1 Peter 4:12-19, “Suffering According to God’s Will”

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One consistent thread throughout 1 Peter is the role of suffering in the Christian life. Our text this week, 1 Peter 4:12-19, zooms in on what it means to suffer as a Christian and actually rejoice in the God-glorifying results that come from it.

One of the most important things an individual Christian or church community can do is develop a good theology of suffering. We live in a broken world and are broken people, and suffering is sadly a natural consequence. Good theology doesn't minimize suffering, then, but rather grapples with it by providing a framework by which we can approach, endure and encourage one another as we inevitably experience pain and suffering in this life.