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2. Suffering – v21-25 Christians are called to suffering – v21a So often Christians have thought that their calling was to gain take control of the state, or to change society, when Peter says that we are called to suffer. And that applies to all of us- if God calls someone to follow Christ, he calls him to suffer, there is no way around it. Struggling to do all the good we can is a very effective evangelism strategy, but it won’t always make us popular. In v20, the servants are beaten for doing good- Peter is probably thinking of cases where their masters mistreat them because they are Christians. Sometimes doing good will arouse even more hatred and hostility. After all, no one has done more good than Jesus, and no one has ever been treated more harshly and unfairly. We are called to suffer, because Christ our master was called to suffer. Christ suffered as an example – v21b A few years back there was a sort of craze in Christian circles for bracelets and badges with the letters WWJD, which stood for “What would Jesus do?” Remember them? A lot of people didn’t like them- they said that they were legalistic, and we can’t always do what Jesus would do. Which is true. But it is still a good question to ask. Because the Bible says very clearly here that we are to imitate Christ in our public lives, and especially in our suffering. Christ is the model or the pattern we are to follow. We are to walk in his footsteps, and be like him. What is a disciple, a Christian? Someone who is learning Christ. Not just someone who is learning about Christ, but someone who is learning Christ, learning to walk in his footsteps, learning to be like him. So how did Christ suffer? Christ suffered without sin – v22-23 Again Peter turns to the Old Testament, to Isaiah 53, to show us the beauty and goodness of Jesus’ life and suffering. He was completely innocent and sinless. He didn’t even have any sinless desires to struggle against, he never even wanted to do anything wrong. But he did struggle- he wrestled with temptation all his life, and never once for the slightest moment gave in. He would have nothing to do with sin and lies. And when he was lied about and beaten and abused, he didn’t retaliate. He didn’t try to strike back at his abusers, or yell that he would get even with them. He suffered like a silent lamb. Because he put himself into his Father’s hands, he knew that this was his Father’s will for him, and he was content to leave it to his Father to see that justice was done. That’s our example. That’s the pattern we are supposed to follow in our public life, when we are abused for doing what’s right. If the sinless one submitted to this without complaining about injustice, how can sinners like us complain when we suffer? These are the footsteps that lead to the cross. Christ suffered without sin, and… Christ suffered for our sin – v24-25 Still in Isaiah 53, Peter shows us the beauty and goodness of what Christ did for us. And here we can’t imitate him- only wonder. On the cross, he swapped places with us, and bore the crushing burden of sin. He bore the just retribution for all the times we’ve waved the white flag instead of fighting against sin. The punishment for all the times we’ve not submitted to authority, to the authority of God. He bore that retribution so that we don’t have to bear it. And so that we could die to sin and live for righteousness- in other words, so that we could win the struggle against sinful desires, and live to do good. And so that we could come back to him, the shepherd and overseer of our souls. You see, our real problem is not that we are victims. Our problem is not that we live under an unjust government, or that we have an unfair employer. Our problem is that in our hearts and souls, we don’t like being told what to do. By the boss, or by the government, or by God. But when you see the beauty and goodness of what Christ did for you, that’s what will change your heart into an obedient heart.