1 Peter 4:12-19: Persevering through Persecution

1 Peter 4:12-19: Persevering through Persecution

We’ve been working our way passage by passage through the book of 1 Peter, and today the next passage we come to is 1 Peter 4:12-19. It says,

12 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. 13 But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. 14 If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. 15 But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler. 16 Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name. 17 For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? 18 And “If the righteous is scarcely saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?” 19 Therefore let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good. 

May God bless the reading of his Word.

Let’s pray: Father, what a blessing it is to be gathered together around your Word with the opportunity to immerse ourselves in it this morning. We pray that your Spirit would be present and at work in our midst, causing the truths and teachings we encounter to find a place in our hearts. It’s in Jesus’ name we pray, amen. 

One of the unfortunate realities that Christians often find themselves facing in this fallen world is the reality of persecution. Even though outright persecution isn’t something that most of us who are Americans have personally experienced—at least, not yet—it is something that many other Christians throughout the world experience on a regular basis. In fact, according to a study done by Open Doors International, persecution against Christians worldwide has been increasing at an alarming rate over the past several decades. This study reports that, in 2023—that’s last year—approximately 1 in 7 Christians worldwide faced a high level of persecution. That number’s up from in 1 in 8 Christians just three years ago. So, in only three years, the number of Christians being persecuted worldwide has risen from 1 in 8 to 1 in 7. 

In addition, over the past three decades, the number of countries in which Christians face a high level of persecution has nearly doubled from 40 countries in 1993 to now 78 countries. Also, just over the course of this past year—from 2022 to 2023—there’s been a seven-fold increase in attacks on churches, Christian schools, and Christian hospitals and almost a five-fold increase in attacks on the homes of Christians. The number of Christians forced out of their homes and into hiding more than doubled from approximately 124,000 to 278,000—and again, all of those increases taking place just in the span of a single year. 

One of the countries in which persecution has increased the most significantly is India. In fact, I read one story written several years ago about the graduation ceremony of a Bible college in India. The founder of this Bible college, referred to as Bishop Thomas, had himself endured significant persecution. He had survived at least 15 assassination attempts and walked with a limp because he had been beaten so many times. Yet he simply refused to stop serving the Lord and spreading the gospel. So, in the graduation ceremonies of this Bible college, Bishop Thomas always had the graduates recite a martyr’s oath. That was a part of their graduation. Year after year, graduates numbering sometimes in the thousands would solemnly recite an oath pledging to continue serving Jesus even it meant martyrdom. 

One American observer was present for one of these graduation ceremonies and writes as follows: “Bishop Thomas made it clear that each of his students would be qualified for graduation only once they stood and confessed their willingness to serve Jesus even if it meant their death. They were to repeat after him, word for word, a martyr’s oath. And they did—standing in an open-air tent next to a church that was too small to house them all. To this day, that church has a memorial next to its platform listing the names of the graduates who have already been martyred for Jesus. One year, extremists threw Molotov cocktails over the wall during a gathering the day before the graduation service, threatening to kill Bishop Thomas and burn the church. I can still hear Bishop Thomas’s resonant voice booming over the microphone. “Listen to me!” he said. “Tomorrow there will be a service at this church. It will be a funeral service or a graduation service, but there will be a service!” He was fearless. 

The first time I witnessed the graduation, it shook my faith in a way I had never felt before. The temperatures soared over one hundred degrees without even a whiff of breeze, and an aroma of spices and humanity filled the still air as two thousand students pressed together with their family and friends. Unlike the American culture I was accustomed to, no one complained about the heat, the smell, or the inconvenience while singing “I Surrender All.” Word by word, the resolute roar of the students’ voices rose from that dusty tent as they pledged their lives and deaths to Jesus. 

I remember thinking that I was standing in the book of Acts, witnessing a raw, first-century Christianity that I’d been shielded from in the United States. I felt deprived yet suddenly spiritually alive in an entirely new way. My faith finally made sense. All the disparate parts of the New Testament came together in my heart as I witnessed this authentic expression of faith in Jesus. Real faith in Jesus. These bold brothers and sisters weren’t just willing to live for Jesus; they were willing to die for him. I asked myself—as I have a thousand times since—Why are so few of us in America willing to live for Jesus when others are so willing to die for him? Seeing Jesus through the eyes of the persecuted church transformed me.” 

Hopefully, this account makes it clear that there’s a lot we can learn from our persecuted brothers and sisters in the faith worldwide. And even as we think about ourselves and our own situation here in the United States and the direction things seem to be headed in this country, perhaps it would be wise for us to prepare ourselves for what our future might hold. I’m not saying martyrdom is necessarily just around the corner for us, but a significant increase in social hostility even to the point of outright persecution may very well be in our future. 

That’s why I’m so grateful for passages in the Bible like the one before us this morning of 1 Peter 4:12-19. This passage gives us some incredibly valuable insight into persecution and guidance for how we should respond to it. 

Look first at verse 12. Peter writes, “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.” So, according to Peter, we shouldn’t be surprised or think it strange when we find ourselves facing persecution. Instead, we should expect it as a normal part of the Christian life. 

This is consistent with what Jesus said to his disciples in John 15:18-20. He told them, 18 “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. 19 If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. 20 Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you…. 

And returning to our main passage in 1 Peter 4, verse 12 not only tells us that we should expect to face suffering but also helps us understand one of the key functions that suffering has in our lives. According to Peter, suffering “tests” us. He writes, “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.” So, one of the ways God uses suffering in our lives is to test the depth and even the genuineness of our faith. The “fiery trial[s]” we experience have a way of revealing whether our faith in Jesus is genuine and, consequently, whether we’ve truly been converted or not. And that’s the point Peter’s making not only in this verse but in this entire passage. The main idea of this passage is that Christians demonstrate the genuineness of their faith by persevering through persecution. Again, Christians demonstrate the genuineness of their faith by persevering through persecution. 

In Matthew 13, Jesus shares a parable of seeding falling on four different kinds of soil. Each of these kinds of soil represents a kind of person who embraces—or, at least, professes to embrace—the gospel. And according to Jesus, one of these four kinds of soil is rocky soil. And when the seed falls on rocky soil, it springs up quickly but isn’t actually rooted in anything and is therefore scorched by the sun and withers away. Jesus then explains what this symbolizes in Matthew 13:20-21. He states, 20 As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy, 21 yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away. This means there are people—presumably even a large number of people—who appear to be Christians but who are eventually shown to actually not be Christians through persecution. When persecution comes, they fall away and thereby show that they were never truly converted in the first place. 

Jesus also seeks to prepare his disciples for the persecution they’ll one day face in Matthew 24:9-13. He says, 9 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake. 10 And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. 11 And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. 12 And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But the one who endures to the end will be saved. That last verse is critical. Only those who endure to the end will be saved from God’s future judgment. Of course, it’s not that they earn their salvation through their perseverance but rather that they demonstrate the genuineness of their faith through perseverance. 

Yet unfortunately, Jesus says, there will be many who fail that test. Looking back at verse 12, he says that “because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold.” That is, the love for Jesus that many who at one time professed to be Christians appeared to have will fizzle out. And that will reveal the true condition of their heart. 

And I hate to say it, but we can unfortunately already see that happening in our society. Even though the opposition against Christians isn’t even that intense yet, we already see people starting to turn away. This includes supposedly “Christian” leaders who depart from the clear teachings of Scripture if those teachings are too controversial—such as the Bible’s teachings about marriage being the union of one man and one woman and, on the flip side, the sinfulness of homosexual behavior. In a way, that constellation of issues seems to have become a relatively reliable litmus test that reveals whether someone’s truly devoted to Jesus or not. Are they willing to stand on what the Bible says about those kinds of issues, or do they surrender to the demands of our secular culture? By the way, I’d also say that any supposedly “Christian” leader who’s deliberately unclear about these issues is little better than the leader who openly denies biblical teachings. Neither one of them seems to be demonstrating clear devotion to Jesus. 

Yet don’t think this is limited to Christian leaders. This is something that ultimately applies to all of us. I’m convinced that it’s only a matter of time until even “ordinary” Christians will no longer be able to hide in the shadows and will be forced, in one way or another, to make it clear where they stand. They’ll find themselves in the midst of some kind of situation either at work or in their family or in some other sphere of life where they have to come down on one side or another. Will they stand with Jesus, or will they not? 

I appreciate what Richard Wurmbrand said. Richard Wurmbrand, by the way, was a Romanian pastor who spent a total of 14 years in a Soviet prison cell—3 of those years in solitary confinement—and endured unspeakable tortures for his devotion to Jesus. Wurmbrand said that are only two kinds of Christians: those who sincerely believe in God and those who only believe that they believe. He then said that you can tell them apart by their actions in decisive moments. And that’s essentially what Peter’s saying as well back in verse 12 of our main passage. He says that the “fiery trial” of persecution functions as a “test” of our faith. 

Then, moving on to verse 13, Peter goes on to explain how a Christian should respond to persecution. Instead of being surprised at the fiery trial, as though something strange were happening, we should instead do this: “But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.” Notice that word “insofar.” Peter says to “rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings.” Several other translations say to rejoice “to the degree” that you share Christ’s sufferings. In other words, the degree to which we suffer should determine the degree to which we rejoice. The more we suffer, the more joy we should have. 

This is because, Peter says, we’re not just experiencing any old kind of suffering but are actually “shar[ing] Christ’s sufferings.” What does that mean? Well, the Bible teaches that Jesus suffered on the cross. Jesus was the Son of God who came to this earth as a human being, lived a perfectly sinless life, and voluntarily allowed himself to be crucified on a cross. And there was a very important reason he did that. By dying on the cross, Jesus was suffering the punishment for our sins. Our sins deserved God’s punishment. They cried out for God’s punishment. Yet Jesus bore that punishment in our place on the cross. He suffered God the Father’s wrath so we wouldn’t have to. He was then raised from the dead three days later with the result that he now offers forgiveness of sins and eternal life in heaven to everyone who will put their trust in him. That’s a message we call the gospel. 

So, when Peter speaks of “shar[ing] Christ’s sufferings,” he’s simply referring to us enduring the same kinds of suffering that Jesus endured. Obviously, our sufferings don’t atone for anyone’s sins, but they’re still similar to the sufferings of Jesus in that we’re suffering because of our devotion to God and as a result of our commitment to be faithful to God’s will. 

And what a privilege it is to be associated with Jesus in that way! What an encouragement to remember that whenever we suffer because of our devotion to Jesus, we’re actually “shar[ing] Christ’s sufferings”! I mean, what greater honor could there possibly be on this side of heaven? When you think about all that Jesus has done for us and the radical love he’s demonstrated on the cross in dying for our sins, is it not the highest honor to suffer for such a Savior? It reminds me of Acts 5:41. Speaking of the apostles after they had just been beaten by the government authorities for sharing the gospel with people, it says, “Then they left the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name.” They counted it the highest honor to suffer “dishonor” for Jesus. And that led them to rejoice in their suffering. And, by the way, Peter was one of those apostles. So, when Peter tells his readers in 1 Peter 4:13 to “rejoice” in their sufferings, he’s simply telling them to do what he himself has already done. 

And friends, that’s what we’re called to do today as well—to rejoice in whatever suffering comes our way as a result of our devotion to Jesus. I can’t help but think of the moving example set for us by our Christian brothers and sisters in Egypt back in 2017 when two churches were bombed by Muslim extremists on Palm Sunday. These bombs killed nearly 50 of those in attendance and injured more than 100 others. Yet just hours after those blasts, the priest of St. Mark Church in Cairo, Egypt—a man named Boules George—stood before his church congregation and preached a sermon that was actually directed not to the members of his congregation but to the terrorists who had just bombed two nearby churches. 

The title of his sermon was “A Message to Those Who Kill Us,” and it had three points. The first point was “Thank you” because, he explained, “You gave us to die the same death as Christ—and this is the biggest honor we could have.” He then went on to thank them for shorting the journey to heaven for these Christians and for helping other Christians be more mindful of things that have eternal significance. After that, his second point in the sermon was “We love you,” explaining that loving our enemies is what Jesus taught his followers to do. And finally, his third point was “We’re praying for you,” because, he said, if terrorists could taste the love of God even one time, it would drive hatred from their hearts. And I believe that’s a wonderful example of the kind of thing Peter’s talking about in verse 13 when he tells his readers to rejoice in their sufferings. 

Peter then explains the result of having this attitude in the second part of the verse. He writes, “But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.” In other words, the result of Christians being willing to share in Christ’s sufferings and even rejoicing in those sufferings is that they’ll also be able to rejoice even more in the future when Christ’s “glory is revealed”—that is, when Jesus returns in glory and delivers his people from all suffering and brings them to their heavenly home. Peter’s essentially saying to rejoice in persecution now so that you can rejoice even more in heaven then. 

And that focus on eternity is absolutely critical in order to successfully persevere through persecution. The only way remaining faithful to Jesus in the midst of persecution makes any sense is if we’re living in light of eternity and our eternal future in heaven. 

Jesus emphasizes this same thing when he states in Matthew 5:10-12, 10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven…. And Paul states in 2 Corinthians 4:16-18, 16 So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. 17 For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, 18 as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. 

So, the Bible’s clear that Christians who persevere through persecution don’t just see heaven out of the corner of their eye—in their peripheral vision, as it were. Instead, their focus is on heaven. Their gaze is fixed on heaven. It’s what their hearts yearn for and what’s functioning as the driving force behind their lives. 

Then, moving forward in our main passage, Peter continues in verse 14, “If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.” In other words, the fact that you’re insulted because of your affiliation with Jesus is wonderful evidence that you’re truly a Christian—that the Holy Spirit truly “rests upon you.” Therefore, whenever you’re “insulted,” you’re actually being “blessed.” Those who persecute you think they’re insulting you, but they’re actually paying you a huge compliment. 

Peter then writes in verses 15-16, 15 But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler. 16 Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name. So, just in case it wasn’t already clear, all of this applies not to Christians whose sufferings are due to any criminal mischief they somehow fall into but exclusively to Christians whose sufferings are due to their devotion to Jesus. 

And continuing on to verses 17-18, 17 For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? 18 And “If the righteous is scarcely saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?” Now, when Peter says in verse 17 that “it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God,” he’s not saying that the persecution his readers are facing is some type of divine punishment for wrongdoing they’ve committed. Rather, the “judgment” in this sense isn’t a punitive judgment for wrongdoing but another kind of judgment—one God brings about in order to purify and cleanse and refine his people. 

However, God’s judgment will have a much different function as it’s directed toward non-Christians—referred to in this verse as “those who do not obey the gospel of God.” For them, the judgment will certainly be punitive and will result not in purification but in eternal suffering. Peter then quotes Proverbs 11:31 in order to reinforce his point, which is that any suffering Christians might face now pales in comparison to the suffering that awaits non-Christians after they die. 

We then come to verse 19. And I think we could say that this verse, more than any other, encapsulates the message of the entire letter of 1 Peter. Peter writes, “Therefore let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good.” 

So, the first thing for us to understand from this is that all of our suffering is, in some sense, “according to God’s will” in that none of it happens apart from God’s sovereign control. And that’s such a comforting thing to remember because it means that God’s sovereign purposes are being accomplished. 

Peter then says that suffering Christians should “entrust their souls to a faithful Creator.” The Greek word translated “entrust” is actually a term drawn from the world of banking that refers to a deposit given to a bank for safe keeping. Obviously, anyone who’s thinking about making such a deposit would want to know all they can about the character and trustworthiness of the one to whom they’d be handing over their money. Yet, in this case, we have absolutely nothing to worry about because the one to whom we’re “entrusting” our souls, Peter says, is none other than our “faithful Creator” who’s infinitely good and infinitely powerful. 

Yet that’s not all this verse says. It says we should not only “entrust [our] souls to a faithful Creator” but that we should do this “while doing good.” This phrase “while doing good” could conceivably include a wide variety of “good” things we might do. Yet, of course, the greatest “good” we can do is sharing the gospel—both with those who persecute us and with anyone else we encounter. That’s what we’re supposed to be doing even in the midst of persecution—and perhaps all the more in the midst of persecution. 

I read an article not too long ago about two Christian pastors in South Sudan named Peter and Michael. Michael preached a sermon one day that was recorded and turned over to government officials and that eventually resulted in Michael being arrested for “offending Islamic beliefs.” Peter then went to the jail to see if he could help Michael and was promptly arrested himself. Not surprisingly, conditions in the prison were repulsive almost to the point of being inhumane. Peter was placed in solitary confinement for a period of time and repeatedly interrogated and threatened with guns, and Michael’s cell was so overcrowded that the inmates had to take turns sleeping. Yet Michael would later describe this as “a perfect evangelism opportunity.”

Eventually, both men were transferred together to other hot and crowded cells, where they had an opportunity to get Bibles and preach to the other inmates. The authorities then relocated them to death row. Yet, that just encouraged them to continue sharing the gospel all the more, since they now basically had nothing more to lose. 

After that, they were relocated to another prison. Peter states, “Here we found a church in the compound with over 3,000 prisoners. This was our mission field!” Yet before long, they were moved back to the first facility, which Peter describes in this way: “The conditions were very hard here. This prison was so hot that you could wring sweat out of your shirt. But it was the best place and the happiest phase for me because I was put in the same cell with condemned persons and had opportunity to preach to all. Most of them were Muslims. People asked me why I was there and when I told them I faced the death sentence for being a preacher, they would say, ‘But if they are going to kill you, why are you so happy?’ It gave me the opportunity to share about heaven and about Christ. They were shocked and wanted to know more. Whenever the prison officers realized that we were preaching to fellow inmates, they would take us to other cells. We did not mind this because in this way we got access to almost all the condemned persons! God surely has His ways of doing things, even using those who think they are punishing you. We made peace with the reality that God would either get us released or let us be killed. The outcome was fully in His hands, and we placed our faith in His ultimate purpose.”

Now, thankfully, by God’s grace and in a stunning turn of events, Peter and Michael were both eventually released from prison. Yet the way they conducted themselves during their imprisonment is a wonderful example of what the Apostle Peter seems to be speaking of in verse 19 when he talks about “entrusting [our] souls to a faithful Creator while doing good.”

So, as we think about our own situation here in America—on the one hand, enjoying incredible religious freedoms, but, on the other hand, also seeing the foundation upon which those freedoms are built quickly eroding before our very eyes—I’d imagine that most of us would agree that we don’t know what the future holds. But hopefully, through passages like this one in 1 Peter, we can begin preparing ourselves for whatever situation or environment God sees fit give us as a mission field—knowing that any suffering that may or may not come our way is ultimately an incredible opportunity for us to glorify God and continue laboring for the advance of the gospel.