Because the early Christians were accused falsely of all sorts of outrageous behavior, Peter urged his readers in I Peter 2:11-25 to be especially careful to live such honorable lives that even their enemies would end up glorifying God. This calling was especially difficult, because they often found themselves in unfair situations that they were powerless to change, in which they suffered unjustly. Amazingly, God called them and calls us to endure unjust suffering and gave us the highest motivation for doing so: Christ already endured unjust suffering for us.
God fulfills his plan against human opposition and even through human suffering.
In two more cities, Paul and Barnabas preached the gospel boldly, which resulted in many new believers and violent opposition.
We concluded our series with I Peter 5:1-14, in which Peter described the three ways in which God cares for his people: through the...