MPC
24th May 2020.May 24 - 1 Peter 3:1-8 - "Hope in Hard Places"
MPC
24th May 2020.
Phil Campbell
There are all kinds of ways in this world that the innocent. Suffer. There are all kinds of ways that life can be so unfair. That people. Can be so unfair.
Your boss. If you're a worker.
Your owner. If you're a slave.
Your spouse. If you're married.
The Jewish Martyrs of the Maccabean revolt 150 years before Jesus were famous for the way they'd scream for God's vengeance against their enemies as they died.
Seven Jewish brothers were dragged before the Emperor Antiochus Epiphanes. And one at a time... they were brutally tortured and put to death because they refused to eat meat sacrificed to an idol and bow to the emperor.
And each one, as he's about to die, calls down torrid curses of God's judgement on the Emperor. Here's Jewish brother number 3. He says,
10 "We, most abominable tyrant, are suffering because of our godly training and virtue, 11 but you, because of your impiety and bloodthirstiness, will undergo unceasing torments." 4 Macc 10:11
Kind of like first century BC Westboro Baptists.
Now the fact is, it's a distinctively Christian belief... that God is judge. It's a distinctively Christian belief. It's part of our hope. That the wrongs left unpunished in this life. Will be balanced out by the God of all justice and truth.
And yet because of Jesus. Something has profoundly changed. Which Peter wants us to notice.
We're still in this section of 1 Peter we started last week back in chapter 2 verse 25 about the way we live in an unbelieving world.
We live in a world where if you're wronged, the saying is, "don't get mad, get even". If someone hurts you. Don't waste your time getting angry about it. Stay cool and concentrate on hurting them back.
That's our world. That's China slapping an 80% tariff on our barley. That's how we do social media. Don't get mad. Get even. Well. Maybe both. Irrationally outraged, and then even.
Last week we saw Peter saying to Christians, be different. So people will see your good deeds and glorify God.
We saw him say submit yourselves if you're a citizen. For the Lord's sake. To every human authority. Bow willingly. To your rulers and governors. Be the ones who gladly go along with the road rules, who submit to the Covid Shut Down regulations, to the emperor, to the local two bit mayor.
We saw him say submit yourselves if you're a slave. In reverent fear of God. Submit yourself willingly. Not only if your master is good and fair. But even if they're harsh.
I mean, it's not as if a slave could just resign. And pick up another job. So if you're going to suffer unjustly, make sure as a Christian slave you're distinctive in the way you suffer as the best slave ever. For doing good.
Because. Verse 21, "Because to this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example that you should follow in his steps."
And that example was, in chapter 2 verse 23, "that when they hurled their insults at him, he didn't retaliate. When he suffered... he made no threats."
And instead he trusted God. Who judges justly in the end.
Remember his words on the cross? I said earlier you might have heard them. father forgive them. For they don't know what they're doing.
Instead of threats. Praying. For God to have mercy on them. Which is astonishing, isn't it?
Which brings us to the awkward topic of wives. And husbands. Who would ever think that marriage would be a situation that comes to mind in the same breath as unjust suffering.
If you're married, hopefully for you it doesn't. If you're young and you're not married, I imagine you're pretty optimistic. But the reality is, marriage can be tough.
This is double awkward though, because looking through the passage I can spot I think eight statements that you'll find outrageous if you're a 21st century woman.
Although maybe you'll find some of them liberating.
This is a passage that says don't bother with the Botox. If you're worried that you're not looking as good as you should on Zoom meetings at work, there's a better option. And I'm not talking about the face filter.
This is a passage that says don't worry about fancy $300 hairstyles.
This is a passage that says there's no need to dress in the latest styles. And you don't need expensive jewellery.
Well, maybe with life in lock-down you've already figured some of those out. Although I did hear the demand for Botox has gone up in the last few months. As well as demand for ear-rings because they look great on Zoom and you can still wear your tricky-daks under the desk.
But look the more irritating bits of the passage might be the bit that says wives of unbelieving husbands should submit themselves to them. And the bit at the end that says Christian husbands need to be gentle and considerate. And treat you with respect as the weaker partner.
And you say, who says we're weaker? Which is a fair point.
I saw in the news the other day an article that made the point that countries with women leaders have handled the Covid Crisis far better than anywhere else.
Like New Zealand, Norway, Iceland. The article says women are managing the crisis better because women have more resilience, pragmatism, benevolence, and trust in collective common sense.
That women are more committed to mutual aid and humility. Which is exactly what the world needs in a crisis.
Now personally I reckon that's a bit sexist. But I suspect it's true. The women I know are so often smarter and nicer and more reasonable than I am. They'll tell you that as well.
And so we'll have to work out when we get to verse 8 what we're going to do with the idea of women being the weaker partner.
Before we get there though, I want to ask you take a few minutes to consider the kind of real inner beauty and strength Peter's talking about. And the way these ancient Christian wives, like every other Christian, are meant to do exactly what we saw last week; which is to demonstrate and illustrate Jesus. In who they are and what they do.
It's all there in verses 1 and 2. And if you're here this morning and you're the wife of an unbelieving husband; (g'day guys, thanks for being here;) the first thing to notice is that it's an astonishingly liberated situation for the first century world. Almost inconceivable. That a wife would have a different faith to her husband. These are women who have broken the social mould. By saying to their husbands, you might be worshipping at the idol temple; or you might be going to the little Jewish synagogue... but as for me, I'm going to follow Jesus. And I'm not going to just to the socially standard thing of doing it your way. Which takes guts. Both then and now.
But the point is of course if a wife like that really deeply wants her husband to join her in seeing how profoundly good it is to follow Jesus, Peter's point is, you're not going to nag him into it.
I'm not sure that you'll ever argue anyone into faith in the long run.
But look, it's tough isn't it? For both of you. If one of you is a believer and the other one isn't. So what to do?
Peter says, wives, in that situation... and remember, this is culturally a Graeco Roman patriarchy; but Peter says, wives, submit to your unbelieving husband so that. Instead of nagging. Instead of arguing. Instead of insisting. You win them over not with words. But with a very different kind of beauty.
Making yourself beautiful for your husband not with layers of make-up and bling. But with what's inside.
A beauty that doesn't fade. The beauty of a quiet and gentle spirit.
Now I don't think that means being a wallflower. I don't think it means parking your personality at the door. I don't think it means just shutting up.
I think it's about having the sort of self control that's consistently thinking about what's good for the other. The kind of gentleness that cares without having to dominate. That doesn't need to win. Even when you're right 99 percent of the time.
Much like the Lord Jesus. Who submitted to wrong even though he was right 100 percent of the time.
Which is why in verse 4 that's an attitude of such great worth in God's sight.
Now bear with me. Because if you're finding this tough already, it's about to get tougher. Especially if you're watching this beside your unbelieving husband this morning, and you're saying I've been trying this for 20 years and it hasn't worked. And he's maybe nudging you and saying well you haven't done much of a job of it!
But listen guys, if this is you, maybe give her a break. And spend a minute reflecting on the fact she might have been doing exactly this because of Jesus. And there's actually something in it. Maybe, just maybe, you haven't stopped to think what a great deal you've got. To be married to a Christian woman like that in the first place. And maybe you're just too thick to have noticed.
And look, speaking of thick husbands... think for a minute of Abraham. Who even though he's quoted here and even though he's the forefather of Israel, when you go back and read his story in Genesis 12 onwards, over and over again the medal should really go to Sarah.
Abraham as a husband. Has some really good promises from God. But he does some really dumb stuff.
Like the time in Genesis 12; right after he gets the promises of land and descendants and blessing; he and Sarah head off to Egypt to avoid a famine. And because she's so beautiful, Abraham says, tell them you're my sister. So no-one attacks me to steal you.
Like, guys, you're with your wife in a dark lane way at night, and you say to her, you walk a few steps behind me, sweety. So I don't get mugged.
What a guy. Trouble is he does exactly the same in another city. In Genesis 20.
Which makes verses 5 and 6 even harder. Be a daughter of Sarah. Even if you've got a husband like that. Here's Sarah's beauty. Take a look...
For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to adorn themselves. They submitted themselves to their own husbands, like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her lord. You are her daughters if you do what is right and do not give way to fear.
Submit yourself. Like Sarah. And trust God. Even when your husband's sometimes a bit of a jerk, like Abraham...
Which can be scary, I know. Trust God. And be like Jesus.
Remember verse 1. It picked up on the example of Jesus in chapter 2, and it said, wives, in the same way as Jesus, be like this.
Verse 7, at last, husbands. believing husbands at this point; but if you're an unbelieving husband listen too. Because this makes such a good marriage model. Same phrase. See it? "in the same way." Not in the same way as Abraham. Husbands, in the same way; in the same way following the example of Jesus. Be considerate as you live with your wives and treat them with respect as the weaker partner.
Just in the statistical physical sense. I know the domestic violence statistics go both ways. I heard of a marriage in crisis a couple months back, friends of friends, in court because she was violently abusing him. But so often it's not that the man's any better or smarter; but just physically stronger. Which is what Peter's talking about. Don't use that for power. It was cultural back then and it's still cultural now. To respect strength. But Peter says respect. Her weakness. Respect her as co inheritor with you of the gracious gift of life. Don't diminish her. Or take her for granted. You're in it together. Don't let anything get in the way of your prayers together. As a Christian family unit.
Now look. I know for lots of women especially this is a contentious passage. And it's better to talk this stuff through in real life. So feel free to call up and chat with a team member or a team wife if this is a tough area for you.
But I just want to finish by saying, yes, these were words written to a place long long ago and far far away.
And sadly there are attitudes and actions that Christian men have developed and justified that have led to a culture where - and this was exposed in the media a couple of years back - a culture where Christian wives have been undervalued, diminished in their personhood, and even physically abused. And because they're godly, they've stayed in harm's way. On the basis of this passage.
Doug said last week, and I'll make the point again. Culturally back then if you were a slave. There was no escape. So suffer like Jesus. As a wife back then. There was no escape. Husbands could divorce their wives with just a word. Whereas a wife to file for divorce had to apply to the governor. And stood to lose everything.
It's actually a good thing that today there are options. To stay safe. And so we're not at any point saying that the point of this passage if you're a woman and you're in any kind of danger to just stay there and suffer like Jesus.
Times have changed. In a good way.
But can I also say. The whole point of this passage. Is husbands. Wives. Anyone. There are going to be times when you're treated unjustly. When you want to get even. When you want to just say it's not fair.
And you're right. It's not. The question is, not how can I stand on my rights. But how can I use those times... to model Jesus?
It takes courage. And it takes gentleness. And it takes submission in all the right ways. To say what I want most is not to win. Not to beat you. What I want most for you is for you to see me trusting and following the Lord Jesus. So you might too. And trusting God with the rest. In our resurrection hope.
Challenging in all kinds of ways, isn't it? When things can be so unfair. But will you keep that in mind? Wives. Husbands. Everyone. Look for ways to flip the script. And show the world some Jesus. Every time we can.