1Pe 2:21-23 | KingComments | STEP | . 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 ( ). 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 ( ). 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” ( ). 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 ( ). Peter therefore does not speak about the rights of the servant, but about his duties and especially about his attitude toward his master. . 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. . 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. . 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? ( )? 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 . 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 ( ), 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 ( ). 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?

‏ 1 Peter 2:21-23

To Follow in the Steps of Christ

1Pet 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 (Gen 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 (1Cor 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” (Tit 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 (2Thes 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.

1Pet 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.

1Pet 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.

1Pet 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? (1Cor 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 1Pet 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 (Heb 2:17 ; Heb 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 (Lk 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?

Live for Righteousness

1Pet 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 (Isa 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 (1Jn 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 (Heb 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 (Jn 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.

1Pet 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” (Lk 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?

1Pet 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 (Mt 3:17 ; Mt 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.

1Pet 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 (Psa 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 (Zec 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 (Psa 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?