Humility, Grace and Glory
1 Peter 5.1-14
Peter the apostle, addressing the elders, calls himself an elder along with the other "elders." Like the elders in the local synagogues of the Jews, they are the senior overseers (or bishops - Titus 1.5,7) within each local church (Acts 11.30; Acts 20.17). This is all that Simon Peter ever claimed to be: a fellow elder. He never claimed a superior place above his brethren, but as a fellow elder he exhorts them.
Peter was in the unique position of being a witness to the sufferings of Christ, as the Lord Jesus had said the apostles must be (Acts 1.8). The Christian life began for each of us with the suffering in the past of our Lord Jesus on the cross where He bore the penalty of our sins. There is also suffering in the present in the life of the child of God today because God uses suffering in our lives to sharpen us and to make us the kind of Christians that He wants and that He can use.
Peter will also be a partaker with us of the glory about to be revealed (in us - Romans 8.18) at the second coming of Christ. Every Christian ought to have the second coming of Christ in his plan for the future. The second coming of Christ, when He will come to take us out of the world and then will return with us to reign on the earth, is not some ethereal, idealistic thought which we read about but has no meaning in our life. His second coming is not just a doctrine; it is a reality which gives us our motivation, and holds us up in time of trouble and suffering. We are going to see Him and come into His presence some day. What a time of real blessing that will be, and Peter tells us that past and present suffering is related to that.
Elders are to look after those under their care, like shepherds tend their sheep. They are never spoken of in the singular, as there was not to be only one in each local church. Shepherding suggests provision and protection, supervision and discipline, instruction and direction. There is only one supreme Shepherd and Overseer of our souls, and He is the Lord Jesus himself (1 Peter 2.25). The elders are to exercise their office of overseers voluntarily, not by constraint or for the sake of dishonest financial gain (filthy lucre), but eagerly. In other words:
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they are to minister for the right reason, in the right spirit, not because they must do it but because they freely choose to do so. There is no value in serving Him if we are doing it under constraint.
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there must be the right motive for service. It is not to be for material gain but for the sheer delight of doing it. An elder is to find satisfaction in the job itself rather than in what he gets out of it. For example, the ministry of teaching the Word of God ought to be a sheer joy to the elder who does it.
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they should exercise their ministry in the right manner, not driving but leading, not domineering but setting an example. It is a work, therefore, in which they ought to be an example to the flock. For example, a preacher should not get into the pulpit and browbeat his congregation to do something that he actually is not doing himself, or ask the congregation to give to any cause to which he doesn't also give. They do not have a right to make a demand of others that they do not comply with themselves.
The elders' ministry should be done with the awareness that they serve the Chief Shepherd to whom they are answerable and who will Himself reward their service with the eternal crown of glory.
They are not working for nothing. There are various crowns mentioned in Scripture, and their meaning is similar to that of the crowns of victory given to the competitors in the races of those days. As in their case, we are also promised crowns to mark our victories in the course of our spiritual lives.
The Lord Jesus is the chief Shepherd. As a good Shepherd He gives His life for the sheep (Psalm 22), as the great Shepherd He watches over the sheep (Psalm 23), but as the chief Shepherd He is coming again, this time as the King of Glory (Psalm 24), and He will bring with Him His flock. As members of that flock, we shall share His glory at that time (Colossians 3.4).
There are about a dozen different words in the Bible which are translated by the word glory and it appears 371 times in the old KJ version. The glory of God, for example, is revealed in His handiwork (Psalm 19.1): the size of the perceived universe is staggering yet it is probably only the front yard of God's great universe. The crown of glory, only found here in the New Testament, is the reward to be given to the faithful elders: the apostle Paul said to the believers in Thessalonica that they were his hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing when Christ came to take His church (1 Thessalonians 2.19,20). It will be everlasting honour.
The younger people are to submit to those who are older. It is human nature for the younger generation to want to discard the "establishment" and to despise their parents and older people. But young people will find out, after getting a lot of hard knocks in the school of life, that their elders were right all along. Life in the local church can be made much smoother if this order is kept.
All believers are to be bound in humility to each other. The word for clothe does not appear elsewhere but it refers to an apron tied on over other clothes, reminding us of the Lord Jesus when he put on an apron like a servant, knelt and washed his disciples' feet one by one.
The quotation from Proverbs 3:34 reminds us that God opposes the proud and only those who come in humility will be able to grow in the grace of God. It is first necessary for us to submit to God, and only then are we provided with the grace necessary to submit to each other. The submission is evidenced in our not insisting on having our way over our brothers and sisters. We are what we are by the grace of God, so we have nothing to boast about (1 Corinthians 4.7).
God is really concerned about each one of us (Luke 21.18) so, having first brought our burden of sins to the Lord Jesus and been saved by Him (Matthew 11.28), we should be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let our requests be made known to God (Philippians 4.6). We must cast our care upon Him and leave it there - not pick it up again.
We are to be wide awake, self controlled and vigilant because our enemy (opponent in a lawsuit), the devil (slanderer), roars frightening all around like a lion, trying his best to bring us to ruin (Luke 22.31,32). He brings pressure to bear on us so that we may be frightened into silence, denial and sin, to undermine our witness and to destroy our fellowship with God and fellow believers.
Cowardice never wins against the devil (2 Timothy 1.7), only courage. We are to resist him by standing firm on the foundation of our faith. By means of the Word of God and the power of the Holy Spirit, the believer is able to overcome temptation and go through the "fiery trials". It was by quoting the Word of God that the Lord Jesus was able to defeat the devil. We should be encouraged by the fact that we are not alone, but a multitude of other believers today, and going back now through nearly twenty centuries, have gone through the same trials and tribulations (tax of sufferings).
We are given hope beyond the battle: the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after we have suffered a while, will perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle us. It is a promise, not a wish. He supplies every kind of grace we need (2 Corinthians 12.9), and He has summoned us to His eternal glory, whereas our sufferings are only for a limited period of time: For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory (2 Corinthians 4.17). God knows what is happening and why, and we are assured that we shall emerge from our ordeal more mature, stronger and firmer in our faith because He is looking after us.
Peter was the author of this letter, Silas did the writing from the church in Babylon, where Mark the Gospel writer also then was.
R David Jones
1 The elders who are among you I exhort, I who am a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that will be revealed:
2 Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly;
3 nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock;
4 and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away.
5 Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for "God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble."
6 Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time,
7 casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.
8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.
9 Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.
10 But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.
11 To Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.
12 By Silvanus, our faithful brother as I consider him, I have written to you briefly, exhorting and testifying that this is the true grace of God in which you stand.
13 She who is in Babylon, elect together with you, greets you; and so does Mark my son.
14 Greet one another with a kiss of love. Peace to you all who are in Christ Jesus. Amen.