Lesson 12 – I Peter Chapter 3:8-11
I Peter 3:8
“To sum up, all of you be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted, and humble in spirit;”
(NKJV) “Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous.”
(NLT) “Finally, all of you should be of one mind. Sympathize with each other. Love each other as brothers and sisters. Be tenderhearted, and keep a humble attitude.”
Peter is quite the “life coach” in today’s terms. In I Peter, he has shown us numerous spiritual tidbits as to how the believer should conduct themselves as they continue following a life of Christlikeness. Paul has described this as “running the race,” realizing that being a disciple of Jesus isn’t a sprint, but a lifetime marathon.
Our society today has moved away from God’s life sustaining principles to where the country’s main idol is one of self-gratification. The key focus is on money, houses, cars, vacations, fine clothes, gourmet food, the best seats at sporting events and entertainment venues, health and fitness. There’s nothing wrong with all these things in and of themselves, except where God is left out of the picture.
If king Solomon were here today, he would happily agree. You see, Solomon had incredible wealth in the form of land, palaces, chariots and horses, gold and silver, and many beautiful women. Solomon tried and tested everything, but toward the end of his life, all these things had lost their glitter.
Ecclesiastes 2:17
“So I came to hate life because everything done here under the sun is so troubling. Everything is meaningless – like chasing the wind.”
A life pursuing the things of God is nothing like “chasing the wind” as Solomon says. Being Christlike in this world can certainly be hard at times, but to put it bluntly, we are to press on and grow up… be mature Christians.
In verse 8, Peter says, “To sum up” which can be translated into a single word, the word is “finally.” This should cause us to look back to what Peter has taught us, remembering things like the fact that those who belong to Christ are in line to “obtain an inheritance which is imperishable.” As aliens sojourning through this world, we will encounter many bumps in the road, which Jesus refers to as tribulations.
Knowing this, we “gird our minds for action,” and in doing so, we pursue a life of “holiness.” Why? Because God is holy and He commands us to be holy as well… after all, we are all part of God’s “royal priesthood.”
These things can only take place through the power of the Holy Spirit, and He’s the One who prompts our hearts into desiring the Holy Scriptures, like a baby craving mom’s milk.
We are soldiers in God’s army, prepared for life’s spiritual battles, awaiting His commands.
God has set societal boundaries in place by instituting governments. There have been good and bad governments, and there will always be good and bad governments. Thus, we are to obey the authorities, that is unless these authorities push us to sin against God. Peter also introduced us to having an attitude of submission, which is a characteristic of being a “good servant.” We are to be submissive in the workplace, as well as within our marriages.
Now, Peter will give all believers a general exhortation (an encouragement), which will open to us a life of blessings that God desires for us to enjoy.
Keeping in mind all the things Peter has taught us, he says, All of you be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted, and humble in spirit…
For us to be harmonious, means for us to be of “one mind,” that we should have the same mind-set. We can further define it from one commentary as “maintaining a common commitment to the truth that produces an inward unity of the heart with one another.”
Romans 12:5
“So we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.”
Paul really zeros in on what it means to be of one mind in the book of Philippians:
Phil. 2:1-5
“Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,”
As believers, we are to act this way even when the attacks come and challenge our steadfastness. In Peter’s day, it meant standing up in faith even under the most severe persecutions.
Be sympathetic… it means having compassion for one another, sharing the same feelings. Earlier I mentioned that Jesus said we would have tribulation; I think this includes all the tough things we experience in life like being sick, going through diseases, injuries, perhaps unrelenting pain, losing a loved one through death, or maybe divorce.
We could go on and on listing all the hard things we can go through, but in the end we need to come back to having compassion for one another.
Romans 8:28
“And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”
Who is better qualified to counsel a new widow than a woman who has been through the very same thing. It’s because they’ve experienced these feelings first hand. Or for the person who just heard the words from their doctor saying, “You have cancer.” The person who’s been there and done that can help the most. It’s hard when life throws us a curveball, and sometimes we cry out to God and say, “Why me Lord?” We sometimes think God never hears our cries. That is, until a fair amount of time goes by, and we see an opportunity to serve God by talking to someone who needs our help, then it all comes into focus and you can see clearly that God is working. It helps when we can share our feelings with one another.
Hebrews 4:15
“This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for He faced all of the same testings we do, yet He did not sin.” (NLT)
Jesus knows our deepest pain, in fact, He suffered more than any of us will ever suffer. So remember to bring everything to Jesus, He will always listen to you and He will never leave you! Oh, what a friend we have in Jesus.
Love each other as brothers and sisters… Christians loving Christians. Peter uses the word brotherly, and you probably heard this before being referred to as Philadelphia, we know it as the city of brotherly love (not so much today). To have a love for the brothers and sisters means a tender heart is needed. This was hard to come by in the Roman culture as any form of tenderness would be seen as weakness. This is why the Christian church was so revolutionary at the time, Christians were changing the world by showing the love of Christ to one another. It’s really about believers caring about one another, looking out for each other.
Acts 20:35
“And I have been a constant example of how you can help those in need by working hard. You should remember the words of the Lord Jesus: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” (NLT)
Giving and serving others has great rewards.
Looking ahead to 2 Peter…
II Peter 1:3-4 (NLT)
“By His divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know Him, the One who called us to Himself by means of His marvelous glory and excellence. And because of His glory and excellence, He has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share His divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.”
Serving and loving one another is what Peter is telling us to do, and it is the Holy Spirit who enables you to share His divine nature with those around you. This service begins in the church among the believers, and then it extends out into the world. This is why being part of a Bible believing church is so important.
Be kindhearted… or tenderhearted. It might not seem like it, but this is strong language that Peter is using. The root word of kindhearted refers to a person’s guts, sometimes translated “bowels or intestines” pointing to one’s deep affections and emotions. Kind of like telling someone you love them with all your heart.
This word signifies a very powerful kind of feeling and is similar to believers being sympathetic. In other words, you are so affected by the pain of others, you feel it deeply within yourself. Today we are overloaded with bad news all the time, so much so that it’s easy for us to become detached. We tend to insulate ourselves as a way of protecting our emotions.
What is the answer for us to stop becoming jaded or insensitive? I believe that if we continually pursue our relationship with God, He will keep our hearts fresh and pliable.
Romans 12:15
“Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.”
Jesus was tenderhearted.
Luke 19:41
“When He approached Jerusalem, He saw the city and wept over it,”
The word “wept” translated is the strongest word in the Greek for weeping, and it shows how Jesus agonized and was sobbing over His chosen people… all because of their hypocrisy, shallowness and total rejection of Him.
This is the intensity of tenderheartedness that Peter is talking about. For us to reach this level of caring, it takes being involved with those around you, and it’s not something you can do from the sidelines.
Be humble in spirit… or keep a humble attitude. (NKJV) says, be courteous. John MacArthur writes, “Humility is arguably the most essential, all-encompassing virtue of the Christian life.”
The world has a problem with humility.
From Psychology Today:
“Particularly in Western societies, there is a remarkable conflict between the call for humility by spiritual sources and the societal value system that rewards materialism, competitiveness, and prominence. General wisdom is that it’s harder to advance our career when we humbly stand back instead of promoting ourselves (“nice guys finish last”). Humility is frequently perceived as a weakness.”
Jesus was the personification of humility, and He certainly did not finish last. Just as the Romans had a problem with showing compassion and tenderness, the world we live in shuns humility, it thrives on “every man for himself.”
James has some excellent words for us when it comes to being humble.
James 4:6b, 10
“Therefore it says, “God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”
“Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you.”
Pride wars against humility. The problem that comes into play is one’s excessive satisfaction, having a narcissistic or egotistical attitude. It is an all-consuming mindset of, “I can do it better than everyone else, I know more than everyone else, I am superior to everyone else.” Rather than having a healthy sense of reality, it becomes their fantasy.
Proverbs 16:18-19
“Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. Better to be of a humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud.”
I’ve heard it said, “The way up with God is down!” This speaks of us having a humble spirit, willing to serve others rather than being served. Put on humility, “You’re gonna like the way you look.”
I Peter 3:9
“Not returning evil for evil or insult for insult, but giving a blessing instead; for you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing.”
In a nutshell, love those who treat you badly… that includes everyone.
Not returning evil for evil or insult for insult… it’s what your parents taught you when you were a kid, “two wrongs don’t make a right,” whereas, the world will come back and say to you, “but two negatives make a positive.” That’s simply wrong thinking.
Lev. 19:18
“You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the sons of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself; I am the Lord.”
The point Peter is making is, if a believer isn’t reacting to evil with more evil, then they should never start, but if they are retaliating in some way, they need to stop.
Proverbs 20:22
“Do not say, “I will repay evil;” wait for the Lord, and He will save you.”
Jesus captures the thought for us in Matt. 5:38-45a:
“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you, do not resist an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. If anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, let him have your coat also. Whoever forces you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to him who asks of you, and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you.”
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven;”
The word evil (kakos) speaks of a bad nature, being wicked, troublesome, injurious, malicious, and destructive.
So when a believer encounters someone with an evil and wicked disposition, we are to follow Jesus’ instructions… we do not retaliate against them. Having a humble attitude in this arena will help us to prevail.
But remember this, when evil comes knocking at your door and wants to do you harm, you’re allowed to always protect yourself and your family, and anyone else who might be with you.
Insult for insult… this has to do with speech. Another old saying comes to mind, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but names will never hurt me.”
Insult… means “an abusive railing against,” cursing, or speaking evil of someone… the root of the word insult is “reviled,” which means hated, detested, or despised.
The believer needs to be in control when it comes to the way we communicate with one another because God will hold us accountable for the things we say.
Matt. 12:36
“But I tell you that every careless word that people speak, they shall give an accounting for it in the day of judgment.”
This includes trading insults for insults.
Psalm 141:3
“Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips.”
James 3:6
“And the tongue is a flame of fire. It is a whole world of wickedness, corrupting your entire body. It can set your whole life on fire, for it is set on fire by hell itself.” (NLT)
As you can see, the Bible gives us numerous warnings about the way in which we speak, it would be a mistake to ignore them.
But giving a blessing instead…
Paul said, “When we are reviled, we bless.” (I Cor. 4:12)
In 1907 a preacher by the name of William Lonsdale Watkinson made this statement:
“But public condemnation of a person is so much easier and cheaper than good works, and proves to be a popular temptation. Yet is it far better to light the candle than to curse the darkness.”
To light a candle can be seen as giving a blessing in this context. Jesus said to those who were listening, “bless those who curse you” (Luke 6:28).
When someone curses at us, our first response might be to give it right back to them. It’s much easier to curse than to bless, but that comes purely out of our flesh. How do you react when the person driving next to you gives you the hand signal that you’re #1? Do you pray for them?
The term blessing (eulogeō) translated is the word from which the English word eulogy comes from. It means to praise or speak well of others.
So what are some ways we can give a blessing? First, we can bless people by loving them as Christ would, unconditionally. Praying is another way, praying salvation for an unbeliever and sanctification for a fellow believer. Another way to bless a person is to express appreciation to them; it can be as simple as just a word of encouragement. Last, but not least, believers are to forgive those who persecute them. This can be a hard one.
Luke 17:3-4
“Be on your guard! If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. And if he sins against you seven times a day, and returns to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ forgive him.”
When Peter is telling us to bless other people, he’s passing on to us what he has learned from Jesus first hand.
For you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing…
Blessings of all blessings, every follower of Jesus Christ has received the ultimate blessing, the unmerited, undeserved forgiveness of all their sins… this is priceless when compared to the alternative. We’ve been called to a heavenly life with God for all eternity.
Matt. 1:21
“She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”
John 10:28
“And I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.”
Rom. 5:8-9
“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him.”
When we think about the fact that all of our sins against God have been forgiven, and we have been given a new life in Jesus Christ, how can we ever withhold forgiveness to another who has offended us… it is so small compared to the greatness of God and how He was offended by our sins.
To lay it out straight for us… a believer must be willing to forgive others.
I Peter 3:10-11
“For,
“The one who desires life, to love and see good days, must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit.
He must turn away from evil and do good; he must seek peace and pursue it.”
Peter could have said “therefore” in place of the word “for.” What he is doing is reiterating what he said to us in verses 8 and 9. Here, Peter is quoting from Psalm 34:12-14.
The one who desires life, to live and see good days…
We can say, “Love life even if there are bad days in the mix… God is in control.”
Isaiah 55:8-9
“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts.”
God is in control… what a wonderful thought, because it takes all the pressures of life off us, we just need to walk in obedience.
Deut. 31:8
“The Lord is the one who goes ahead of you; He will be with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.”
The concept of the control of God over everything is called the “sovereignty” of God. Nothing gives us strength and confidence like an understanding of the sovereignty of God in our lives. God’s sovereignty is defined as His complete and total independent control over every creature, event, and circumstance at every moment in history.
As a child of God, knowing that God is in control easily puts us in the category of the one who desires life, to love and see good days. Does this mean our life as a believer is set on cruise-control and it’s smooth sailing from here on out? No way. Keeping within the context of what Peter is teaching, he says, must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit… believers are to refrain from any kind of evil speaking or any immoral inclination that might spring out from their flesh.
Stuff happens and evil things pop in our head. All of a sudden, out of nowhere you get an evil thought, you didn’t want it, it just dropped in on you. The thing to do at that moment is pray, you say, “Holy Spirit, I don’t know what this is but please just take this thought away from me.” It’s been my experience that the Holy Spirit is right there working. The next thing you know, you’re thinking or looking at something else that takes your mind away from the evil thought.
He must turn away from evil and do good; he must seek peace and pursue it…
Turn away from evil and do good needs no explanation, just do it!
Two interesting words here are, seek and pursue. These two words convey for us an intensity and aggressive action for the believer. To seek is to crave and demand something from someone. To pursue is to run swiftly in order to catch a person or thing, to run after something. The analogy here is that of a hunter vigorously tracking down his prey.
Peace, on the other hand, denotes a constant condition of tranquility that produces permanent joy and happiness. When you read the word tranquility, you get a sense of calm. You’ll find the word “peace’ in the Bible over 360 times. It’s something most people want.
John 16:33
“These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.”
As believers, we are to seek peace, and according to this Scripture, we are to hunt for it aggressively. Don’t let it escape from your life. Satan wants to steal it from you every chance he gets, and the way to fight against him is to live the Spirit-filled life. We are to have peace even with our persecutors (our enemies)… and also with unbelievers.
Matt. 5:9
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.”
Peter continues to give us words to live by!