Wednesday, November 16, 2022  

Today’s Scripture Reading
1 Peter 3:13–22

Now who will harm you if you are eager to do what is good? But even if you do suffer for doing what is right, you are blessed. Do not fear what they fear, and do not be intimidated, but in your hearts sanctify Christ as Lord. Always be ready to make your defense to anyone who demands from you an accounting for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and reverence. Keep your conscience clear, so that, when you are maligned, those who abuse you for your good conduct in Christ may be put to shame. For it is better to suffer for doing good, if suffering should be God’s will, than to suffer for doing evil.

For Christ also suffered for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, in order to bring you to God. He was put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit, in which also he went and made a proclamation to the spirits in prison, who in former times did not obey, when God waited patiently in the days of Noah, during the building of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were saved through water.

And baptism, which this prefigured, now saves you—not as a removal of dirt from the body, but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers made subject to him. (NRSV)

Reflection

Peter clearly intended to equip early Christians to respond to the threat of persecution in a Christ-honoring way. Though different today than in Peter’s time, inequity and suffering seem inevitable. How does one respond assuredly when facing challenges and setbacks, when a job or life is lost, when hopes are dashed and relationships are broken irrevocably? Life can present such a broad spectrum of challenges. Often it seems more like a question of egregiousness.

That’s where the hope in Christ comes in. It puts us in a place where inspiration meets aspiration. It is a stance to take, requiring conscious choice and ongoing action. It provides a beacon when we are searching for a guiding principle and path forward. It is a knell and calling above questioning or criticism when we fear we are insufficient and our response is no different or better than that of anyone else in the world.

Hope in Christ doesn’t eradicate challenge and suffering, but it can equip us to hang in and carry on. It promotes both individual benefit as well as God’s greater purpose.

There’s a saying that “life is 10 percent what happens and 90 percent how we respond.” Hope in Christ sustains and calls us to look beyond the throes of challenge and suffering to take part in creating better days and better ways for a better world.

Prayer

Dearest Jesus, be my hope, my strength, and my calling. May discipleship be my response, led by your example. Dwell in my heart, spill from my mouth, and inform my actions this and every day. Amen.

Written by Laura Sterkel, Member of Fourth Presbyterian Church

Reflection and prayer © Fourth Presbyterian Church

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