1 Peter 2 Part 8: Christ is Our Example
1 Peter 2:21-25; Isaiah 53:5 - We are freed from the power and penalty of sin through Christ crucified.
“For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously; and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed. For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.”
1 Peter 2:21-25 NASB1995
We have reached the last few verses in 1 Peter 2. So far, this epistle has been laden with truths and challenging but essential precepts for believers to follow. We are called for the purpose of dying to sin and living in righteousness, because our Lord suffered for us and bore our sins on the cross. He left us this template, by not being deceitful, not reviling those who reviled Him, and not uttering threats but entrusting Himself to the Father. So we should not revile and threaten those in authority over us or practice deceit.
Christ is our example and Peter would probably know better than most what it means to follow in His steps. Although he was forgiven by the Lord for his denials of knowing Him, Peter would likely carry that miserable memory seared in his mind, driving his devotion for the rest of his life. Here is a good Charles Spurgeon quote from Enduring Word commentary on 1 Peter 2:
“Which hour do you think of the sufferings of the Lord, from Gethsemane to Golgotha, would be most deeply engraved upon the memory of Peter? Surely it would be that space of time in which He was mocked and buffeted in the hall of the high priest, when Peter sat and warmed his hands at the fire, when he saw his Lord abused, and was afraid to own that he was His disciple, and by-and-by became so terrified that, with profane language, he declared ‘I know not the man.’ So long as life lingered, the apostle would remember the meek and quiet bearing of his suffering Lord.”
Sometimes it is so hard to fathom what Jesus went through for us. It should make every sinner/believer tremble and weep. The central focus of our faith should always be Christ crucified. The enemy works feverishly to destroy the meaning of the cross, by telling us that we are not sinners or that our sins are just “human” reactions to the burdens of life. When you are looking into the dark mirror that the enemy provides, you focus only on yourself, your pride, your ego, your unsatisfied wants and needs, but you don’t see the faint shadow of the cross. The light of the Lamb illuminates your sinful nature and shows the path that you must turn to to die to self.
I read an excellent sermon on this passage by Steven Cole (found through Precept Austin) and would like to expound on a few things from this sermon:
Through Christ’s death on the cross, those that turn to Him are delivered from the penalty of sin. God, because of His holiness, cannot abide sin and the penalty for sin is death. The perfect, sinless Son of God came humbly to Earth and lived among sinners, then took on this penalty for believers, opening the door to eternal life for mortal humans. We will not face the Great Judgment Throne of God. But this does not excuse us from continuing to sin because we got the “get out of jail card”. God’s grace is infinitely precious, not cheap.
Through Christ’s death on the cross, those that turn to Him are delivered from the power of sin. Will power and sheer determination will not stop us from sinning! The power of the Holy Spirit is necessary to guide us away from sin patterns in our lives. Sin is very powerful, but our God is more powerful.
To be delivered from sin and death, we must turn to our Good Shepherd Jesus. Humans are often compared to sheep, animals that so stupid that they don’t know they are stupid, hence they stray into danger all the time, like when Steve and I wandered into the minefield of unbelief, mocking the Shepherd or not even seeing that He was there. The Shepherd is with us to guide and protect us. The Lord loves us all, but He especially loves the lost and wants to bring them into the fold. We turn our lives over to Him and can rejoice that He is watching over our souls. We can be like this sweet ewe in this photo, relaxing and fearing nothing because our Redeemer is close by.
Peter used Isaiah 53:5 as a subtext for these passages:
“But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are healed.”
Isaiah 53:5 NASB1995
Most Christian Biblical scholars agree that Isaiah 53 is a detailed prophecy of the Messiah, which is fulfilled in Jesus. Many Rabbinical scholars disagree about those same passages and it was a stumbling block to the Pharisees at the time of Jesus. Isaiah 53 is definitely worth putting on a list for a future devotional series.
My next devotional examines a difficult passage in 1 Peter, but one I must heed: 1 Peter 1:2 - The Heart of a Godly Wife.
Heaven on Wheels Daily Prayer:
Dear Lord: I tremble with humility before the power of the Cross. You have delivered us from the penalty and power of sin and brought us into the green pastures of your guidance and protection. Thank you for rescuing this dumb sheep from the traps laid by the enemy in this world! Amen.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Commentary from Enduring Word by David Guzik is used with written permission.