Describe Your Hope

Timofei sharing his testimony. 

Scripture:

1Pet. 3:13   Now who will harm you if you are eager to do what is good? ¹⁴ But even if you do suffer for doing what is right, you are blessed. Do not fear what they fear, and do not be intimidated, ¹⁵ but in your hearts sanctify Christ as Lord. Always be ready to make your defense to anyone who demands from you an accounting for the hope that is in you; ¹⁶ yet do it with gentleness and reverence. Keep your conscience clear, so that, when you are maligned, those who abuse you for your good conduct in Christ may be put to shame. ¹⁷ For it is better to suffer for doing good, if suffering should be God’s will, than to suffer for doing evil.

Observation:

Peter continues his instructions to those who are facing persecution. In the midst of people who may desire to do physical and emotional harm to you and to your life, do what is good. Never stop doing the right thing, even if people try to intimidate you into changing your opinion. Ultimately, you will never be punished by God for doing what is right. 

The holiness of Christ is to fill our hearts and thereby it is in our hearts and motivations the Christ is sanctified. While this is the work that is done on the inside, it will always reflect on how we behave on the outside. When Christ fills our hearts, then he will also fill our mouths. Peter saw the work of Christ as bringing hope to those who had previously felt hopeless. Therefore, when someone asked a believer about the way that they were behaving they were to testify to the hope they had found in Christ. They were always to be ready for the moment of evangelism. 

Peter had previously used the term gentleness and he does it again. The demeanor of the Christian is significant when it comes to witness. Gentleness and reverence are to characterize the way in which the testimony is shared. 

Don’t give in to those who may be pressuring you to distance yourself from your faith. Even when people say false things about you, do not conform to the world. The word shame suggests the final judgment of those who do not do right. God will take care of things in his time. Therefore, be willing to suffer for doing the right thing.

Application:

Society is beginning to look more and more like the first century and therefore these reminders from Peter are very relevant. As our world becomes increasingly post-Christian we have to think about what it will be like to be a follower of Jesus Christ. 

During our 13 years in a nation that had declared itself atheist, we learned the cost of becoming a disciple. For those who really came to Christ, they were deeply transformed, and were willing to take abuse from their friends and neighbors for their faith. Our neighbor’s friends thought he had lost his mind. They wanted him to see a psychiatrist but finally made an appointment with an Orthodox priest to try and talk him out of the insanity of his new-found faith. He came to us and asked us to pray about that meeting. When he came home he was beaming. He said he was able to answer every question the Priest put to him and finally the Priest said, “You know the Scriptures better than I do. Leave me alone!” The Priest told the friends that he was of no harm and to let him go in his new-found faith. My neighbor, Timofei, was a living witness to the faith that he had found in Christ, and Christ was sanctified in his heart. 

The video below is Timofei's story.

I’m wondering whether anyone would notice enough of a difference in my life that they might ask me about my faith. We are supposed to live in such a way that we are different. Gentleness and reverence should be hallmarks of our character, for they reflect Jesus. If our friends took us aside and asked us to defend our faith, could we? 

Prayer:

Lord, may I be bold and gentle at the same time, always prepared to speak of You. Amen.