Lesson 453 - Senior

Memory Verse

"The God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you"  (I Peter 5:10).

Cross References

I Peter's Instructions to the Church

1. Peter gives the duties of wives and husbands, and tells how Christian women should dress, [1PE:3:1-7]; [1CO:7:13-16]; [EPH:5:22-25].

2. He exhorteth to love and unity, and to suffer boldly for Christ, [1PE:3:8-18]; [1PE:4:1-5], [1PE:4:7-11]; [ROM:12:10]; [COL:3:12].

3. Christ preached to the spirits in prison before He ascended to Heaven, [1PE:3:19-22]; [1PE:4:6].

4. Christians are not to think it strange when they have fiery trials, [1PE:4:12-19].

5. Elders are to feed the flock of God willingly, [1PE:5:1-4]; [ACT:20:28]; [1TM:4:16].

6. Be humble, sober, vigilant; your adversary, the devil, seeketh whom he may devour, [1PE:5:5-10]; [LUK:22:31]; [1TS:5:6].

Notes

Duties of Wives and Husbands

By God's appointment, man was placed as head of the house. Although he may not be a believer in the Gospel, he is still the head and should be treated as such so long as his actions do not go against the commandments of God. It may be that through the wife's conduct the husband will be won for the Lord. Sarah called Abraham lord through respect and unselfish devotion, but we do not believe Abraham treated her as a slave or servant.

The love between husband and wife should be mutual. If we are Christians we should share in all the affairs of life: business, social and domestic. What a woman admires in a man is strength and courage. What a man admires in a woman is beauty and fidelity. Beauty of character is of much greater importance than beauty of face and figure. The woman is the weaker vessel and she likes to feel the strength the man can give; the man appreciates the love and devotion the woman is capable of bestowing.

Peter says they are heirs together of the grace of God. If they are fellow heirs then there is an equality between them on spiritual lines. They should share each other's joys and sorrows, successes and failures.

Women's Attire

Neatness and simplicity often go hand in hand. The natural desire of a woman is to be attractive in personal appearance. But a Christian woman does not want a lot of superfluous ornaments to make her look beautiful. No amount of finery can take the place of a meek and quiet spirit. The Lord looks on the heart; if the heart is right, dress falls in line. We are told that heathen women of old braided strands of gold with their hair to make it more attractive. That explains the "plaiting the hair", which Peter mentions. It was expensive; and no amount of expensive attire can be a substitute for a gracious personality. The desire of a Christian woman is to show by her life and appearance that she is a follower of Christ; and not try to flaunt herself, and draw attention to herself by immodest dress or costly adorning.

To the Spirits in Prison

This passage of Scripture has been hard to understand. We can interpret Scripture only by Scripture. We know that in the interval between the death of Jesus on the cross and His resurrection He went to Paradise, for He said to the thief on the cross, "To day shalt thou be with me in paradise."

Peter, on the Day of Pentecost, was preaching to the people about the resurrection of Jesus and He quoted [PS:16:10]; "For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer shine Holy One to see corruption."

Paul tells us in [EPH:4:7-11]: "But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ. Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. (Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth? He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.) And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers." This same Scripture is most beautifully portrayed in [PS:68:17-18]: "The chariots of God are twenty thousand, even thousands of angels: the Lord is among them, as in Sinai, in the holy place. Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity captive: thou hast received gifts for men."

We are told that in olden days when a general of an army won a great victory, he would lead his captives through the streets and throw out gifts from the bounty he had received.

Deborah in her song of victory sang, "Awake, awake, Deborah: awake, awake, utter a song: arise, Barak, and lead thy captivity captive" [JUG:5:12]).

We know when Jesus arose from the dead, He came forth conqueror over sin, death and hell. When He ascended on High He sent the Holy Ghost down to this earth and gave gifts unto men. What a beautiful illustration!

Perhaps the consummation will be when Jesus comes back to this earth to reign and leads His saints through the streets of the city of Jerusalem and appoints them a place to reign with Him.

These Scriptures give us some insight of what Jesus did between His death and resurrection. Just what He preached or proclaimed to those in Hades we do not know. The Bible does not tell us.

We know from many Scriptures that there is no chance after death of obtaining eternal life. "And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment" [HEB:9:27]). There is no purgatory where one can go and stay until some priest prays you out.

We have the account Jesus gave of the rich man and Lazarus. The rich man begged Abraham to send Lazarus back to this earth to warn his five brethren not to come to that place of torment. Abraham said, "If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead" [LUK:16:31]).

The sinner who does not repent of his sins and get forgiveness for them while he is living in this world, has no chance of escaping the damnation of hell.

God sent Jesus to this world and permitted Him to die on the cross that we might not perish but have everlasting life. He gives us a lifetime here to make our decisions as to where we will spend eternity. But when once we have crossed over, the die is cast.

p>Fiery Trials

 

At times Christians do pass through fiery trials: trials of persecution, trials of heart sorrow, trials of sickness and affliction. We are told to rejoice inasmuch as we are partakers of Christ's sufferings. The glory of Jesus will be great because of the intense suffering He passed through to bring about our redemption. If we suffer for Him here, the greater will be our rejoicing over there. If we can grasp that truth it will help to ease the burden of our fiery trials. If we suffer as a Christian, we have nothing to be ashamed of; but if we suffer for our wrongdoings, it brings disgrace on ourselves and on the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Judgment begins at the house of God. We cannot do wrong and expect to get by with it. We will reap more than we sow. Many times the Lord chastens us to bring us back into line. How much better to feel the chastening rod here and profit by it, than to suffer throughout eternity! "And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?" [1PE:4:18]).

Duty of a Shepherd

"Feed the flock of God." Peter never forgot the lesson he learned just after the crucifixion and resurrection. For over three years he had followed the Lord. He had been called away from his fishing nets to become a fisher of men. But now discouraged, restless, and impulsive, he said to some of the disciples, "I go a fishing." They said unto him, "We also go with thee." We never step aside without influencing others.

Jesus did not leave him discouraged but performed a miracle to prove to the disciples that He was the same Jesus as when He walked with them along the shores of Galilee. After He had fed them, He talked directly to Peter's heart, "Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me?" Jesus repeated the question three times. We believe each time it was going deeper into Peter's heart never again to turn aside. When Jesus told him to feed His "sheep," Peter learned a lesson he never forgot.

Now Peter is exhorting the other shepherds to feed the flock of God: to do it willingly, and not for remuneration, or financial gain, they would get; nor as being lords over God's heritage. They were to look for their reward when the Chief Shepherd shall appear.

"Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: whom resist steadfast in the faith, . . . But the God of all grace, . . . make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you" [1PE:5:8-10]).

Questions

  1. How should a wife treat an unbelieving husband?

2. How should a husband treat a wife?

3. What kind of adorning is better than costly array?

4. What do we gain by suffering for Christ?

5. What promise will help us to pass through our fiery trials?

6. Who are to feed the flock of God?

7. What lesson did Peter learn about feeding the sheep?

8. Who is trying to devour the sheep?

9. What admonition did Peter give to help us guard against the enemy?

10. Name three things Jesus conquered through His death and resurrection.