m often mystified. I don’t understand why it is that as I endeavor to live for God and pray and believe, everything seems to be falling apart. Sometimes I struggle, and I say, ‘Dear Lord, why are You allowing this to happen?’” Dunn concludes, “It’s good for us to remember that God is not an arsonist; He’s a refiner.”  (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)
 

1 Peter 1:7b

February 21 THE REFINER'S FIRE
"He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; and He shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver."-- Mal3:3.

"That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ."-- 1Peter 1:7.

NOTHING IS harder to bear than the apparent aimlessness of suffering.

They say that what breaks a convict's heart in gaol is to set him to say carry stones from one side of the prison to the other, and then back again! But we must never look upon the trials of life as punishments, because all penalty was borne by our Lord Himself. They are intended to destroy the weeds and rubbish of our natures, as the bonfires do in the gardens. Christ regards us in the light of our eternal interests, of which He alone can judge. If you and I knew what sphere we were to fulfil in the other world, we should understand the significance of His dealings with us, as now we cannot do. The Refiner has a purpose in view, of which those who stand beside Him are ignorant, and, therefore, they are unable to judge the process which He is employing.

Dare to believe that Christ is working to a plan in your life. He loves your Be patient! He would not take so much trouble unless He knew that it was worth while. "We do not prune brambles, or cast common stones into the crucible or plough sea-sands!" You must be capable of some special service, which can only be done by a carefully-prepared instrument, and so Christ sits beside you as the Refiner, year after year, that you may miss nothing.

Whilst the Fire is hot keep conversing with the Refiner. Ponder these words: "He shall sit as a Refiner and Purifier of silver." The thought is specially suitable for those who cannot make long prayers, but they can talk to Christ as He sits beside them. Nicholas Hermann tells us that, as he could not concentrate his mind on prolonged prayer, he gave up set times of prayer and sought constant conversations with Christi Speak to Him, then, in the midst of your daily toil. He hears the unspoken prayer, and catches your whispers. Talk to Christ about your trials, sorrows, and anxieties! Make Him your Confidant in your joy and happiness! Nothing makes Him so real as to talk to Him aloud about everything!

PRAYER
Let the Fire of Thy Love consume in me all sinful desires of the flesh and of the mind, that I may henceforth continually abide in Jesus Christ my Lord, and seek the things where He sits at Thy right hand. AMEN. (F B Meyer. Our Daily Walk)

1 Peter 1:7c

Faith untried may be true faith, but it is sure to be little faith, and it is likely to remain dwarfish so long as it is without trials. Faith never prospers so well as when all things are against her: tempests are her trainers, and lightnings are her illuminators. When a calm reigns on the sea, spread the sails as you will, the ship moves not to its harbour; for on a slumbering ocean the keel sleeps too. Let the winds rush howling forth, and let the waters lift up themselves, then, though the vessel may rock, and her deck may be washed with waves, and her mast may creak under the pressure of the full and swelling sail, it is then that she makes headway towards her desired haven. No flowers wear so lovely a blue as those which grow at the foot of the frozen glacier; no stars gleam so brightly as those which glisten in the polar sky; no water tastes so sweet as that which springs amid the desert sand; and no faith is so precious as that which lives and triumphs in adversity. Tried faith brings experience. You could not have believed your own weakness had you not been compelled to pass through the rivers; and you would never have known God’s strength had you not been supported amid the water-floods. Faith increases in solidity, assurance, and intensity, the more it is exercised with tribulation. Faith is precious, and its trial is precious too.

Let not this, however, discourage those who are young in faith. You will have trials enough without seeking them: the full portion will be measured out to you in due season. Meanwhile, if you cannot yet claim the result of long experience, thank God for what grace you have; praise him for that degree of holy confidence whereunto you have attained: walk according to that rule, and you shall yet have more and more of the blessing of God, till your faith shall remove mountains and conquer impossibilities. (Spurgeon, C. H. Morning and evening : Daily readings November 12 AM)

1 Peter 1:8 "Ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory."

1 Peter 1:9 "Salvation As It Is Now Received" - Sermon Notes by C H Spurgeon

Why is this joy of the Christian so unspeakable and full of glory? I think it is because it is so altogether divine. It is God's own joy; it is Christ's own joy. (C H Spurgeon).

Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls. — 1 Peter 1:9

THE greater benefits of salvation are usually classed among things to come, but indeed a large portion of them may be received here and now.

I. WHAT OF SALVATION IS RECEIVED HERE?

1. The whole of it by the grip of faith, and the grace of hope.
2. The absolute and final pardon of sin is ours at this moment.
3. Deliverance from slavish bondage, and from a sense of awful distance from God is a present relief.

Peace, reconciliation, contentment fellowship with God, and delight in God, we enjoy at this hour.

4. Rescue from the condemning power of sin is now complete.
5. Release from its dominion is ours. It can no longer command us at its will, nor lull us to sleep by its soothing strains.
6. Conquest over evil is given to us in great measure at once.

Sins are conquerable. No one should imagine that he must necessarily sin because of his constitution or surroundings.

Holy living is possible. Some have reached a high degree of it. Why not others?

7. Joy may become permanent in the midst of sorrow. The immediate heritage of believers is exceedingly great. Salvation is ours at this day, and with it "all things."

II. HOW IS IT RECEIVED?

1. Entirely from Jesus, as a gift of divine grace.
2. By faith, not by sight or feeling. We believe to see, and this is good. To require to see in order to believe is vicious.
3. By fervent love to God. This excites to revenge against sin and so gives present purification. This also nerves us for consecrated living and, thus, produces holiness.
4. By joy in the Lord. This causes us to receive peace unspeakable, not to be exaggerated, nor even uttered. Too great, too deep to be understood, even by those who enjoy it.

Much of heaven may be enjoyed before we reach it.

III. HAVE YOU RECEIVED IT, AND HOW MUCH?

1. You have heard of salvation, but hearing will not do.
2. You profess to know it? But mere profession will not do.
3. Have you received pardon? Are you sure of it?
4. Have you been made holy? Are you daily cleansed in your walk?
5. Have you obtained rest by faith and hope and love? Make these inquiries as in God's sight.
If the result is unsatisfactory, begin at once to seek the Lord.

Look for the appearing of the Lord as the time for receiving in a fuller sense "the end of your faith."

Breviates

An evangelist said in my hearing: "He that believeth hath everlasting life. H-A-T-H — that spells 'got it.'" It is an odd way of spelling, but it is sound divinity. — C. H. S.

This is the certainty of their hope, that it is as if they had already received it. If the promise of God and the merit of Christ hold good, then they who believe in him, and love him, are made sure of salvation. The promises of God in Christ "are not yea and nay; but they are in him yea, and in him amen." Sooner may the rivers run backward, and the course of the heavens change, and the frame of nature be dissolved, than any one soul that is united to Jesus Christ by faith and love can be severed from him, and so fall short of the salvation hoped for in him, and this is the matter of their rejoicing. — Archbishop Leighton

To fall into sin is a serious thing, even though the guilt of it be forgiven. A boy who had often been disobedient was made by his father to drive a nail into a post for each offense. When he was well-behaved for a day he was allowed to draw out one of the nails. He fought against his temper bravely, and at last all the nails were gone from the post, and his father praised him. "Alas, father," said the lad, "the nails are all gone, but the holes are left!" Even after forgiveness it will require a miracle of grace to recover us from the ill effects of sin.

In St. Peter's, at Rome, I saw monuments to James III., Charles III., and Henry IX., kings of England. These potentates were quite unknown to me. They had evidently a name to reign, but reign they did not: they never received the end of their faith. Are not many professed Christians in the same condition? — C. H. S.

1 Peter 1.12 Which things angels desire to look into

What a wonderful chapter this is. After the introduction, it opens with a doxology, and then proceeds exultantly to deal with the wonders of Christian experience and privilege, resulting from the "great mercy" of "the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." The whole theme is that of "the sufferings of Christ, and the glories which should follow them," or inclusively, that of "Salvation." Of this the prophets of the past had written having "sought and searched diligently," and that under the direction of the Holy Spirit, Whom the Apostle here describes as "the Spirit of Christ." These are the things into which angels desire to look. It is a revealing word, helping us to realize the depths and glories of our salvation. The angels are the unfallen ones, the high intelligences who serve God in holiness, and dwell in the light. So great is human salvation, that they desire to consider it. The word for "desire" is the simplest and strongest, showing us that they realize the amazing wonder, and earnestly wish to apprehend it. The word for "look," too, is a strong one, suggesting the closest attention and inspection, the bending over and careful examination of the matter. While prophets sought and searched diligently, and angels desire to look, those of us who are the objects of this mercy which is so full of wonder should surely be content with nothing less than the utmost diligence in our endeavor to apprehend the deep things of our "inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away." (Morgan, G. C. Life Applications from Every Chapter of the Bible)

1 Peter 1:13-22

A boy who had just listened to a long sermon walked out of church with a big frown on his face. His father had pulled his ear during the service to keep him from fidgeting. "What's the matter, Johnny?" asked one of the deacons. "You look so sad." The frustrated young fellow responded quickly, "I am. It's hard to be happy and holy at the same time."

This boy was probably expressing the feelings of many young Chris­tians, and perhaps many adults as well. They have the idea that if they are to be good, they can't possibly be happy. The nineteenth-century South African minister Andrew Murray corrected that misconception. He said, "Holiness is essential to true happiness; happiness is essential to true holiness. If you would have joy, the fullness of joy, an abiding joy which nothing can take away, be holy as God is holy. Holiness is blessedness. . . . If we would live lives of joy, assuring God and man and ourselves that our Lord is everything, is more than all to us, oh, let us be holy! . . . If you would be a holy Christian, you must be a happy Christian. Jesus was anointed by God with 'the oil of gladness,' that He might give us the 'oil of joy.' In all our efforts after holiness, the wheels will move heavily if there be not the oil of joy."

The joy of Christ should ring through our souls in our most holy moments. We're on the road to spiritual maturity when we've learned that happiness and holiness are not enemies, but friends. —D. C. Egner (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

The holiest man is the happiest man.

1 Peter 1:16 Ye shall be holy; for I am holy  Destiny of holiness - Oswald Chambers. My Utmost for His Highest. September 1

1 Peter 1:17

During the depression of the early 1930's, many men became tramps. They hopped freight trains to travel from place to place, slept in empty boxcars, and obtained a little money by working at seasonal jobs. When they could find no employment, they resorted to begging. My mother was a "soft touch" for any such drifters who came to our door for food. These men wandered about aimlessly, depriving themselves of family blessings. They had lost the comfortable security of a home.

A pilgrim, like the tramp, may be without the comfort and protection of a home, but he knows where he is going. His hopes and aspirations are set upon a goal. The Christian is that kind of wayfarer! Therefore, in today's Scripture reading Peter gives the exhortation, "Pass the time of your sojourning here in fear" (1 Pet. 1:17). Why should a believer live in reverential awe? The answer is clear: he is a pilgrim on his way to Heaven, not an aimless wanderer!

Christian friend, God has purchased you at tremendous cost, and your life is a sacred trust. The Lord is preparing you and me for eternity, and everything we do is full of significance. Therefore, though this earth is not our permanent place of habi­tation, we do not look upon ourselves as vagabonds, but as so­journers who live responsibly as we travel to our prepared des­tination. We have a Heavenly Father who loves us and will soon welcome us into that Home made ready by our Savior. We are part of a great spiritual family—a multitude of brothers and sisters in Christ — who are journeying to the "promised land." Indeed, we are not tramps but pilgrims! (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

A few more watches keeping,
A few more foes to down,
As pilgrims brave we journey
To win the victor's crown! — Bosch

Pilgrims, don't drive your stakes too deep; we're moving in the morning! (Radio Bible Class. Our Daily Bread)

1 Peter 1:18-19

Make a toll-free call and "Jesus can be yours." That's the guarantee in an advertisement for a 2-foot tall, machine-washable "Jesus doll." The doll wears a scarlet robe over a white tunic with a red heart emblazoned on it. The ad says that children will love to hug the doll, and the elderly and emotionally distressed will find it a source of comfort. So for only $29.95, "Jesus can be yours."

Would you want one? Or do you feel, as I do, that this would be a violation of the Second Commandment, which forbids the making of any idol? (Ex. 20:4-5). Certainly the Redeemer of the world and the comfort He offers cannot be purchased at the bargain-basement price of 5 cents less than $30! To me, this contradicts the message of the gospel.

"Jesus can be yours"--yes, indeed. But you can't buy Him. Actually, He purchased us! Jesus becomes ours not with the payment of "corruptible things, like silver or gold" (1 Pet. 1:18), but by simply trusting the forgiveness and grace He gives to us through His precious blood (v.19). With His blood He paid the penalty for sin. And through our faith in Him we gain access to all of heaven's riches. You can't buy Jesus. But He can be yours for free. --V C Grounds (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

Nor silver nor gold has obtained my redemption,
The way into heaven could not thus be bought;
The blood of the cross is my only foundation,
The death of my Savior redemption has wrought. --Gray

Salvation is not for sale--it's free!

1 Peter 1:18-19a

The Rescuer - The price Jesus paid for our redemption was terrible indeed. When we think of the extreme suffering He endured to purchase our freedom from sin’s penalty, our hearts should overflow with love for Him.

Leslie B. Flynn told a story that illustrates this truth. An orphaned boy was living with his grandmother when their house caught fire. The grandmother, trying to get upstairs to rescue the boy, perished in the flames. The boy’s cries for help were finally answered by a man who climbed an iron drainpipe and came back down with the boy hanging tightly to his neck.

Several weeks later, a public hearing was held to determine who would receive custody of the child. A farmer, a teacher, and the town’s wealthiest citizen all gave the reasons they felt they should be chosen to give the boy a home. But as they talked, the lad’s eyes remained focused on the floor. Then a stranger walked to the front and slowly took his hands from his pockets, revealing severe scars on them. As the crowd gasped, the boy cried out in recognition. This was the man who had saved his life. His hands had been burned when he climbed the hot pipe. With a leap the boy threw his arms around the man’s neck and held on for dear life. The other men silently walked away, leaving the boy and his rescuer alone. Those marred hands had settled the issue.

Many voices are calling for our attention. Among them is the One whose nail-pierced hands remind us that He has rescued us from sin and its deadly consequences. To Him belongs our love and devotion. -D. C. Egner (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

1 Peter 1:18-19b

Redeemed! A story told by Paul Lee Tan illustrates the meaning of redemption. He said that when A. J. Gordon was pastor of a church in Boston, he met a young boy in front of the sanctuary carrying a rusty cage in which several birds fluttered nervously. Gordon inquired, “Son, where did you get those birds?” The boy replied, “I trapped them out in the field.” “What are you going to do with them?” “I’m going to play with them, and then I guess I’ll just feed them to an old cat we have at home.”

When Gordon offered to buy them, the lad exclaimed, “Mister, you don’t want them, they’re just little old wild birds and can’t sing very well.” Gordon replied, “I’ll give you $2 for the cage and the birds.” “Okay, it’s a deal, but you’re making a bad bargain.”

The exchange was made and the boy went away whistling, happy with his shiny coins. Gordon walked around to the back of the church property, opened the door of the small wire coop, and let the struggling creatures soar into the blue. The next Sunday he took the empty cage into the pulpit and used it to illustrate his sermon about Christ’s coming to seek and to save the lost—paying for them with His own precious blood. “That boy told me the birds were not songsters,” said Gordon, “but when I released them and they winged their way heavenward, it seemed to me they were singing, ‘Redeemed, redeemed, redeemed!”

You and I have been held captive to sin, but Christ has purchased our pardon and set us at liberty. When a person has this life-changing experience, he will want to sing, “Redeemed, redeemed, redeemed!”  (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)
 

1 Peter 1:19 "The precious blood of Christ."

Two soldiers were on duty in the citadel of Gibraltar. One of them had obtained peace through the precious blood of Christ; the other was in very great distress of mind. It happened to be their turn to stand, both of them, sentinel the same night. There are many long passages in the rock, which are adapted to convey sounds a very great distance.

The soldier in distress of mind was ready to beat his breast for grief. He felt he had rebelled against God, and he could not find how he could be reconciled. Sud­denly there came through the air what seemed to him to be a mysterious voice from heaven saying, "The precious blood of Christ." In a moment he saw it all. It was that which reconciled us to God, and he rejoiced with joy unspeakable and full of glory.

Who was it that had spoken these words? The other sentinel at the far end of the passage was meditating, when an officer came by. It was his duty to give a word for the night, and with soldier-like promptitude he did give it. But instead of giving the proper word, he was so taken up with his meditations that he said to the officer, "The precious blood of Christ." He corrected himself in a moment, but he had said it, and it passed along the passage and reached the ear for which God meant it. The man found peace and spent his life in the fear of God, being in later years the means of completing one of our excellent translations of the word of God into the Hindu language. (C H Spurgeon).

1 Peter 1:19a

Standing at the foot of the cross, we see hands, and feet, and side, all distilling crimson streams of precious blood. It is “precious” because of its redeeming and atoning efficacy. By it the sins of Christ’s people are atoned for; they are redeemed from under the law; they are reconciled to God, made one with him. Christ’s blood is also “precious” in its cleansing power; it “cleanseth from all sin.” “Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.” Through Jesus’ blood there is not a spot left upon any believer, no wrinkle nor any such thing remains. O precious blood, which makes us clean, removing the stains of abundant iniquity, and permitting us to stand accepted in the Beloved, notwithstanding the many ways in which we have rebelled against our God. The blood of Christ is likewise “precious” in its preserving power. We are safe from the destroying angel under the sprinkled blood. Remember it is God’s seeing the blood which is the true reason for our being spared. Here is comfort for us when the eye of faith is dim, for God’s eye is still the same. The blood of Christ is “precious” also in its sanctifying influence. The same blood which justifies by taking away sin, does in its after-action, quicken the new nature and lead it onward to subdue sin and to follow out the commands of God. There is no motive for holiness so great as that which streams from the veins of Jesus. And “precious,” unspeakably precious, is this blood, because it has an overcoming power. It is written, “They overcame through the blood of the Lamb.” How could they do otherwise? He who fights with the precious blood of Jesus, fights with a weapon which cannot know defeat. The blood of Jesus! sin dies at its presence, death ceases to be death: heaven’s gates are opened. The blood of Jesus! we shall march on, conquering and to conquer, so long as we can trust its power!  (Spurgeon, C. H. Morning and evening: Daily readings April 16 AM)

1 Peter 1:23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed

Peter most earnestly exhorted the scattered saints to love each other "with a pure heart fervently" and he wisely fetched his argument, not from the law, from nature, or from philosophy, but from that high and divine nature which God hath implanted in his people. Just as some judicious tutor of princes might labour to beget and foster in them a kingly spirit and dignified behaviour, finding arguments in their position and descent, so, looking upon God's people as heirs of glory, princes of the blood royal, descendants of the King of kings, earth's truest and oldest aristocracy, Peter saith to them, "See that ye love one another, because of your noble birth, being born of incorruptible seed; because of your pedigree, being descended from God, the Creator of all things; and because of your immortal destiny, for you shall never pass away, though the glory of the flesh shall fade, and even its existence shall cease." It would be well if, in the spirit of humility, we recognized the true dignity of our regenerated nature, and lived up to it. What is a Christian? If you compare him with a king, he adds priestly sanctity to royal dignity. The king's royalty often lieth only in his crown, but with a Christian it is infused into his inmost nature. He is as much above his fellows through his new birth, as a man is above the beast that perisheth. Surely he ought to carry himself, in all his dealings, as one who is not of the multitude, but chosen out of the world, distinguished by sovereign grace, written among "the peculiar people" and who therefore cannot grovel in the dust as others, nor live after the manner of the world's citizens. Let the dignity of your nature, and the brightness of your prospects, O believers in Christ, constrain you to cleave unto holiness, and to avoid the very appearance of evil.  (C H Spurgeon, Morning and Evening)

1 Peter 1:25 Divine, Ever-Living, Unchanging

Divine, Ever-Living, Unchanging

But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you. (1 Peter 1:25)

All human teaching and, indeed, all human beings shall pass away as the grass of the meadow; but we are here assured that the Word of the Lord is of a very different character, for it shall endure forever.

We have here a divine gospel; for what word can endure forever but that which is spoken by the eternal God?

We have here an ever-living gospel, as full of vitality as when it first came from the lips of God; as strong to convince and convert, to regenerate and console, to sustain and sanctify as ever it was in its first days of wonder-working.

We have an unchanging gospel which is not today green grass and tomorrow dry hay but always the abiding truth of the immutable Jehovah. Opinions alter, but truth certified by God can no more change than the God who uttered it.

Here, then, we have a gospel to rejoice in, a word of the Lord upon which we may lean all our weight. "For ever" includes life, death, judgment, and eternity. Glory be to God in Christ Jesus for everlasting consolation. Feed on the word today and all the days of thy life.

1 Peter 2:3 "Ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious."

When a man is ill, he often loses his taste. The most de­licious food is nauseous to him. His "soul abhorreth all manner of meat" (Ps 107:18). But such is the flavor of the truth that the Lord is gracious, that it is more pleasant to us when we are sick than at any other time. The love of Christ is a delicious re­freshment for a sufferer. (C H Spurgeon).

1 Peter 2:3a

If:—then, this is not a matter to be taken for granted concerning every one of the human race. “If:”—then there is a possibility and a probability that some may not have tasted that the Lord is gracious. “If:”—then this is not a general but a special mercy; and it is needful to enquire whether we know the grace of God by inward experience. There is no spiritual favour which may not be a matter for heart-searching.

But while this should be a matter of earnest and prayerful inquiry, no one ought to be content whilst there is any such thing as an “if” about his having tasted that the Lord is gracious. A jealous and holy distrust of self may give rise to the question even in the believer’s heart, but the continuance of such a doubt would be an evil indeed. We must not rest without a desperate struggle to clasp the Saviour in the arms of faith, and say, “I know whom I have believed, and I am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him.” Do not rest, O believer, till thou hast a full assurance of thine interest in Jesus. Let nothing satisfy thee till, by the infallible witness of the Holy Spirit bearing witness with thy spirit, thou art certified that thou art a child of God. Oh, trifle not here; let no “perhaps” and “peradventure” and “if” and “maybe” satisfy thy soul. Build on eternal verities, and verily build upon them. Get the sure mercies of David, and surely get them. Let thine anchor be cast into that which is within the veil, and see to it that thy soul be linked to the anchor by a cable that will not break. Advance beyond these dreary “ifs;” abide no more in the wilderness of doubts and fears; cross the Jordan of distrust, and enter the Canaan of peace, where the Canaanite still lingers, but where the land ceaseth not to flow with milk and honey.  (Spurgeon, C. H. Morning and evening : Daily readings May 21 AM)

1 Peter 2:5

A man touring a rural area of the Far East saw a boy pulling a crude plow while an old man held the handles and guided it through the rice paddy. The visitor commented, "I suppose they are poor."

"Yes," said his guide. "When their church was built, they wanted to give something to help but they had no money. So they sold their only ox. This spring they are pulling the plow themselves." The tourist was deeply challenged by their sacrificial gift.

Under Old Testament law, God required animal sacrifices, which pointed to Christ dying for our sins. His death brought them to an end, but the Lord still desires to receive spiritual sacrifices from His people.

God puts no merit in any attempts to earn His favor or call attention to oneself. But He delights in deeds that spring from faith that works through love (Gal. 5:6). They are spiritual sacrifices that come from giving ourselves completely to Him (Rom. 12:1-2). He is pleased when we continually give thanks in Jesus' name, do good, and share with others (Heb. 13:15-16).

Some spiritual sacrifices will be costly. But what is gained--His praise--is always greater than what is given up. --D J De Haan (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

The gifts that we may give,
The deeds that we may do
Most truly honor Christ
When self is given too. --DJD

When Christ's love fills your heart,the more you give, the more you gain.

1 Peter 2.7 For you therefore which believe is the preciousness

This change in the Revised Version, from the "unto you therefore that believe He is precious" of the Authorized, gives a far better interpretation of the Apostle's words. The declaration is not that believers know the preciousness of Christ; it is rather that they share it. The idea of preciousness is that of honour, and there-fore of honourableness, that is, of the qualities that are worthy of honour. This is the thought of the statement, then. The qualities of Christ that create His precious­ness, His honour, are placed at the dis­posal of the believer. Twice already had the Apostle described the Lord as "pre­cious" (see verses 4 and 6). In both cases the description was a declaration of God's estimate of Him. He was the rejected of men, but with God He was elect, precious. We know the things in Christ which made Him precious, honourable, in the sight of God. They were the things of His purity, His love, His conformity to all the perfect will of God. Here, then, is the wonder of this declaration. All these things are communicated to those who believe in Him. His very life 'and nature are given to the believer, and, by the might of their working, make that believer precious with His preciousness. He is the living Stone, and those who come to Him, who believe in Him, receive that very quality of life which is His, and so they become living stones. It is in the power of that precious­ness that they become "an elect race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possession," and so are enabled "to show forth the excellencies" of God. (Morgan, G. C. Life Applications from Every Chapter of the Bible)

1 Peter 2:7a "Unto you therefore which believe he is precious."

This text calls to my re-collection the opening of my ministry. As a lad of sixteen I stood up for the first time in my life to preach the gospel in a cottage to a handful of poor people who had come together for worship. I felt my own inabil­ity to preach, but I ventured to take this text: "Unto you there-fore which believe he is pre­cious." I do not think I could have said anything upon any other text. Christ was precious to my soul, and I was in the flush of my youthful love, and I could not be silent when a precious Jesus was the subject. (C H Spurgeon)

This is a text on which I think I could preach in my sleep. And I believe that if I were dying and were graciously led into the old track, I could with my last breath pour out a heartful of utterance on this delightful verse. I am sure it contains the marrow of what I have always taught in the pulpit. (C H Spurgeon)

1 Peter 2:7b He is Precious

As all the rivers run into the sea, so all delights centre in our Beloved. The glances of his eyes outshine the sun: the beauties of his face are fairer than the choicest flowers: no fragrance is like the breath of his mouth. Gems of the mine, and pearls from the sea, are worthless things when measured by his preciousness. Peter tells us that Jesus is precious, but he did not and could not tell us how precious, nor could any of us compute the value of God's unspeakable gift. Words cannot set forth the preciousness of the Lord Jesus to his people, nor fully tell how essential he is to their satisfaction and happiness. Believer, have you not found in the midst of plenty a sore famine if your Lord has been absent? The sun was shining, but Christ had hidden himself, and all the world was black to you; or it was night, and since the bright and morning star was gone, no other star could yield you so much as a ray of light. What a howling wilderness is this world without our Lord! If once he hideth himself from us, withered are the flowers of our garden; our pleasant fruits decay; the birds suspend their songs, and a tempest overturns our hopes. All earth's candles cannot make daylight if the Sun of Righteousness be eclipsed. He is the soul of our soul, the light of our light, the life of our life. Dear reader, what wouldst thou do in the world without him, when thou wakest up and lookest forward to the day's battle? What wouldst thou do at night, when thou comest home jaded and weary, if there were no door of fellowship between thee and Christ? Blessed be his name, he will not suffer us to try our lot without him, for Jesus never forsakes his own. Yet, let the thought of what life would be without him enhance his preciousness. (C H Spurgeon, Morning and Evening)

1 Peter 2:9 But ye are . . . a royal priesthood. see Oswald Chambers, O. My Utmost for His Highest: June 21

1 Peter 2:9a You are His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you.

As newsman Clarence W. Hall followed American troops through Okinawa in 1945, he and his jeep driver came upon a small town that stood out as a beautiful example of a Christian community. He wrote, "We had seen other Okinawan villages, . . . down at the heels and despairing; by contrast, this one shone like a diamond in a dung heap. Everywhere we were greeted by smiles and dignified bows. Proudly the old men showed us their spotless homes, their terraced fields, .. . their storehouses and granaries, their prized sugar mill."

Hall saw no jails and no drunkenness, and divorce was unknown. He learned an American missionary had come there thirty years ear­lier. While he was in the village, he had led two elderly townspeople to Christ and left them with a Japanese Bible. These new believers stud­ied the Scriptures and started leading their fellow villagers to Jesus. Hall's jeep driver said he was amazed at the difference between this village and the others around it. He remarked, "So this is what comes out of only a Bible and a couple of old guys who wanted to live like Jesus."

The great power of God's Word leads to salvation through faith in Christ, creating a "special people," a community of believers who love one another, exhort one another, and serve God together. We need to pray that our churches will be an example of God's power to a watch­ing world. —H. V. Lugt (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

The world at its worst needs the church at its best.

1 Peter 2:9b

Roddy Roderique had served 17 years of a life sentence and was appealing for an early release before the high court in Montreal. His pastor, Charles Seidenspinner, was testifying on his behalf.

"Why should this man be released?" asked the Crown Attorney.

"Because God has come into his life, and changed him, and will hold him steady," replied the pastor.

"What do you mean 'God has come into his life?'" asked the judge. He listened thoughtfully as the pastor shared in detail how Christ transforms a life. The judge then asked a loaded question: "Suppose this man is released. Would you want him for a neighbor?"

"Your Honor," said the pastor, "that would be wonderful! Some of my neighbors need to hear the same message that changed his life." Roddy was released, and today he's living for the Lord and is active in his church.

As forgiven sinners, all Christians are "ex-cons" who praise the One who has called us out of darkness (1 Pet. 2:9). When our lives are characterized by honorable conduct and good works, they are strong evidence for truth to those who speak against us (v.12).

Lord, may my words and actions convince people in my neighborhood of their need for Jesus. --D J De Haan (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

You are called with a holy calling
The light of the world to be;
To lift up the lamp of the gospel
That others the light may see. --Anon.

Jesus can change the foulest sinners into the finest saints.

1 Peter 2:9

God's people are "a peculiar people" (I Peter 2:9) which means "a purchased people." The Greek word here carries the idea of making a ring around something to mark it as one's own. Christ has made a ring around us and claimed us for Himself. We hear these days about "cheap grace" and how it doesn't mean much to be a Christian. But salvation is the costliest item on earth. It cost our Lord everything to provide it and it costs us everything to possess it.

We are a generation of cheap Christians going to heaven as inexpensively as possible; religious hobos and spiritual deadbeats living on milk instead of meat, crusts of bread instead of manna, as though we were on a cut‑rate excursion.

In a day when tragedy has become comedy, we play fast and loose with eternal issues. The pearl of great price is not cheap! I have read that years ago in that part of Africa where diamonds in the rough were plentiful, a traveler chanced on boys playing. Closer investigation revealed that they were playing marbles with diamonds! God forgive us today that we handle His treasures as though they were trifles and the coinage of the eternal as though it were play money. It is no time to play marbles with diamonds! (Vance Havner)

1 Peter 2:9-12

The first governor-general of Australia, Lord Hopetoun, inherited a brass-bound leather ledger that became one of his most cherished possessions. John Hope, one of his forebears, had owned it three centuries earlier and had used the ledger in his business in Edin­burgh. When Lord Hopetoun received it, he noticed the prayer inscribed on the front page: "0 Lord, keep me and this book honest." John Hope knew that he needed God's help to maintain his integrity.

Honesty is essential for the Christian. Shading the truth, withhold­ing the facts, juggling figures, or misrepresenting something are dis­honest activities that displease God. For this reason, and to demon­strate the new nature that comes through salvation, Christians should strive to live uprightly before God and man. The use of our time on the job, for example, must be above reproach. We should give an honest day's work to our employer. To do less will destroy our verbal witness and brand us as dishonest.

Speaking of a mutual Christian friend, an acquaintance of mine said, "He's true blue, all wool, and a yard wide," indicating that our friend was genuine, truthful, and trustworthy.

We too must strive to be honest in motive as well as in action and acknowledge our need of the Lord's help to do so by praying, "Lord, keep me honest." —P. R. Van Gorder. (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

Honesty is the first chapter of the book of wisdom.

1 Peter 2:11

Pilgrims - As Christians, we need to think of ourselves as travelers who are just passing through this sinful world. We are not permanent residents, but pilgrims on a journey to a better land. Therefore, we need to “travel light,” not burdening ourselves with an undue attachment to the material things of life. The more we care for the luxuries and possessions of earth, the more difficult will be our journey to heaven.

The story is told about some Christians who were traveling in the Middle East. They heard about a wise, devout, beloved, old believer, so they went out of their way to visit him. When they finally found him, they discovered that he was living in a simple hut. All he had inside was a rough cot, a chair, a table, and a battered stove for heating and cooking. The visitors were shocked to see how few possessions the man had, and one of them blurted out, “Well, where is your furniture?” The aged saint replied by gently asking, :Where is yours?” The visitor, sputtering a little, responded, “Why, at home, of course. I don’t carry it with me, I’m traveling.” “So am I,” the godly Christian replied. “So am I.”

This man was practicing a basic principle of the Bible: Christians must center their affections on Christ, not on the temporal things of this earth. Material riches lose their value when compared to the riches of glory. To keep this world’s goods from becoming more important to us than obeying Christ, we need to ask ourselves, “Where is our furniture?” -D. C. Egner (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

1 Peter 2:11 2:11a
J R Miller
Devotional

The assurance of the heavenly home awaiting us should make us want to live worthily in this world. There are things we should promptly put out of our lives if we are pilgrims on our way to our promised land. We should cleanse our lives of all hypocrisies, all that is not sincere and true.

Envies are not fit feelings for a Christian to cherish on his way to heaven, for he cannot take them through the gate.

"Evil speaking" is also set down among the things that we should put out of our lives. There is a good deal of evil speaking among people who want to pass as followers of Christ. One hears it in almost every circle - criticism of absent ones, uncharitable words about them, sometimes bits of gossip that are not beautiful.

We ought to train ourselves to do here the things we shall continue to do when we get home. It is certain that there will be no evil speaking there. We would better let this kind of speech drop altogether out of our lives, and speak only words of love.

1 Peter 2:11-19

An office supervisor instructed her secretary to alter some question-able financial records. When the secretary refused, the supervisor asked, "Don't you ever lie?"

For many people, both public and private honesty is an obsolete virtue—a moral remnant of bygone days. Integrity is more complex than simply refusing to lie. Integrity means speaking out when remaining silent would convey the wrong impression, and it means doing what's best for others even if it causes us harm.

Sa'ad, a sensitive, hard-working man who lives in Zarayed, one of Cairo's garbage dumps, works long hours collecting trash. He is one of thousands of Egypt's garbage collectors who struggle to survive, but who seldom break out of their hopeless prison of poverty. Often he clears little more than fifty cents a day. One day Sa'ad found a gold watch valued at nearly two thousand dollars. He could have sold the watch and made a better life for himself and his family. He could have reasoned that he needed it more than the owner or that it was God's justice that allowed him to find the watch. But he didn't. He returned the watch to its owner. Sa'ad is a Christian and believes it's wrong to keep what doesn't belong to him.

If this kind of honesty is not evident in our lives, we need to reexamine ourselves. Jesus is the Truth. Truthfulness, therefore, must be the way of life for all who follow Him. —D. J. De Haan (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved).

Some people are honest only because they have never had a good chance to steal anything.

1 Peter 2:15

We don't have to look far in our society to find things we don't like. God has a standard of right and wrong, and it contrasts greatly with the crime, sexual immorality, and declining standards of decency that seem to be everywhere.

It would be easy to do nothing but point out the wrongs in our world and spend a lifetime denouncing them. But if we did, people would tire of listening to us and eventually write us off as complainers.

A newsletter called "Communication Briefings" suggests a more positive approach: Instead of being "against" a social ill, be "for" its remedy. As an example, the newsletter suggests, "Instead of being against illiteracy, be FOR literacy -- and you will help improve literacy."

So how does this apply to us? The apostle Peter said that by doing good we will silence those who criticize us (1 Peter 2:15). For instance, instead of just speaking out against immoral programming on TV, be in favor of positive change -- and then work with local stations to make it happen. Instead of being against poverty, make a tangible contribution in the life of someone who needs help.

Let's be known as people who are for the good, not just against the bad. - J D Brannon (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

While we may want to criticize
Our sick society,
We should instead do what is good
To change the bad we see.-- Sper

A little example can have a big influence.

1 Peter 2:21 Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example. --

We were privileged to be the guests of some friends who live in the mountains. When we entered our room, we were pleased to find a lovely basket of fresh fruit on the table. The grapes, pears, apples, and strawberries looked refreshing and delicious. But it was not until we cut or bit into the fruit that we experienced the full aroma and flavor.

Paul likened the characteristics of the Holy Spirit's work in our lives to fruit (Gal. 5:22-25). The delectable arrangement he described includes love, joy, peace, and kindness. Like the fruit in our guestroom, the full "flavor" is best released under cutting or trying circumstances.

Love, for example, is most beautiful when encountered by hatred. Peace is most welcomed when it blossoms in the midst of conflict. Longsuffering and self-control are sweetest in the face of bitter persecution and temptation.

One reason God allows us to experience trials is that through our godly response the true value of the fruit of the Spirit is released as a witness to the world.

The next time we are tested, may our deepest desire be to allow the Holy Spirit to produce in us fragrant fruit for the glory of God. --D C Egner

We shrink from the purging and pruning,
Forgetting the Husbandman knows
The deeper the cutting and paring
The greater the fruitfulness grows. --Anon.

The Spirit's keen paring knife enhances a Christian's fruit-bearing life. (Radio Bible Class. Our Daily Bread)

1Peter 2:20-23
In God's Hands

In 2 Samuel 16:5-14 we read of King David being cursed by Shimei. This happened while David was fleeing from his son Absalom, who wanted to kill him.

Unlike David, we often want to silence our critics, insist on fairness, and defend ourselves. But as we grow in our awareness of God's protective love, we become less concerned with what others say about us and more willing to entrust ourselves to our Father. Like David, we can say of each critic, "Let him alone, and let him curse" (2 Samuel 16:11). This is humble submission to God's will.

We may ask our opponents to justify their charges, or we may counter them with steadfast denial. Or, like David (v.12), we can wait patiently until God vindicates us.

It is good to look beyond those who oppose us and look to the One who loves us with infinite love. It is good to be able to believe that whatever God permits is for our ultimate good—good, though we're exposed to the curses of a Shimei; good, though our hearts break and we shed bitter tears.

You are in God's hands, no matter what others are saying about you. He has seen your distress, and in time He'll repay you for the cursing you have received. So trust Him and abide in His love.
— David H. Roper

THINKING IT OVER
Read 1 Peter 2:20-23. How did Jesus respond
to words spoken against Him? What did He do and not do?
In what situations can you follow His example?

We can endure life's wrongs because we know that God will make all things right.

1 Peter 2:24 Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree.

He came into the sinner’s world. — Himself sinless, he took our nature. Accustomed to the pure atmosphere of his own bright home, He allowed his ears and eyes to be assailed by sounds and sight; beneath which they must have smarted. His blessed feet trod among the dust of death, the mounds of graves, and the traps that men laid to catch Him. And all for love of us.

He lived the sinner’s life. — Not a sinner’s life, but the ordinary life of men. He wrought in the carpenter’s shed; attended wedding festivals, and heartrending funerals; ate, and drank, and slept. He sailed in the boat with his fisher-friends; sat wearied at the well-head; and was hungry with the sharp morning air.

He sympathised with the sinners’ griefs. — In their affliction He was afflicted. He often groaned, and sighed, and wept. When leprosy with its sores, bereavement with its heart-rending loneliness, dumbness and deafness, and devil-possession, came beneath his notice, they elicited the profoundest response from his sympathetic heart.

He died the sinner’s death. — He was wounded for our transgressions. He was treated as the scapegoat, the leper, the sin-offering of the human family. The iniquities of us all met in Him, as the dark waters of the streets pour into one whirling pool. He stood as our substitute, sacrifice, and satisfaction the guilt, and curse, and penalty of a broken law borne and exhausted in his suffering nature.

He is preparing the sinner’s home. — “I go to prepare n place for you”; and no mother was ever more intent on preparing his bedroom for her sailor-boy on his return, than Jesus on preparing heaven.  (Meyer, F B: Our Daily Homily)

1 Peter 2:24a

Counseling, mood-altering drugs, psychosurgery, and other forms of therapy are often needed to help and cure people with emotional disorders. But these treatments can't make them good. Charles Col-son tells of a frustrated prison psychiatrist who exclaimed, "I can cure a person's madness, but not his badness." To do that calls for getting to the heart of the problem—sin.

The only way to make bad people good is to expose them to the gospel. Even Charles Darwin, the man who contributed so much to evolutionistic thinking, admitted this. He wrote to a minister: "Your services have done more for our village in a few months than all our efforts for many years. We have never been able to reclaim a single drunkard, but through your services I do not know that there is a drunkard left in the village!"

Later Darwin visited the island of Tierra del Fuego at the southern tip of South America. What he found among the people was horrify­ing—savagery and bestiality almost beyond description. But when he returned there after a missionary had worked among the people, he was amazed at the change in them. He acknowledged that the gospel does transform lives. In fact, he was so moved by what he saw that he contributed money to the mission until his death.

First Peter 2 reminds us that Christ's sacrifice on the cross not only paid sin's penalty but also broke its power. The apostle Paul, listing some terrible sins, wrote to the Christians in Corinth, "Such were some of you. But you were washed" (1Pe 2:9-11). Praise God. Jesus does make bad people good. —H. V. Lugt (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

God formed us; sin deformed us; Christ transforms us.

1 Peter 2:24b Who His own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree. The Collision Of God And Sin - Oswald Chambers My Utmost for His Highest: April 6

1 Peter 3:1 "Wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that... they... may . . . be won."

A husband was a very loose, depraved man of the world, but he had a wife who for many years bore with his ridicule and unkindness, praying for him night and day. One night, being at a drunken feast with a number of his companions, he boasted that his wife would do anything he wished; she was as submissive as a lamb. "Now," he said, "she has gone to bed hours ago, but if I take you all to my house at once, she will get up and entertain you and make no com­plaint." The matter ended in a bet, and away they went.

In a few minutes she was up and remarked that she was glad that she had two chickens ready, and if they would wait she would soon have a supper spread for them. The table was spread, and she took her place at it, acting the part of hostess with cheerfulness. One of the company exclaimed, "Madam, I am at a loss to under-stand how it is you receive us so cheerfully, for being a religious person you cannot approve of our conduct."

Her reply was, "I and my husband were both formerly un­converted, but by the grace of God I am now a believer in the Lord Jesus. I have daily prayed for my husband and done all I can to bring him to a better mind. But as I see no change in him, I fear he will be lost forever. And I have made up my mind to make him as happy as I can while he is here."

They went away, and her hus­band said, "Do you really think I shall be unhappy forever?"

"I fear so," said she. "I would to God you would repent and seek forgiveness." That night patience accomplished her desire. He was soon found with her on the way to heaven. (C H Spurgeon)

1 Peter 3:1, 7 3:1a
J R Miller
Devotional

The religion of Christ has its definite teachings for everybody.

In this chapter wives and husbands come in for lessons of their own. The Christian wife should want to win her own husband for Christ. In this she can do best, not by perpetual nagging, but by making her own life so attractive, that her husband will be convinced of the reality and the power of the Christ that is in her.

It is right for the wife to dress beautifully, but the adorning that will give her the widest influence as a winner of souls is not that of the body - the braiding of the hair, the wearing of jewels, or the putting on of showy cloths. A woman’s real adornment is not of the body, but of the life and character; as Peter put it, "the incorruptible appeal of a meek and quiet spirit."

There is a word here also for husbands. They are to be gentle, patient, kind, thoughtful, using their strength for the comfort and help of their wives.

In this lesson lies one of the secrets of a happy wedded life.

1 Peter 3:4

Our society idolizes the so-called "beautiful people" -popular entertainers and models whose youthful faces dominate the pages of the magazines at the supermarket checkout. But such attractiveness has nothing to do with the kind of beauty that delights the heart of God.

We tend to think of beauty in terms of something lovely that evokes a feeling of pleasure within us. But God wants us to place more value on what's in a person's heart than we do on superficial things (1 Pet. 3:3-4).

As William Dyrness explains, something is lovely by God's standards "if it displays the integrity that characterizes creation and that in turn reflects God's own righteousness." In other words, a truly beautiful person is one who serves God's purposes.

Regardless of our outward appearance, then, all of us can be beautiful. By God's transforming grace, we can have the beauty of holiness and integrity  that mirrors the character of His Son. As we devote ourselves wholeheartedly to the fulfillment of the Lord's purposes in our lives, we will  develop the kind of God-honoring beauty that does  not fade (Prov. 31:30). That's the only way to become one of the truly beautiful people.-- VC Grounds (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me,
All His wonderful passion and purity;
O Thou Spirit divine, all my nature refine,
Till the beauty of Jesus be seen in me.

Beautiful people are those who mirror Christ.

1 Peter 3:4a

The Birthmark - Charles William Eliot (1834-1926), former president of Harvard University, had a birthmark on his face that bothered him greatly. As a young man, he was told that surgeons could do nothing to remove it. Someone described that moment as “the dark hour of his soul.”

Eliot’s mother gave him this helpful advice: “My son, it is not possible for you to get rid of that hardship. But it is possible for you, with God’s help, to grow a mind and soul so big that people will forget to look at your face.” 

1 Peter 3:8

Hubert H. Humphrey, former senator, vice-president, college professor, and family man, spoke proudly and lovingly of his family in a television interview. Then his eyes moistened as he recalled the birth of a very special granddaughter with Down's syndrome. "It happened several years ago," he said, "and do you know, that little girl has brought more love into our family circle than had existed before."

A few years later Humphrey died, and after the graveside service the family found it difficult to leave the cemetery. But it was this grandchild who lifted their spirits. "Grandpa is in heaven, not in this casket," she said. What a blessing that little girl with a disability has been to the Humphrey family!

As king, David could have eliminated Saul's household for Saul's attempts to kill him. But he desired instead to show favor to any living member of Saul's family for Jonathan's sake. When told about Mephibosheth, who was "lame in his feet" (2 Sam. 9:3), David showed him special kindness. I believe his physical condition, as well as his place in Saul's household, brought out the best in David.

People with disabilities fulfill a unique place in God's plan. Let's learn from David's example. - H V Lugt (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

They will not realize right away
The leading role they're asked to play,
But with this child sent from above
Comes stronger faith and richer love.-- Massimilla

People with a disability have a unique ability to teach us how to love.

1 Peter 3:8a  Be tenderhearted, be courteous

Why are we sometimes courteous and sometimes not? Courtesy blossoms in a heart that is humble, whereas selfishness is the root of rudeness.

I remember reading a story about a plainly dressed man who entered a church in the Netherlands and took a seat near the front. A few minutes later a woman walked down the aisle, saw the stranger in the place she always sat, and curtly asked him to leave. He quietly got up and moved to a section reserved for the poor.

When the meeting was over, a friend of the woman asked her if she knew the man she had ordered out of her seat. "No," she replied. Her friend then informed her, "The man you ordered out of your seat was King Oscar of Sweden! He is here visiting the Queen."

The woman was greatly embarrassed and wished she had shown the king the courtesy of giving up her seat. But it was too late. He had left.

Some of us find it hard to be courteous when we're driving our car, making our way through a crowded store, vying for a seat at the sports event, or even getting in line at the church potluck. Difficult as it sometimes may be, though, courtesy should be one mark of every Christian. H G Bosch (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

O Lord, transform our selfish hearts,
And help us always see
That gentleness and courtesy
Describe how we should be. --Anon.

If you're not very kind, you're not very holy.

1 Peter 3:8b

I once came across this headline in a newspaper: The Beautiful American. The dateline of the item was Keren, Ethiopia, and the article quoted the governor general, who said, "Why can't you send us more Americans like Mr. Downey?" The official, talking with a visiting reporter, paused and rephrased his question: "Why aren't there more human beings like him?"

The article then went on to explain that the official was referring to an ex-GI who sparked a drive to build an orphanage and hospital in that needy place. For this he was dubbed, "The Beautiful American," which was a great compliment.

An even higher honor is to be called "The Beautiful Christian." Above all others, believers should be the truly "beautiful people." We are to be marked by the qualities of gentleness, compassion, love, tenderheartedness, and courtesy (1 Pet. 3:4,8). We are to be "beautiful" because we return blessing for evil (v.9), we seek peace (v.11), and we are willing to "suffer for righteousness' sake" (v.14).

When others see you, do they see a reflection of Christ's love in you? Because of your faithfulness, could you be called a "beautiful Christian"? --R W De Haan (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

By this shall every person know
That we serve God above:
His Spirit dwells within our hearts
And fills us with His love. --DJD

The most beautiful people reflect Christ

1 Pete 3:8c
CHRISTIAN COURTESY - "Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous."-- 1 Pete 3:8.

IT WOULD be a marvel to find in any community under heaven a complete embodiment of the injunctions contained in this and the following verses. Yet nothing less than this is the Christian ideal, and it would be well if, without waiting for others, each one would adopt these precepts as the binding rule and regulation of daily life. This would be our worthiest contribution to the convincing of the world, and to the coming of the Kingdom of our Lord. Does not the Apostle's use of the word "finally" teach us that all Christian doctrine is intended to lead up to and inaugurate that life of love, the bold outlines of which are sketched in these words?

The general principle. "Be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another." This oneness of mind does not demand the monotony of similarity, but unity in variety. We shall never be of one mind in the sense of all holding the same opinions; but we may be all of one mind when, beneath diversities of opinion, expression, and view, we are aniMatted by a common devotion to Christ.

Note the specific applications.

Love as brethren. Love is not identical with like. Providence does not ask us whom we would like to be our brethren, that is settled for us, but we are bidden to love them, irrespective of our natural predilections and tastes. Love does not necessarily originate in the emotions, but in the will; it consists not in feeling, but in doing; not in sentiment, but in action; not in soft words, but in unselfish deeds.

Be pitiful Oh, for the compassion of our blessed Lord! How often it breaks out in the Gospel narrative to the weak and erring, to the hungry crowds, and to the afflicted who sought His help!

Be courteous. Be ready to take the least comfortable seat, or to let others sit while you stand. Let the manners of your Heavenly Father's Court be always evident in your daily life, so that the world may learn that Christianity produces not simply the heroism of a great occasion, but the minute courtesies of daily living.

PRAYER Blessed Lord, I beseech Thee to pour down upon me such grace as may not only cleanse this life of mine, but beautify it a little, if it be Thy will .... Grant that I may love Thee with all my heart and soul and mind and strength, and my neighbour as myself. AMEN. (F B Meyer. Our Daily Walk)

1 Peter 3:10

September 22 THE GRACE OF CHRISTIAN SPEECH
"He that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile."-- 1Pe 3:10.

"Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt." -- Col 4:6.

THE IDEAL of Christian speech is given in the Apostle's words to the Colossians. Our speech should be always gracious; and grace stands for mercifulness, charity, the willingness to put the best constructions upon the words and actions of another. It is a great help in dealing with envy, jealousy, or unkind feeling to compel our lips to speak as Christ would have them. If you are jealous of another, the temptation is to say unkind or depreciating things, but if we live in the power of the Holy Spirit, He will enable us to check such words and replace them by those that suggest kindly consideration on the part of ourselves and others. Endeavour to say all the good that can be said, and none of the evil. It is remarkable that when we make the effort to speak kindly on behalf of those against whom we feel exasperated, the whole inward temper changes and takes on the tone of our voice.

There should be salt in our speech--purity, antiseptic, and sparkling like the Book of Proverbs. A playful wit, a bright repartee, are not inconsistent with the Apostle's standard, but whenever we mix in conversation with people, they should be aware of an element in us which makes it impossible for them to indulge in ill-natured gossip or coarse jokes.

We must continue in prayer that God would open to us doors of utterance, so that we may speak of the hidden beauty and glory of our Saviour. Sometimes, also, when we are hard pressed to know how to answer difficult questions, it is given to us in that same hour how we ought to speak, and we find that the Holy Spirit has found an utterance by our lips (Luk12:12; 1Pe3:15).

It is recorded of our Lord that during His trial He spoke not a word to Pilate or Herod, but as soon as He reached the Cross, He poured out His heart as their Intercessor, saying: "Father, forgive them: for they know not what they do!" Speak more to God than to men who may be reviling and threatening you. It is blessed to realize that He is able to guard the door of our lips, for probably there is no part of our nature that stands more in need of His keeping power.

PRAYER Live in us, Blessed Lord, by Thy Holy Spirit, that our lives may be gospels of helpfulness and blessedness. May all foolish talking and covetousness, bitterness, wrath, and anger be put away from us, with all malice. AMEN.
September 23 (F B Meyer. Our Daily Walk)

1 Peter 3:12

Ours is an era of glaring inequities, and the forces of wicked­ness seem destined to prevail. But let us not forget that "the face of the Lord is against them that do evil." A time of settlement is coming. God sees all that rears its head in defiance of Him and knows those who live unrighteously. However, "He will not always chide; neither will he keep his anger forever" (Ps. 103:9). While this is the age of grace in which He still bids the sinner to repent and accept His offer of pardon, it will not always be true. Judgment is coming!

You will note in checking our Scripture reading that the major portion of it is a quotation from Psalm 34. Man's heart does not change from age to age. The Psalmist had observed in his day just what the apostle was now seeing. The unbridled rebellion of the human heart runs wild, and havoc is the result in every area of conduct. Man is always trying to implement his own schemes and exclude his Creator. As a result, failure will again be written over the futile efforts of the human race to attain peace and happiness.

Out of the midst of this corrupt civilization God is calling a people for His name. And for these regenerated ones there is the promise, "The eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers." As the old spiritual says, "He hears all you say; He sees all you do. My Lord is writin' all the time."

Friend, be certain you are on the Lord's side, and that you are daily conscious of an all-seeing God. (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

Jehovah's eyes are on the just,
He hearkens to their cry;
Against the wicked sets His face,
Their very name shall die. — Psalter

If your spiritual eyes are out of focus, you may not see God, but remember He always sees you. (Radio Bible Class. Our Daily Bread)

1 Peter 3:12a

The following comforting comments were found in a clipping sent to us by an interested reader: "A child in Burma was per­mitted by his parents to go to a mission school in order that he might learn to read. By and by they found he was losing faith in the idols. This made them feel very sad. So the father took the lad to one of the gayest of the temples where the fragrance of incense filled the air. There he showed him the glittering images covered with gold and silver ornaments and surrounded by flowers and candles. `Here,' said the father, 'is a god you can see! The Christians cannot show you their God.' `Yes,' said the child, `we can see your god, but he cannot see us. We cannot see the Christian's God, but He sees us all the time!' Was not this child wise in choosing the God from whom even the thoughts of the heart cannot be hidden?"

How reassuring the truth that "the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous" so that we can say with Hagar, "Thou God seest me" (Gen. 16:13). How precious the teaching of the Bible about the eyes of the Lord. Psalm 32:8 tells us, "I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go; I will guide thee with mine eye." And we read in Psalm 33:18, "Behold, the eye of the Lord is upon those who fear him, upon those who hope in his mercy." First Peter 3:12 tells us that ". . . the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous"

Child of God, perhaps unnoticed, or even forgotten and ne­glected by others, remember, you too can say with assurance, "Thou God seest me!" His eyes are not only upon you, but His ears are open unto your cry.

With the little child in Burma we as Christians can rejoice that although we are not able to see our God, we do know and have this assurance that He sees us all the time!

Sweet thought! We have a Friend above,
Our weary, faltering steps to guide,
He follows with His eye of love
The precious ones for whom He died. —Anon.

It is comforting to know that He who "guides us with His eye" sees tomorrow clearer than we see today!—Bosch (Radio Bible Class. Our Daily Bread)

1 Peter 3:14 Fear not their fear, neither be troubled. (r.v.)

It was a time of very real and fiery trial when Peter wrote these words. Persecution was already beginning with the House of God. The first mutterings of the awful storm which was to break in Nero’s terrible atrocities were making themselves heard throughout the Roman world. The intention of this Epistle, therefore, was to encourage these scattered saints, that they might not be overwhelmed. Some who read these words may need similar comfort.
Remember, beloved fellow-believers, that Jesus has suffered; your Lord and Master has trodden these thorns before you. See, they are flecked with his blood. Would you not desire to be fellow-partaker with Him in his sorrow, that you may share his glory? It is only in suffering that we can properly identify ourselves with the great anguish of the world, or learn to comfort or pray for others. And, probably, none know the innermost tenderness and companionship of Jesus like those who daily fill up that which is behind of his sufferings. Besides, their fear is much worse in anticipation than in actual experience. Probably God entirely delivers his martyrs from those physical tortures which to onlookers might seem unbearable.

This has been the perpetual testimony of the Armenian refugees. Miss Codrington’s story of her experiences in China, and Dr. Baedeker’s statement of what he has learnt in his wide experience amid the refugees and imprisoned saints in all parts of Europe support and confirm the same conclusion. Sanctify Jesus Christ in your heart as Lord and King. Maintain a good conscience; do not be turned aside for fear of man; and when you come to suffer, yea will find the fire has lost its sting.  (Meyer, F B: Our Daily Homily)

1 Peter 3.15 Sanctify in your hearts Christ as Lord

The simple meaning of the injunction is that at the very centre of life there is to be but one Lord, and that is Christ. To do this is to ensure the unification of being, consistency of conduct, and accomplish­ment of purpose. We are divided in our own life, inconsistent in our conduct, and ineffective in our service, when our loyalty is divided. This is so self-evident a truth that it hardly seems necessary to argue it. Nevertheless, while holding the truth theoretically, how constantly we are in danger of failing to live by it! Other lords are permitted to invade the sanctuary ofthe heart, and to exercise dominion over us. Our own selfish desires, the opinion of others, worldly wisdom, the pressure of circumstances, these and many other lords command us, and we turn from our simple and complete allegiance to our one Lord, and give ourselves up to the false mastery of these things. The results are always disastrous. We become storm-tossed and feverish; our conduct is not consistent; our work is spasmodic and devoid of power. Therefore the urgency of the in-junction. To hallow the heart by excluding all other lords save Christ Himself, is to be strong, true, and effective. His know-ledge is perfect, of the heart, of the circum­stances, of the true way of life. To be governed by many lords is to be in bondage to them all, and to be desolated by their conflicting ways. To be in bondage to Christ, is to be released from all other captivity. (Morgan, G. C. Life Applications from Every Chapter of the Bible)

1 Peter 3:15a

Sanctifying Christ - How am I to sanctify Jesus Christ? It is the same word used in the Lord’s Prayer as “hallowed.” We sanctify or hallow one who is holy already when we recognize the holiness and honor what we recognize. So the plain meaning of the commandment here is: Set Christ in your hearts on the pedestal and pinnacle that belongs to Him, and then bow down before Him with all reverence and submission. Be sure you give Him all that is His due, and in the love of your hearts, as well as in the thoughts of your mind, recognize Him for what He is—the Lord. Many of us only see a part of the whole Christ. He is our Creator as well as our Redeemer, our Judge as well as our Savior. Forgetting that, some do not hallow Him enough in their hearts as Lord. Embrace the whole Christ, and see to it that you do not dethrone Him from His rightful place or take from Him the glory due His name. (Alexander Maclaren from 1 Peter 3:14,15 Hallowing Christ)

1Peter 3:15-16

EVERY-DAY RELIGION - HERE IS no doubt that if every Christian person were to begin to live up to the New Testament ideal, avoiding always what Christ would not be, and seeking to be always what He would be, there would be .little need for preaching, for the beauty of the Christian character would in itself be sufficiently attractive to win men for Jesus Christ.

Let us examine ourselves by the suggestions in this chapter, from which we have selected our text (1Pe3:8-18). Have we the mind of Christ, which makes us willing to be of no reputation, and to stoop even to the death of the cross, for others? Are we compassionate, sympathising in the joys and sorrows of others? Do we love the brethren, not always liking them perhaps, but treating them kindly, and making their interests more important than our own? Are we tender-hearted and pitiful towards the afflicted and distressed? Are we courteous, with true Christian politeness which differs from the world's code of manners? How do we reply to injury? Do we bless when we are cursed, or do we retaliate with hot and indignant words? Are we willing to leave our vindication with God?

Do you want a happy life and good days. Then leave God to vindicate and deliver you. Set yourself against evil, and live at peace with all, as much as in you lies. The one thing for all of us to be really anxious about is to enshrine Jesus Christ in our hearts as Lord (R.V.). Is there a door in your heart opening on a throne room which is reserved for Jesus only? Have you written on that door such words as these: "Other lords have had dominion over me, but henceforth He only is my King."? Be ready to give a reason for the hope that is in you. This is what Peter, on one memorable occasion, failed to do; and we shall fail also but for the help of the Holy Spirit, who will teach us what we ought to say (John14:26). Have a good conscience--one that can look God and man in the face, and is not conscious of willful violation of what is right and good. Follow the gleam; obey the inner light; listen to the still small voice, which is ever saying: "This is the way, walk ye in it."

PRAYER
Help me, O God, so to Rye that those who are associated with me, directing or serving me day by day, may long to have the love and joy which they see in me. Show me how to apply to the common things of daily life the heavenly principles of the risen life. AMEN. (F B Meyer. Our Daily Walk, Feb 12)

1 Peter 3:18 "Christ ... suffered for sins."

One thing I know: Christ thinks more of our sins than he does of our righteousness, for he gave himself for our sins. I never heard that he gave himself for our righteousness. (C H Spurgeon)

1 Peter 3:18 "Christ... suffered .. . the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God."

No soul ever ate a morsel more dainty than this one—substitution. I do think that this is the grandest truth in heaven and earth—Jesus Christ the just one died for the unjust, that he might bring us to God. It is meat to my soul. I can feed on it every day, and all the day. (C H Spurgeon)

"The just for the unjust" I can understand. But the "just dying for the just" would be a double injustice—an injustice that the just should be punished at all, and another injustice that the just should be punished for them. Oh, no! If Christ died, it must be because there was a penalty to be paid for sin commit­ted. Hence he must have died for those who had committed the sin.  (C H Spurgeon)

1 Peter 4:1 Arm yourselves with the same mind.

The Church was redeemed in a baptism of pain for her members to suffer, and by suffering to overcome the world, is to fulfill the forecast which Jesus gave when He said, “In the world ye shall have tribulation; be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” Arm yourselves with this mind; put on this thought, this resolution, this purpose; determine that suffering at least shall never daunt you.

The reason for donning this armor. — Here we have no continuing city. In the death of Jesus we suffered in the flesh, and ceased from our connection with the world which cast Him out: and, as suffering is meted out to us, we become increasingly convinced that we can have no fellowship with its sins. The pain which the world allots to the followers of Jesus widens the chasm between them and it, pulls down the old nests in which their affections once built, and makes them more determined than ever to follow their Lord.

The choice which this armor involves. — No more the lusts of men, but the will of God. Never again to work the desire of the Gentiles, but to live according to God. Not henceforth to bow before the bondage of evil habit, but with erect and upright gaze to behold the face of Christ — such is the choice. Will you not now make it at this solemn moment, as you stand on this watershed between the two continents — here of the morning, there of the midnight? Follow the King, cost what it may.

The nature of the armor. — It is the armor of Light: in which Christ’s nature was encased, and on which all the shafts of man and devil broke into splinters. No weapon that was ever manufactured can prevail against its heavenly temper.  (Meyer, F B: Our Daily Homily)

1 Peter 4:4

Two university students in Moorhead, Minnesota, painted a mural on the wall outside their dormitory room. According to USA Today, it showed a school of fish all swimming in the same direction except for a single fish heading the opposite way.

The one fish was intended to be the age-old symbol for Christ. Printed on the picture were the words, "Go against the flow." University officials, arguing that the mural might offend non-Christians, ordered the students to paint over it.

In obedience to our Master, we must be willing to go against the flow of society. As we follow Jesus, our motives, values, and habits are bound to be different from those who are not Christians. That's the way it was in the first century when the pagans were puzzled and convicted by the lifestyle of Christians. Peter wrote, "They think it strange that you do not run with them in the same flood of dissipation, speaking evil of you" (1 Peter 4:4).

When we are marching to the beat of a different drummer, of course we will be out of step with people around us. This takes conviction, courage, and courtesy. But by God's enabling grace we can be disturbingly different -- and effectively different too. - V C Grounds (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

Some will hate you, some will love you;
Some will flatter, some will slight;
Cease from man and look above you,
Trust in God and do the right.-- Macleod

When we walk with the Lord,
we'll be out of step with the world.

1 Peter 4:4a

When the crowd is running the wrong way, it's hard to be the oddball who runs the right way. Most of the participants in the NCAA 10,000-meter cross-country race in Riverside, California, thought Mike Delcavo was heading the wrong way. He kept waving for the other 127 runners to follow him, but only 4 believed he had taken the right turn--the turn that all the other competitors had missed.

When he was asked about the reaction to his mid-course decision not to let the crowd determine his direction, Mike responded, "They thought it was funny that I went the right way."

First-century pagans reacted the same way to the changed lifestyle of their Christian neighbors. The apostle Peter said, "They think it strange that you do not run with them in the same flood of dissipation, speaking evil of you" (1 Pet. 4:4). Non-Christians still think that followers of Jesus Christ are going in the wrong direction. But actually, believers are headed for the victor's crown and a heavenly home (2 Tim. 4:7-8).

The route that non-Christians choose may seem right to them, but it leads to eternal loss. Keep on the right path, no matter how many are running the other way. --V C Grounds (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

The path we're on determines our
Eternal destination;
One leads to everlasting life,
The other, condemnation. --Sper

It's better to be right than popular.

1 Peter 4:8 4:8
J R Miller
Devotional

We call John the Apostle of Love, but the other New Testament writers give equal emphasis to the duty of Christian love. The most wonderful chapter ever written in order to extol love is by Paul - the matchless thirteenth of First Corinthians.

Then Peter also exhorts that "above all things," that is, even above prayer, we are to be fervent in our love among ourselves, for love covereth a multitude of sins. That is, love overlooks even a multitude of faults and flecks and sins in others.

This lesson cannot be repeated too often. We do not naturally love people - it is something we have to learn to do. If Paul’s definition is to be regarded as the standard, most of us have a good deal yet to learn about loving before we reach it. Peter also makes the lesson strong, exhorting us to be fervent - that is, warm, tender, affectionate in our loving of each other.

The only way to get such Christian love into our lives is to let Christ’s own love into our hearts.

1 Peter 4:10

In the 60s and 70s, much was heard about the right of individuals to "do their own thing." People were encouraged to be themselves, to get to know themselves, and to express themselves.

Of course a Christian should never pursue an unhealthy individualism that glorifies self and  ignores God. But when we remember our responsibility to others and acknowledge our dependence on the Lord, He can use our distinctive skills and spiritual gifts for His glory.

In Romans 12, believers are reminded that while they are part of one body, they all have different God-given abilities. Every child of God is obligated to recognize his particular talents and to use them in His service.

In a commercial airliner, the pilot, co-pilot, mechanics, engineers, and flight attendants all  have different responsibilities. What jeopardy the passengers would be in if each crew member  neglected his duties for another role! In much the same way, serious harm can come to a church if its members clamor for the position of another.

Don't settle for less than God's best by coveting a position you may not be suited for. Recognize the gift God has given you and "do your own thing." And do it well! -- R W De Haan (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

It matters not what others do;
It is my task to see
My life is patterned to the mold
The Lord has planned for me.-- Anon.

Your place is where you can do the most good for God.

1 Peter 4:11 "If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God."

Reckon that every sermon is a wasted sermon which is not Christ's Word. Believe that all theology is rotten rubbish which is not the Word of the Lord. Do not be satisfied with going to a place of worship and hearing an eloquent discourse, unless the sum and substance of it is the Word of the Lord. My brothers and sisters, whether you teach children or their parents, do not think you have done any good unless you have taught the Word of the Lord. For saving purposes we must have the Lord's Word, and nothing else. (C H Spurgeon)

1 Peter 4:12, 13 4:12
Octavius Winslow
Evening Thoughts

If, dear reader, you are in possession of real faith, even in the smallest degree, expect its conflict and its trial. It is truly remarked by the holy Leighton, that God never had but one Son without sin, and never one without suffering. The existence of faith seems necessarily to imply the endurance of suffering-not because of any intrinsic defect in faith, but in consequence of the impurity of the heart in which that faith is lodged; its perpetual admixture with the alloy of a mind but partially renewed, its constant contact with the objects and scenes of sense and of earth, render trial as essential to the purification of faith, as the flail to the pure wheat, and as the crucible to the precious metal.

The trials and temptations, therefore, with which God visits His people, are designed as tests of faith. Without them we should lack some of the strongest evidences of experimental Christianity. Who would wish the stubble and the chaff to render doubtful the existence of the true grain, or the tin and the dross to obscure the luster of the fine gold? Welcome, then, every trial and test of your faith. Welcome whatever stamps its reality, increases its strength, and heightens its luster. Nor be surprised that this, above all the graces of the Holy Spirit, should be a mark for the great enemy of God. As faith is the grace which most glorifies God, which brings the greatest degree of joy and peace into the soul, and which constitutes its mightiest shield in the conflict, it becomes an especial object of Satan's malignant attack. The most Christ-exalting, God-honoring, and sanctifying of all the Spirit's graces must not expect to escape his fearful assaults. If this "gold" was "tried in the fire" in the sinless person of Jesus, is there not a greater necessity that in our fallen and corrupt nature it should be subjected to a second process of trial? It was tried in the Head, to show that it was real gold; it is tried in the members, to separate it from the alloy with which t becomes mixed in its contact with our hearts. In the one case, the trial was to stamp its divine nature; in the other case, the trial is to purify it from the human nature. Thus are we honored to suffer, in some small degree, as our Lord and Master suffered. Therefore, beloved, "rejoice, inasmuch as you are partakers of Christ's sufferings, that when His glory shall be revealed, you may be glad also with exceeding joy."

1 Peter 4:13 4:13
Octavius Winslow
Evening Thoughts

With the cross of Immanuel before us, and with the heaven of glory which that cross unveils, and to which it leads, can we properly contemplate our trials in any other view than as loving corrections? "He that spared not His own Son, but gave Hint up for us all," shall He send an "evil" which we refuse to interpret as a good? and shall not that good, though wearing its somber disguise, raise the soul to Him upon the outstretched and uplifted wing-as the wing of the "anointed cherub"-of adoration, thanksgiving, and praise? If, numbered among His saints-and, oh, be quite sure, beloved, of your heavenly calling-we stand before Him, objectively, the beings of His ineffable delight, and, subjectively, the recipients of his justifying righteousness. Thus loved and accepted-and we believe, and are sure, that this is the true and unchangeable condition of all His people-shall anything but a sentiment of uncomplaining gentleness-a submission not shallow but profound, not servile but filial-respond to the dealings, however severe, of our Father in heaven?

It is, beloved, in these disciplinary seasons that we become more thoroughly schooled in the knowledge, of the infinite worth, glory, and preciousness of the Savior. How much is involved in a spiritual and experimental acquaintance with the Lord Jesus! We are in the possession of all real knowledge when we truly know Christ. And we cannot know the Son, and not know also the Father. And it is utterly impossible to know the Father, as revealed in His Son, and not become inspired with a desire to love Him supremely, to serve Him devotedly, to resemble Him closely, to glorify Him faithfully here, and to enjoy Him fully hereafter. And oh, how worthy is the Savior of our most exalted conceptions-of our most implicit confidence-of our most self-denying service-of our most fervent love! When He could give us no more-and the fathomless depths of His love and the boundless resources of His grace would not be satisfied by giving us less-He gave us himself. Robed in our nature, laden with our curse, oppressed with our sorrows, wounded for our transgressions, and slain for our sins, He gave His entire self for us. And let it be remembered, that it is a continuous presentation of the hoarded and exhaustless treasures of His love. His redeeming work now finished, He is perpetually engaged in meting out to his Church the blessings of that "offering made once for all." He constantly asks our faith-woos our affection-invites our grief-and bids us repair with our daily trials to His sympathy, and with our hourly guilt to His blood. We cannot in our drafts upon Christ's fullness be too covetous, nor in our expectations of supply be too extravagant. Dwelling beneath His cross, our eye resting upon the heart of God, we will in all things desire and aim to walk uprightly, presenting our "bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God;" that "the trial of our faith may be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ."

1 Peter 4:12-19

He Died Singing - John Huss, the Bohemian reformer, was burned at the stake in 1415. Before his accusers lit the fire, they placed on his head a crown of paper with painted devils on it. He answered this mockery by saying, “My Lord, Jesus Christ, for my sake, wore a crown of thorns; why should not I then, for His sake, wear this light crown, be it ever so ignominious? Truly I will do it willingly.”

After the wood was stacked up to Huss’ neck, the Duke of Bavaria asked him to renounce his preaching. Trusting completely in God’s Word, Huss replied, “In the truth of the gospel which I preached, I die willingly and joyfully today.” The wood was ignited, and Huss died while singing, “Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God, have mercy on me.”

1 Peter 4:13. Rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings.Partakers of His Sufferings - Oswald Chambers. My utmost for his highest: November 5

1 Peter 4:13-16

THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT--LONGSUFFERING
"If a man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God in this name. Insomuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings, Rejoice!"-- 1Peter 4:13-16.

THE LONG-SUFFERING silence of our Lord was the marvel of His foes.

"As a lamb that is led to the slaughter and as a sheep that before her shearers is dumb," He opened not His mouth. Before the high priests, He held His peace. To Pilate He gave no answer. Amid the challenge and reproach of the Cross, He answered nothing, save in benediction and prayer. "When He was reviled He did not answer with reviling; when He suffered, He uttered no threats, but left His wrongs in the hands of the righteous Judge."

Surely this has been His habit through the centuries. In every child suffering through drunken parents, in every martyr burnt at the stake, in every innocent sufferer before high-handed oppression, He has been led as a lamb to the slaughter, but how silent He is! Man may murder His servants and blaspheme His name, but He says never a word! This is the purport of one of those strange announcements which make the Book of Revelation so remarkable. "When He had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half-an-hour." The songs of heaven are hushed; the multitude which cannot be numbered listens to the groans and appeals of their unhelped brethren; the angels stay their anthems, and seem intent on the tragedies about to be described (Rev8:1). But there does not appear to be any help.

But remember that silence does not imply indifference. At the very time that our Lord was silent before His judges, He was bearing the sin of the world. When the silence is proclaimed in Heaven, we find that the prayers of the saints are being presented on the throne---prayers of intercession, mingled with much incense of Christ's merit.

It is in this spirit that we are to suffer. We are to conceal our anguish as stoics. No suffering rightly borne is in vain, but in some little way, which you may not understand, you are helping Christ in His redemptive work. Be calm, and quiet, and glad! Pray for those who despitefully use you, and ask that your sufferings, rightly borne, may lead to their conversion, as Stephen's did in the case of Saul.

PRAYER
Heavenly Father, of Thine infinite mercy, give me such assurance of Thy protection amid the troubles and tumults of this mortal life, that I may be preserved in quietness of spirit and in inward peace. AMEN. (F B Meyer. Our Daily Walk)

1 Peter 4.16 If a man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God in this name.

This is one of the very few places in the New Testament where this description of believers is employed. There are only three. In the first, we are told where it originated: "The disciples were called Christians first in Antioch" (Acts 11.26). It would seem that it was given to them by the men of Antioch, and it was not necessarily a term of reproach, but one used to mark the fact that they were followers of Christ. The second is where Agrippa said to Paul, "With but little persuasion thou wouldst fain make me a Christian" (Acts 26.28). This shows that by this time it had probably become a general term. The third and last time is here, where Peter employed it in a sense that shows that in some camas it brought suffering to be known as a Christian. The Apostle says two things in view of that fact. The first is that no shame is attached to such suffering. As he wrote this he was probably remembering the time when he and his fellow-apostles left the council of the Jews, in actual physical agony from the stripes which had been laid on them, but rejoicing "that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonour for the Name" (Acts 5.41). The second word is an injunction: "Let him glorify God in this name." That is more than glorying in the name. It is so living worthily of all it means as to glorify God. If a man is known as a Christian, and does not live as one, he dishonours God. To bear the name is to take a responsibility, a great and glorious one, but none the less a very solemn one. (Morgan, G. C. Life Applications from Every Chapter of the Bible)

1 Peter 4:17  Judgment on the Abyss of Love - Oswald Chambers. My Utmost for His Highest: April 6

1 Peter 4:18

C H Spurgeon's Sermon Notes on 1 Peter 4:18 - If So, What Then?

If the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear? — 1 Peter 4:18

SCARCELY saved" points out the difficulty of salvation.
Some think it easy to begin by believing, but the prophet cries, "Who hath believed?" and Jesus asks, "When the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?"

Some may also think it easy to persevere to the end, but the godly are hard put to it to keep their faces Zionward.

It is no light thing to be saved; omnipotent grace is needed.
It is no trifling thing to be lost, but it can be done by neglect.

I. THE FACT. "The righteous scarcely are saved."

1.From the connection we conclude that the righteous are saved with difficulty because of the strictness of divine rule. "The time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God."

There is equity and fitness in this specialty of examination.

These tests are many, varied, repeated, applied by God himself.

Good corn endures the sickle, the flail, the fan, the sieve, the mill, the oven.

The great test of all is the omniscient judgment of the jealous God.

What grace will be needed to pass that ordeal!

2. From the experience of saints we come to the same conclusion. They find many saving acts to be hard, as for instance—

To lay hold on Christ simply and as sinners .......

To overcome the flesh from day to day.

To resist the world with its blandishments, threats, and customs.

To vanquish Satan and his horrible temptations.

To perform needful duties in a humble and holy spirit.

To reach to gracious attainments and to continue in them.

To pass the tribunal of their own awakened and purified conscience, and to receive a verdict of acquittal there.

3. From the testimony of those who are safely landed.

"These are they, which came out of great tribulation?'

II. THE INFERENCE FROM THE FACT. "Where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?"

1. If even the true coin is so severely tested, what will become of "reprobate silver"?

2. If saints scarcely reach heaven, what of the ungodly?

What can they do who have no God?

What can they do who have no Savior?

What can they do who are without the Spirit of God?

What without prayer, the Word, the promise of God, etc.?

What without diligence? When the tradesman, though careful, is losing all his capital, what of the spendthrift?

What without truth? When the fire consumes houses strongly built, what must become of wood, hay, stubble?

3. If saints are so sorely chastened, what will justice mete out to the openly defiant sinner?

III. ANOTHER INFERENCE. Where ill the mere professor appear?

If the truly godly have a hard fight for it—

The formalist will find ceremonies a poor solace.

The false professor will be ruined by his hypocrisy.

The presumptuous will find his daring pride a poor help.

He who trusted to mere orthodoxy of creed will come to a fall.

Height of office will do no more than increase responsibility.

IV. ANOTHER INFERENCE. Then the tempted soul may be saved.

It seems that even those who are truly saints are saved with difficulty; then we may be saved, though we have a hard struggle for it.

Uprising corruption makes us stagger.

A persecuting world tries us sorely.

Fierce temptations from without cause us perplexity.

Loss of inward joys brings us to a stand.

Failure in holy efforts tests our faith.

But in all this we have fellowship with the righteous of all ages. They are saved, and so shall we be.

V. ANOTHER INFERENCE. How sweet will heaven be!

There the difficulties will be ended for ever.
There the former trials will contribute to the eternal bliss.

Enforcements

When the apostle uses the phrase, "If the righteous scarcely be saved," he does not, assuredly, mean that there is any doubt about the absolute and infinite sufficiency of the ground of their salvation, or that there is any uncertainty in the result, or that there is any stintedness or imperfection in the final enjoyment, or that, when believers come to stand before the judgment seat at last, it will go hard with them, so that they may barely come off with acquittal, the poised balance vibrating in long uncertainty, and barely turning on the favorable side, the justifying righteousness of their Lord forming no more than a counterpoise, and hardly that, to their demerits. He means none of these things. His language refers to the difficulty of bringing them through to their final salvation; to the necessity of employing the rod and furnace; the process, in many instances severe, of correction and purification; of bringing them "to the wealthy place through the fire and the water;" of their "entering the kingdom through much tribulation"; of their being "chastened of the Lord, that they might not be condemned with the world:' If "fiery trial" be required, and his hatred of sin and his love to his children will not allow him to withhold it, to purge out the remaining alloy of their holiness, what must his enemies have to look for from his abhorrence of evil, in whom sin is not the mere alloy of a better material, but all is sin together? — Dr. Wardlaw

There is much ado to get Lot out of Sodom, to get Israel out of Egypt. It is no easy matter to get a man out of the state of corruption. — Richard Sibbes

Of this I am assured, that no less devotion than that which carried the martyrs through the flames, will carry us unpolluted through this present world. — Mrs. Palmer

Do you grieve and murmur that you must be saved with difficulty? Ungrateful creatures! you had deserved certain damnation. The vengeance of God might have appeared armed for your destruction; and he might long ago have sworn in his wrath that you should never enter into his rest. And will you complain of the Lord's leadings because he does not always strew your path with roses? — Dr. Doddridge

"Where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?" Surely nowhere. Not before saints and angels, for holiness is their trade. Not before God, for he is of "more pure eyes than to behold them." Not before Christ, for he shall come in flaming fire rendering vengeance. Not in heaven, for it is an undefiled inheritance. — John Trapp

Where shall he appear, when to the end that he might not appear, he would be glad to be smothered under the weight of the hills and mountains, if they could shelter him from appearing? — Archbishop Leighton

1 Peter 4:19 The Sacrament Of The Saint - Oswald Chambers  My Utmost for His Highest: August 10

1 Peter 4:19a

February 28 A FAITHFUL CREATOR - "Wherefore, let them that suffer according to the will of God, commit the keeping of their souls to Him in well-doing, as unto a Faithful Creator."-- 1Pe 4:19.

THE MORE one ponders these words, the more wonderful they appear! That God is faithful is as clear as noonday. He is faithful in the At. return of the seasons and the orbit-order of the stars; faithful in holding back the flood, that it should not overflow the world and destroy the homes of men; faithful to every living creature that He has made, providing for its exact sustenance. Even the odd sparrow, which Christ must have seen thrown in by the dealer, when His Mother bought four others, does not fall to the ground without His notice. God is the Faithful Creator in the heavens above and in the earth beneath. We are not surprised, therefore, to find His faithfulness the theme of Holy Writ; but why does Peter lay emphasis on His faithfulness as Creator, when ministering to the special circumstances of suffering believers? Is not this the reason? We are apt to concentrate our thoughts on the Birth, the Cross, the Grave, the Intercession of our Lord, and to forget that behind all these, deep in the nature of God--the Almighty Creator--there are ever-welling fountains of faithfulness, love, and tenderness. We are summoned to go back beyond the story of Redemption to the infinite silence of Eternity, when each of us was a distinct thought in the mind of God. In His book, all our members were written, when as yet there was none of them.

Whether we have realised that eternal purpose is open to serious questioning, but everyone of us has a right to look into the face of God, and say" "Thine hands have made me, and fashioned me; give me understanding that I may learn Thy commandments." We may not question God's dealings with us. They are immutably wise and right. But we may claim that in some way He should make good our deficiencies, so that though sorrowful, we should be always rejoicing; though poor we should make many rich; though having nothing, we should scatter our wealth, as though possessing all things. There is no reason why our life should be a failure, no reason why we should not minister richly to others, no reason why, by His grace, we should not be more than conquerors! We may humbly make this claim on the Almighty Creator, and He will not allow His faithfulness to fail!

PRAYER - Help us to commit ourselves to Thee in well-doing, O God, our Faithful Creator. May we find a solace for our own griefs and disappointments, in sympathy and ministry to others. AMEN. (F B Meyer. Our Daily Walk)

1 Peter 4:19b

One of the toughest tests we face while serving God is betrayal. I saw it happen to a loving pastor. He encouraged a gifted teenager in his congregation to go to Bible school. He arranged for financial support. He continued to mentor the young man after graduation, letting him preach on occasion.

But then the graduate began to undermine the pastor with innuendo and criticism. Finally the heartbroken minister left. Then the young man announced himself as a candidate for pastor of the church.

Jesus knew about betrayal. he invested 3 years into the lives of His 12 disciples, one of them was Judas. Jesus had taught him, performed miracles before his eyes, and even washed his feet. Yet Judas sold his allegiance for 30 pieces of silver. When Jesus predicted His own betrayal in John 13:18, He quoted David, who also knew what it was like to have a friend turn on him (Ps. 41:9).

Knowing that He would be betrayed, Jesus continued to do what the Father wanted Him to do. He taught us by example to serve people because we love and obey God, not because we want to be appreciated.

Have you been betrayed? Find comfort in knowing that true fulfillment comes in doing the will of God. - D C Egner (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

When people turn against you
In spite of all you do,
Remember Christ's rejection
And all He's done for you.- Anon.

If you are betrayed, leave it with God.

1 Peter 4:19 4:19c
Octavius Winslow
Evening Thoughts

The God who is now dealing with you is love, all love-a God in Christ-your covenant God-your reconciled Father. All His thoughts towards you, peace; all His feelings, love; and all His dealings, mercy. Soon will you be in His heavenly presence, and behold His unveiled glory as it beams forth from the eternal throne. Soon will you be with Jesus, shall see Him, be like Him, and dwell with Him forever. Darkness, and conflict, and sickness, and death shall cease, because sin shall cease. Then, in your blessed experience, will be realized the beatific vision-"And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain; for the former things are passed away." Let this prospect reconcile you patiently to wait all the days of your appointed time, until your change come. God is faithful. Christ, in whom you believe, is able to keep that which you have committed unto Him against that glorious day. He will perfect that which concerns you. Nothing shall be consumed in your present fiery trial, but the tin and dross. The precious and imperishable gold shall be "found unto praise, and honor, and glory, at the appearing of Jesus Christ." Not more safe were Noah and his family, when they sailed in the ark through the storm, than is that soul who is shut up in Christ. If you have come out of yourself, have left all, and have fled to Jesus, this is your encouragement-not a soul ever perished whom the Father gave in covenant to his Son-whom the Son redeemed-whom the Spirit has regenerated, and in whom He dwells. A threefold cord keeps that precious saint-the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. "Kept by the power of God, through faith, unto salvation." Oh, precious declaration! Press it with a stronger faith to your heart; for if God be for you, who can be against you? In your present state of suffering you find it difficult to think or to pray. But He, who formed you, knows your frame, "He remembers that we are dust." There is One who thinks and prays for you. It is Jesus, your Elder Brother; the "brother born for adversity;" the great High Priest, wearing your nature, who has passed within the veil, "now to appear in the presence of God for us." Jesus intercedes for you moment by moment. Your faith shall not fail, your grace shall not decline, your hope shall not make ashamed; for He who came down to earth, and was wounded for your transgression, and was bruised for your iniquities, rose again from the dead, and ascended on high, now to appear in the presence of God for you. Christ prays for you, and that, when by reason of confusion of mind and weakness of body you cannot pray for yourself. Precious Jesus! You are that gentle Shepherd, who over-drives not Your little ones. When they cannot run, You do permit them to walk; and when, through feebleness, they cannot walk, You do carry them. You are He of whom it is said, "He shall feed his flock like a shepherd, he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom."

1 Peter 5:1

C H Spurgeon's Sermon Notes on 1 Peter 5:1 -
A Witness and A Partaker

he elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed. — 1 Peter 5:1

THE apostle's care. He was anxious that the elders should tend the flock of God, and make themselves examples to it.

The apostle's gentleness. "I exhort;" not command, etc.

The apostle's humility: "also an elder." He does not insist upon his apostleship, though this was much the greater office.

The apostle's wisdom— "also an elder." In this capacity he would have most weight with them in his exhortation.

Besides this, he mentioned two other characters, and calls himself "a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed."

I. A WITNESS OF THE SUFFERINGS Of CHRIST.

So far as possible, let us be witnesses with Peter.

1. An eye-witness of those sufferings. Apostles must have seen Jesus.

He had seen the passion and death of our Lord.

In this we cannot participate, nor need we desire to do so.

2. A faith-witness of those sufferings.

He had personally believed on Jesus at the first.

He had further believed through after-communion with him.

3. A testifying witness of those sufferings.

He bore witness to their bitterness when borne by Jesus.

He bore witness to their importance as an atonement.

He bore witness to their completeness as a satisfaction.

He bore witness to their effect in perfect salvation.

4. A partaking witness of those sufferings.

In defense of truth he suffered from opposers.

In winning others he suffered in the anguish of his heart.

In serving his Lord he suffered exile, persecution, death.

What he witnessed in all these ways became a motive and a stimulus for his whole life.

II. A PARTAKER OF THE GLORY TO BE REVEALED.

It is important to partake in all that we preach, or else we preach without vividness and assurance.

1.Peter had enjoyed a literal foretaste of the glory on the holy mount. We, too, have our earnests of eternal joy.

2.Peter had not yet seen the glory which shall be revealed, and yet he had partaken of it in a spiritual sense; our participation must also be spiritual. Peter had been a spiritual partaker in the following ways—

By faith in the certainty of the glory.

By anticipation of the joy of the glory.

By sympathy with our Lord, who has entered into glory.

3.Peter had felt the result of faith in that glory—

In the comfort which it yielded him.

In the heavenliness which it wrought in him.

In the courage with which it endowed him.

These two things, his witnessing and his partaking, made our apostle intense in his zeal for the glory of God. Because he had seen and tasted of the good word, he preached it with living power and vivid speech. Alt preachers need to be witnesses and partakers.

These made him urgent with others to "feed the flock of God." Such a man could not endure triflers.
These are the essentials for all eminently useful and acceptable service. The Lord will only bless witnesses and partakers.

Hints

I remember a story which runs thus: To a saint who was praying the evil spirit showed himself radiant with royal robes, and crowned with a jewelled diadem, and said, "l am Christ; I am descending on the earth; and I desire first to manifest myself to thee." The saint kept silence, and looked on the apparition; and then said, "l will not believe that Christ is come to me save in that state and form in which he suffered: he must wear the marks of the wounds and the cross." The false apparition vanished. The application is this: Christ comes not in pride of intellect or reputation for ability. These are the glittering robes in which Satan is now arraying himself. Many false spirits are abroad, more are issuing from the pit: the credentials which they display are the precious gifts of mind, beauty, richness, depth, originality. Christian, with the saint, look hard at them in silence, and ask them for the print of the nails. –Dr. J. S. Howson

'Tis a very sad thing when preachers are like printers, who compose and print off many things, which they neither understand, nor love, nor experience; all they aim at is money for printing, which is their trade. It is also sad when ministers are like gentlemen ushers, who bring ladies to their pews, but go not in themselves; bring others to heaven, and themselves stay without. — Ralph Venning

1 Peter 5:5

When the legendary Knute Rockne was head coach at Notre Dame, a column appeared in the school paper with no clue as to who wrote it, other than the signature "Old Bearskin." The column was highly critical of the football players. Its author seemed to have inside information on the strengths and weaknesses of every man on the team. And he spared no words in lambasting each player for his shortcomings and inept performance.

When players complained to Rockne about the severe criticism they received, he would sympathize with them and encourage them to get out there and do better next time.

The writer of that column was never identified -- that is, until after Rockne died. And guess what? The column "died" with him. "Old Bearskin" was actually the players' best friend. He was aware of what happened to football heroes whose success on the field went to their heads. As "Old Bearskin," his criticism helped them to avoid the pitfalls of pride and to strive continually to do better.

When the Lord allows someone to cut us down to size, let's thank Him for it. He cares about us and wants us
to be the humble recipients of His grace.-- R W De Haan (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

God uses critics in our lives
To help us see our pride,
To teach us true humility,
To change us from inside.

When you think you've arrived, you still have a long way to go.

1 Peter 5:5a

Clothed in Humility - A young man who had been invited to a dinner given by the South African statesman John Cecil Rhodes arrived by train and had to go directly to Rhodes’s house in his travel-stained clothes. To the young guest’s horror, he found a room full of people in full evening dress. Soon Rhodes appeared, wearing an old suit. He had heard of the young man’s problem and wanted to spare him further embarrassment.

Rhodes literally clothed himself with humility, a clear picture of what the apostle Peter is speaking about in today’s text. Clothing ourselves with humility toward others puts us on their level, in their shoes, and keeps us from lording it over other Christians or flaunting our position. (Today in the Word)

1 Peter 5:5 5:5b
J R Miller
Devotional

Perhaps there is special need for this counsel in these days. Nothing is more beautiful than to see young persons attentive and respectful to the old. It may not be easy to take slow steps with an infirm aged person, but the time lost in the journey is well spent.

Max O’Rell somewhere has a word about the attention of a daughter to her father. He speaks of it as one of the most beautiful things one sees, and perhaps as rare as beautiful. Mother’s get a great deal more attention from their children than fathers do. That is well - they deserve it; but fathers, too, hunger for love and for kindness from their children, and it is well worthwhile for a bright girl or a happy boy to give a tired father a measure of care and attention now and then.

Humility is the keynote of this chapter. The young are exhorted to be the subject to the elder.

We are all exhorted to gird ourselves with humility; then we are to humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God.

1Peter 5:6 Bow Down, Be Lifted Up

Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time. (1 Peter 5

This is tantamount to a promise: if we will bow down, the Lord will lift us up. Humility leads to honor; submission is the way to exaltation. That same hand of God which presses us down is waiting to raise us up when we are prepared to bear the blessing. We stoop to conquer. Many cringe before men and yet miss the patronage they crave; but he that humbles himself under the hand of God shall not fail to be enriched, uplifted, sustained, and comforted by the ever-gracious One. It is a habit of Jehovah to cast down the proud and lift up the lowly.

Yet there is a time for the Lord's working. We ought now to humble ourselves, even at this present moment; and we are bound to keep on doing so whether the Lord lays His afflicting hand upon us or not. When the Lord smites, it is our special duty to accept the chastisement with profound submission. But as for the Lord's exaltation of us, that can only come "in due time," and God is the best judge of that day and hour. Do we cry out impatiently for the blessing? Would we wish for untimely honor? What are we at? Surely we are not truly humbled, or we should wait with quiet submission. So let

1 Peter 5:7 "Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you."

There is nothing Christ dis­likes more than for his people to make show of him and not to use him. He loves to be worked. He is a great laborer. He always was for his Father, and now he loves to be a great laborer for his brethren. The more burdens you put on his shoulders, the better he will love you. Cast your burden on him. (C H Spurgeon)

I heard of a man who was walking along the high road with a pack on his back. He was growing weary and was therefore glad when a gentleman came along in a carriage and asked him to take a seat with him. The gentleman noticed that he kept his pack strapped to his shoulders, and so he said, "Why do you not put your pack down?"

     "Why, sir," said the traveler, "I did not venture to impose. It was very kind of you to take me up, and I could not expect you to carry my pack as well."

     "Why," said his friend, "do you not see that whether your pack is on your back or off your back, I have to carry it?"

My hearer, it is so with your trouble. Whether you worry or do not worry, it is the Lord who must care for you. (C H Spurgeon)

1 Peter 5:7a

It is a happy way of soothing sorrow when we can feel—“HE careth for me.” Christian! do not dishonour religion by always wearing a brow of care; come, cast your burden upon your Lord. You are staggering beneath a weight which your Father would not feel. What seems to you a crushing burden, would be to him but as the small dust of the balance. Nothing is so sweet as to

“Lie passive in God’s hands,
And know no will but his.”

O child of suffering, be thou patient; God has not passed thee over in his providence. He who is the feeder of sparrows, will also furnish you with what you need. Sit not down in despair; hope on, hope ever. Take up the arms of faith against a sea of trouble, and your opposition shall yet end your distresses. There is One who careth for you. His eye is fixed on you, his heart beats with pity for your woe, and his hand omnipotent shall yet bring you the needed help. The darkest cloud shall scatter itself in showers of mercy. The blackest gloom shall give place to the morning. He, if thou art one of his family, will bind up thy wounds, and heal thy broken heart. Doubt not his grace because of thy tribulation, but believe that he loveth thee as much in seasons of trouble as in times of happiness. What a serene and quiet life might you lead if you would leave providing to the God of providence! With a little oil in the cruse, and a handful of meal in the barrel, Elijah outlived the famine, and you will do the same. If God cares for you, why need you care too? Can you trust him for your soul, and not for your body? He has never refused to bear your burdens, he has never fainted under their weight. Come, then, soul! have done with fretful care, and leave all thy concerns in the hand of a gracious God. (Spurgeon, C. H. Morning and evening : Daily readings January 6 AM).

1 Peter 5:8

Bible teacher William Evans wrote, "It is popular in some circles to day to spell the word devil with the letter "d" left off. This reduces the idea of an actual person called the devil to a mere influence called evil.

"If the devil can't mislead people that way," Evans continue, "he would have them think of him as a horrible, monstrous-looking creature with a forked tail, dressed in a fiery red suit, and with horns protruding from his head. If the devil can get folks to think of him like that, then when he comes as an 'angel of light', he will not be recognized, and so find it easier to beguile his unsuspecting victims."

When we trust Christ as Savior, we have peace with God, but at the same time we come into conflict with the devil. Our "adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour" (1 Pet. 5:8). That's why the Bible says, "Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil" (Eph. 6:11).

We who know Christ can overcome the devil and the evil he creates by learning and obeying God's Word. And let's be thankful that He who is in us is greater than he who is in the world (1 John 4:4). -R W De Haan (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

The prince of darkness grim --
We tremble not for him;
His rage we can endure,
For lo! his doom is sure.--Luther

The devil may be out of fashion, but he's not out of business.

1 Peter 5:8a

The ancient sport of falconry used trained hawks or falcons in the pursuit of wild game. When the "educated predator" was allowed to fly, however, it often rose too high for human eyes to see it. So a hunter often carried a small caged bird called a shrike. By watching the antics of the little bird, the man could always tell where his hawk was, for the shrike instinctively feared the predator and cocked its head to keep it in view.

The Christian desperately needs the alert perception of the shrike when it comes to detecting his spiritual enemy. Our adversary, Satan, "walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour" (1 Pet. 5:8). Our responsibility, according to the apostle Peter, is to "be sober, be vigilant." We're to be always on the alert.

It would be nice if God had giant sirens to warn us of an attack by the devil. But the Lord doesn't operate that way. Instead, we must read the Bible regularly, meditate on its truths, maintain a prayerful attitude throughout the day, and be filled with the Holy Spirit. Only then will we be sensitive to an imminent onslaught of the evil one, and be armed by grace to meet it.

Is your spiritual "shrike system" working well? --M R De Haan II  (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

The devil is clever, deceiving us all,
He subtly causes the strongest to fall;
But we his sly methods are sure to discern
By making God's warnings our daily concern. --DJD

He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. --1 John 4:4

1 Peter 5.9 Knowing that the same sufferings are being accomplished in your brethren who are in the world.

These words constitute the gonads of the Apostle's appeal to Christians to with stand the adversary who is ever "seeking whom he may devour"; and, rightly apprehended, they are full of power and of comfort. The outlook is on the whole conflict of the saints. It is seen as one. No soul is fighting alone. Each one is at once supporting, and supported by, all the rest. Therefore it follows that to cease to with-stand is to weaken all the line of battle, and to create a vantage ground for the enemy; while to continue to withstand is to strengthen that line, and to make it difficult for the foe to break through the plan of the great Captain of salvation. This means that in order to help me to withstand, all the saints are fighting. The resources of the enemy are not limitless. The greater the number of loyal soldiers opposed to him, the greater the difficulty he has in breaking through upon one soul. The resources of our Lord are limitless, and in proportion as we avail ourselves of them we are invincible. How it will help us if we remember this in hours of temp­tation! If we yield, we weaken the whole battle-line. If we withstand steadfast in our faith, the strength of our victory is a contribution of power to all the ranks. And moreover, we need not yield, not only because our Lord is on our side—that is enough—but also because all the saints who resist are helping us. We never fight alone. (Morgan, G. C. Life Applications from Every Chapter of the Bible)

 1 Peter 5:10

You have seen the arch of heaven as it spans the plain: glorious are its colours, and rare its hues. It is beautiful, but, alas, it passes away, and lo, it is not. The fair colours give way to the fleecy clouds, and the sky is no longer brilliant with the tints of heaven. It is not established. How can it be? A glorious show made up of transitory sun-beams and passing rain-drops, how can it abide? The graces of the Christian character must not resemble the rainbow in its transitory beauty, but, on the contrary, must be stablished, settled, abiding. Seek, O believer, that every good thing you have may be an abiding thing. May your character not be a writing upon the sand, but an inscription upon the rock! May your faith be no “baseless fabric of a vision,” but may it be builded of material able to endure that awful fire which shall consume the wood, hay, and stubble of the hypocrite. May you be rooted and grounded in love. May your convictions be deep, your love real, your desires earnest. May your whole life be so settled and established, that all the blasts of hell, and all the storms of earth shall never be able to remove you. But notice how this blessing of being “stablished in the faith” is gained. The apostle’s words point us to suffering as the means employed—“After that ye have suffered awhile.” It is of no use to hope that we shall be well rooted if no rough winds pass over us. Those old gnarlings on the root of the oak tree, and those strange twistings of the branches, all tell of the many storms that have swept over it, and they are also indicators of the depth into which the roots have forced their way. So the Christian is made strong, and firmly rooted by all the trials and storms of life. Shrink not then from the tempestuous winds of trial, but take comfort, believing that by their rough discipline God is fulfilling this benediction to you. (Spurgeon, C. H. Morning and evening: Daily readings July 11 AM)

1 Peter 5:10a After that ye have suffered a little while. (r.v.)

Such a little while! In the Epistle to the Hebrews (Hebrews 10:37, r.v.) it is called a very little while, The late Dr. Gordon loved to read it, Yet a little while, how little, how little! which is the literal rendering of the Greek. A little while! compared with the eternal years; with the far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; with the compensations which await us in the Home of God. Though our life were one long agony, it would seem but as yesterday when it is past; a dream, or a sleepless watch in the night, when the morning breaks.
There is a limitation to our suffering. It is only for a little while; but every moment has been fixed by the immutable purpose and love of God. The hour of darkness is timed with an exact measurement. You shall not suffer one moment more than is absolutely necessary for your perfecting of God’s glory; and for every moment there is an ample supply of grace.

But remember also that in Christ God has called you to his Eternal Glory. You heard that call years ago, and have been following it through days of evil and nights of pain. But the gifts and calling of God are without repentance, and He is waiting to fulfill his eternal purpose. What a banquet that will be when God will satisfy the expectations of those whom He has called to partake of it!

And the suffering is being used in ways you little understand to perfect, stablish, and strengthen you. It is from sick chambers and torture-rooms that God brings forth his veteran hosts in the day of battle. Think not so much of affliction as of the love of Christ, and the blessedness of being like Him and with Him for ever.  (Meyer, F B: Our Daily Homily)

1 Peter 5:10b
Be A "Bristlecone Pine" Believer