Christ Our Example: Suffering and Salvation

Peter has labored for his readers to know their identity as the people of God––his chosen elect, his holy children, his redeemed people, his free servants. So how do you live as God’s people in a world hostile to God and to his people? But Peter says to Christian citizens, “Submit to your government” and to Christian slaves, “Submit to your masters” in order to advance Christ’s mission in the world. Peter begs us to realize that we are all engaged in a war––a war for our souls and a war for the world. And our secret weapon in the fight is godly suffering. God uses our submission to subvert the enemies of the gospel, and even to save them. And if you don’t believe this, Peter points at Jesus Christ who is our example of our suffering Savior.