The City Within The City 1 Peter 3:8-12
The followers of Jesus, who received this letter from Peter, men and women, boys and girls living in the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia within the Roman Empire, were not led by a Christian Emperor who encouraged their allegiance to Jesus. They were followers of Jesus living in a secular, pagan empire filled with all kinds of beliefs and practices, the vast majority of which did not align with the beliefs and practices of the followers of Jesus. The emperor and the citizens of the empire saw the followers of Jesus as subversive, a threat to their society because of their unwillingness to worship the emperor and their strange religious practices. The citizens of the empire watched as men and women, slaves and free, the wealthy and elite as well as the downcast and outcast gathered together. That was something that was unheard of in Roman society. The citizens of the empire listened in as this strange assortment of people called one another “brother” and “sister” and treated one another as family. The citizens of the empire saw the willingness of the followers of Jesus to make personal sacrifices to care for the poor, to rescue babies, most often baby girls, who had been abandoned because their families didn’t want them, and to provide for those who were dying instead of discarding them. The followers of Jesus were called to be a city within each of the cities where they lived. Where did Peter, Paul, and the other leaders of the followers of Jesus get this idea, this model of what it means to be a follower of Jesus? They got it from Jesus, who, in the Sermon on the Mount, told His followers,
14 "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. (Matthew 5:14-16 ESV)
“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill…let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” We are people on mission. The Lord has rescued us, saved us, made us His sons and daughters so that He might send us back into the world and use us to let His light shine so that others might come to know Him as well. Edmund Clowney wrote,
Jesus came to gather, and to call gatherers, disciples who would gather with him, seeking the poor and helpless from city streets and country roads… Mission is not an optional activity for Christ’s disciples. If they are not gatherers, they are scatterers. Some suppose that a church may feature worship and nurture, leaving gathering as a minor role… Mission is reduced to a few offerings, the visit of several exhausted missionaries on fund-raising junkets, and the labours of an ignored mission committee. Such a church is actively involved in scattering, for the congregation that ignores mission will atrophy and soon find itself shattered by internal dissension. (Clowney, Edmund. The Church: Contours of Christian Theology. pg. 159–60).
That is so rich, so powerful, and we need to be reminded of this truth often or we will become nothing more than another club in Oklahoma City whose mission is to make its members happy. For us to stay on mission we need the guidance of God’s Word and the commitment to live as the Lord calls us to live, both in relationship with one another and with the world around us. Let’s take a look at our Scripture for this morning found in 1 Peter 3:8-12.
8 Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble. 9 Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing. 10 For, "Whoever would love life and see good days must keep their tongue from evil and their lips from deceitful speech. 11 They must turn from evil and do good; they must seek peace and pursue it. 12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil." (1 Peter 3:8-12 NIV)
Don’t let the word “finally” throw you off. Peter is not wrapping us his first letter to these brothers and sisters, but he is wrapping up a train of thought that began in 1 Peter 2:12 where he wrote,
12 Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation. (1 Peter 2:12 ESV)
From this Scripture in 1 Peter 2:12, until we arrive at our Scripture for this morning, Peter gave them instructions on how they were to relate to others. He wrote about how the followers of Jesus were to relate to the governing authorities, how the members of the church who were slaves were to relate to their masters, how Christian wives were to relate to their husbands, many of whom were not followers of Jesus, and how husbands in the church were to relate to their wives. After he finished talking about all of these relationships, Peter writes, “Finally, all of you…”
In the verses we will look at this morning Peter gives great counsel to the followers of Jesus on how they were to relate to their brothers and sisters in Christ in the church, in verse 8. Then, in verses 9-12, he focuses their attention on how they were to relate to those outside the church, those who were not followers of Jesus. In this case, those who were persecuting them, saying all kinds of evil things about them, mocking them, slandering them, and harassing them.
I think it is important to point out for us that these instructions on how the followers of Jesus in the first century were to relate to those both inside the church and those outside the church were instructions that were taught to all of God’s people. We can find very similar instructions given by the Apostle Paul in his letters to the churches in Rome, Ephesus, Colossae, and Thessalonica. I’ll only share one example with you. Turn with me to Romans 12 and let’s read together beginning in verse 9.
9 Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. 10 Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. 11 Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. 12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. 13 Share with the Lord's people who are in need. Practice hospitality. 14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited. 17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. 18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. 19 Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," says the Lord. 20 On the contrary: "If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head." 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. (Romans 12:9-21 NIV)
Peter’s instructions to those in the five provinces of the Roman Empire, concerning how they were to treat their brothers and sisters in Christ, contain five characteristics. Their lives, shared together, were to be characterized by like-mindedness, being sympathetic towards one another, loving one another with a family love, being compassionate towards one another, and rooted and grounded in humility. Each of these five characteristics are found in Paul’s instructions as well. Can you imagine a church where all of the relationships of the brothers and sisters in Christ reflect this type of genuine love, compassion, unity, and humility? I would join a church like that! Let me assure you, I wouldn’t be the only one who would join a church like that. People are longing for these types of relationships and we are called to be that place, and we are called to be those people, Jesus’ people.
It was this love, compassion, like-mindedness, and humility that drew many to the Lord in the Roman Empire. Years later, after Peter and Paul had died and the Body of Christ continued to grow, some of the Roman Emperors tried to replicate what the Christians were doing in their communities, but it never worked. It never worked. Emperor Julian, who served as emperor from 361-363 A.D. and was raised in a Christian home before he rejected Christianity, tried with all of his might to take the characteristics he saw lived out among the Christians and include them in the Roman pagan religions. Emperor Julian became so frustrated that he wrote one of his pagan priests a letter. In his letter, he basically said, “Those Christians take better care of Romans who are in need than we do. They not only take care of their own, but they care for any Roman, Christian or not.”
We are the light of the world, a city set on a hill, and we are to let His light shine. It doesn’t matter if we are talking about the Roman Empire, the Chinese government, the Taliban who is now in control of Afghanistan, the new Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, or the government of our own nation–no government will ever be able to do what God has both called and equipped His people, His Church, to do…if we will simply be who He has called us to be. That “if” is a mighty big “if” and if truth were to be told, we have failed over and over again. John Stott wrote,
The problem we experience, whenever we think about the church, concerns the tension between the ideal and the reality. The ideal is beautiful. The church is the chosen and beloved people of God, his own special treasure, the covenant community to whom he has committed himself for ever, engaged in continuous worship of God and in compassionate outreach to the world, a haven of love and peace, and pilgrim people headed to the eternal city. But in reality we who claim to be the church are often a motley rabble of rather scruffy individuals, half-educated and half-saved, uninspired in our worship, constantly bickering with each other, concerned more for our maintenance than our mission, struggling and stumbling along the road, needing constant rebuke and exhortation, which are readily available from both Old Testament prophets and New Testament apostles. (Stott, John. The Contemporary Christian: Applying God’s Word to Today’s World. pg. 219-220)
There is this tension that is constantly before those who are followers of Jesus. There is the ideal that the Lord has set before us and then there is a reality of what we are experiencing. So, the question is, “How do we move more and more towards the ideal? How do we grow in our relationship with the Lord so that we can experience what He desires in our relationships with our brothers and sisters in Christ?” The blueprint is before us.
Desire to be more “like-minded” in our relationship with our brothers and sisters in Christ. I want us to understand this word, “like-minded,” so we don’t read into it what we think it means. The Greek word, “ὁμόφρων” (homophrōn), literally means “harmonious” or “united in spirit.” It definitely does not mean that we have the same opinions about everything from football teams to politics, but it does mean that we experience a harmony together around the person of Jesus, who He is, what He has done, and what He has called us to do.
Paul wrote to the believers in Philippi and he encouraged them to be of the same mind in their relationships with one another. What would having the same mind look like? Well, he spelled it out for them in verses 2-8. Let’s read it together.
2 …make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. 3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. 5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; 7 rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death-- even death on a cross! (Philippians 2:2-8 NIV)
How do we sing from the same sheet of music so that we become like-minded, having the same love, and being one in spirit and of one mind? Let me tell you, it has nothing to do with our common nationality or ethnicity, our common socio-economic status, being from the same hometown, or being an alumni from the same school–those things are useless when it comes to being like-minded. We learn to sing from the same sheet of music by keeping our eyes on the Conductor and following His lead.
I was in choir this past Wednesday night when the choir was practicing the song they sang for us this morning, “Total Praise.” I wish you could have sat in on our practice. Connie was leading us and she would say, “Ok, sopranos, let’s practice your part.” Then she turned to the altos and it was different. The tenor and the bass sections followed. They were not the same parts, but each section listened and watched as Connie led. Each section practiced again and again and then it happened. Connie brought all four sections together and it was glorious! We were reading from the same sheet of music, we followed the lead of our conductor, and the harmony was heavenly!
In John 17, we can read Jesus’ prayer, the prayer He prayed before He was arrested and crucified. It is interesting that during such a crisis moment in Jesus’ life, He prayed for His followers, and not just those who were following Him at the time, but those who would follow Him throughout history. Listen to what was on Jesus’ heart for you and me.
17 Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. 19 For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified. 20 "My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one-- 23 I in them and you in me-- so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. (John 17:17-23 NIV)
Jesus prayed that the Father would make us one, that we would be brought into complete unity in our passion for Jesus and the things of the Kingdom, in our love, and desire to be united at the cross as a people on mission. That is still His prayer for us to this very day!
The blueprint is right before us this morning. Desire to become more sympathetic towards one another. We learn what true sympathy looks like by keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus. The author of Hebrews wrote,
15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (Hebrews 4:15-16 ESV)
The Greek word translated “sympathy” is made up of two Greek words. The first word means “to be affected by something, to have one’s feelings stirred up by some circumstance.” The second part of this compound word means, “with.” We are to be with our brothers and sisters, not just in their sorrows, but also in their joys. Paul wrote to the church in Rome, “Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.” (Romans 12:15 NIV)
My experience is that both the followers of Jesus and those who are not followers of Jesus find sympathy for those who are suffering. We, as a nation, are quick to jump in and help when there is a need. I have also found that both the followers of Jesus and the world do not do nearly as well in “rejoicing with those who rejoice.” We will celebrate a marriage, the arrival of a new baby, or the graduation of a friend of the family, but when it comes to other celebrations we don’t fare so well. Someone gets a promotion at work or is recognized for a job well done and most people stew because they weren’t recognized. This, celebrating the successes and joys of others, should set us apart from those who are not followers of Jesus. When Paul was describing the Body of Christ, using the analogy of the human body, he wrote,
24 …But God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the parts that lacked it, 25 so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. 26 If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it. 27 Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. (1 Corinthians 12:24-27 NIV)
If one of us is suffering, we are all with the one who is suffering. If one of us is honored, every single one of us should rejoice with, truly rejoice with the one who is rejoicing. William Barclay wrote,
One thing is clear, sympathy and selfishness cannot coexist. As long as self is the most important thing in the world, there can be no sympathy. Sympathy depends on the willingness to forget self, to step outside self and to identify oneself with the pains and sorrows (and joys) of others. It is only when we die to self that we can live to others. Sympathy comes to the heart when Christ reigns within. (Barclay, William. 1 Peter: Daily Study Bible.)
The next item on the blueprint concerning how we can move closer to God’s design for His churches is to desire “brotherly love.” I think we talked about another Greek word for “love,” the word “agape,” just a couple of weeks ago. “Agape” love is a love with no strings attached, it is a love which loves regardless of the response of the one being loved. The word used here, “φιλάδελφος” (philadelphos), is a family love, and we have been adopted into God’s family through Jesus our Lord and Savior. You want to read something that is really mind-boggling? Turn with me to Hebrews 2:11. While you are turning there let me remind you that the Bible teaches that Jesus was God Incarnate, God became one of us. The reason He did that was to give His sinless life, to pay a debt on the cross that all sinners owe, in order that sinners like you and me might be forgiven and made clean. It is only through Jesus’ sinless life that sinners like you and me can be made holy. The writer of Hebrews tells us,
11 Both the one who makes people holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters. (Hebrews 2:11 NIV)
That is mind-boggling isn’t it?! Think about it with me for just a minute. I know people who have a famous relative. We’ve had some of those folks visit here in the past. We all like to be seen with our relatives that have made good for themselves and their family name. But, let’s be honest. We also all have that crazy uncle, brother or sister, or parent don’t we? You know we do. We’re not so quick to point out that he or she is part of our family. I’ve got news for you. When it comes to God’s family…we are that crazy relative! Don’t think so? The Bible says that all of us have fallen short of the glory of God, all of us were sinners who were at odds with God, all of us were hard-hearted and hard-headed. All of us! And while all of these things are true, He chose you. He has chosen you and made you a part of His family! He has brought you to His table and He is not ashamed of you. And that is how we are to love one another. Jesus put it this way.
34 "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." (John 13:34-35 NIV)
What does the type of love we are to have for another look like? That answer is simple: It is the type of love Jesus has shown you.
The blueprint is right before us: Be compassionate/tender hearted towards one another. The Greek word translated “compassion” is not about conduct, but it is descriptive of what’s inside us. The root of this word refers to the gut or the bowels. We say, “I feel it in my gut.” To have compassion is to be moved in the deepest part of who we are about someone. In Matthew 9, Jesus saw the predicament of the people in the crowd and it was like a punch in the gut to Him. We read,
36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; 38 therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest." (Matthew 9:36-38 ESV)
And you and I are the answer to Jesus’ prayer. We are to be moved in the same way as the One who felt it in His gut when He saw the harassed and helpless crowd before Him.
Last of all, we are to embody the humility of our Savior in our relationships with our brothers and sisters in Christ. Humility was a word of shame to the Romans. There was no place in Roman life for humility. The goal was greatness, not humility. Jesus is King of an upside Kingdom and He said that if anyone wants to be great, he or she must be the servant of all. A little later in Peter’s letter he will tell the followers of Jesus,
5 …All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, "God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble." (1 Peter 5:5 NIV)
I was talking to one of my friends at the YMCA this past week and he told me about the sermon his pastor taught on “pride” last Sunday. He shared some of what the pastor taught and it sounded like a great sermon. Then he said, “I really need to work on being more humble.” I said, “You know the odd thing about humility?” He said, “What’s that?” I said, “When you think you’ve finally got it, you’ve finally perfected being humble, you haven’t.” In his book, Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis writes,
Do not imagine that if you meet a really humble man he will be what most people call ‘humble’ nowadays: he will not be a sort of greasy, smarmy person, who is always telling you that, of course, he is nobody. Probably all you will think about him is that he seemed a cheerful, intelligent chap who took a real interest in what you said to him. If you do dislike him it will be because you feel a little envious of anyone who seems to enjoy life so easily. He will not be thinking about humility: he will not be thinking about himself at all. (Lewis, C.S. Mere Christianity. pg 128)
It’s time for us to go, but before we do I want us to really allow the Lord to search our hearts this morning. Ask yourself, “Do I desire for BCC to truly be a Lighthouse of Hope to this neighborhood and the city of Oklahoma City?” If the answer to that question is “Yes!” then the next question is, “How can we, collectively, stir up our desire to become more like Jesus in our unity of mind, our sympathy and genuine love towards one another, expressing a deeper compassion, and honoring one another with genuine humility?” Is all of this simply some naive dream, some pollyanna wish? Not at all.
Deep in the hearts of all people, Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Jew, and Buddhist, and even hardened atheists there is a longing for peace, for community, a sense of belonging, for genuine love. I was talking to a young Afghan girl on Wednesday night that I met for the first time. Her mom was in ESL class so she had time to talk. She talked about what has happened in her home country, but her eyes lit up when she talked about her new country. She said, “My mom cries when she talks about the freedom we have here in America.” There are many beautiful things about our city and our country, but we also have our problems. You and I, the followers of Jesus, are called to be a city within the city and if we commit our lives to Jesus, to loving, following, and serving Jesus, then we will see His light shine bright all across our neighborhood and this city!
Mike Hays
Britton Christian Church
September 8, 2024
