Titus II Lesson -- October 25th

How Shall We Then Live in a Post-Christian Culture
“The Suffering of Believers – Additional Lessons About Suffering”
1 Peter 5:1-7

Review
In 1 Peter 1:13, after having explained the greatness of our salvation in 1 Peter 1:1-12 (i.e., what God has done in salvation), Peter says: “therefore.” That is, in light of this great salvation we are to live in a manner that is consistent with this great salvation. So, in 1 Peter 1:13-2:12, Peter sets forth seven calls to action related to our sanctification as believers. Next, Peter focuses on the submission of believers (2:13-3:12). In this section, Peter has something to say about Christians living in a society that is less than ideal, to slaves who are living in circumstances which are less than ideal, to husbands and wives who are living in marriages which are less than ideal, and to those who are living in churches which are less than ideal. Finally, we move into the final section of the epistle that deals primarily with suffering. We have considered the “conduct” needed in the midst of suffering (3:13-17) and the example of Christ’s suffering and how that should encourage us to yield to suffering for doing what is right (3:18-4:6). We also considered three lessons (Do not be surprised by suffering; Do not be ashamed by suffering; Do not be confused by suffering) about suffering in 1 Peter 4:12-19. This week, we are going to consider additional lessons that suffering can teach us from 1 Peter 5:1-7.

Text

“1 Therefore, I exhort the elders among you, as your fellow elder and witness of the sufferings of Christ, and a partaker also of the glory that is to be revealed, 2 shepherd the flock of God among you, exercising oversight not under compulsion, but voluntarily, according to the will of God; and not for sordid gain, but with eagerness; 3 nor yet as lording it over those allotted to your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock. 4 And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. 5 You younger men, likewise, be subject to your elders; and all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, for God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble. 6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, 7 casting all your anxiety upon Him, because He cares for you.”

Introduction
We’ve seen that one of the primary purposes of this epistle is to prepare the people of God for what looks like an impending period of persecution and difficulty. I personally don’t think that that trial has yet begun. It may be two or three years away as Peter writes, but the epistle functions almost like a training manual for the people of God who are being told to expect a period of trial and testing. (1)

In this fifth chapter, Peter returns once more to the issue of suffering and trials. There are three things I want us to notice in verses 5-7. But before we do this, I need to comment on the opening four verses which I’m going to pass over very quickly. These four verses represent an exhortation to the elders.

Notice how Peter begins Chapter 5 with: "Therefore I exhort the elders among you." "Therefore" — in the light of this suffering in the church (4:12) and in the light of the judgment of God that is purifying the church before it punishes the world (4:17) — in the light of that, here's how to shepherd the suffering flock. As he addresses this situation of suffering, Peter tells us three things about the kind of oversight elder-shepherds should exercise during the upcoming persecution (though the principles apply to times of non-persecution also) -- each of the three things having a negative and positive: (3)

• Exercise your oversight – not under compulsion (neg.) but voluntarily, according to the will of God (pos.). What kind of situation might result in having elders who don't want to be elders? It would be natural to assume that elders would have less desire to shepherd if it’s dangerous and difficult. This is because when persecution comes, the leaders of the flock are the most visible and sometimes the most vulnerable. If you are the shepherd of a suffering flock, you will be among the first to fall. A possible second reason the elder-shepherds might shrink back from their duty is that not only are they vulnerable to man's normal antagonisms, but they are also vulnerable to God's judgment in a peculiar way (see 1 Peter 4:17 and its link to Ez. 9:4-6).

• Exercise your oversight – not for sordid gain (neg.) but with eagerness (pos.). It is possible even for an elder to hang on for a while in the face of great difficulty if he could make godliness a means of gain (see 1 Timothy 6:5).

• Exercise your oversight – not lording it over those allotted to your charge (neg.) but proving to be examples to the flock (pos.). At all times, and particularly during periods of persecution, the elder is to be an example of godliness for the flock. The test of such elder-shepherds is in their life — their whole life. Are they examples for the flock? Is their public oversight a show, or does their whole life prove their authenticity? Is there a public shepherd and a different private shepherd? They are not to “lord it over” those allotted to their charge implying that they are not to be driven by the love of power, by the desire to flaunt their authority, or by the desire to be addressed with titles.

Transition
Now, having commented on the first four verses of Chapter 5, we come to verse 5. What you have here, beginning in verse 5, is a series of imperatives, a series of commands. And they come in an almost staccato-like fashion. Like a machine gun, one right after the other, Peter fires them out. I want you to keep in mind that they all are attitudes. They have not so much to do with how we act as how we think. They have not so much to do with what our actions are as what our motives are. These attitudes represent the building blocks of spiritual maturity in times of suffering. (5)

Submission
In the first place he has something to say to us about submission. It's not as if he hasn't already talked about submission. In fact, he spent much of Chapter 2 and 3 talking about submission. We are to be submissive to those in authority, to those who employ us, to those who we are married to, and to those in our church bodies. So submission is not a new theme here. In fact, it's a relatively familiar theme in the epistle. So, here in verse 5 he writes: "You younger men likewise be subject to your elders."

Why does he do that? Why doesn't he just say everybody ought to submit to elders? Well, I'm not sure I can tell you what was in his mind or the mind of the Holy Spirit, but I can share what John MacArthur thinks is in Peter’s mind. “It was young men who tended to be aggressive. It was young men who the Apostle Paul reminds Timothy tend to strive toward prominence. It was young men who are enamored with their own ideas and tend to be somewhat disparaging about the ideas of the older generation. It was young men who might be aspiring to the eldership. It really wouldn't be an issue for old men -- they would be the saintly, mature ones. It really wouldn't be an issue for women because women already were subject to their own husbands (see 1 Peter 3). As a result, Peter reminds the young men within the congregation since they probably pose the greatest threat to submission of the flock to the elders.” (5)

Why is this particularly important during a period of persecution? It is important because an un-submissive spirit would quickly spread throughout the congregation. The “energy” of any assembly is normally with those that are young and vigorous. If those who provide most of the labor in the church (they are active) are un-submissive, it would be inevitable that others would soon follow suit.

Humility (5)
In the first place, he has something to say to us about submission. In the second place, he has something to say to us about humility. Verse 5: "And all of you clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, for God is opposed to the proud but gives grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God that He may exalt you at the proper time."

The word "clothe" is a very interesting word. The word (enkomboomai) was used of an apron which you tie on yourself with a knot or a bow. It usually referred to a work apron that a slave put on over his clothes to keep them clean, just like you might do when you go to work or just like a housewife might do around the house.

What are we to clothe ourselves with? We are to clothe ourselves with humility. We are to “put on” an attitude that we are not too good to serve, that we are not too great to stoop. This concept was totally foreign to the pagan world of the first century, just like it isn’t a virtue today. Humble people today get mocked and trampled. They’re called wimps. This is the day of the macho man. This was the same in Peter’s day. Humility was no virtue. Humility was for weak and cowardly people. The only humility they tolerated was the involuntary humility of slavery. And so Peter is saying you need to put on the garment of a slave and take on a voluntary humility. This lowliness of mind is to be pointed in two directions:

1. First, we are to be humble toward one another (verse 5). Why? “God is opposed to the proud and gives grace to the humble.”
2. Second, we are to be humble toward God. Why? Verse 6: "Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God that He may exalt you at the proper time."
What does it mean to humble ourselves under the “mighty hand of God”? The mighty hand of God is an Old Testament symbol of God's covering/controlling power. It refers to God's sovereignty (i.e., God is in charge). It is the power of God working in the experience of men, always accomplishing His sovereign, loving purpose. The mighty hand of God means different things at different times. Sometimes the mighty hand of God is used to deliver the believer from trouble. Sometimes the mighty hand of God is used to protect the believer through a time of testing. Sometimes the mighty hand of God is used as a chastening of the believer. But always it is the sovereign mighty hand of God. Whether it is for deliverance, for testing, or for chastening – it is always God's mighty hand.

This is very important to the recipients of this epistle. Peter wants to prepare the people of God for an impending period of difficulty. And, if you have a proud heart, that trial is going to be all the more painful. The way to prepare yourself for any trial is to possess the spirit that says: “Lord, whatever You send, whatever You give, however You order my life, it is fine with me because I want to live my life in obedience to You.” Simply put, a proud heart is the opposite of what Peter is wanting to inculcate amongst the people of God. (1)

I think we need to pause for a moment and ask ourselves: “Do I have a proud spirit? Am I angered by the unfolding of the providence of God in my life?” Think back on this year that has just gone by and the events that transpired in your life. Are you at peace with what happened? Are you at peace with the unfolding of the providence of God? Do you see it as the wisdom of God revealed? We better not rise up and think ourselves equal with God. We better not fight God. We better not contest God's wisdom. We better be meek and lowly and humble to whatever God brings into our life. (4) Peter says: “Be subject, all of you, be clothed with humility toward one another and toward God. Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time.” (1)

What's the proper time? His time, not our time. When will that be? It will be when He's accomplished His purpose. And only He knows His purpose. Warren Weirsbe said: "One of the evidences of our pride is our impatience with God. And one of the reasons for our suffering is that we might learn patience."


Trust
In the first place, he has something to say to us about submission. In the second place, he has something to say to us about humility. In the third place, he has something to say to us about trust. In verse 7, Peter goes on to make the exhortation: “Casting all your anxiety upon Him because He cares for you.” The New International Version has a period at the end of verse 6 and then verse 7 begins: “Cast all your anxiety” as though that were a separate exhortation entirely from the one that’s just been given in verse 6. In actual fact, the verb (epiripsantes) in verse 7 is a participle in the Greek that is dependent on the main verb “humble” and is not a separate imperative. It should rightly be translated “casting all your anxiety.” (6) In other words, there’s a connection between what he’s saying in verse 6 (“Humble yourselves”) and what he’s saying in verse 7 (“casting all your anxiety upon Him”). There’s a connection between humbling oneself and casting one’s anxiety upon the Lord.

What is that connection?
• The humble cast (i.e., throw something upon someone or something else – see Luke 19:35 – “threw their cloaks on the colt”) (6) their anxiety upon God. The proud grasp on to their anxieties.
• The humble choose to cede control. The proud choose to maintain control.
• The humble trust in God’s providence and judgment. The proud insist on demanding “their” outcome.
• The humble submit to God’s sovereignty. The proud resist God’s sovereignty.
• The humble express a teachable spirit in the midst of suffering. The proud remain above instruction in the midst of suffering.

In other words, Peter is saying: “Stop thinking that you can solve everything. Stop thinking that the future is in your hands. Tomorrow is not in your control. Everything does not depend on you. In fact, the world does not revolve around you.” You know, that’s what makes us anxious, isn’t it? That’s what makes us troubled. It’s the feeling that absolutely everything depends upon us. And Peter is saying: “You are far too small to be able to carry the burdens that unfold the providence of this world.” And that’s why you must cast your burdens, you must cast your anxiety upon the Lord because it’s only the shoulders of an almighty and a sovereign God that can carry those burdens. (1)

There are some things that you are carrying today that are far, far too heavy for you to carry. Only a God who can create a world, only a God who can part the Red Sea, only a God who can walk on water, only a God who can rise from the dead can carry those burdens. The burden of a never ending illness, the burden of a handicap, the burden of an unconverted family member, the burden of a marriage that is failing, the burden of not being able to find a job, the burden of an impending disease that has all the possibility of taking away your life – only His shoulders can carry these burdens. You know as we look around and as we hear the prayers today, there are so many burdens here and Peter is saying to us: “Cast them on the Lord, on the mighty hand of God.” (1)

But notice also what he says in verse 7: “Casting all your anxiety upon Him, because He cares for you.” Isn’t that a wonderful thing to know that we have a God who is not only almighty, but He’s also caring. We are not too insignificant to occupy a place on the divine agenda (see Matthew 6:26-33). He has the power, The ability, and the desire to help us and to aid us. You know that’s what corporate prayer is all about, isn’t it? Every time we gather to pray corporately, we do precisely what Peter is saying here – we cast our burdens upon the Lord. We humble ourselves. It is humbling because we are saying: “We are not strong enough to carry these burdens. We don’t have the ability to do anything about some of these issues and we’re coming before You and admitting that only You can do this. Only You can change this.” Yet, when we humble ourselves, only then can we truly cast our anxieties upon Him. (1)


Endnotes
1. Derek Thomas, “Casting All Care Upon Him” (1 Peter 5:1-9)
2. Robert Deffinbaugh, “The Submission of Slaves to Masters” (1 Peter 5:1-7)
3. John Piper, “How Elder-Shepherds Prepare to Meet the Chief Shepherd” (1 Peter 5:1-4)
4. John Piper, “Are You Humble Enough to Be Care-Free?” (1 Peter 5:5-7)
5. John MacArthur, “Fundamental Attitudes for Spiritual Maturity, Part 1” (1 Peter 5:5-7)
6. Vincent Cheung, “Commentary on First Peter”