1 PETER 2:22-25
INTRODUCTION
There are many benefits in knowing a foreign language. One of the chief benefits lies in the increased ability to understand and be understood. If a person knows only one language, he is tempted to think that everything he communicates is understood. However, if forced to translate an idea into another language, he must consider various possible words to use and their shades of meaning as well as all of the other elements of the language. This effort opens up a door, allowing him to communicate with many new people.
Suffering is like knowing a foreign language, since things that one usually takes for granted in a normal flow of life must be thought through in new ways in a time of suffering. For those who have lived with suffering, a door of ministry is opened wide to a world of hurting people.
Today we are continuing the message we began last Sunday: Christ Our Model for Service and Suffering II. Last week I said in conclusion that the readers of Peter’s Epistle could not reproduce every aspect of the sufferings of Christ but there are three qualities of that suffering that are patterns for the followers of Christ.
First, verse 22 emphasizes the innocence of Christ. Jesus committed no sin and no deceit was found in His mouth. It is very remarkable that Peter one of the disciples who was close to Jesus could make such a statement. Peter was affirming the sinless life of Jesus as He walked the face of this earth.
Second, is the patience and meekness of Christ. Two of the qualities of the life of Christ that the Holy Spirit would like to cultivate in every believer’s life are patience and meekness. Jesus submitted Himself to maltreatment. Could you believe that the Creator experienced brutal treatment from the hands of sinners? Peter is drawing from the eyewitness account of the suffering of Christ. Jesus is the sinless Savior who experienced injustice from the hands of unjust religious leaders.
Third, verse 23b affirms Jesus’ trust in God the Father. Jesus in His time of suffering was confident of vindication before the Father. Because the heavenly Father judges righteously, His verdict is always fair and just. Therefore, if you suffer in the hands of wicked people, hold your peace, for the Father will vindicate you at the right time.
I. THE SILENCE OF JESUS V. 23
Verse 23 states, “And while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously.” When Jesus was slandered, He did not retaliate with sharp barbs, nor did He threaten those under whose hands He suffered; instead, He entrusted His case to the God who judges justly and waited for God’s vindication. The slaves therefore are also to respond kindly and not retaliate. This is one of the reasons that I say to live the authentic Christian life is not a piece of cake as some would like us to believe. We live in a society of instance justice. Today the least mistake you make somebody is going to sue you at court. In the days of Peter, the slaves did not have any right. Peter is telling us the truth that all who are followers of Jesus must be prepared to suffer (Mk. 8:34-35). Peter learned this from Jesus and passed them on to us. Therefore, when you endure suffering for the name of Christ, don’t behave like you are going through something that is strange to the Christian life. Just this week an American pastor in Haiti was abducted and held at a ransom simply because his church was booming. A ransom was paid to the kidnappers before he was released. This is the kind of world in which some Christians live and serve. Therefore, if you are not experiencing any suffering in the United States don’t conclude that the Christian life is an easy life. If the Christian life is an easy life, then Jesus is a liar, because He said that in this world we will have tribulation, but we must be of good cheer because He has overcome the world.
II. THE SUBSTITUTIONAL AND VICARIOUS DEATH OF JESUS V. 24
The truth of the matter is that Jesus did not suffer for any sin that He had committed, because there was no sin found in Him. He was the perfect man. He was the sinless Messiah. His suffering and subsequent death was for us. He did not deserve to die on the cross. We were the ones who deserved to die such horrific and shameful death and yet Jesus took our place. The righteous died for the unrighteous. The Savior died for sinners. The Just One died for the unjust and sinful humanity. Jesus died in our stead. The penalty of our sin came upon Him.
The “He Himself” in verse 24 is emphatic. The thought is that “He and no other,” “He alone,” died for our sins. This statement refutes the Islamic belief that it was not Jesus who died on the cross. If it was not Jesus who died on the cross where did He go? The word “bore” renders a word that was a technical term of the sacrificial system, meaning, “To offer,” “to present.” Jesus took away our sins when He was nailed to the cross on that fateful Friday. He was carrying away your sins and my sins on His body on the cross. His death was vicarious and substitutional, because the cross was meant for criminals. Jesus endured the sins that were our due reward. This alone calls for daily thanksgiving to Him from everyone of us who call ourselves Christians. Have you noticed how Peter has shifted his use of the second person pronoun? In verse 24 he uses the first person plural pronoun, “our” sins. Peter identifies himself with those that Jesus died on their behalf. For one thing this means that Christ’s death on the cross has benefit for all believers, not just slaves. It is also a confessional statement that Peter is making. He is uniting himself with the readers of his letter in acknowledging the participation in the benefit of Christ’s death. This should speak eloquently to us that we are not to take salvation for granted, because it took the life of Jesus to save us from sin. As I said earlier, Jesus died like a criminal because the “tree” is a graphic term for the cross. In classical Greek the term “tree” was used of the scaffold on which criminals were hung. Therefore, the word carries the connotation of criminality. Jesus was numbered among criminals. On the day He died, He died in the middle of two criminals.
In verse 24b, Peter under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit stresses the purpose of Christ’s death, which was that, we having forsaken our sins might live for righteousness. Christ died so that we may have a complete break from sin and live right for God. The positive purpose of Christ’s death was that His people might “live for righteousness.” The thought in righteousness is not imputed righteousness (that is the righteousness that we receive from Christ having put our faith in Him). Rather, it is the righteousness that is, right conduct, the doing of what is right.
The sufferings of Christ bring healing (v. 24b). Peter states, “For by His wounds you were healed.” Peter emphasizes the special application of his teaching to suffering slaves of his day. “Wounds” used only here in the NT, translates the word that speaks generally of “a bruise or a wound trickling with blood.” More specifically, it was used of the cuts and bruises left on the flesh when a person was scourged. Peter points out the unique and vicarious nature of Christ’s suffering both through the scourging and His death on the cross. This is a new and strange method of healing. The doctor suffered the cost and the sick person received the healing. Jesus is the doctor who suffered the cost and you and I received the healing. This verse is the favorite of many Christians when they are praying for a person who is ill. However, the primary interpretation of the statement, “By His wounds you were healed,” is not physical healing. Instead the word “healed” suggests restoration to health from the wounds made by sin that is moral and spiritual healing. That this is the correct interpretation is indicated by the words that follow (v. 25).
III. THE SUFFERING OF CHRIST THE MEANS OF RECONCILIATION V. 25
The sufferings of Christ are the means of bringing you and me to God. The reason is given in verse 25, “For you were like sheep going astray but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.” The term “Going astray,” suggests the aimless wandering of sheep that have lost their way. When sheep do not have anybody to guide them, they become the prey for wolves and predators. Sheep are easily led astray. We are just like sheep we can easily be deceived or led astray by false teachers and the devil. Nevertheless, when Jesus saved you, He brought you home to the Father. Like a lost sheep, you were wandering in the forest of sin, but Jesus found you, saved you, and brought you to His sheepfold. The term “going astray” is a graphic description of the condition of the unconverted person. This is part of the reason we need to share the gospel with our friends, family, coworkers, and neighbors who are lost. They are like sheep that have gone astray. If you have been saved that means you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your soul. Life outside the Shepherd and Guardian of your soul is meaningless; it is a life without proper direction; it is also a life of vulnerability to the assault of the evil one.
When you are saved, it is not you who took the initiative. Therefore, when Peter says that “now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls” he does not suggest that you went out and returned to the Shepherd at will. On the contrary, the Good Shepherd came looking for you and has brought you back. When a sheep goes astray, it does not come back home until the shepherd goes looking for it. The same thing applies to your salvation. When you were not saved it wasn’t you who decided that one day you were going to get saved. It is God who comes looking for you when His Holy Spirit convicted you of your sin and waywardness. Therefore, you are no longer astray from God, leading lives that lack direction and purpose.
Christ being your “Shepherd and Overseer” is an encouragement to you and me. That means whatever the trials and burdens, whatever storms of life you are facing, know that you have a trustworthy Protector in Him. The word “Shepherd” is the word translated “pastor” in Ephesians 4:11. The Greek for “Guardian” or “Overseer” is episcopos, meaning literally “one who watches over.” It is from the same word that we get our English word “Bishop.”
Therefore Christ is the Shepherd of the souls of men and women boys and girls. That is why David in his famous Psalm says, “The LORD is my shepherd” (Ps. 23:1). Isaiah states, “He will feed His flock like a shepherd; He will gather the lambs in His arms; He will carry them in His bosom, and gently lead those that are with young” (Is. 40:11). The great King that God was going to send to Israel would be the shepherd of his people. Ezekiel hears the promise of God: “And I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he shall feed them; he shall feed them, and be their shepherd” (Ezek. 34:23; 37:24). This was a prophecy about the coming of Jesus Christ. The term “Shepherd” was the title that Jesus took to Himself when He called Himself the Good Shepherd and when He said that the Good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep (Jn. 10:1-18). To Jesus the men and women who did not know God then and now and were waiting for what He could give them were like sheep without a shepherd (Mk. 6:34). Therefore, as the spiritual under-shepherd of Christ, it is my responsibility to protect you from false teachers who prey on the church.
The word Shepherd tells us most vividly of the ceaseless vigilance and the self-sacrificing love of Christ for us who are His flock. “We are the people and the sheep of His pasture” (Ps. 100:3). Christ is the Shepherd and the Guardian of our souls. In His love, He cares for us; in His power He protects us; and in His wisdom He guides us in the right way.
Since this truth has come to you today, what is your response? Are you going to share the good news with others so that Christ will save them and bring them to Himself? Our friends and loved ones who are without Christ are like sheep without a shepherd. The wolf can come in and destroy them at any time. Your work has been cut for you.
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