Free Bible Commentary
“First Peter 2:18-20”
Categories: First Peter“Servants, be submissive to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and gentle, but also to those who are unreasonable. For this finds favor, if for the sake of conscience toward God a person bears up under sorrows when suffering unjustly. For what credit is there if, when you sin and are harshly treated, you endure it with patience? But if when you do what is right and suffer for it you patiently endure it, this finds favor with God.”
---End of Scripture verses---
Neither God, the Bible nor the Apostle Peter say that slavery is a good thing. But in the first century Roman world it was just a prominent fact of life. It has been estimated that 60 million people served as slaves in the Roman Empire, and a good number of them converted to Christ. The Holy Spirit is telling us here that if a Christian is a slave, he should be the best one he can possibly be. In Colossians 3:23-24 within the context of the slave/master relationship, the Apostle Paul wrote: “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward.” Christians are held to a higher standard of excellence. We serve the Highest Power and we are always “on the clock” in our service to the Lord.
“Suffering unjustly finds favor” in the sight of the Lord (verse 19). We live in a society where people cannot tolerate the slightest bit of disrespect without feeling the immediate need to retaliate. This ego-driven "beast mode" is viewed as a sign of strength to the worldly wise, but it requires true, inner strength and spiritual maturity to control the urge to strike back and “turn the other cheek” when we have been offended. When we “do what is right and suffer for it,” the favorable, godly response is to continue doing what is right (verse 20). It is never the right thing to do the wrong thing. The best, but not the easiest, response to mistreatment is love and prayer.
Hear the familiar words of our loving, merciful Master: “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? If you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:43-48)
Be patient, kind and respectful. Serve the Lord in all sincerity and He will work out all matters of injustice in His time.
Please read 1 Peter 2:21-25 for tomorrow.
May God’s grace and peace be yours in abundance!
-Louie Taylor
