Peter wrote to believers: “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation.” (1 Peter 4:12-13, emphasis added). And so Peter also revealed to us that a share in the sufferings of Christ is to be expected in our lives, and something about which we should not be surprised.
As he continued in verse 15, Peter also said that if we suffer, it should not be for wrongdoing, or that which the Bible calls sin. Suffering for wrongdoing is not suffering according to the will of God (1 Peter 4:19). It is abundantly clear throughout the Bible that it is God’s will for His people that we should live a life separated from sin.
If however we do find ourselves at a time and place in life where we are suffering as a consequence of our own sin, we can take comfort from Paul’s teaching in Romans 8:28, where he revealed that all things which God allows to touch our lives as His people will be made to work together for our eternal good. And all things include God’s painful disciplines, which serve to separate us from our sins. Even in the midst of these disciplines and the losses which often accompany them, God will continue to work in the lives of every believer to bring forth fruit with eternal value.
Regardless of whatever failings may have come before in our lives, let us resolve to repent of our sins and leave them in our past. Let us obey God by doing as Paul exhorted us in Philippians 3:13-14: let us forget what is behind us, and let us diligently strive toward what lies ahead. Let us press on toward the finish line of the race that is our life on this earth, so that we may win the prize of a share in Christ’s eternal glory.
At the end of this passage in 1 Peter 4:12-19, the apostle exhorted us again when he wrote: “Therefore, those also who suffer according to the will of God shall entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right.” (1 Peter 4:19, emphasis added). Just as we have seen from other passages of Scripture, Peter also revealed to us that a share in the sufferings of Christ is God’s will for each of His people, and he exhorts us to entrust our souls to our loving and faithful God as we share in the sufferings of His Son, obediently continuing to do what is right.
This suffering “according to the will of God” that Peter mentioned is the “death” of the grain of wheat that Jesus spoke about in John 12:24. These sufferings are for us our “Gethsemanes” and our “Calvaries”. They are the places in life where we are called upon to submit to God’s will when it is a hard and painful thing, when we know that all things are possible with Him, and that He could remove our burden if He chose to do so. Such sufferings are for us a share in the cup or the baptism of Jesus’ suffering, which as He taught in Mark 10:35-40, is necessary for a share in His eternal glory and a place of honor in the kingdom of God.