“Therefore, since Christ suffered in the flesh [and died for us], arm yourselves [like warriors] with the same purpose [being willing to suffer for doing what is right and pleasing God], because whoever has suffered in the flesh [being like-minded with Christ] is done with [intentional] sin [having stopped pleasing the world],”
1 Peter 4:1 AMP
“Since Jesus went through everything you’re going through and more, learn to think like him. Think of your sufferings as a weaning from that old sinful habit of always expecting to get your own way. Then you’ll be able to live out your days free to pursue what God wants instead of being tyrannized by what you want.”
1 Peter 4:1-2 MSG
We pilgrims chose a hard way when we became believers in Jesus. You see, He suffered much in His short life because He did what was right. Isn’t that strange? We expect bad people to suffer for doing bad things, but a good person suffering for doing good things is a paradox that leaves us wondering. To take an example, Jesus was in the synagogue one sabbath and noticed a man with a deformed hand. Any deformity in those days was serious because there was no social or medical safety net to counter the deficiency. But the Pharisees were hypersensitive about any form of what they considered to be “work” on the Sabbath, even if that “work” was a good deed. They knew Jesus was a healer, and they looked closely to see what He would do. We read in Mark 3 what Jesus did next. “Jesus said to the man with the deformed hand, “Come and stand in front of everyone.” Then he turned to his critics and asked, “Does the law permit good deeds on the Sabbath, or is it a day for doing evil? Is this a day to save life or to destroy it?” But they wouldn’t answer him” (Mark 3:3-4). Reading on, “He looked around at them angrily and was deeply saddened by their hard hearts. Then he said to the man, “Hold out your hand.” So the man held out his hand, and it was restored! At once the Pharisees went away and met with the supporters of Herod to plot how to kill Jesus” (Mark 3:5-6). That’s suffering for doing good. Jesus wasn’t afraid to be counter-cultural in His generation, calling our hypocrisy and doing the good works His Father required. But He suffered for it.
In 1 Peter 4:1, the Apostle Peter wrote that we pilgrims, Christians everywhere, should be prepared to follow in Christ’s footsteps, and in the process also not be afraid to call out the hypocrisy or evil of the day, both inside and outside the church. One good example is about the practice of abortion. God values life highly and we know from Psalm 139 that life starts at the point of conception. If Jesus was around in the flesh today, would He not be calling out this evil practice, with love and compassion for the sinner of course? Should we be doing likewise even if it means suffering in some way? Sadly, Christians generally desire a quiet life, and prefer to go with the flow when it comes to confronting evil deeds in society.
Equally sadly, there are practices going on in the church that go against Biblical teaching. The acceptance of secular societal practices around sexuality and gender has become accepted in most Western Christian denominations. Calling them out will lead to suffering, both within the church and within the society in which we live. But I’m sure that Jesus would have dealt very severely with such problems, should they have been an issue in His local synagogue.
Peter wrote that we should be “willing to suffer for doing what is right and pleasing God“. That is a big ask but one we pilgrims have to face into with courage and Bible-infused conviction. We will never be able to change the society around us by sitting back and hunkering down, waiting for the day when we can transition to Heaven. Counter-culturally we will reach out to the disadvantaged around us, doing good deeds as needed. But we too will stand up for what is right in societies intent on doing wrong. We will not be popular for doing so. We will be reviled and abused. But God will be pleased, and that’s all that matters.
Dear Father God. Please help us to courageously make a stand for You and Your Kingdom as You lead and guide us through the moral and ethical minefields in our societies. Please help us to become involved in issues You want to address, even if it will mean suffering in some way. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Being a Pilgrim 