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First Peter, part 19

After Peter’s doxology, he continues, having more to say. 1 Peter 4:12, 13 says,

¹² Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; ¹³ but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory, you may rejoice with exultation.

Suffering is not abnormal but is to be expected of those whose faith is being refined as gold or, as he said earlier, “tested by fire” (1 Peter 1:7). A refiner does his work intentionally; this is not random suffering, nor is it punishment. The purpose is not destruction but refinement and purification.

The danger Peter addresses is in thinking that suffering means God has abandoned you or that something has gone wrong. Instead, suffering is part of the normal path of sonship. It is participation in the same pattern Christ walked. Christ learned obedience through suffering (Hebrews 5:8); sons follow the same path. Suffering is not punishment—it is training for rulership. Sufferings include rejection by the world, unjust treatment, faithfulness under pressure, and, ultimately, death to the flesh.

Suffering is evidence of identification with Christ and a sign of future glory. The depth of participation seems to be proportional to the intensity of future rejoicing. The quiet joy in present suffering gives way to an explosive joy in the future celebration.

Hence, what looks like fire is actually refinement; what feels like loss is actually qualification; and what is hidden now will be revealed in glory.

Responses to Suffering

1 Peter 4:14-16 says,

¹⁴ If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. ¹⁵ Make sure that none of you suffers as a murderer, or thief, or evildoer, or a troublesome meddler; ¹⁶ but if anyone suffers as a Christian, he is not to be ashamed, but is to glorify God in this name.

To be “reviled” is to suffer emotional and social accusations and insults. It ought not to be on account of personal sins but for one’s identification with Christ. Those who come into agreement with the will of God find themselves at odds with the thinking of the world. This echoes Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 5:11, 12,

¹¹ Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. ¹² Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

The Spirit of Glory and of God Rests on You

This is one of Peter’s most profound statements. “Spirit of glory” likely refers to the manifest presence of God. It is an echo of the Shekinah glory resting on the tabernacle (Exodus 40:34) and later in the temple (1 Kings 8:11).

“Rests on you” shows that the same Spirit that “remained” on Christ (John 1:32) now abides on us as well. Where there is reproach for Christ, there is also the resting of divine glory. Suffering now is linked to glory already resting upon the believer, because we are now the temple that God indwells (1 Corinthians 3:16).

Right and Wrong Reasons for Suffering

Peter then warns against wrong reasons for suffering: murder, theft, evildoer, and being a “troublesome meddler (ἀλλοτριεπίσκοπος), literally: “an overseer of others’ affairs; one who interferes improperly, a social disrupter or agitator." This last one is especially important, because not all “religious conflict” is righteous. Some suffering comes from misconduct or interference.

If we suffer, it should be for the right reason: “as a Christian.” This term was first coined as a term of mockery in Antioch (Acts 11:26). The church adopted it, not to internalize shame but as a badge of honor. Earlier, the believers had been known more generically as “The Way” (Acts 9:2).

1 Peter 4:17 says,

¹⁷ For it is time for judgment to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?

This refinement process “begins” with the people of God. We go through the fiery trial today so that we do not have to go through it later in the “lake of fire” (Revelation 20:15). Both are times of purification and refinement, and all must undergo this refinement at some point. Most, of course, await the final judgment, where every knee bows and every tongue professes Christ (Philippians 2:10, 11). Although they will there profess Christ, they must still be brought to spiritual maturity in order to be fully reconciled to God.

It is the same with the believers. Their profession of faith in Christ does not exempt them from the baptism of fire that is designed to burn “chaff,” as John the Baptist called it (Matthew 3:12). Another way of looking at it is this: One’s profession of faith is a Passover experience, and this is followed by Pentecost and its fiery baptism, in order to bring believers into maturity through the feast of Tabernacles.

All must undergo this “fire,” for it is “the second death” (Revelation 20:14). A second death implies a first type of death. Mortality is the first death; the second death is the lake of fire, of which Paul spoke when he said, “I die daily” (1 Corinthians 15:31). Again, he links it to baptism, where the believer dies to the old man and where the new man is raised up (Romans 6:4). Believers undergo the second death now as an antidote to the first death. Unbelievers may reject it or may be ignorant of this revelation during their lifetime, but they will not be able to escape it in the end.

Peter’s point, however, is that the household of God experiences this divine judgment first and unbelievers later. Eventually, all of creation will be reconciled to God, “saved yet so as through fire” (1 Corinthians 3:15).

1 Peter 4:18 continues,

¹⁸ And if it is with difficulty that the righteous is saved, what will become of the godless man and the sinner?

Here Peter loosely quotes Proverbs 11:31 from the Septuagint,

³¹ If the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?

While salvation itself (that is, Justification) is free, the purification process of Pentecost is “with difficulty.” Pentecost is the bridge between Passover and Tabernacles. Pentecost is the journey between two doors, so to speak. And if believers find the path difficult, how much more the ungodly and the sinner? It is preferable to pass through the refining fire in this lifetime than to wait for the age of judgment in the “lake of fire.”

The lake of fire is not literal. It is simply the judgment of the “fiery law” (Deuteronomy 33:2 KJV). Daniel 7:10 describes the judgment itself as “a river of fire” flowing out from the throne upon those being raised from the dead. Once the sentence has been passed, the river forms a lake, as men settle down and labor under the authority of the overcomers. The overcomers are then responsible to teach them righteousness (Isaiah 26:9) until the final Jubilee comes into effect, and all of creation is set free into the glorious freedom of the children of God (Romans 8:20, 21).

The Faithful Banker

1 Peter 4:19 concludes,

¹⁹ Therefore those also who suffer according to the will of God shall entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right.

“Entrust” (παρατιθέσθωσαν) is a banking term: to deposit for safekeeping. God is the Custodian of souls. The same idea is suggested in Luke 23:46, where Jesus said, “Into Your hands I commit My spirit.” The “faithful Creator” puts God in the role of a banker who is trustworthy in the care of our souls. He does not misuse the funds, does not commit fraud, and will never misallocate the funds entrusted to Him.

The Greek word is pistos, “trustworthy, reliable, dependable, worthy of confidence." In ancient terms, it refers to covenant faithfulness—that is, the ability to keep His word. He is contractually (covenantally) bound by His own nature. Hence, He cannot default on His promises. So Hebrews 6:18 says, “it is impossible for God to lie.”

“Faithful” does not just mean that God tries hard or intends well. It means God’s very nature guarantees the outcome.

Hence, a faithful bank is one that cannot be robbed and cannot lose assets. It always has the resources to cover its liabilities. Applied to God: He can always “pay back” what is entrusted to Him. There is no risk of default and no possibility of insolvency. So also, Paul wrote to his spiritual son in 2 Timothy 1:12, “I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day.”

In Peter’s banking analogy, he is saying: Deposit your soul in God’s custody—because He is the only “institution” that is eternally solvent, perfectly secure, and absolutely trustworthy.