3 John 1

3 John 1:1

The Governing Authorities

1 Peter 2:13. After the general admonitions to have a good conduct, Peter speaks about particular relationships in which that good conduct has to become visible. In the first place he draws your attention to your relationship toward the government. Peter says that you are to submit yourself to “every human institution”. He also adds a motive to that: it is “for the Lord’s sake”. That excludes other motives. Therefore it is not the intention that you only obey the governing authorities if, according to you, it may deliver you a personal benefit.

1 Peter 2:14. The authority is an ordinance that has been established by God (Romans 13:1). Within this authority there are different levels. There is a king as supreme authority to which believers are to submit themselves. There are also lower levels of authority, such as governors, who are, however, clothed with the authority of the king. They are representatives of the king to punish evildoers, but also to praise those who do right.

Today we know the national authority and also the lower authorities, such as the provincial and municipal authorities. The fact that they often do not consider God’s will, is not our business. God will hold them accountable for the way they performed their duty. In a general sense they indeed restrain the evil.

It can be hard to adopt the right attitude toward the governing authorities. You are submitted to them, although you have nothing to do with their appointment. As an alien and a stranger it is after all not allowed for you to get involved with the politics of the country of your sojourning. Participation in the government or even the exertion of influence on its formation does not suit you as a Christian. The Lord Jesus does not rule either publicly yet. The kingdom of God is still a hidden kingdom, because its King is still hidden in heaven.

Therefore we cannot possibly have government duties yet. The Corinthians had forgotten that and Paul had to blame them for that (1 Corinthians 4:8). God rules the world now by governing authorities, also by those who do not consider Him at all. The Lord Jesus is, as always, our example. This is why He also did not want to be a judge in a case of an inheritance (Luke 12:13). He was not of the world and neither are we. His time to reign is still to come and therefore ours also.

1 Peter 2:15. It is the will of God to submit to the governing authorities. Therefore it is not a kind request for you with the option to think about it and deal with it differently. This submission is also not to happen by grinding your teeth or by having a passive behavior. The important thing is to do right. The believers whom Peter addresses and also Peter himself have to do with the wicked and cruel emperor Nero. God even allowed that under the government of this monarch, both Peter and Paul were sentenced to death.

How wicked a government or ruler may be, it is the responsibility of the believer to submit to it or to him and behave as a good resident of his realm. Doing right will result in being praised by the government, although that praise will possibly not be expressed. The government will acknowledge that Christians deliver their positive contribution to society, although their life may cause the hatred of the authorities.

Besides the praise of the government, doing right has another effect. That effect is that you silence “foolish men” who in their foolish “ignorance” accuse the believers of the most absurd crimes. So it is not about words here, but about deeds in which the value of the Christian life becomes visible.

1 Peter 2:16. This life in submission is true freedom. Freedom is not doing whatever you want. If you do whatever you want, you only allow yourself to be controlled by your flesh, the sin, and that is bondage. That you are a free man also means that you do not put yourself under a law or that you impose or allow to impose a yoke on yourself. Freedom is that by possessing a new nature you love to do what God wants you to. Christian freedom implies that you have been freed from the bondage of sin and the law to enter the sanctuary of God.

This freedom does not mean, however, that you must not do what the government says you should do. As it is already said, it is the will of God that you obey the government. The entire will of God is written in His Word. You are to obey what God orders or prohibits in it. It is foolish to avoid that with an appeal to your freedom. It is most possible – and it is a good thing to recognize that – that you misuse this Christian freedom (Galatians 5:13). You can fool yourself in this view. Therefore hold on to God’s Word as the supreme form of authority.

That sometimes puts you in another area of tension, and that is when the government asks or allows something that is contrary to God’s Word. Then it is important that you obey God rather than men (Acts 5:29). Thereby you can think of the acceptance of unmarried living together or of a homosexual relationship. Those are reprehensible things. If you approve of such things with an appeal on Christian freedom, you are using this freedom “as a covering for evil”. It is in contrast to the fact that you are a bondslave of God.

As a bondslave of God you are accountable to do God’s will. That is not a hard and difficult thing to do for someone who delights in doing the will of God (1 John 5:3). If you see yourself as a ‘free bondslave’, you will not allow yourself to be misguided to act in a way that is in contradiction to God’s will.

1 Peter 2:17. The fact that you must refuse and condemn sinful practices does not mean that you must despise the people who commit these sins. Peter calls on to honor “all people”. That is because all people have been made in the likeness of God. You honor all people in doing right to all. That’s what the Lord Jesus also did when He was on earth. He, for instance, healed all who came to Him without making distinctions (Matthew 8:16).

In the midst of “all people” who are to be honored, is a special company for which we have a special love. That is “the brotherhood”. That is the total of all believers and not only those, whom you are practically in contact with and certainly not only those, whom you can easily get along with. Peter says that we are to love the total of the believers, all who are children of God, without exception. Of the Christians in the first century it is said that they loved each other before they knew each other. That is a wonderful testimony and that is how it is still supposed to be today, for love has not changed.

The love for the brotherhood will not always reveal itself in the same way. You are to love the brothers, but not the fleshy lusts or the worldly mind. You do not love what seeks the destruction of the brotherhood, for example causing divisions or a false doctrine. That is the reason for the addition that you should “fear God”.

To fear God means that you have reverence for Him in everything. That is reflected in your obedience to His Word. It is also reflected in the respect that you show to the king who is appointed by Him as a representative of His authority. You will not always be able to do what the government expects you to do because you fear God, but that should in no way cause you to cease respecting the governing authorities. The recognition of the government should remain, for, as long as the church is on earth, there is no governing authority except from God (Romans 13:1).

You can summarize this section as follows. Peter addresses you as a subject of the kingdom of God. That is not an easy position because you live in a world that does not know anything about it and does not want to know anything about it. The world is seeking to make you suffer like they did to the Lord Jesus. It is impossible to be a follower of Christ without thereby evoking the resistance of the world.

As His disciple you are submitted to His authority of Whom Peter says that you have to sanctify Him as Lord in your heart (1 Peter 3:15). You are dealing with His authority in your life. But He has also placed you in authority relationships. These authorities come from Him. Even though these powers are so much against God, they are God’s ministers. We submit to them as if we were submitting directly to the Lord.

Now read 1 Peter 2:13-17 again.

Reflection: In which situations do you have to subject yourself to the government and when do you have to obey God more than men?

3 John 1:2

The Governing Authorities

1 Peter 2:13. After the general admonitions to have a good conduct, Peter speaks about particular relationships in which that good conduct has to become visible. In the first place he draws your attention to your relationship toward the government. Peter says that you are to submit yourself to “every human institution”. He also adds a motive to that: it is “for the Lord’s sake”. That excludes other motives. Therefore it is not the intention that you only obey the governing authorities if, according to you, it may deliver you a personal benefit.

1 Peter 2:14. The authority is an ordinance that has been established by God (Romans 13:1). Within this authority there are different levels. There is a king as supreme authority to which believers are to submit themselves. There are also lower levels of authority, such as governors, who are, however, clothed with the authority of the king. They are representatives of the king to punish evildoers, but also to praise those who do right.

Today we know the national authority and also the lower authorities, such as the provincial and municipal authorities. The fact that they often do not consider God’s will, is not our business. God will hold them accountable for the way they performed their duty. In a general sense they indeed restrain the evil.

It can be hard to adopt the right attitude toward the governing authorities. You are submitted to them, although you have nothing to do with their appointment. As an alien and a stranger it is after all not allowed for you to get involved with the politics of the country of your sojourning. Participation in the government or even the exertion of influence on its formation does not suit you as a Christian. The Lord Jesus does not rule either publicly yet. The kingdom of God is still a hidden kingdom, because its King is still hidden in heaven.

Therefore we cannot possibly have government duties yet. The Corinthians had forgotten that and Paul had to blame them for that (1 Corinthians 4:8). God rules the world now by governing authorities, also by those who do not consider Him at all. The Lord Jesus is, as always, our example. This is why He also did not want to be a judge in a case of an inheritance (Luke 12:13). He was not of the world and neither are we. His time to reign is still to come and therefore ours also.

1 Peter 2:15. It is the will of God to submit to the governing authorities. Therefore it is not a kind request for you with the option to think about it and deal with it differently. This submission is also not to happen by grinding your teeth or by having a passive behavior. The important thing is to do right. The believers whom Peter addresses and also Peter himself have to do with the wicked and cruel emperor Nero. God even allowed that under the government of this monarch, both Peter and Paul were sentenced to death.

How wicked a government or ruler may be, it is the responsibility of the believer to submit to it or to him and behave as a good resident of his realm. Doing right will result in being praised by the government, although that praise will possibly not be expressed. The government will acknowledge that Christians deliver their positive contribution to society, although their life may cause the hatred of the authorities.

Besides the praise of the government, doing right has another effect. That effect is that you silence “foolish men” who in their foolish “ignorance” accuse the believers of the most absurd crimes. So it is not about words here, but about deeds in which the value of the Christian life becomes visible.

1 Peter 2:16. This life in submission is true freedom. Freedom is not doing whatever you want. If you do whatever you want, you only allow yourself to be controlled by your flesh, the sin, and that is bondage. That you are a free man also means that you do not put yourself under a law or that you impose or allow to impose a yoke on yourself. Freedom is that by possessing a new nature you love to do what God wants you to. Christian freedom implies that you have been freed from the bondage of sin and the law to enter the sanctuary of God.

This freedom does not mean, however, that you must not do what the government says you should do. As it is already said, it is the will of God that you obey the government. The entire will of God is written in His Word. You are to obey what God orders or prohibits in it. It is foolish to avoid that with an appeal to your freedom. It is most possible – and it is a good thing to recognize that – that you misuse this Christian freedom (Galatians 5:13). You can fool yourself in this view. Therefore hold on to God’s Word as the supreme form of authority.

That sometimes puts you in another area of tension, and that is when the government asks or allows something that is contrary to God’s Word. Then it is important that you obey God rather than men (Acts 5:29). Thereby you can think of the acceptance of unmarried living together or of a homosexual relationship. Those are reprehensible things. If you approve of such things with an appeal on Christian freedom, you are using this freedom “as a covering for evil”. It is in contrast to the fact that you are a bondslave of God.

As a bondslave of God you are accountable to do God’s will. That is not a hard and difficult thing to do for someone who delights in doing the will of God (1 John 5:3). If you see yourself as a ‘free bondslave’, you will not allow yourself to be misguided to act in a way that is in contradiction to God’s will.

1 Peter 2:17. The fact that you must refuse and condemn sinful practices does not mean that you must despise the people who commit these sins. Peter calls on to honor “all people”. That is because all people have been made in the likeness of God. You honor all people in doing right to all. That’s what the Lord Jesus also did when He was on earth. He, for instance, healed all who came to Him without making distinctions (Matthew 8:16).

In the midst of “all people” who are to be honored, is a special company for which we have a special love. That is “the brotherhood”. That is the total of all believers and not only those, whom you are practically in contact with and certainly not only those, whom you can easily get along with. Peter says that we are to love the total of the believers, all who are children of God, without exception. Of the Christians in the first century it is said that they loved each other before they knew each other. That is a wonderful testimony and that is how it is still supposed to be today, for love has not changed.

The love for the brotherhood will not always reveal itself in the same way. You are to love the brothers, but not the fleshy lusts or the worldly mind. You do not love what seeks the destruction of the brotherhood, for example causing divisions or a false doctrine. That is the reason for the addition that you should “fear God”.

To fear God means that you have reverence for Him in everything. That is reflected in your obedience to His Word. It is also reflected in the respect that you show to the king who is appointed by Him as a representative of His authority. You will not always be able to do what the government expects you to do because you fear God, but that should in no way cause you to cease respecting the governing authorities. The recognition of the government should remain, for, as long as the church is on earth, there is no governing authority except from God (Romans 13:1).

You can summarize this section as follows. Peter addresses you as a subject of the kingdom of God. That is not an easy position because you live in a world that does not know anything about it and does not want to know anything about it. The world is seeking to make you suffer like they did to the Lord Jesus. It is impossible to be a follower of Christ without thereby evoking the resistance of the world.

As His disciple you are submitted to His authority of Whom Peter says that you have to sanctify Him as Lord in your heart (1 Peter 3:15). You are dealing with His authority in your life. But He has also placed you in authority relationships. These authorities come from Him. Even though these powers are so much against God, they are God’s ministers. We submit to them as if we were submitting directly to the Lord.

Now read 1 Peter 2:13-17 again.

Reflection: In which situations do you have to subject yourself to the government and when do you have to obey God more than men?

3 John 1:3

The Governing Authorities

1 Peter 2:13. After the general admonitions to have a good conduct, Peter speaks about particular relationships in which that good conduct has to become visible. In the first place he draws your attention to your relationship toward the government. Peter says that you are to submit yourself to “every human institution”. He also adds a motive to that: it is “for the Lord’s sake”. That excludes other motives. Therefore it is not the intention that you only obey the governing authorities if, according to you, it may deliver you a personal benefit.

1 Peter 2:14. The authority is an ordinance that has been established by God (Romans 13:1). Within this authority there are different levels. There is a king as supreme authority to which believers are to submit themselves. There are also lower levels of authority, such as governors, who are, however, clothed with the authority of the king. They are representatives of the king to punish evildoers, but also to praise those who do right.

Today we know the national authority and also the lower authorities, such as the provincial and municipal authorities. The fact that they often do not consider God’s will, is not our business. God will hold them accountable for the way they performed their duty. In a general sense they indeed restrain the evil.

It can be hard to adopt the right attitude toward the governing authorities. You are submitted to them, although you have nothing to do with their appointment. As an alien and a stranger it is after all not allowed for you to get involved with the politics of the country of your sojourning. Participation in the government or even the exertion of influence on its formation does not suit you as a Christian. The Lord Jesus does not rule either publicly yet. The kingdom of God is still a hidden kingdom, because its King is still hidden in heaven.

Therefore we cannot possibly have government duties yet. The Corinthians had forgotten that and Paul had to blame them for that (1 Corinthians 4:8). God rules the world now by governing authorities, also by those who do not consider Him at all. The Lord Jesus is, as always, our example. This is why He also did not want to be a judge in a case of an inheritance (Luke 12:13). He was not of the world and neither are we. His time to reign is still to come and therefore ours also.

1 Peter 2:15. It is the will of God to submit to the governing authorities. Therefore it is not a kind request for you with the option to think about it and deal with it differently. This submission is also not to happen by grinding your teeth or by having a passive behavior. The important thing is to do right. The believers whom Peter addresses and also Peter himself have to do with the wicked and cruel emperor Nero. God even allowed that under the government of this monarch, both Peter and Paul were sentenced to death.

How wicked a government or ruler may be, it is the responsibility of the believer to submit to it or to him and behave as a good resident of his realm. Doing right will result in being praised by the government, although that praise will possibly not be expressed. The government will acknowledge that Christians deliver their positive contribution to society, although their life may cause the hatred of the authorities.

Besides the praise of the government, doing right has another effect. That effect is that you silence “foolish men” who in their foolish “ignorance” accuse the believers of the most absurd crimes. So it is not about words here, but about deeds in which the value of the Christian life becomes visible.

1 Peter 2:16. This life in submission is true freedom. Freedom is not doing whatever you want. If you do whatever you want, you only allow yourself to be controlled by your flesh, the sin, and that is bondage. That you are a free man also means that you do not put yourself under a law or that you impose or allow to impose a yoke on yourself. Freedom is that by possessing a new nature you love to do what God wants you to. Christian freedom implies that you have been freed from the bondage of sin and the law to enter the sanctuary of God.

This freedom does not mean, however, that you must not do what the government says you should do. As it is already said, it is the will of God that you obey the government. The entire will of God is written in His Word. You are to obey what God orders or prohibits in it. It is foolish to avoid that with an appeal to your freedom. It is most possible – and it is a good thing to recognize that – that you misuse this Christian freedom (Galatians 5:13). You can fool yourself in this view. Therefore hold on to God’s Word as the supreme form of authority.

That sometimes puts you in another area of tension, and that is when the government asks or allows something that is contrary to God’s Word. Then it is important that you obey God rather than men (Acts 5:29). Thereby you can think of the acceptance of unmarried living together or of a homosexual relationship. Those are reprehensible things. If you approve of such things with an appeal on Christian freedom, you are using this freedom “as a covering for evil”. It is in contrast to the fact that you are a bondslave of God.

As a bondslave of God you are accountable to do God’s will. That is not a hard and difficult thing to do for someone who delights in doing the will of God (1 John 5:3). If you see yourself as a ‘free bondslave’, you will not allow yourself to be misguided to act in a way that is in contradiction to God’s will.

1 Peter 2:17. The fact that you must refuse and condemn sinful practices does not mean that you must despise the people who commit these sins. Peter calls on to honor “all people”. That is because all people have been made in the likeness of God. You honor all people in doing right to all. That’s what the Lord Jesus also did when He was on earth. He, for instance, healed all who came to Him without making distinctions (Matthew 8:16).

In the midst of “all people” who are to be honored, is a special company for which we have a special love. That is “the brotherhood”. That is the total of all believers and not only those, whom you are practically in contact with and certainly not only those, whom you can easily get along with. Peter says that we are to love the total of the believers, all who are children of God, without exception. Of the Christians in the first century it is said that they loved each other before they knew each other. That is a wonderful testimony and that is how it is still supposed to be today, for love has not changed.

The love for the brotherhood will not always reveal itself in the same way. You are to love the brothers, but not the fleshy lusts or the worldly mind. You do not love what seeks the destruction of the brotherhood, for example causing divisions or a false doctrine. That is the reason for the addition that you should “fear God”.

To fear God means that you have reverence for Him in everything. That is reflected in your obedience to His Word. It is also reflected in the respect that you show to the king who is appointed by Him as a representative of His authority. You will not always be able to do what the government expects you to do because you fear God, but that should in no way cause you to cease respecting the governing authorities. The recognition of the government should remain, for, as long as the church is on earth, there is no governing authority except from God (Romans 13:1).

You can summarize this section as follows. Peter addresses you as a subject of the kingdom of God. That is not an easy position because you live in a world that does not know anything about it and does not want to know anything about it. The world is seeking to make you suffer like they did to the Lord Jesus. It is impossible to be a follower of Christ without thereby evoking the resistance of the world.

As His disciple you are submitted to His authority of Whom Peter says that you have to sanctify Him as Lord in your heart (1 Peter 3:15). You are dealing with His authority in your life. But He has also placed you in authority relationships. These authorities come from Him. Even though these powers are so much against God, they are God’s ministers. We submit to them as if we were submitting directly to the Lord.

Now read 1 Peter 2:13-17 again.

Reflection: In which situations do you have to subject yourself to the government and when do you have to obey God more than men?

3 John 1:4

The Governing Authorities

1 Peter 2:13. After the general admonitions to have a good conduct, Peter speaks about particular relationships in which that good conduct has to become visible. In the first place he draws your attention to your relationship toward the government. Peter says that you are to submit yourself to “every human institution”. He also adds a motive to that: it is “for the Lord’s sake”. That excludes other motives. Therefore it is not the intention that you only obey the governing authorities if, according to you, it may deliver you a personal benefit.

1 Peter 2:14. The authority is an ordinance that has been established by God (Romans 13:1). Within this authority there are different levels. There is a king as supreme authority to which believers are to submit themselves. There are also lower levels of authority, such as governors, who are, however, clothed with the authority of the king. They are representatives of the king to punish evildoers, but also to praise those who do right.

Today we know the national authority and also the lower authorities, such as the provincial and municipal authorities. The fact that they often do not consider God’s will, is not our business. God will hold them accountable for the way they performed their duty. In a general sense they indeed restrain the evil.

It can be hard to adopt the right attitude toward the governing authorities. You are submitted to them, although you have nothing to do with their appointment. As an alien and a stranger it is after all not allowed for you to get involved with the politics of the country of your sojourning. Participation in the government or even the exertion of influence on its formation does not suit you as a Christian. The Lord Jesus does not rule either publicly yet. The kingdom of God is still a hidden kingdom, because its King is still hidden in heaven.

Therefore we cannot possibly have government duties yet. The Corinthians had forgotten that and Paul had to blame them for that (1 Corinthians 4:8). God rules the world now by governing authorities, also by those who do not consider Him at all. The Lord Jesus is, as always, our example. This is why He also did not want to be a judge in a case of an inheritance (Luke 12:13). He was not of the world and neither are we. His time to reign is still to come and therefore ours also.

1 Peter 2:15. It is the will of God to submit to the governing authorities. Therefore it is not a kind request for you with the option to think about it and deal with it differently. This submission is also not to happen by grinding your teeth or by having a passive behavior. The important thing is to do right. The believers whom Peter addresses and also Peter himself have to do with the wicked and cruel emperor Nero. God even allowed that under the government of this monarch, both Peter and Paul were sentenced to death.

How wicked a government or ruler may be, it is the responsibility of the believer to submit to it or to him and behave as a good resident of his realm. Doing right will result in being praised by the government, although that praise will possibly not be expressed. The government will acknowledge that Christians deliver their positive contribution to society, although their life may cause the hatred of the authorities.

Besides the praise of the government, doing right has another effect. That effect is that you silence “foolish men” who in their foolish “ignorance” accuse the believers of the most absurd crimes. So it is not about words here, but about deeds in which the value of the Christian life becomes visible.

1 Peter 2:16. This life in submission is true freedom. Freedom is not doing whatever you want. If you do whatever you want, you only allow yourself to be controlled by your flesh, the sin, and that is bondage. That you are a free man also means that you do not put yourself under a law or that you impose or allow to impose a yoke on yourself. Freedom is that by possessing a new nature you love to do what God wants you to. Christian freedom implies that you have been freed from the bondage of sin and the law to enter the sanctuary of God.

This freedom does not mean, however, that you must not do what the government says you should do. As it is already said, it is the will of God that you obey the government. The entire will of God is written in His Word. You are to obey what God orders or prohibits in it. It is foolish to avoid that with an appeal to your freedom. It is most possible – and it is a good thing to recognize that – that you misuse this Christian freedom (Galatians 5:13). You can fool yourself in this view. Therefore hold on to God’s Word as the supreme form of authority.

That sometimes puts you in another area of tension, and that is when the government asks or allows something that is contrary to God’s Word. Then it is important that you obey God rather than men (Acts 5:29). Thereby you can think of the acceptance of unmarried living together or of a homosexual relationship. Those are reprehensible things. If you approve of such things with an appeal on Christian freedom, you are using this freedom “as a covering for evil”. It is in contrast to the fact that you are a bondslave of God.

As a bondslave of God you are accountable to do God’s will. That is not a hard and difficult thing to do for someone who delights in doing the will of God (1 John 5:3). If you see yourself as a ‘free bondslave’, you will not allow yourself to be misguided to act in a way that is in contradiction to God’s will.

1 Peter 2:17. The fact that you must refuse and condemn sinful practices does not mean that you must despise the people who commit these sins. Peter calls on to honor “all people”. That is because all people have been made in the likeness of God. You honor all people in doing right to all. That’s what the Lord Jesus also did when He was on earth. He, for instance, healed all who came to Him without making distinctions (Matthew 8:16).

In the midst of “all people” who are to be honored, is a special company for which we have a special love. That is “the brotherhood”. That is the total of all believers and not only those, whom you are practically in contact with and certainly not only those, whom you can easily get along with. Peter says that we are to love the total of the believers, all who are children of God, without exception. Of the Christians in the first century it is said that they loved each other before they knew each other. That is a wonderful testimony and that is how it is still supposed to be today, for love has not changed.

The love for the brotherhood will not always reveal itself in the same way. You are to love the brothers, but not the fleshy lusts or the worldly mind. You do not love what seeks the destruction of the brotherhood, for example causing divisions or a false doctrine. That is the reason for the addition that you should “fear God”.

To fear God means that you have reverence for Him in everything. That is reflected in your obedience to His Word. It is also reflected in the respect that you show to the king who is appointed by Him as a representative of His authority. You will not always be able to do what the government expects you to do because you fear God, but that should in no way cause you to cease respecting the governing authorities. The recognition of the government should remain, for, as long as the church is on earth, there is no governing authority except from God (Romans 13:1).

You can summarize this section as follows. Peter addresses you as a subject of the kingdom of God. That is not an easy position because you live in a world that does not know anything about it and does not want to know anything about it. The world is seeking to make you suffer like they did to the Lord Jesus. It is impossible to be a follower of Christ without thereby evoking the resistance of the world.

As His disciple you are submitted to His authority of Whom Peter says that you have to sanctify Him as Lord in your heart (1 Peter 3:15). You are dealing with His authority in your life. But He has also placed you in authority relationships. These authorities come from Him. Even though these powers are so much against God, they are God’s ministers. We submit to them as if we were submitting directly to the Lord.

Now read 1 Peter 2:13-17 again.

Reflection: In which situations do you have to subject yourself to the government and when do you have to obey God more than men?

3 John 1:5

The Governing Authorities

1 Peter 2:13. After the general admonitions to have a good conduct, Peter speaks about particular relationships in which that good conduct has to become visible. In the first place he draws your attention to your relationship toward the government. Peter says that you are to submit yourself to “every human institution”. He also adds a motive to that: it is “for the Lord’s sake”. That excludes other motives. Therefore it is not the intention that you only obey the governing authorities if, according to you, it may deliver you a personal benefit.

1 Peter 2:14. The authority is an ordinance that has been established by God (Romans 13:1). Within this authority there are different levels. There is a king as supreme authority to which believers are to submit themselves. There are also lower levels of authority, such as governors, who are, however, clothed with the authority of the king. They are representatives of the king to punish evildoers, but also to praise those who do right.

Today we know the national authority and also the lower authorities, such as the provincial and municipal authorities. The fact that they often do not consider God’s will, is not our business. God will hold them accountable for the way they performed their duty. In a general sense they indeed restrain the evil.

It can be hard to adopt the right attitude toward the governing authorities. You are submitted to them, although you have nothing to do with their appointment. As an alien and a stranger it is after all not allowed for you to get involved with the politics of the country of your sojourning. Participation in the government or even the exertion of influence on its formation does not suit you as a Christian. The Lord Jesus does not rule either publicly yet. The kingdom of God is still a hidden kingdom, because its King is still hidden in heaven.

Therefore we cannot possibly have government duties yet. The Corinthians had forgotten that and Paul had to blame them for that (1 Corinthians 4:8). God rules the world now by governing authorities, also by those who do not consider Him at all. The Lord Jesus is, as always, our example. This is why He also did not want to be a judge in a case of an inheritance (Luke 12:13). He was not of the world and neither are we. His time to reign is still to come and therefore ours also.

1 Peter 2:15. It is the will of God to submit to the governing authorities. Therefore it is not a kind request for you with the option to think about it and deal with it differently. This submission is also not to happen by grinding your teeth or by having a passive behavior. The important thing is to do right. The believers whom Peter addresses and also Peter himself have to do with the wicked and cruel emperor Nero. God even allowed that under the government of this monarch, both Peter and Paul were sentenced to death.

How wicked a government or ruler may be, it is the responsibility of the believer to submit to it or to him and behave as a good resident of his realm. Doing right will result in being praised by the government, although that praise will possibly not be expressed. The government will acknowledge that Christians deliver their positive contribution to society, although their life may cause the hatred of the authorities.

Besides the praise of the government, doing right has another effect. That effect is that you silence “foolish men” who in their foolish “ignorance” accuse the believers of the most absurd crimes. So it is not about words here, but about deeds in which the value of the Christian life becomes visible.

1 Peter 2:16. This life in submission is true freedom. Freedom is not doing whatever you want. If you do whatever you want, you only allow yourself to be controlled by your flesh, the sin, and that is bondage. That you are a free man also means that you do not put yourself under a law or that you impose or allow to impose a yoke on yourself. Freedom is that by possessing a new nature you love to do what God wants you to. Christian freedom implies that you have been freed from the bondage of sin and the law to enter the sanctuary of God.

This freedom does not mean, however, that you must not do what the government says you should do. As it is already said, it is the will of God that you obey the government. The entire will of God is written in His Word. You are to obey what God orders or prohibits in it. It is foolish to avoid that with an appeal to your freedom. It is most possible – and it is a good thing to recognize that – that you misuse this Christian freedom (Galatians 5:13). You can fool yourself in this view. Therefore hold on to God’s Word as the supreme form of authority.

That sometimes puts you in another area of tension, and that is when the government asks or allows something that is contrary to God’s Word. Then it is important that you obey God rather than men (Acts 5:29). Thereby you can think of the acceptance of unmarried living together or of a homosexual relationship. Those are reprehensible things. If you approve of such things with an appeal on Christian freedom, you are using this freedom “as a covering for evil”. It is in contrast to the fact that you are a bondslave of God.

As a bondslave of God you are accountable to do God’s will. That is not a hard and difficult thing to do for someone who delights in doing the will of God (1 John 5:3). If you see yourself as a ‘free bondslave’, you will not allow yourself to be misguided to act in a way that is in contradiction to God’s will.

1 Peter 2:17. The fact that you must refuse and condemn sinful practices does not mean that you must despise the people who commit these sins. Peter calls on to honor “all people”. That is because all people have been made in the likeness of God. You honor all people in doing right to all. That’s what the Lord Jesus also did when He was on earth. He, for instance, healed all who came to Him without making distinctions (Matthew 8:16).

In the midst of “all people” who are to be honored, is a special company for which we have a special love. That is “the brotherhood”. That is the total of all believers and not only those, whom you are practically in contact with and certainly not only those, whom you can easily get along with. Peter says that we are to love the total of the believers, all who are children of God, without exception. Of the Christians in the first century it is said that they loved each other before they knew each other. That is a wonderful testimony and that is how it is still supposed to be today, for love has not changed.

The love for the brotherhood will not always reveal itself in the same way. You are to love the brothers, but not the fleshy lusts or the worldly mind. You do not love what seeks the destruction of the brotherhood, for example causing divisions or a false doctrine. That is the reason for the addition that you should “fear God”.

To fear God means that you have reverence for Him in everything. That is reflected in your obedience to His Word. It is also reflected in the respect that you show to the king who is appointed by Him as a representative of His authority. You will not always be able to do what the government expects you to do because you fear God, but that should in no way cause you to cease respecting the governing authorities. The recognition of the government should remain, for, as long as the church is on earth, there is no governing authority except from God (Romans 13:1).

You can summarize this section as follows. Peter addresses you as a subject of the kingdom of God. That is not an easy position because you live in a world that does not know anything about it and does not want to know anything about it. The world is seeking to make you suffer like they did to the Lord Jesus. It is impossible to be a follower of Christ without thereby evoking the resistance of the world.

As His disciple you are submitted to His authority of Whom Peter says that you have to sanctify Him as Lord in your heart (1 Peter 3:15). You are dealing with His authority in your life. But He has also placed you in authority relationships. These authorities come from Him. Even though these powers are so much against God, they are God’s ministers. We submit to them as if we were submitting directly to the Lord.

Now read 1 Peter 2:13-17 again.

Reflection: In which situations do you have to subject yourself to the government and when do you have to obey God more than men?

3 John 1:6

To Follow in the Steps of Christ

1 Peter 2:18. After Peter showed you the authority relationship of you as resident of your country of residence toward the government, he now draws your attention to another authority relationship. He will now talk about the authority relationship between “servants” and “masters”. As the government as an organ of authority is a consequence of sin, so it is with the relationship of authority between ‘servants’ and their ‘masters’.

There is also a distinction. The government is appointed by God as a judiciary authority (Genesis 9:1-6). Regarding the relation of a servant toward his master it is different. God never meant to make a man to be a servant of another man. However, God does not take away the consequences of sin, but gives instructions on how men, who confess their sin can live to His honor right in those consequences. Regarding slavery, God gives room for the slave to become free, should he have the opportunity to (1 Corinthians 7:22). For the servant who has no opportunity for that God has something else. That servant gets a special opportunity, especially in his work as a servant, to show what it is to be a Christian.

Although Peter speaks about ‘servants’ and not about slaves, the position of servants is similar to those of slaves. That becomes evident from the word ‘master’ that literally means ‘despot’, which implies that such a person has unlimited power and that he is the absolute ruler of his house. A servant belongs to the house management and he therefore has more contact with his master than other slaves. That only makes the danger to rebel or manipulate greater. Therefore Peter admonishes them here to submit to their masters with all respect.

In order to prevent them from excuses he says in addition that this does not only apply to the “good and gentle” masters, but also to “those who are unreasonable”. It is not that hard to be submissive to a good and gentle master. But it takes a whole lot more to be submissive to a harsh master. For such masters the servants are nothing more than living tools that they have available for themselves, with whom they can deal according to their wishes. Especially when servants have an “unreasonable” master, they are in a position “to adorn the doctrine of God our Savior” (Titus 2:10).

You can apply what is said here about servants and masters to what we call today ‘employees’ and ‘employers’, although this comparison is only partially applicable. As it is already said, in the days of Peter a master was someone who had absolute power over his servant. He could do with him whatever he wanted, while the servant had no right or any opportunity to defend himself against it. Today there are numerous opportunities for an employee to defend himself against certain labor circumstances. He even has the right to strike. Nothing like this was possible in those days.

The circumstances may have changed, but the principles that the Scripture brings forward here are still fully effective today. Therefore the believing employee ought not to use his right to strike. He is not appealed to strike, but to work. The pay he receives should not come from the strike fund, but should be earned by working for it (2 Thessalonians 3:10). Peter therefore does not speak about the rights of the servant, but about his duties and especially about his attitude toward his master.

1 Peter 2:19. When you are the submissive person in a relationship, while your superior is ‘unreasonable’ and treats you unjustly, you can adopt different attitudes. You can resist or endure this grief. You read here what God expects from you. It is said here that the injustice that is done to you, makes you sad. Therefore it is important that the injustice that is done to you does not make you obstinate. The attitude that adorns you as a Christian is bear up under sorrows.

You bear up “for the sake of conscience toward God”, which means because you know what God expects of you. If you would respond otherwise, you would be defending your right, but at the same time go against your conscience. ‘Bear up under sorrows’ is foolish in the eye of the world, but God’s Word calls that “favor” when you are “suffering unjustly”. In this way you follow in the steps of the Lord Jesus Who endured in a perfect way.

Isn’t it a great grace to be like Him? If you endure ‘grief’ it is a proof that God’s grace is at work in you. It gives you the opportunity to proclaim the excellencies of God as they became visible in Christ.

1 Peter 2:20. In case the servant would rebel, he would also have to face suffering, because his master would beat him. Then those whips would be his just reward, for rebellion is a sin. Even when a person suffers like that, he may be persistent in his attitude of rebelliousness and he may become even more rebellious than ever. That gives no credit to God. Such an attitude may be right for people who only think of their own rights and want to get their own way, people who have the idea they should defend themselves.

Such an attitude is far away from the grace that God has for anyone who is aware that he is totally dependent on God and has no right to anything. It is a joy for God to connect Himself to you if you suffer like that, because it reminds Him of the suffering that His Son has endured. If you have a harsh employer, it is God’s training school for you to make you more like the Lord Jesus. Isn’t that what you also eagerly want? That is what God has in mind for you if He brings you in a situation where you suffer because of your conscience.

1 Peter 2:21. This suffering is an inseparable part of your normal life as a Christian. You do not take suffering as an inevitable and very unpleasant side effect that you would prefer to avoid. I heard about a committed Christian who had once been treated wrongfully, against which he rebelled. He came to a confession of this wrong response when an older sister asked him: ‘Is that all you’ve learned from Golgotha?’ In God’s Word the question comes to us: “Why not rather be wronged? (1 Corinthians 6:7)? To suffer injustice is not something you and I can do naturally. That is something we have to learn. The question is whether I want to and whether you want to.

Suffering goes together with your call as a Christian. To know what endurance and suffering mean and how you can learn that, your eye is fixed on Christ. Only when suffering and enduring is related to Him, it is valuable and makes your heart happy, how great your suffering may be. Christ has suffered because He in no way gave in to the evil that is in the world and because He didn’t want anything more than going God’s way. The way He went through the world is an example for us. He did not sin by deeds nor by words because He was totally in the will of God and put all things in the hand of His Sender, of Whom He knew that He judges righteously.

When it is written here that Christ has “suffered” as an “example” for us to follow, it is of course impossible to have any reference to His atoning and substitutionary suffering. We cannot follow in that. We read about the atoning and substitutionary suffering of Christ in 1 Peter 2:24. The suffering in which He is an example for you to follow, refers to His whole life before the cross. All the time of that life was ‘suffering’.

He was living in a sinful atmosphere in an unclean world. He was tempted by satan. He was hated by men in return to His love for them. At the same time He went through this suffering “that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest” for you (Hebrews 2:17; Hebrews 4:15), for He knows all trials from His own experience. In His whole way on earth you have an example that you can follow. If you do that, you fulfill your call. That is God’s purpose with your life.

If you want to know how to follow the example of Christ, you couldn’t do better than study the Gospels diligently. There you see how the Lord has responded to all suffering that was done to Him in whatever way. The word ‘example’ was used as an indication for writing models that children had to copy, in order to learn to write and also for drawings from which they had to trace the lines. That’s how you should look at the Lord as an example to learn how to follow Him.

Do not follow Him at a distance, like Peter once did, which caused him to deny his Lord (Luke 22:54). You are only able to follow the example of Christ by walking closely behind Him. Then you will be able to follow in His steps. You see, as it were, the imprint of His footsteps in the sand and you put your feet in it. The more you fall behind, the more the imprint of His footsteps fades. If you walk closely behind Him, His example will remain clear and in that way you move with sure step toward the goal.

Now read 1 Peter 2:18-21 again.

Reflection: How can you follow the steps of Christ in your situation?

3 John 1:7

To Follow in the Steps of Christ

1 Peter 2:18. After Peter showed you the authority relationship of you as resident of your country of residence toward the government, he now draws your attention to another authority relationship. He will now talk about the authority relationship between “servants” and “masters”. As the government as an organ of authority is a consequence of sin, so it is with the relationship of authority between ‘servants’ and their ‘masters’.

There is also a distinction. The government is appointed by God as a judiciary authority (Genesis 9:1-6). Regarding the relation of a servant toward his master it is different. God never meant to make a man to be a servant of another man. However, God does not take away the consequences of sin, but gives instructions on how men, who confess their sin can live to His honor right in those consequences. Regarding slavery, God gives room for the slave to become free, should he have the opportunity to (1 Corinthians 7:22). For the servant who has no opportunity for that God has something else. That servant gets a special opportunity, especially in his work as a servant, to show what it is to be a Christian.

Although Peter speaks about ‘servants’ and not about slaves, the position of servants is similar to those of slaves. That becomes evident from the word ‘master’ that literally means ‘despot’, which implies that such a person has unlimited power and that he is the absolute ruler of his house. A servant belongs to the house management and he therefore has more contact with his master than other slaves. That only makes the danger to rebel or manipulate greater. Therefore Peter admonishes them here to submit to their masters with all respect.

In order to prevent them from excuses he says in addition that this does not only apply to the “good and gentle” masters, but also to “those who are unreasonable”. It is not that hard to be submissive to a good and gentle master. But it takes a whole lot more to be submissive to a harsh master. For such masters the servants are nothing more than living tools that they have available for themselves, with whom they can deal according to their wishes. Especially when servants have an “unreasonable” master, they are in a position “to adorn the doctrine of God our Savior” (Titus 2:10).

You can apply what is said here about servants and masters to what we call today ‘employees’ and ‘employers’, although this comparison is only partially applicable. As it is already said, in the days of Peter a master was someone who had absolute power over his servant. He could do with him whatever he wanted, while the servant had no right or any opportunity to defend himself against it. Today there are numerous opportunities for an employee to defend himself against certain labor circumstances. He even has the right to strike. Nothing like this was possible in those days.

The circumstances may have changed, but the principles that the Scripture brings forward here are still fully effective today. Therefore the believing employee ought not to use his right to strike. He is not appealed to strike, but to work. The pay he receives should not come from the strike fund, but should be earned by working for it (2 Thessalonians 3:10). Peter therefore does not speak about the rights of the servant, but about his duties and especially about his attitude toward his master.

1 Peter 2:19. When you are the submissive person in a relationship, while your superior is ‘unreasonable’ and treats you unjustly, you can adopt different attitudes. You can resist or endure this grief. You read here what God expects from you. It is said here that the injustice that is done to you, makes you sad. Therefore it is important that the injustice that is done to you does not make you obstinate. The attitude that adorns you as a Christian is bear up under sorrows.

You bear up “for the sake of conscience toward God”, which means because you know what God expects of you. If you would respond otherwise, you would be defending your right, but at the same time go against your conscience. ‘Bear up under sorrows’ is foolish in the eye of the world, but God’s Word calls that “favor” when you are “suffering unjustly”. In this way you follow in the steps of the Lord Jesus Who endured in a perfect way.

Isn’t it a great grace to be like Him? If you endure ‘grief’ it is a proof that God’s grace is at work in you. It gives you the opportunity to proclaim the excellencies of God as they became visible in Christ.

1 Peter 2:20. In case the servant would rebel, he would also have to face suffering, because his master would beat him. Then those whips would be his just reward, for rebellion is a sin. Even when a person suffers like that, he may be persistent in his attitude of rebelliousness and he may become even more rebellious than ever. That gives no credit to God. Such an attitude may be right for people who only think of their own rights and want to get their own way, people who have the idea they should defend themselves.

Such an attitude is far away from the grace that God has for anyone who is aware that he is totally dependent on God and has no right to anything. It is a joy for God to connect Himself to you if you suffer like that, because it reminds Him of the suffering that His Son has endured. If you have a harsh employer, it is God’s training school for you to make you more like the Lord Jesus. Isn’t that what you also eagerly want? That is what God has in mind for you if He brings you in a situation where you suffer because of your conscience.

1 Peter 2:21. This suffering is an inseparable part of your normal life as a Christian. You do not take suffering as an inevitable and very unpleasant side effect that you would prefer to avoid. I heard about a committed Christian who had once been treated wrongfully, against which he rebelled. He came to a confession of this wrong response when an older sister asked him: ‘Is that all you’ve learned from Golgotha?’ In God’s Word the question comes to us: “Why not rather be wronged? (1 Corinthians 6:7)? To suffer injustice is not something you and I can do naturally. That is something we have to learn. The question is whether I want to and whether you want to.

Suffering goes together with your call as a Christian. To know what endurance and suffering mean and how you can learn that, your eye is fixed on Christ. Only when suffering and enduring is related to Him, it is valuable and makes your heart happy, how great your suffering may be. Christ has suffered because He in no way gave in to the evil that is in the world and because He didn’t want anything more than going God’s way. The way He went through the world is an example for us. He did not sin by deeds nor by words because He was totally in the will of God and put all things in the hand of His Sender, of Whom He knew that He judges righteously.

When it is written here that Christ has “suffered” as an “example” for us to follow, it is of course impossible to have any reference to His atoning and substitutionary suffering. We cannot follow in that. We read about the atoning and substitutionary suffering of Christ in 1 Peter 2:24. The suffering in which He is an example for you to follow, refers to His whole life before the cross. All the time of that life was ‘suffering’.

He was living in a sinful atmosphere in an unclean world. He was tempted by satan. He was hated by men in return to His love for them. At the same time He went through this suffering “that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest” for you (Hebrews 2:17; Hebrews 4:15), for He knows all trials from His own experience. In His whole way on earth you have an example that you can follow. If you do that, you fulfill your call. That is God’s purpose with your life.

If you want to know how to follow the example of Christ, you couldn’t do better than study the Gospels diligently. There you see how the Lord has responded to all suffering that was done to Him in whatever way. The word ‘example’ was used as an indication for writing models that children had to copy, in order to learn to write and also for drawings from which they had to trace the lines. That’s how you should look at the Lord as an example to learn how to follow Him.

Do not follow Him at a distance, like Peter once did, which caused him to deny his Lord (Luke 22:54). You are only able to follow the example of Christ by walking closely behind Him. Then you will be able to follow in His steps. You see, as it were, the imprint of His footsteps in the sand and you put your feet in it. The more you fall behind, the more the imprint of His footsteps fades. If you walk closely behind Him, His example will remain clear and in that way you move with sure step toward the goal.

Now read 1 Peter 2:18-21 again.

Reflection: How can you follow the steps of Christ in your situation?

3 John 1:8

To Follow in the Steps of Christ

1 Peter 2:18. After Peter showed you the authority relationship of you as resident of your country of residence toward the government, he now draws your attention to another authority relationship. He will now talk about the authority relationship between “servants” and “masters”. As the government as an organ of authority is a consequence of sin, so it is with the relationship of authority between ‘servants’ and their ‘masters’.

There is also a distinction. The government is appointed by God as a judiciary authority (Genesis 9:1-6). Regarding the relation of a servant toward his master it is different. God never meant to make a man to be a servant of another man. However, God does not take away the consequences of sin, but gives instructions on how men, who confess their sin can live to His honor right in those consequences. Regarding slavery, God gives room for the slave to become free, should he have the opportunity to (1 Corinthians 7:22). For the servant who has no opportunity for that God has something else. That servant gets a special opportunity, especially in his work as a servant, to show what it is to be a Christian.

Although Peter speaks about ‘servants’ and not about slaves, the position of servants is similar to those of slaves. That becomes evident from the word ‘master’ that literally means ‘despot’, which implies that such a person has unlimited power and that he is the absolute ruler of his house. A servant belongs to the house management and he therefore has more contact with his master than other slaves. That only makes the danger to rebel or manipulate greater. Therefore Peter admonishes them here to submit to their masters with all respect.

In order to prevent them from excuses he says in addition that this does not only apply to the “good and gentle” masters, but also to “those who are unreasonable”. It is not that hard to be submissive to a good and gentle master. But it takes a whole lot more to be submissive to a harsh master. For such masters the servants are nothing more than living tools that they have available for themselves, with whom they can deal according to their wishes. Especially when servants have an “unreasonable” master, they are in a position “to adorn the doctrine of God our Savior” (Titus 2:10).

You can apply what is said here about servants and masters to what we call today ‘employees’ and ‘employers’, although this comparison is only partially applicable. As it is already said, in the days of Peter a master was someone who had absolute power over his servant. He could do with him whatever he wanted, while the servant had no right or any opportunity to defend himself against it. Today there are numerous opportunities for an employee to defend himself against certain labor circumstances. He even has the right to strike. Nothing like this was possible in those days.

The circumstances may have changed, but the principles that the Scripture brings forward here are still fully effective today. Therefore the believing employee ought not to use his right to strike. He is not appealed to strike, but to work. The pay he receives should not come from the strike fund, but should be earned by working for it (2 Thessalonians 3:10). Peter therefore does not speak about the rights of the servant, but about his duties and especially about his attitude toward his master.

1 Peter 2:19. When you are the submissive person in a relationship, while your superior is ‘unreasonable’ and treats you unjustly, you can adopt different attitudes. You can resist or endure this grief. You read here what God expects from you. It is said here that the injustice that is done to you, makes you sad. Therefore it is important that the injustice that is done to you does not make you obstinate. The attitude that adorns you as a Christian is bear up under sorrows.

You bear up “for the sake of conscience toward God”, which means because you know what God expects of you. If you would respond otherwise, you would be defending your right, but at the same time go against your conscience. ‘Bear up under sorrows’ is foolish in the eye of the world, but God’s Word calls that “favor” when you are “suffering unjustly”. In this way you follow in the steps of the Lord Jesus Who endured in a perfect way.

Isn’t it a great grace to be like Him? If you endure ‘grief’ it is a proof that God’s grace is at work in you. It gives you the opportunity to proclaim the excellencies of God as they became visible in Christ.

1 Peter 2:20. In case the servant would rebel, he would also have to face suffering, because his master would beat him. Then those whips would be his just reward, for rebellion is a sin. Even when a person suffers like that, he may be persistent in his attitude of rebelliousness and he may become even more rebellious than ever. That gives no credit to God. Such an attitude may be right for people who only think of their own rights and want to get their own way, people who have the idea they should defend themselves.

Such an attitude is far away from the grace that God has for anyone who is aware that he is totally dependent on God and has no right to anything. It is a joy for God to connect Himself to you if you suffer like that, because it reminds Him of the suffering that His Son has endured. If you have a harsh employer, it is God’s training school for you to make you more like the Lord Jesus. Isn’t that what you also eagerly want? That is what God has in mind for you if He brings you in a situation where you suffer because of your conscience.

1 Peter 2:21. This suffering is an inseparable part of your normal life as a Christian. You do not take suffering as an inevitable and very unpleasant side effect that you would prefer to avoid. I heard about a committed Christian who had once been treated wrongfully, against which he rebelled. He came to a confession of this wrong response when an older sister asked him: ‘Is that all you’ve learned from Golgotha?’ In God’s Word the question comes to us: “Why not rather be wronged? (1 Corinthians 6:7)? To suffer injustice is not something you and I can do naturally. That is something we have to learn. The question is whether I want to and whether you want to.

Suffering goes together with your call as a Christian. To know what endurance and suffering mean and how you can learn that, your eye is fixed on Christ. Only when suffering and enduring is related to Him, it is valuable and makes your heart happy, how great your suffering may be. Christ has suffered because He in no way gave in to the evil that is in the world and because He didn’t want anything more than going God’s way. The way He went through the world is an example for us. He did not sin by deeds nor by words because He was totally in the will of God and put all things in the hand of His Sender, of Whom He knew that He judges righteously.

When it is written here that Christ has “suffered” as an “example” for us to follow, it is of course impossible to have any reference to His atoning and substitutionary suffering. We cannot follow in that. We read about the atoning and substitutionary suffering of Christ in 1 Peter 2:24. The suffering in which He is an example for you to follow, refers to His whole life before the cross. All the time of that life was ‘suffering’.

He was living in a sinful atmosphere in an unclean world. He was tempted by satan. He was hated by men in return to His love for them. At the same time He went through this suffering “that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest” for you (Hebrews 2:17; Hebrews 4:15), for He knows all trials from His own experience. In His whole way on earth you have an example that you can follow. If you do that, you fulfill your call. That is God’s purpose with your life.

If you want to know how to follow the example of Christ, you couldn’t do better than study the Gospels diligently. There you see how the Lord has responded to all suffering that was done to Him in whatever way. The word ‘example’ was used as an indication for writing models that children had to copy, in order to learn to write and also for drawings from which they had to trace the lines. That’s how you should look at the Lord as an example to learn how to follow Him.

Do not follow Him at a distance, like Peter once did, which caused him to deny his Lord (Luke 22:54). You are only able to follow the example of Christ by walking closely behind Him. Then you will be able to follow in His steps. You see, as it were, the imprint of His footsteps in the sand and you put your feet in it. The more you fall behind, the more the imprint of His footsteps fades. If you walk closely behind Him, His example will remain clear and in that way you move with sure step toward the goal.

Now read 1 Peter 2:18-21 again.

Reflection: How can you follow the steps of Christ in your situation?

3 John 1:9

To Follow in the Steps of Christ

1 Peter 2:18. After Peter showed you the authority relationship of you as resident of your country of residence toward the government, he now draws your attention to another authority relationship. He will now talk about the authority relationship between “servants” and “masters”. As the government as an organ of authority is a consequence of sin, so it is with the relationship of authority between ‘servants’ and their ‘masters’.

There is also a distinction. The government is appointed by God as a judiciary authority (Genesis 9:1-6). Regarding the relation of a servant toward his master it is different. God never meant to make a man to be a servant of another man. However, God does not take away the consequences of sin, but gives instructions on how men, who confess their sin can live to His honor right in those consequences. Regarding slavery, God gives room for the slave to become free, should he have the opportunity to (1 Corinthians 7:22). For the servant who has no opportunity for that God has something else. That servant gets a special opportunity, especially in his work as a servant, to show what it is to be a Christian.

Although Peter speaks about ‘servants’ and not about slaves, the position of servants is similar to those of slaves. That becomes evident from the word ‘master’ that literally means ‘despot’, which implies that such a person has unlimited power and that he is the absolute ruler of his house. A servant belongs to the house management and he therefore has more contact with his master than other slaves. That only makes the danger to rebel or manipulate greater. Therefore Peter admonishes them here to submit to their masters with all respect.

In order to prevent them from excuses he says in addition that this does not only apply to the “good and gentle” masters, but also to “those who are unreasonable”. It is not that hard to be submissive to a good and gentle master. But it takes a whole lot more to be submissive to a harsh master. For such masters the servants are nothing more than living tools that they have available for themselves, with whom they can deal according to their wishes. Especially when servants have an “unreasonable” master, they are in a position “to adorn the doctrine of God our Savior” (Titus 2:10).

You can apply what is said here about servants and masters to what we call today ‘employees’ and ‘employers’, although this comparison is only partially applicable. As it is already said, in the days of Peter a master was someone who had absolute power over his servant. He could do with him whatever he wanted, while the servant had no right or any opportunity to defend himself against it. Today there are numerous opportunities for an employee to defend himself against certain labor circumstances. He even has the right to strike. Nothing like this was possible in those days.

The circumstances may have changed, but the principles that the Scripture brings forward here are still fully effective today. Therefore the believing employee ought not to use his right to strike. He is not appealed to strike, but to work. The pay he receives should not come from the strike fund, but should be earned by working for it (2 Thessalonians 3:10). Peter therefore does not speak about the rights of the servant, but about his duties and especially about his attitude toward his master.

1 Peter 2:19. When you are the submissive person in a relationship, while your superior is ‘unreasonable’ and treats you unjustly, you can adopt different attitudes. You can resist or endure this grief. You read here what God expects from you. It is said here that the injustice that is done to you, makes you sad. Therefore it is important that the injustice that is done to you does not make you obstinate. The attitude that adorns you as a Christian is bear up under sorrows.

You bear up “for the sake of conscience toward God”, which means because you know what God expects of you. If you would respond otherwise, you would be defending your right, but at the same time go against your conscience. ‘Bear up under sorrows’ is foolish in the eye of the world, but God’s Word calls that “favor” when you are “suffering unjustly”. In this way you follow in the steps of the Lord Jesus Who endured in a perfect way.

Isn’t it a great grace to be like Him? If you endure ‘grief’ it is a proof that God’s grace is at work in you. It gives you the opportunity to proclaim the excellencies of God as they became visible in Christ.

1 Peter 2:20. In case the servant would rebel, he would also have to face suffering, because his master would beat him. Then those whips would be his just reward, for rebellion is a sin. Even when a person suffers like that, he may be persistent in his attitude of rebelliousness and he may become even more rebellious than ever. That gives no credit to God. Such an attitude may be right for people who only think of their own rights and want to get their own way, people who have the idea they should defend themselves.

Such an attitude is far away from the grace that God has for anyone who is aware that he is totally dependent on God and has no right to anything. It is a joy for God to connect Himself to you if you suffer like that, because it reminds Him of the suffering that His Son has endured. If you have a harsh employer, it is God’s training school for you to make you more like the Lord Jesus. Isn’t that what you also eagerly want? That is what God has in mind for you if He brings you in a situation where you suffer because of your conscience.

1 Peter 2:21. This suffering is an inseparable part of your normal life as a Christian. You do not take suffering as an inevitable and very unpleasant side effect that you would prefer to avoid. I heard about a committed Christian who had once been treated wrongfully, against which he rebelled. He came to a confession of this wrong response when an older sister asked him: ‘Is that all you’ve learned from Golgotha?’ In God’s Word the question comes to us: “Why not rather be wronged? (1 Corinthians 6:7)? To suffer injustice is not something you and I can do naturally. That is something we have to learn. The question is whether I want to and whether you want to.

Suffering goes together with your call as a Christian. To know what endurance and suffering mean and how you can learn that, your eye is fixed on Christ. Only when suffering and enduring is related to Him, it is valuable and makes your heart happy, how great your suffering may be. Christ has suffered because He in no way gave in to the evil that is in the world and because He didn’t want anything more than going God’s way. The way He went through the world is an example for us. He did not sin by deeds nor by words because He was totally in the will of God and put all things in the hand of His Sender, of Whom He knew that He judges righteously.

When it is written here that Christ has “suffered” as an “example” for us to follow, it is of course impossible to have any reference to His atoning and substitutionary suffering. We cannot follow in that. We read about the atoning and substitutionary suffering of Christ in 1 Peter 2:24. The suffering in which He is an example for you to follow, refers to His whole life before the cross. All the time of that life was ‘suffering’.

He was living in a sinful atmosphere in an unclean world. He was tempted by satan. He was hated by men in return to His love for them. At the same time He went through this suffering “that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest” for you (Hebrews 2:17; Hebrews 4:15), for He knows all trials from His own experience. In His whole way on earth you have an example that you can follow. If you do that, you fulfill your call. That is God’s purpose with your life.

If you want to know how to follow the example of Christ, you couldn’t do better than study the Gospels diligently. There you see how the Lord has responded to all suffering that was done to Him in whatever way. The word ‘example’ was used as an indication for writing models that children had to copy, in order to learn to write and also for drawings from which they had to trace the lines. That’s how you should look at the Lord as an example to learn how to follow Him.

Do not follow Him at a distance, like Peter once did, which caused him to deny his Lord (Luke 22:54). You are only able to follow the example of Christ by walking closely behind Him. Then you will be able to follow in His steps. You see, as it were, the imprint of His footsteps in the sand and you put your feet in it. The more you fall behind, the more the imprint of His footsteps fades. If you walk closely behind Him, His example will remain clear and in that way you move with sure step toward the goal.

Now read 1 Peter 2:18-21 again.

Reflection: How can you follow the steps of Christ in your situation?

3 John 1:10

Live for Righteousness

1 Peter 2:22. With reference to the example that the Lord Jesus has left us to follow, Peter points at what the Lord did not do and what He did do. What He did not do is related to Himself and to the people around Him. What He did do is related to His Father.

As it is said in the previous section, you see the example of the Lord in an outstanding way in the Gospels. These Gospels were not available or were only recently in circulation in the days of Peter. What his readers knew, were the scriptures of the Old Testament. To show to them the example of the Lord, Peter quotes from Isaiah 53 (Isaiah 53:9). In that magnificent chapter Isaiah prophetically writes comprehensively and impressively about the Lord Jesus. Just read that chapter (again) yourself. Isaiah takes you by the hand and tells you about the birth, the life, the death, the resurrection and the glory of the Lord Jesus in a way that makes you forget everything around you and see only Him.

The first quotation from the book of Isaiah is related to what the Lord Jesus has not done. He “committed no sin”. He did not commit any sinful deed. Whatever was seen of Him, it was without sin. Sin is lawlessness (1 John 3:4). This indicates the essence of sin and that is that there is no regard for any authority. This concerns both the authority of people above us and the authority of God. With the Lord Jesus there was the full recognition of God’s authority and also of the governments, given by God. He came to do the will of God and fully submitted to that will (Hebrews 10:7).

Therein He is an example for you. He committed no sin because He fully submitted to the will of God. Likewise, you will not sin if you submit fully to God’s will. That is possible, for the Lord Jesus is your life.

The best proof that He did not commit sin appears from the next quotation, wherein you read that He never spoke any deceitful word: “Nor was any deceit found in His mouth.” His enemies often tried to catch Him on a wrong word. They were searching for that, as the word “found”, used by Peter, makes think of. Their attempts appeared to be fruitless because He never said anything that was untrue. He only spoke what the Father told Him to speak (John 12:50).

How about you? Can that be said of you too, that no deceit was ever found in you? I know a believer who honestly acknowledges how difficult it is for him not to lie. He says that lying had become a second nature to him. He has confessed his sins and really wants to live with the Lord, but he still sometimes suffers the consequences of that and has to admit that he has fallen back in his old pattern of lying. The Lord wants also to be an Example for him. When he looks on Him and learns from Him, he is able to follow His footsteps in this too.

1 Peter 2:23. The way His enemies approached Him did not stir up anything in the Lord that can be related to sin. He always replied to His adversaries in a perfectly calm and persuasive way. As a response to that they took their refuge in reviling Him. He did not revile in return. When they ultimately overpowered Him because it was God’s time for that, and they made Him suffer in the most horrible way, “He uttered no threats”. Instead of reviling and uttering threats in return, the Lord prayed: “Father, forgive them” (Luke 23:34).

He entrusted everything to the hands of His Father, Whom He knew as the righteous God. He was fully aware that God was going to judge everything righteously. When you have that awareness, you will surely be able to endure suffering. You can entrust everything, including the unbelievers who mock you, the intolerance you’re facing, the injustice done to you, to God Who judges righteously. You may lay yourself in God’s hand. In His time He will reveal the truth about everything you have done for His sake and for which you have suffered. Do you believe that?

1 Peter 2:24. Your attention is drawn to the unique suffering of the Lord that He endured from God’s side because of your sins. In this He is not an example for you. He is absolutely inimitable in this suffering. Nevertheless this aspect of suffering must be mentioned because the Lord Jesus could have never been an example for you, had He not borne your sins.

His death is the result of the wrath of God over your sins, which He took on Himself. He took these sins away, so that you may be free now from your sins and therefore be able to take His life as an example to follow. When you, in contrast to that, still sin and in that way cause yourself much suffering, you disregard the work of the Lord Jesus. The work of Christ, accomplished for sin, is the basis to be able to follow Him. In no way you have to give in to sin.

It is also significant to point out that the Lord did not bear your sins during His life on earth. He did that only on the cross, in the three hours of darkness. The idea that during His life He already was under the wrath of God, is a great misconception. It is possible that this misconception comes out from a wrong translation of the verse. In a certain Dutch translation it says that He ‘has brought our sins in His body on the tree.’ Therein lies the suggestion that He already bore the sins during His life and then brought them to the cross. As it is already said, this is not true. During His life the Lord Jesus was fully and perfectly pleasing to God, Who more than once spoke that out too (Matthew 3:17; Matthew 17:5).

So it is clear that the Lord Jesus has borne your sins in the three hours of darkness and received God’s judgment on it. There He died in your place and you have died with Him there. You have died to sin. Sin has no power over you anymore, you do not have to give in to it anymore. That is really an awesome truth! God now sees you in Christ and He accounts to you what He did to the Lord Jesus. By the way, you cannot find anywhere in the Scripture that you have to die to sin. You have died, you are dead. If you see yourself as God sees you, sin will in no way get a chance in your life to express itself.

Instead of giving sin the opportunity in your life, through the work of Christ you are able to “live to righteousness”. Your life is not focused anymore on deserving righteousness, but on being allowed to show in your life the righteousness that you have received in Christ. You are now able to live in accordance to the right of God. That new life attitude is the result of the “wounds” of the judgment that struck the Lord Jesus by the chastising hand of God.

By ‘His wounds’ you therefore must not think of the floggings inflicted on Him by the soldiers of Pilate. It goes without saying that those wounds couldn’t possibly have caused your salvation and redemption. Everything that men have done to the Lord Jesus only made the guilt toward Him and toward God greater. No, only what God has done to the Lord Jesus in the judgment on the sins of everyone who believes, “heals” everyone who believes. Here it concerns the healing of the spiritual life that has been affected and destructed by sin.

1 Peter 2:25. That you now have been spiritually healthy, appears from the fact that you “have returned to” the Lord Jesus as “the Shepherd and Guardian” of your soul. Like everyone has gone astray from God and has been lost (Psalms 119:176), you also were. You lost the way and couldn’t find it back. Then the good Shepherd came to give His life, that you may find your way back. The sword of God’s judgment was awakened against the Shepherd (Zechariah 13:7), God’s Associate, and it struck Him instead of you. In that way the way to return to the Shepherd had been opened. Now you have returned to Him.

You have found the Shepherd back, which means that the ‘Shepherd’ found you. He wants to lead your further life and does not want you to be in lack of anything (Psalms 23:1). He is also the ‘Guardian’ of your soul. He guards over it. If you stay with the Shepherd, following Him, He will keep you as the Guardian of your soul in peace and health.

Now read 1 Peter 2:22-25 again.

Reflection: What is the difference between the suffering of the Lord Jesus from the side of men and from the side of God?

3 John 1:11

Live for Righteousness

1 Peter 2:22. With reference to the example that the Lord Jesus has left us to follow, Peter points at what the Lord did not do and what He did do. What He did not do is related to Himself and to the people around Him. What He did do is related to His Father.

As it is said in the previous section, you see the example of the Lord in an outstanding way in the Gospels. These Gospels were not available or were only recently in circulation in the days of Peter. What his readers knew, were the scriptures of the Old Testament. To show to them the example of the Lord, Peter quotes from Isaiah 53 (Isaiah 53:9). In that magnificent chapter Isaiah prophetically writes comprehensively and impressively about the Lord Jesus. Just read that chapter (again) yourself. Isaiah takes you by the hand and tells you about the birth, the life, the death, the resurrection and the glory of the Lord Jesus in a way that makes you forget everything around you and see only Him.

The first quotation from the book of Isaiah is related to what the Lord Jesus has not done. He “committed no sin”. He did not commit any sinful deed. Whatever was seen of Him, it was without sin. Sin is lawlessness (1 John 3:4). This indicates the essence of sin and that is that there is no regard for any authority. This concerns both the authority of people above us and the authority of God. With the Lord Jesus there was the full recognition of God’s authority and also of the governments, given by God. He came to do the will of God and fully submitted to that will (Hebrews 10:7).

Therein He is an example for you. He committed no sin because He fully submitted to the will of God. Likewise, you will not sin if you submit fully to God’s will. That is possible, for the Lord Jesus is your life.

The best proof that He did not commit sin appears from the next quotation, wherein you read that He never spoke any deceitful word: “Nor was any deceit found in His mouth.” His enemies often tried to catch Him on a wrong word. They were searching for that, as the word “found”, used by Peter, makes think of. Their attempts appeared to be fruitless because He never said anything that was untrue. He only spoke what the Father told Him to speak (John 12:50).

How about you? Can that be said of you too, that no deceit was ever found in you? I know a believer who honestly acknowledges how difficult it is for him not to lie. He says that lying had become a second nature to him. He has confessed his sins and really wants to live with the Lord, but he still sometimes suffers the consequences of that and has to admit that he has fallen back in his old pattern of lying. The Lord wants also to be an Example for him. When he looks on Him and learns from Him, he is able to follow His footsteps in this too.

1 Peter 2:23. The way His enemies approached Him did not stir up anything in the Lord that can be related to sin. He always replied to His adversaries in a perfectly calm and persuasive way. As a response to that they took their refuge in reviling Him. He did not revile in return. When they ultimately overpowered Him because it was God’s time for that, and they made Him suffer in the most horrible way, “He uttered no threats”. Instead of reviling and uttering threats in return, the Lord prayed: “Father, forgive them” (Luke 23:34).

He entrusted everything to the hands of His Father, Whom He knew as the righteous God. He was fully aware that God was going to judge everything righteously. When you have that awareness, you will surely be able to endure suffering. You can entrust everything, including the unbelievers who mock you, the intolerance you’re facing, the injustice done to you, to God Who judges righteously. You may lay yourself in God’s hand. In His time He will reveal the truth about everything you have done for His sake and for which you have suffered. Do you believe that?

1 Peter 2:24. Your attention is drawn to the unique suffering of the Lord that He endured from God’s side because of your sins. In this He is not an example for you. He is absolutely inimitable in this suffering. Nevertheless this aspect of suffering must be mentioned because the Lord Jesus could have never been an example for you, had He not borne your sins.

His death is the result of the wrath of God over your sins, which He took on Himself. He took these sins away, so that you may be free now from your sins and therefore be able to take His life as an example to follow. When you, in contrast to that, still sin and in that way cause yourself much suffering, you disregard the work of the Lord Jesus. The work of Christ, accomplished for sin, is the basis to be able to follow Him. In no way you have to give in to sin.

It is also significant to point out that the Lord did not bear your sins during His life on earth. He did that only on the cross, in the three hours of darkness. The idea that during His life He already was under the wrath of God, is a great misconception. It is possible that this misconception comes out from a wrong translation of the verse. In a certain Dutch translation it says that He ‘has brought our sins in His body on the tree.’ Therein lies the suggestion that He already bore the sins during His life and then brought them to the cross. As it is already said, this is not true. During His life the Lord Jesus was fully and perfectly pleasing to God, Who more than once spoke that out too (Matthew 3:17; Matthew 17:5).

So it is clear that the Lord Jesus has borne your sins in the three hours of darkness and received God’s judgment on it. There He died in your place and you have died with Him there. You have died to sin. Sin has no power over you anymore, you do not have to give in to it anymore. That is really an awesome truth! God now sees you in Christ and He accounts to you what He did to the Lord Jesus. By the way, you cannot find anywhere in the Scripture that you have to die to sin. You have died, you are dead. If you see yourself as God sees you, sin will in no way get a chance in your life to express itself.

Instead of giving sin the opportunity in your life, through the work of Christ you are able to “live to righteousness”. Your life is not focused anymore on deserving righteousness, but on being allowed to show in your life the righteousness that you have received in Christ. You are now able to live in accordance to the right of God. That new life attitude is the result of the “wounds” of the judgment that struck the Lord Jesus by the chastising hand of God.

By ‘His wounds’ you therefore must not think of the floggings inflicted on Him by the soldiers of Pilate. It goes without saying that those wounds couldn’t possibly have caused your salvation and redemption. Everything that men have done to the Lord Jesus only made the guilt toward Him and toward God greater. No, only what God has done to the Lord Jesus in the judgment on the sins of everyone who believes, “heals” everyone who believes. Here it concerns the healing of the spiritual life that has been affected and destructed by sin.

1 Peter 2:25. That you now have been spiritually healthy, appears from the fact that you “have returned to” the Lord Jesus as “the Shepherd and Guardian” of your soul. Like everyone has gone astray from God and has been lost (Psalms 119:176), you also were. You lost the way and couldn’t find it back. Then the good Shepherd came to give His life, that you may find your way back. The sword of God’s judgment was awakened against the Shepherd (Zechariah 13:7), God’s Associate, and it struck Him instead of you. In that way the way to return to the Shepherd had been opened. Now you have returned to Him.

You have found the Shepherd back, which means that the ‘Shepherd’ found you. He wants to lead your further life and does not want you to be in lack of anything (Psalms 23:1). He is also the ‘Guardian’ of your soul. He guards over it. If you stay with the Shepherd, following Him, He will keep you as the Guardian of your soul in peace and health.

Now read 1 Peter 2:22-25 again.

Reflection: What is the difference between the suffering of the Lord Jesus from the side of men and from the side of God?

3 John 1:12

Live for Righteousness

1 Peter 2:22. With reference to the example that the Lord Jesus has left us to follow, Peter points at what the Lord did not do and what He did do. What He did not do is related to Himself and to the people around Him. What He did do is related to His Father.

As it is said in the previous section, you see the example of the Lord in an outstanding way in the Gospels. These Gospels were not available or were only recently in circulation in the days of Peter. What his readers knew, were the scriptures of the Old Testament. To show to them the example of the Lord, Peter quotes from Isaiah 53 (Isaiah 53:9). In that magnificent chapter Isaiah prophetically writes comprehensively and impressively about the Lord Jesus. Just read that chapter (again) yourself. Isaiah takes you by the hand and tells you about the birth, the life, the death, the resurrection and the glory of the Lord Jesus in a way that makes you forget everything around you and see only Him.

The first quotation from the book of Isaiah is related to what the Lord Jesus has not done. He “committed no sin”. He did not commit any sinful deed. Whatever was seen of Him, it was without sin. Sin is lawlessness (1 John 3:4). This indicates the essence of sin and that is that there is no regard for any authority. This concerns both the authority of people above us and the authority of God. With the Lord Jesus there was the full recognition of God’s authority and also of the governments, given by God. He came to do the will of God and fully submitted to that will (Hebrews 10:7).

Therein He is an example for you. He committed no sin because He fully submitted to the will of God. Likewise, you will not sin if you submit fully to God’s will. That is possible, for the Lord Jesus is your life.

The best proof that He did not commit sin appears from the next quotation, wherein you read that He never spoke any deceitful word: “Nor was any deceit found in His mouth.” His enemies often tried to catch Him on a wrong word. They were searching for that, as the word “found”, used by Peter, makes think of. Their attempts appeared to be fruitless because He never said anything that was untrue. He only spoke what the Father told Him to speak (John 12:50).

How about you? Can that be said of you too, that no deceit was ever found in you? I know a believer who honestly acknowledges how difficult it is for him not to lie. He says that lying had become a second nature to him. He has confessed his sins and really wants to live with the Lord, but he still sometimes suffers the consequences of that and has to admit that he has fallen back in his old pattern of lying. The Lord wants also to be an Example for him. When he looks on Him and learns from Him, he is able to follow His footsteps in this too.

1 Peter 2:23. The way His enemies approached Him did not stir up anything in the Lord that can be related to sin. He always replied to His adversaries in a perfectly calm and persuasive way. As a response to that they took their refuge in reviling Him. He did not revile in return. When they ultimately overpowered Him because it was God’s time for that, and they made Him suffer in the most horrible way, “He uttered no threats”. Instead of reviling and uttering threats in return, the Lord prayed: “Father, forgive them” (Luke 23:34).

He entrusted everything to the hands of His Father, Whom He knew as the righteous God. He was fully aware that God was going to judge everything righteously. When you have that awareness, you will surely be able to endure suffering. You can entrust everything, including the unbelievers who mock you, the intolerance you’re facing, the injustice done to you, to God Who judges righteously. You may lay yourself in God’s hand. In His time He will reveal the truth about everything you have done for His sake and for which you have suffered. Do you believe that?

1 Peter 2:24. Your attention is drawn to the unique suffering of the Lord that He endured from God’s side because of your sins. In this He is not an example for you. He is absolutely inimitable in this suffering. Nevertheless this aspect of suffering must be mentioned because the Lord Jesus could have never been an example for you, had He not borne your sins.

His death is the result of the wrath of God over your sins, which He took on Himself. He took these sins away, so that you may be free now from your sins and therefore be able to take His life as an example to follow. When you, in contrast to that, still sin and in that way cause yourself much suffering, you disregard the work of the Lord Jesus. The work of Christ, accomplished for sin, is the basis to be able to follow Him. In no way you have to give in to sin.

It is also significant to point out that the Lord did not bear your sins during His life on earth. He did that only on the cross, in the three hours of darkness. The idea that during His life He already was under the wrath of God, is a great misconception. It is possible that this misconception comes out from a wrong translation of the verse. In a certain Dutch translation it says that He ‘has brought our sins in His body on the tree.’ Therein lies the suggestion that He already bore the sins during His life and then brought them to the cross. As it is already said, this is not true. During His life the Lord Jesus was fully and perfectly pleasing to God, Who more than once spoke that out too (Matthew 3:17; Matthew 17:5).

So it is clear that the Lord Jesus has borne your sins in the three hours of darkness and received God’s judgment on it. There He died in your place and you have died with Him there. You have died to sin. Sin has no power over you anymore, you do not have to give in to it anymore. That is really an awesome truth! God now sees you in Christ and He accounts to you what He did to the Lord Jesus. By the way, you cannot find anywhere in the Scripture that you have to die to sin. You have died, you are dead. If you see yourself as God sees you, sin will in no way get a chance in your life to express itself.

Instead of giving sin the opportunity in your life, through the work of Christ you are able to “live to righteousness”. Your life is not focused anymore on deserving righteousness, but on being allowed to show in your life the righteousness that you have received in Christ. You are now able to live in accordance to the right of God. That new life attitude is the result of the “wounds” of the judgment that struck the Lord Jesus by the chastising hand of God.

By ‘His wounds’ you therefore must not think of the floggings inflicted on Him by the soldiers of Pilate. It goes without saying that those wounds couldn’t possibly have caused your salvation and redemption. Everything that men have done to the Lord Jesus only made the guilt toward Him and toward God greater. No, only what God has done to the Lord Jesus in the judgment on the sins of everyone who believes, “heals” everyone who believes. Here it concerns the healing of the spiritual life that has been affected and destructed by sin.

1 Peter 2:25. That you now have been spiritually healthy, appears from the fact that you “have returned to” the Lord Jesus as “the Shepherd and Guardian” of your soul. Like everyone has gone astray from God and has been lost (Psalms 119:176), you also were. You lost the way and couldn’t find it back. Then the good Shepherd came to give His life, that you may find your way back. The sword of God’s judgment was awakened against the Shepherd (Zechariah 13:7), God’s Associate, and it struck Him instead of you. In that way the way to return to the Shepherd had been opened. Now you have returned to Him.

You have found the Shepherd back, which means that the ‘Shepherd’ found you. He wants to lead your further life and does not want you to be in lack of anything (Psalms 23:1). He is also the ‘Guardian’ of your soul. He guards over it. If you stay with the Shepherd, following Him, He will keep you as the Guardian of your soul in peace and health.

Now read 1 Peter 2:22-25 again.

Reflection: What is the difference between the suffering of the Lord Jesus from the side of men and from the side of God?

3 John 1:13

Live for Righteousness

1 Peter 2:22. With reference to the example that the Lord Jesus has left us to follow, Peter points at what the Lord did not do and what He did do. What He did not do is related to Himself and to the people around Him. What He did do is related to His Father.

As it is said in the previous section, you see the example of the Lord in an outstanding way in the Gospels. These Gospels were not available or were only recently in circulation in the days of Peter. What his readers knew, were the scriptures of the Old Testament. To show to them the example of the Lord, Peter quotes from Isaiah 53 (Isaiah 53:9). In that magnificent chapter Isaiah prophetically writes comprehensively and impressively about the Lord Jesus. Just read that chapter (again) yourself. Isaiah takes you by the hand and tells you about the birth, the life, the death, the resurrection and the glory of the Lord Jesus in a way that makes you forget everything around you and see only Him.

The first quotation from the book of Isaiah is related to what the Lord Jesus has not done. He “committed no sin”. He did not commit any sinful deed. Whatever was seen of Him, it was without sin. Sin is lawlessness (1 John 3:4). This indicates the essence of sin and that is that there is no regard for any authority. This concerns both the authority of people above us and the authority of God. With the Lord Jesus there was the full recognition of God’s authority and also of the governments, given by God. He came to do the will of God and fully submitted to that will (Hebrews 10:7).

Therein He is an example for you. He committed no sin because He fully submitted to the will of God. Likewise, you will not sin if you submit fully to God’s will. That is possible, for the Lord Jesus is your life.

The best proof that He did not commit sin appears from the next quotation, wherein you read that He never spoke any deceitful word: “Nor was any deceit found in His mouth.” His enemies often tried to catch Him on a wrong word. They were searching for that, as the word “found”, used by Peter, makes think of. Their attempts appeared to be fruitless because He never said anything that was untrue. He only spoke what the Father told Him to speak (John 12:50).

How about you? Can that be said of you too, that no deceit was ever found in you? I know a believer who honestly acknowledges how difficult it is for him not to lie. He says that lying had become a second nature to him. He has confessed his sins and really wants to live with the Lord, but he still sometimes suffers the consequences of that and has to admit that he has fallen back in his old pattern of lying. The Lord wants also to be an Example for him. When he looks on Him and learns from Him, he is able to follow His footsteps in this too.

1 Peter 2:23. The way His enemies approached Him did not stir up anything in the Lord that can be related to sin. He always replied to His adversaries in a perfectly calm and persuasive way. As a response to that they took their refuge in reviling Him. He did not revile in return. When they ultimately overpowered Him because it was God’s time for that, and they made Him suffer in the most horrible way, “He uttered no threats”. Instead of reviling and uttering threats in return, the Lord prayed: “Father, forgive them” (Luke 23:34).

He entrusted everything to the hands of His Father, Whom He knew as the righteous God. He was fully aware that God was going to judge everything righteously. When you have that awareness, you will surely be able to endure suffering. You can entrust everything, including the unbelievers who mock you, the intolerance you’re facing, the injustice done to you, to God Who judges righteously. You may lay yourself in God’s hand. In His time He will reveal the truth about everything you have done for His sake and for which you have suffered. Do you believe that?

1 Peter 2:24. Your attention is drawn to the unique suffering of the Lord that He endured from God’s side because of your sins. In this He is not an example for you. He is absolutely inimitable in this suffering. Nevertheless this aspect of suffering must be mentioned because the Lord Jesus could have never been an example for you, had He not borne your sins.

His death is the result of the wrath of God over your sins, which He took on Himself. He took these sins away, so that you may be free now from your sins and therefore be able to take His life as an example to follow. When you, in contrast to that, still sin and in that way cause yourself much suffering, you disregard the work of the Lord Jesus. The work of Christ, accomplished for sin, is the basis to be able to follow Him. In no way you have to give in to sin.

It is also significant to point out that the Lord did not bear your sins during His life on earth. He did that only on the cross, in the three hours of darkness. The idea that during His life He already was under the wrath of God, is a great misconception. It is possible that this misconception comes out from a wrong translation of the verse. In a certain Dutch translation it says that He ‘has brought our sins in His body on the tree.’ Therein lies the suggestion that He already bore the sins during His life and then brought them to the cross. As it is already said, this is not true. During His life the Lord Jesus was fully and perfectly pleasing to God, Who more than once spoke that out too (Matthew 3:17; Matthew 17:5).

So it is clear that the Lord Jesus has borne your sins in the three hours of darkness and received God’s judgment on it. There He died in your place and you have died with Him there. You have died to sin. Sin has no power over you anymore, you do not have to give in to it anymore. That is really an awesome truth! God now sees you in Christ and He accounts to you what He did to the Lord Jesus. By the way, you cannot find anywhere in the Scripture that you have to die to sin. You have died, you are dead. If you see yourself as God sees you, sin will in no way get a chance in your life to express itself.

Instead of giving sin the opportunity in your life, through the work of Christ you are able to “live to righteousness”. Your life is not focused anymore on deserving righteousness, but on being allowed to show in your life the righteousness that you have received in Christ. You are now able to live in accordance to the right of God. That new life attitude is the result of the “wounds” of the judgment that struck the Lord Jesus by the chastising hand of God.

By ‘His wounds’ you therefore must not think of the floggings inflicted on Him by the soldiers of Pilate. It goes without saying that those wounds couldn’t possibly have caused your salvation and redemption. Everything that men have done to the Lord Jesus only made the guilt toward Him and toward God greater. No, only what God has done to the Lord Jesus in the judgment on the sins of everyone who believes, “heals” everyone who believes. Here it concerns the healing of the spiritual life that has been affected and destructed by sin.

1 Peter 2:25. That you now have been spiritually healthy, appears from the fact that you “have returned to” the Lord Jesus as “the Shepherd and Guardian” of your soul. Like everyone has gone astray from God and has been lost (Psalms 119:176), you also were. You lost the way and couldn’t find it back. Then the good Shepherd came to give His life, that you may find your way back. The sword of God’s judgment was awakened against the Shepherd (Zechariah 13:7), God’s Associate, and it struck Him instead of you. In that way the way to return to the Shepherd had been opened. Now you have returned to Him.

You have found the Shepherd back, which means that the ‘Shepherd’ found you. He wants to lead your further life and does not want you to be in lack of anything (Psalms 23:1). He is also the ‘Guardian’ of your soul. He guards over it. If you stay with the Shepherd, following Him, He will keep you as the Guardian of your soul in peace and health.

Now read 1 Peter 2:22-25 again.

Reflection: What is the difference between the suffering of the Lord Jesus from the side of men and from the side of God?