“What was the ground and reason of their hope? We should be able to defend our religion with meekness, in the fear of God. There is no room for any other fears where this great fear is; it disturbs not. The conscience is good, when it does its office well. That person is in a sad condition on whom sin and suffering meet: sin makes suffering extreme, comfortless, and destructive. Surely it is better to suffer for well-doing than for evil-doing, whatever our natural impatience at times may suggest.”
-Matthew Henry
Matthew Henry, in his commentary on 1 Peter, Chapter 3, verses 14 through 22, espouses the idea of one specific truth of sin. As Christians we often see sin as separating us from God and kindling in us a propensity for delving deeper into our fleshly desires. While this is true I believe Mr. Henry makes a great point on suffering. There is an often overlooked element to sin (in terms of a believer sinning after redemption). This element is sin affords us the ability to experience hardship with greater pain and a lessening of peace than if we are walking in obedience to Jesus and the teachings of the Holy Spirit.
It is the utmost importance to obey Christ in all that we do. It is good and right to obey. There are natural consequences for disobedience. One may be enjoying the embrace of a worldly passion until calamity strikes. Then the trouble that comes is ever more present and visceral in the minds and soul of the disobedient believer. We must prepare ourselves for the inevitable crises that arise during the course of living our lives. The preparation needed is simply the adherence to the teachings of Christ. We are imperfect. This does not mean we will be cast away from the Savior we love, but it does mean our pain will increase and our peace will suffer. The closer we are to God the more peace we have through difficult times.
Let us continue by discussing our responsibility to those who respond to the teachings of Christ with disbelief. Those people look at the community of Christianity, much to their detriment, as an example of Christ Himself. We are ambassadors of our belief system to the rest of the world. When they see professing Christians with their head down, kicking and cursing the ground as a reaction to suffering they simply see another person dealing with hardship. However, when they see a Christian suffering with joy and peace they become baffled. This bewilderment leads to questions as to how such a person can thrive under suffering. This is a moment when we can share how the Gospel of Jesus Christ can truly change their lives. Simply by existing in the world and walking close to Christ allows us plant seeds that will hopefully lead to a regenerated heart. This is true witnessing. It is good to reach out to people and invite them to church, hand them a pamphlet, or share our stories, but how much better to show everyone you contact the transformative power of the message of God.
Merely by living in our respective communities and being obedient to God will allow us to work toward His Kingdom. We have the duty and privilege of serving a loving and accepting God. Let us work together and build each other up so that it will be easier for us to maintain obedience to the God who saved us from eternal separation from love, peace and comfort.
I sin constantly and must continually redirect my mind and heart toward God (or rather rely on and relent to the Holy Spirit to redirect me). I admit to being one of the most imperfect people I know always drawn to earthly pleasures and satisfaction. I however have hope in Jesus Christ that He will continue to work in my life and the lives of others to achieve his Kingdom. He will not let us wander too far or too long. He will search us out to protect and comfort us. This can be difficult to see when you are in the throes of disobedience and or suffering. Not seeing Christ in our situation does not make the previous statement false. Take heart that Christ is there with you now and forever. Preserver in Christ never giving up on returning to obedience and have faith that you will be restored to Him that forgives.