18: Keep Your Footing

Message 18 of 34 in the series Letters from Peter

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18: Keep Your Footing

Series: Letters from Peter (18 of 34)By David McConnell

Services Sunday Morning Worship August 22, 2021 at Agape Church

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Topics: Trials, Persecution, and Suffering

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¹²Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. ¹³But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. ¹⁴If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. ¹⁵But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler. ¹⁶Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name. ¹⁷ For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? ¹⁸ And
“If the righteous is scarcely saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?”
¹⁹Therefore let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good.

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1 Peter 4:12-19, ESV

Read 1 Peter 4:12

Peter says that Christians should not be surprised when trials (trying circumstances) come into their lives. What is the danger of developing a personal theology that does not allow for trials from God? Fiery trials carry the inference of a fire used to prove and purify a precious metal. How then are trials used by God to refine His people’s faith?
Read 1 Peter 4:13

Peter exhorts Christians that their joy can continue – even grow – in the midst of a trial. While this seems difficult to believe at first, what are some examples of things that you painfully endure because you know the outcome will be worth it? What outcome do we get from a trial?
Read Romans 6:5-11

Union with Christ means we share in his death (Rom 6:6), His resurrection (Rom 6:8), and His pattern of living (Rom 6:11). Write or discuss how a Christian shares in each of these with Christ. Read v14. How might this union with Christ bring about being ‘insulted for His name”?
Read 1 Peter 4:17-18

Judgment here best means a “Judicial evaluation that results in approval or disapproval”. Read Malachi 3:1-3 and Malachi 4:1. What impact does God’s fiery testing have on His people? What impact does it have on those who are lost? How does this motivate us to share the Gospel with others?
Read 1 Peter 4:19

What does it look like according to Peter to “entrust our souls” to God while going through a trial? In the sermon, “doing good” was described as love, purity, and service. How might trials negatively impact each of these in our life? How is it comforting to know that God controls our trials?