“If you are insulted because you bear the name of Christ, you will be blessed, for the glorious Spirit of God rests upon you. If you suffer, however, it must not be for murder, stealing, making trouble, or prying into other people’s affairs. But it is no shame to suffer for being a Christian. Praise God for the privilege of being called by his name! For the time has come for judgment, and it must begin with God’s household. And if judgment begins with us, what terrible fate awaits those who have never obeyed God’s Good News? And also, ‘If the righteous are barely saved, what will happen to godless sinners?’ So if you are suffering in a manner that pleases God, keep on doing what is right, and trust your lives to the God who created you, for he will never fail you.”
Peter is returning to the theme we have found throughout this letter about two kinds of suffering. Sometimes we suffer because we do the right thing, and sometimes we suffer because we don’t. Proverbs 11, quoted here by Peter, provides a similar contrast between the ways of the good and the evil. We live in divisive time, when the war between good or evil is only increasing in intensity. We do not have the luxury to keep one foot in each world — we have to decide which way to fight.
If you are fighting the spiritual war on Jesus’ side, then press on into deeper faith, greater hope, and more perfect love. Trust him with your whole life — he’s not going to let you down. You are not fighting any battle in vein, and you have the Lord of Heaven’s Armies fighting with and behind you. It is his war, not yours. Although everything screams the opposite at us, the reality is that the world does not revolve around you. Or me. We orbit in worship around the one true king: Jesus.
Here’s your freedom for today: the God who made you does not fail. Nations rise and fall, money comes and goes, people let you down. But our King does not give up, and he will prevail. Staying as close to him as possible is the surest way to victory. Every stray step can leave us in danger. For this reason, we must dwell in his presence as much as our feeble minds can manage. Cling to him like you never have before — do it his way and you’ll find victory.