Servants, be subject to your masters with all respect, not only to the good and gentle but also to the unjust. For this is a gracious thing, when, mindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly. For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God. For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.—1 Peter 2:18–25

Introduction

One of the major causes of devastating grief and confusion among Christians is that our expectations are false. We do not give the subject of evil and suffering the thought it deserves until we ourselves are confronted with tragedy. If by that point our beliefs—not well thought out but deeply ingrained—are largely out of step with the God who has disclosed himself in the Bible and supremely in Jesus, then the pain from the personal tragedy may be multiplied many times over as we begin to question the very foundations of our faith.

This quote is from D.A. Carson’s book How Long, O Lord? Reflections on Suffering and Evil.

If Christians wrongly believe they are exempt from earthly suffering, they will be devastated when it comes. No one enjoys suffering. We all hate it, and rightfully so. It is painful and unpleasant. Suffering is a part of our fallen and broken world.

But what is worse than suffering? Unjust suffering. Unjust suffering adds insult to injury. When we are mischaracterized, misunderstood, or misinterpreted, and then wrongly punished, most of us are outraged, indignant, and angry. This morning, Peter calls his readers to endure unjust suffering through the perspective of being a servant of God. 

The main point of our passage this morning is that believers are to submit to authority and even suffer unjustly for the sake of Christ. The source of strength for believers to carry this out is found in living mindful of God, and looking to Jesus’ example of suffering and his finished work in the cross. This is a profoundly challenging word for us this morning.

No one likes suffering, and no sane person seeks it out. We have entire industries and businesses devoted to alleviating human suffering—from pain medicine to medical intervention, to renewed interest in Stoicism and meditation. But Peter is calling his readers to different pathway of thinking and living. He calls believers not to invest their energies to escape suffering, but to instead follow in the footsteps of the Suffering Servant, Jesus Christ.

His aim is that his readers, and all believers—no matter their circumstances—would entrust themselves to God, looking to the example and work of Jesus Christ. Very simply, trust God in all things, even unjust suffering. That sounds like a simple truth, but requires a lifetime to apply.

Our plan this morning is to see this passage in two sections. The first section provides the command, motivation and explanation (vv. 18–20). The second section examines Christ’s suffering both as an example for us to emulate and as an accomplishment on our behalf. 

Part 1: Be Subject to Your Masters (1 Peter 2:18–20)

1. Command (v. 18)
2. Motivation & Explanation (vv. 19–20)

Part 2: Christ’s Suffering (vv. 21–25)

1. An Example to Emulate (vv. 22–23)
2. An Accomplishment to Receive (vv. 24–25)

Part 1: Be Subject to Your Masters (1 Peter 2:18–20) 

Servants, be subject to your masters with all respect, not only to the good and gentle but also to the unjust. For this is a gracious thing, when, mindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly. For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God.

Peter has emphasized good and honorable conduct in a pagan society (1 Peter 2:11–12). He then highlights appropriate submission for the Lord’s sake in the political sphere (1 Peter 2:13–17). Now he turns his attention to submission for the Lord’s sake in servant and master relationships.

Preliminary Word on Slavery

The word for servants here refers to a household servant. Just two verses earlier in 1 Peter 2:16, a different word is used for bondservant or slave, but here Peter is emphasizing the household context. It’s important to first provide a few preliminary words on slavery in Peter’s context to contrast with American slavery.

Peter does not condone, endorse, or encourage slavery. Instead, he is telling believing slaves how to live within their present social structure. Slavery is not an institution ordained by God, and we can even go so far as to say it is a manifestation of our sinful fall as mankind.

Slavery in Peter’s day was quite different from our own history of American slavery. During the Roman Empire, many slaves were captured in war or conquered nations, and others voluntarily sold themselves into slavery to pay off a debt (which was a temporary arrangement). Slaves were generally  treated well and functioned as  both skilled and unskilled laborers, some serving as doctors, nurses, teachers, managers, musicians, and artisans. Greco-Roman slavery was not based on race, and extensive Roman legislation regulated the treatment of slaves, including slaves’ ability to purchase their own freedom. Lest we think it was a great system, slaves were under the control of their masters and could suffer brutal mistreatment. They were considered property and possessed very few rights. 

It’s probable that as the Roman Empire expanded and conquered more and more nations, many Christians were slaves and household servants. The pressing issue at that time was how Christians should live in the midst of this social structure. 

1) Command: Be Subject to Your Masters (v. 18) 

Servants, be subject to your masters with all respect, not only to the good and gentle but also to the unjust. 

The initial command to “be subject” is the second of three commands to submit (the others occur in 2:13 and 3:1). We can define this command to “be subject” as humbly putting oneself under the authority of another. In the same way that believers are to submit to every human governmental institution because such institutions are sent by God, believers are also to submit to their masters. While this is addressed to servants, it functions as an example to all of Peter’s readers, and so the principle extends and applies to all believers. 

Believers are to submit with “all respect”—or, translated very literally, “with all fear.” Are servants to fear their masters? No! Believers are to fear only God. 1 Peter 1:17 emphasized fear of God: “Conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, know that you were ransomed .…” Fear God because you belong to him now. In 1 Peter 3:14, believers are to not fear when suffering. “But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them.”

If believers are called to sin or violate God’s commands—such as being commanded to do what God forbids or prevented from doing what God commands—they ought to respectfully disobey. This is what we heard last week from Pastor Sam about Daniel continuing to pray even when it was illegal. To do so would be to suffer for disobedience, but like Peter in Acts, there are times when we must say, “We must obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29).

There is a difference between an unjust, harsh, or hard master who calls you to do normal, everyday tasks and a master who calls believers into sin. It’s likely the suffering will come when believers “do good” instead of doing evil, and thus suffer for it.

2) Motivation & Explanation: This Is a Gracious Thing (vv. 19–20) 

For this is a gracious thing, when, mindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly. For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God.

Here in verses 19–20 we see both the motivation and explanation for their submission. We first see the explanation of this submission as enduring sorrow and suffering, which appears three times in these two verses. As believers endure sorrow and suffering, they are to do so in a way that is “mindful of God” and recognizes that it is a “gracious thing.” 

“Mindful of God” can literally mean conscious of God, or with a conscience calibrated to God’s way of living. Believers submit because they fear, revere, and honor God—not earthly masters—above all else. Their relationship with God informs their earthly relationships. Believers know that their earthly masters do not have absolute power or authority, but rather any authority they have is given by God.

Second, what does a “gracious thing” mean? In the NIV they use the word commendable instead, but the Greek word used is charis, meaning “grace.” The phrase “this is a gracious thing” likely means God’s favor or blessing. So when believers endure suffering for God’s sake—mindful of God—they have God’s favor, blessing, and empowering strength. They receive grace and have God’s favor upon them as they endure sorrow and suffering. It is a reminder that we serve an audience of One, and the God of heaven and earth sees us, loves us, cares for us, and has his face shining upon us when we suffer unjustly.

But I think there’s more here than just God’s grace, and favor, and sustaining power. In verse 20 we read, “For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure?” Answer: None. But what is implied is that there is credit, reward, or blessing for those who do suffer unjustly. So it’s not just a present sustaining grace, but also a future reward or blessing, which I believe is referencing back to the idea of our future inheritance and future salvation that is awaiting us in heaven (cf. 1 Peter 1:3–5). 

The point is that because you have so much awaiting you in heaven, you can endure suffering right now. If I offered you a million dollars to let a mousetrap snap on your finger, could you endure that pain for such a payoff? How much more is our heavenly inheritance that makes a million dollars look like pennies?

Luke 6:35 says, “But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil.” Believers live and love differently from the society around them because they look forward to a greater reward, and they increasingly resemble their Father in Heaven.

What is our motivation for enduring suffering? God will never shortchange you. God will never renege on his promises. God will never over-promise and under-deliver. God calls his people to a counter-cultural way of living to reflect his glory, to set his people apart from a pagan society, and even to be used to convert and win over those who hate Christians. And in the process, believers don’t need to “grin and bear it,” they don’t just endure, and they don’t put up with unjust treatment just for the sake of it. Instead, God promises them immeasurably more grace, more rewards, and an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, laid up in heaven awaiting us. 

Tom Schreiner writes this about the believer’s experience of suffering:

Suffering, in other words, is not a detour by which believers receive the inheritance to which they were called. It is God’s appointed means for receiving the inheritance.^[1]

Righteous sufferers are never abandoned. They are never left out to dry. God leaves no man behind. He promises them more, and when all is said and done, we will be able to say that it was all worth it and more. David Livingstone, a Scottish physician and pioneer missionary with the London Missionary Society, said this about his experience:

Anxiety, sickness, suffering, or danger, now and then, with a foregoing of the common conveniences and charities of this life, may make us pause, and cause the spirit to waver, and the soul to sink; but let this only be for a moment. All these are nothing when compared with the glory which shall be revealed in and for us. I never made a sacrifice.^[2]

Peter is calling the believers in this Greco-Roman time to nothing new. Jesus taught his disciples to rejoice in suffering, because there is a greater, weightier, and more fulfilling joy and reward as believers endure suffering because of Christ.

“Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”—Matthew 5:11–12

Then they left the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name.—Acts 5:41

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.—James 1:2–3

If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.—1 Peter 4:14

Application

While Peter does not address how Christian masters should treat their household servants, we should not conclude that Peter—or the apostles—didn’t care or even encouraged the institution of slavery. While they did not encourage the overthrow of slavery, they did show that the gospel has implications for all of life, including the institution of slavery. In the book of Philemon, Paul encourages Philemon to treat his runaway slave Onesimus as a “beloved brother,” and Paul writes that he should “receive him as you would receive me.” Our identities in Christ have implications for all of life, and they bring transformation to every aspect of our lives and in every station of life: slaves or masters, servants, employees, or employers. 

When we suffer unjustly, we should see ourselves as blessed because God is with us, his grace is upon us, and it is confirmation that we are identified with Christ. I can imagine a number of situations and circumstances in which you might be a righteous sufferer of injustice:

• Passed up for a promotion because you’re open about your belief in God
• Fired or laid off because you spoke out about unethical business practices
• Missed out on an internship or opportunity because of your faith
• Discriminated against because of your biblical sexual ethic regarding marriage and gender

Or a time may be coming for some of us where we would be required to call evil good and good evil in order to keep our jobs, to get the promotion, or to get the contract signed. Are we prepared to live as those who are mindful of God, believing that unjust suffering is grace from God?

Part  2: Christ’s Suffering (1 Peter 2: 21–25)

For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls. 

1) Example to Emulate (vv. 21–23) 

Believers have been called to suffer because of Christ’s suffering. We are to follow in the footsteps of our Savior. The passage says explicitly “that you might follow in his steps.” Jesus said something similar in Matthew 10:24–25.

“A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household.”

If the teacher suffered, the students will likewise suffer.

Now if you know your Bible, as you read verses 21–25, another passage of Scripture comes to mind immediately. Isaiah 53. Peter doesn’t directly quote Isaiah 53, but he cites it loosely and borrows its language, following Jesus’ passion narrative. Jesus lived a sinless life and spoke no untrue word. Later, Jesus suffered verbal abuse and slander at the Sanhedrin, ridicule by the guards, and derision by the thieves. Jesus “opened not his mouth” but entrusted himself to his Father who judges justly. He was then crucified on a cross, providing atonement for sinners,

Christians are to follow in the footsteps of Christ. He is not only an example, he is the paradigm to which we conform our lives. We are to live as servants of God, and our identity is defined by Christ. We are to suffer unjustly as Jesus did, so that we might follow in the life of Christ. 

Notice this really important phrase at the end of verse 23. Peter writes that Jesus “continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly.” That was Jesus’ hope: that God the Father, the Sovereign Lord of heaven and earth, will judge justly and that he would be vindicated by his Father. Likewise, as believers today follow in Jesus’ footsteps of suffering unjustly, we entrust ourselves to our Father in heaven who is sovereign, in control, and who is the judge who will ensure that justice reigns forever. Every evil deed, unjust suffering, or act of hostility endured will be vindicated and rewarded.

Without God, suffering is meaningless pain. But with God, when we understand his sovereignty and love, suffering has purpose. Remember where 1 Peter 1:6–7 says that believers “have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” The testing of our faith produces steadfastness (James 1:3), and Peter wants us to stand firm in the true grace of God. Even Jesus—in Hebrews 5:8—is said to have “learned obedience through what he suffered.” If Jesus suffered, so, too, will his disciples, but with God’s purposes and power and provision in view. That provision is what Peter draws out next in verses 24–25.  

2) An Accomplishment to Receive (vv. 24–25)

He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls. 

Peter switches gears from Jesus’ example to Jesus’ accomplishment and provision. Though disciples of Christ are called to suffer, Jesus’ death is uniquely unlike any other death before and unlike any other death that will follow. Jesus didn’t just set an example, but he definitively accomplished the work that Father had given him. That work was substitutionary atonement for sinners. We see in verse 24 that Jesus “bore our sins in his body” so that (purpose) we might die to sin and live to righteousness.

What Christ accomplished for us is utterly unique and unlike anything else that had ever been done in all human history, and it will never be repeated. Here Peter gets right to the heart of the gospel. We can suffer unjustly because we not only have an example in Jesus, but we have been purchased, redeemed, reconciled, and rescued by Jesus. There is an allusion to Deuteronomy 21:23 where Jesus was hanged on a tree in order to be cursed for the salvation of his people and all those who would trust in him.

This morning’s word is challenging for believers—and for those outside of Christ it’s utter nonsense. Why should I suffer unjust treatment? “Over my dead body,” some of us might say, “or you’ll be hearing from my lawyer!” But Jesus calls his people to a counter-cultural way of living because we have died to sin and live to righteousness. For those who see the life of Christ and say, “I could never live like that”—you’re right. You can’t. Which is why Christianity is not about getting your act together, but admitting that you can’t get your act together and that you need a Savior. You need an outside power to rescue you from the sins and desires that control you. Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ this morning, and find that you can have a Savior who will watch over and care for your soul. By his wounds—the cross—we have been healed of our sin-sick souls.

Believers have been empowered by Christ’s death to live now for righteousness. We have received freedom in order to live mindful of God and freed from fear of man and of society, in order to suffer unjustly so that some might even be saved. Peter’s use of Shepherd and Overseer reminds Peter’s readers, and all of us this morning, that our true masters are not earthly masters in the workplace, social sphere, or government, but rather the good Shepherd Jesus Christ, who rules over the church.
_______

[1] Thomas R. Schreiner,  1, 2 Peter, Jude (vol. 37; The New American Commentary; Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2003), p. 141.

[2] https://www.desiringGod.org/articles/i-never-made-a-sacrifice

Sermon Discussion Questions

Main Point: Suffer unjustly for the sake of Christ.

Outline

1. Be Subject to Your Masters (1 Peter 2:18–20)

• Command (v. 18)
• Motivation & Explanation (vv. 19–20)

2. Christ’s Suffering (1 Peter 2:21–25)

• An Example to Emulate (vv. 22–23)
• Accomplished for Us (vv. 24–25)

Intro Question: Have you ever experienced unjust suffering? If so, how did you respond? If not, how do you think you would respond?

Discussion Questions

• What does it mean to submit with “all respect?” Why does the apostle Peter call for submission to unjust masters?
• What is the motivation for servants being subject to their masters? What does “gracious thing” mean in verses 19 & 20?
• How does a possible future reward or blessing motivate unjust suffering? How does Jesus or other passages of Scripture speak about this dynamic?
• Why does Peter cite Isaiah 53 and call out Jesus’ example and accomplishment on the cross in verses 21­–25?
• What is the significance of Jesus’ suffering for the believer’s experience of suffering?

Application Questions

• When you and I experience suffering, what are some questions we should ask to discern our appropriate response?
• Are there situations or circumstances that you can foresee where you will be tested to endure unjust suffering for our faith and allegiance to Jesus? Describe them.
• What types of truths should we call to mind when we are experiencing unjust suffering? How can we walk alongside other believers who are experiencing unjust suffering?
• How does Jesus substitutionary death free us to submit ourselves even to unjust suffering?
• How does the truth that Jesus is the Shepherd and Overseer of our souls bring comfort, hope, and endurance? 

Prayer Focus
As we recognize the difficult exhortation to suffer unjustly for the sake of Christ in the social sphere, thank God for Jesus’ perfect example of suffering, for Jesus’ substitutionary death for sinners, for Jesus fulfillment of the Isaiah 53 Suffering Servant psalm, and for his continued oversight, care, and love for his people. Confess any sins of failing to submit to authorities over us with all respect being mindful of God. Confess any sins you have committed that dishonor God and bring honor upon his name. Ask God for help to put into practice these truths so that we will follow in the footsteps of Jesus, suffering unjustly for Christ sake so that we might take hold of our reward and inheritance.