“For it brings favor if, because of a consciousness of God, someone endures grief from suffering unjustly. For what credit is there if when you do wrong and are beaten, you endure it? But when you do what is good and suffer, if you endure it, this brings favor with God. For you were called to this, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. He did not commit sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth; when he was insulted, he did not insult in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten but entrusted himself to the one who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree; so that, having died to sins, we might live for righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but you have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.” —I Peter 2:19-25

“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.” —Robert Frost

We are called to the hard road, and Jesus meets us there.

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his possession, so that you may proclaim the praises of the one who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. Dear friends, I urge you as strangers and exiles to abstain from sinful desires that wage war against the soul. Conduct yourselves honorably among the Gentiles, so that when they slander you as evildoers, they will observe your good works and will glorify God on the day he visits.” —I Peter 2:9-12

Christ demonstrates how to

“For it brings favor if, because of a consciousness of God, someone endures grief from suffering unjustly. For what credit is there if when you do wrong and are beaten, you endure it? But when you do what is good and suffer, if you endure it, this brings favor with God. For you were called to this, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.” —I Peter 2:19-21

“He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth. Like a lamb led to the slaughter and like a sheep silent before her shearers, he did not open his mouth.” —Isaiah 53:7

“If the Christian responds in kind – good for good, evil for evil – he becomes merely a victim when he is treated unjustly. In burning resentment he seeks an opportunity to repay the evil. But if he bears the evil patiently, he has broken the chain of bondage in the power of the Lord. He shows his confidence in God’s justice; he need not avenge himself.” —Edmund Clowney

Christ’s suffering is our

He did not commit sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth; when he was insulted, he did not insult in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten but entrusted himself to the one who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree; so that, having died to sins, we might live for righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but you have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.” —I Peter 2:22-25

“When one is suffering unjustly, trust in God and obedience to him are not easy, but they are deepened through undeserved affliction, and God is thereby more fully glorified.” —Wayne Grudem

“Rejoice with me, because I have found my lost sheep!” —Luke 15: 6

“It is the privilege of those who are sons and daughters of the Most High to imitate the magnificence of their Father’s mercy. They rise above simple justice to reflect God’s goodness and love. Unthreatened by evil, they can overcome evil with good, and in the midst of suffering show mercy to those who would show no mercy toward them.” —Edmund Clowney

For further study:
Scripture: Isaiah 53:4-12, Psalm 34:19, Matthew 5:38-44, Romans 12:14;17-21
Resources: “The Road Not Taken” (https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44272/the-road-not-taken)
“Message for the Mistreated” H.B. Charles, Jr. (https://hbcharlesjr.com/resource-library/sermon-outlines/a-message-for-the-mistreated-1-peter-218-21/)

Discussion Guide:
Do you see faith as at odds with the world?
How does the example of Christ challenge you in the way you live?
In what ways do you need to embrace obedience that leads to suffering? What stands in the way for you?
Christ’s suffering on the cross gives us all we need. What effect does this have on helping you to live faithfully?
Where has God placed you to be a light in darkness?

To prepare for next week: “Faithful to the End”; Acts 7:55-60