Monday, February 10, 2025
Who then will harm you if you are devoted to what is good? But even if you should suffer for righteousness, you are blessed. Do not fear them or be intimidated, but in your hearts regard Christ the Lord as holy, ready at any time to give a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you. Yet do this with gentleness and reverence, keeping a clear conscience, so that when you are accused, those who disparage your good conduct in Christ will be put to shame. For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God’s will, than for doing evil. For Christ also suffered for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring you to God. He was put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit. 1 Peter 3:13-18
Be Ready
Peter was no stranger to persecution. He had been threatened, arrested, flogged, and imprisoned. Here he is writing both to comfort believers and to encourage them to stay strong, not be intimidated or fearful to share the Gospel, trusting and obeying Him, even in unjust suffering. Peter tells them (and us) to be ready to defend what it is that gives them the hope on display in their lives. Suffering while doing good will be part of that testimony.
How can we be the most effective in fulfilling Jesus’ call to be intentional witnesses?
One way we can be more effective in fulfilling Jesus’ call to be intentional witnesses is to live intentional lives. As followers of Jesus if we are living the Jesus Way, stepping where the spirit steps, our lives will automatically reflect the glory of God, and his goodness and love will flow out of our lives. People will notice a difference, especially when we live out the Gospel with our lives during times of adversity and suffering. People watch closely to see if we walk the walk even when life squeezes us. Peter talks about the possibility of suffering while doing good – unjust suffering. When people see us reflect hope in times of suffering, they want to know what the source of that hope is.
Another way we can be more effective in fulfilling Jesus’ call to be intentional witnesses is to be vocal about our faith and what Jesus has done in our lives. Peter says we don’t need to feel intimidated or fear those who don’t know him. We should live and witness with the expectation that they want to hear the Gospel. We need to follow the Spirit’s leading and share when the Spirit leads, trusting him for the right words at the right time. We can trust that he will go before us and though we might not always be received in love, a seed is still planted.
Another way to be more effective is to be ready – we can become more effective in fulfilling Jesus’ call to be intentional witnesses by regarding Christ the Lord as holy, ready at any time to give a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you. Peter warns that we will be asked at some point in our lives, and we can be a most effective witness by being ready when the time comes. If we study God’s word and have a growing relationship with him, we will be ready to give a defense. We should not answer defensively but reflecting the hope and love and joy in our hearts as a result of our salvation. This hope they see in our lives is what prompts the question. It is the light they are looking for. We are to do this with gentleness and reverence, keeping a clear conscience, so that when you are accused, those who disparage your good conduct in Christ will be put to shame. When we are accused, if we answer with gentleness and reverence, keeping a clear conscious, they will be put to shame even though they may be trying to cast shame on us. If we keep our cool and do not react with hostility, but instead react with gentleness and respect, we are adding to our testimony and reflecting him even more.
As Pastor Jim told us yesterday, the Gospel is confrontational. The world is living in sin and Gospel confronts sin, exposes sin. Sometimes people will want to know where we find our hope, but they don’t want to be held accountable or change, so the world may resist change and will sometimes push back against us. Honoring Christ as sovereign over everything rather than focusing on our fears or on those who intimidate us is a natural result of our relationship with him. We belong to him and are created for his purpose and our lives should reflect this in every way.
Are you ready to give a defense for what you believe? For where you find your hope?
