“Seeing Beyond Troubles” – “Serve in Humility” – 1 Peter 5:1-7

If we could talk with Peter, we would want to ask him all kinds of questions. If we asked him to name his lowest and highest moments in his life on earth, he would probably point to two events that happened close together.

For the apostle, his darkest moment must have taken place the night he denied Jesus. Peter had been one of Jesus’ strongest supporters, confidently asserting that he would never abandon Jesus. And yet, when the time came for him to stand true, Peter denied Jesus three times on the night when Jesus was betrayed. He was so torn by the realization of what he had done that he ran from the courtyard in tears and shame.

Perhaps the greatest moment would come only weeks later, as he walked along the shores of Lake Galilee with the risen Christ. It was there that Jesus restored Peter to the apostleship. It was in that moment that Peter knew Jesus not only forgave him but that Jesus also expressed his faith in Peter. Three times, the risen Lord told Peter to feed and care for His sheep. Peter knew the flock Jesus spoke of were not literal sheep but the church that would grow out of Jesus’ resurrection and the events of Pentecost.

Our darkest and greatest moments stay with us for our entire lives. They shape us and affect the way we live our lives and relate to the world. As Peter nears the end of his first letter, the apostle harkens back to that day beside the shore, when Jesus said, “Feed My sheep.”

Background

When the apostle was writing this letter, he had already been through a lot as a result of his faith in Christ. He had been privileged to know Jesus before the crucifixion and resurrection, and he knew the risen Savior, walking and talking with Him for the days between the resurrection and the ascension. Peter had been there when the Holy Spirit came to them in that upper room on Pentecost, and he had witnessed the Spirit coming to Samaritans and Gentiles. He had witnessed and preached to thousands, seeing the Spirit bring so many to saving faith.

At the time of this writing, the apostle was ministering in the very heart of the Roman Empire, pastoring the church of Rome. He was living at the time of Nero, the man who would wage war against the church across the empire. Peter would die as a result of the emperor’s orders.

Peter knew what it was to serve the Lord, and that serving often entailed suffering for Him. He also knew that God is faithful, and that God would provide and does provide for us even in times of trouble. Particularly in times of trouble.

As Peter neared the end of his letter, he wanted to remind his readers of a few last things. Today’s text is written first with the leaders in mind, then to those who followed the leadership. He repeated the earlier themes of submission and humble service. He wanted to let them know the following truth:

Central Truth: Serving others in Christ is a privilege.

Serving:

1. As an elder (1-4)

To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder, a witness of Christ’s sufferings and one who also will share in the glory to be revealed: Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, serving as overseers—not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be, not greedy for money, but eager to serve; not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away.

As I am writing this, we have news of the death of Queen Elizabeth. She stood for 70 years as the presence of Great Britain in our world. The news people are saying that there is a plan in place for King Charles to ascend to the throne and begin to rule as his mother’s successor.

Here in our country, there is a tradition that an outgoing president leaves a letter for the incoming president. While little is known of what is said in the letter, we would like to think that the words of the parting president are words of encouragement and advice for the one who succeeds him. We would hope that each president wants his successor to succeed in leading our country forward.

We get the sense that Peter, an elder statesman of the church, was writing these verses to give advice that has been learned over the years from experience. We get that sense from the words, “as a fellow elder,” and it was further expressed with “a witness of Christ’s suffering and one who also will share in the glory to be revealed.” Peter has placed himself on their level, telling them that he knew what they were going through and that he could tell them of his experiences.

His advice is that a leader in the church is to reflect the values Jesus placed in a leader. The one who would lead must be servant of all (cf. Matthew 20:24-28). Toward that end, the leader must be the shepherd of the flock. Jesus spoke of the characteristics of such a shepherd in John 10, where the role of the shepherd is to protect the flock and to lead the flock to safe grounds where the flock can feed and drink in security.

Peter wrote that the shepherds are to do so with a willing heart. When I was considering whether or not to surrender to God’s calling to the ministry, I was told that I needed to consider if there was anything else I thought I could do. The advice was that if anything else appealed to me as much, I should do that. Such advice seems to contradict Peter, but both advices are useful. When a person seeks a career, it should be seen as a calling, and the calling leads us away from other things. But the calling is also an expression of one’s willingness to do what it takes to be successful in that calling.

For Peter, the success in the calling is not found in monetary gain or commanding people, but in service and humility and as an example of what it means to live according to God’s will.

Peter then wrote that the reward for such a person is not in a glorious retirement, but finding Christ’s favor and hearing the words, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

We rejoice in the privilege of serving Christ by serving others.

2. One another (5)

Young men, in the same way be submissive to those who are older. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”

There’s an old joke about a man who after every sermon would tell the preacher, “I hope they were listening.” There’s more to the joke, but the idea is present. Sometimes, we’ll be hearing a sermon or a message and begin to think of the person who really needs to hear this. We become so intent on the message for “them” that we fail to recognize that the message is for us, too.

I can imagine Peter’s letter being read to the congregation and, as the reader came to the part about the elders, a group in the congregation was thinking, “I hope they’re listening.” Perhaps Peter had the same idea, because he then addresses the rest of the listeners, beginning with the young men.

It’s not uncommon for younger people to dismiss the advice of their elders. More than once, we’ve all probably heard some young person tell us that we don’t know what it’s like living in their world today. The idea is that our experiences may be beneficial to us, but not to the younger generation.

Peter understood that the elders’ experiences and knowledge are beneficial to each generation, and so he wrote that the young men should listen to their elders, to be submissive. Submission is not patronization, but the willingness to take the elder’s advice to heart, to listen and see how it fits into the lives of the younger generation.

Not content to tell only the men of the church how they should live, Peter then extended his instruction in this verse to all the listeners. The life of a disciple of Christ must be one of humility. The Christian is humbled by the knowledge that their position in Christ is made possible only by the divine intervention of God Himself through Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit. No one can stand before God and assert that they do not need salvation through Christ. No one can stand before God and maintain an equal standing with Him. When we consider all that God has done through us and in us, we should be grateful and humble. Pride has no place in the life of the believer. We know that, but for the grace of God, we would be outcasts and hopeless.

To remind us of this, the apostle quoted from Proverbs 3:34: “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” In humility we come to God, and in humility we learn to serve others in Christ. In humility we allow Christ to serve others through us.

3. Humbly (6-7)

Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time. Cast all our anxiety on Him because He cares for you.

So important is the role of humility in Christ, Peter repeated the idea of humility and how we attain to the proper attitude of humility.

The humility that Peter wrote of is not a false humility, but one that comes from our genuine relationship with God. It’s a humility that is akin to the humility of Christ, who called us to come to Him when we are weary and heavy burdened. We are encouraged to take His yoke upon us and to learn from Him, to learn from His gentleness and humble heart (cf. Matthew 11:28-30).

When we humble ourselves before God and one another, God will lift us up in His time. As Peter wrote, we will be lifted in due time. The person of humble service is one who does his or her task not to be recognized but to be effective in the work before him or her. The one who is faithful in service is not seeking recognition; if anything, such a person can think of others who they believe are more deserving of praise.

And yet, God sees our hearts and knows our motives. When we serve Christ and others with a humble heart, God will lift us up in due time. When the time is right, we will be recognized by Him.

Why does God seek to lift us up? Because He cares for us. We know that in the way that God initiated the reconciliation between Him and ourselves. He is the One who demonstrated His love for us in sending His Son to die for our sins. He is the One who bestows the grace and mercy of salvation and enables us to become His children. God is love, and in His love, He cares for us.

Since we know that God cares for us, it stands to reason that He wants what is best for us. For this reason, we no longer need to worry, precisely because God cares for us. We can come to Him with any and all of our cares and concerns—our anxieties—because we know God cares for us.

And knowing that God can care for us, sinners that we are, leads to a humble heart and a gentle spirit.

Conclusion

I was in seventh grade when one of my classmates made a comment that has stuck with me all these years. He said, “I used to be conceited, but now I’m perfect.” Such an attitude may produce a chuckle or rolled eyes, but it has no part in the life of the Christian. When we are experiencing trials and temptations, or when we are coasting through life, God calls upon us to walk with Him in faith and with a humble heart. As God inspired Micah those many years ago, “He has shown you, O man what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8).

God saves us so that we can serve Him and others by His power and direction. We do it with humility and gratitude, not worrying about the consequence, because we know He cares for us.