Therefore,
He is again reminding them of what he has already said in this letter.
I exhort the elders among you,
He is earnestly cautioning the church leaders, all who have authority over others in the church.
as your fellow elder
Peter is putting himself in the same class as these pastors and teachers.
and witness of the sufferings of Christ,
Peter didn't just hear about Jesus later, he actually lived with Him for over three years, and saw Him being executed.
and a partaker also of the glory that is to be revealed,
Peter went with James and John when Jesus took them up the Mountain of Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-8; Mark 9:2-8) where they saw Jesus' glory. And he also knows that our bodies will also be glorified like His was then, when He returns.
shepherd the flock of God among you,
The pastors and teachers are to be like shepherds caring for their sheep.
exercising oversight not under compulsion, but voluntarily,
Not because they have to, but because they want to.
according to the will of God;
This is according to the order of authority established by God in Creation and practiced within the Godhead.
and not for sordid gain,
Not to fleece the sheep, for personal gain.
but with eagerness;
But with a willingness and desire to benefit the sheep.
nor yet as lording it over those allotted to your charge,
None of God's children that He has put in authority over other of His children is any more valuable to Him than every other of His children. This is just how He has chosen to put order into the church. We are all His family.
but proving to be examples to the flock.
The leaders are to be the models who are expected to demonstrate the character qualities of our Lord for the rest to copy in their own attitudes.
And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.
The Chief Shepherd is the Good Shepherd, who will reward all of His children at the Judgment Seat of Christ for all the works we have done. And if these church leaders perform their tasks in the humility and positive attitudes toward the people that they are urged to do here, then their reward will be glorious!
You younger men , likewise, be subject to your elders;
The younger members are still learning how to think and live their lives among their brothers and sisters in the congregation, and they need to remember that they are still to obey their leaders in following what they're showing as they grow in the Lord.
and all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another,
Now Peter is talking to everyone, from the grassroots to the upper echelons of power in the church, that we all are to relate to one another in humility, considering one another's needs before ourselves. This is how God is and how He designed us to get along and prosper together.
for,
God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble. (Isaiah 57:15; 66:2).God, even in His Majesty and Glory, has demonstrated His own humility in sending His Son to demonstrate His character to us, humbling Himself supremely for our benefit. So when people get a prideful attitude, it is so opposite Him that it rankles Him painfully and He pushes it away.
But when we humble ourselves under His authority, and toward one another, then we are being like Him, and He pulls us closer and wants to be good toward us.
We also, made in His image, after His likeness, like people who are like us, and want to spend time with them; but would rather not socialize with people who will argue with and attack us and our beliefs.
Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time,
So we are to submit our thoughts and attitudes and plans to God's thoughts and attitudes and plans. He sees the whole picture, we do not. So we trust Him to have our best benefit in mind for us.
casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.
We don't need to worry, because He has us in His hand. He cares what happens to us, and He won't let anything that hurts us to harm us, but to work everything into His Plan, part of which is to reward us!
Be of sober spirit, be on the alert.
Seriously, we really need to watch out! Because:
Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking whoever he can devour.
The devil is our enemy, he hates us vehemently, because he lost his place, and God has put us in his position, instead! He couldn't die, so there couldn't be any Redemption for him; and we sin, too, but God Redeems us!
We are God's "favorite child" over him, and he resents it and hates God and us, and wants to "get back" at God by destroying us!
So he prowls around all over this Earth looking for everyone who has left the door open to his deceptions; and he eats them up! He has lied to Mankind, twisting all of God's good gifts He has given us, to use them to destroy us. The devil has convinced people that darkness is Light, and death is Life. And what is evil is good for us. And is destroying God's human race.
But resist him, firm in your faith,
We are told to run away from temptation, (I Corinthians 6:18; 10:14; I Timothy 6:11), but here we are told to stand firm in resisting the devil, and he will flee from us (also James 4:7)! The devil knows that we have the authority of Jesus Christ to command him, even if we don't realize it. When we do, and we use that authority, the devil runs away from us in fear.
knowing that the same experiences of suffering are bring accomplished by your brethren who are in the World.
None of this is easy, even though it is simple. We need to be aware of others in our neighborhoods and all over the World who are suffering for the faith, who are being persecuted because they name the Name of Jesus. We are not alone in this, and we can take encouragement from their faithful stance and perseverance.
After you have suffered for a little while,
It's only a little while that we will need to suffer, it will end soon.
the God of all grace,
No one is gracious like our God is gracious!
who called you into His eternal glory in Christ,
God the Father calls us into faith in Jesus Christ to believe He died for us, then He gives us that New Life in putting His own Holy Spirit into our spirits, making them Alive.
will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.
And God is working in us to transform us into the very character that Jesus demonstrated, to grow us into the princes and princesses who will rule forever with King Jesus as He rules with His Father over all Creation.
To Him be dominion forever and ever. Amen.
King Jesus dominates, holds sovereign authority, He has the right and power to govern and control everything God makes, all Creation that is now, has ever been, and will ever be in existence. He alone is God! Amen and Amen!
Now Peter is giving his ending, his final thoughts in concluding the letter.
Through Silvanus, our faithful brother (for I so regard him),
Silvanus was Peter's secretary who took his dictation to write this letter. He may not have known him well, but what he did know impressed him that he was a good Christian.
I have written to you briefly,
He considers this just a letter, not a whole book.
exhorting and testifying that this is the true grace of God.
He is encouraging them to take to heart Peter's eye-witness testimony, as this is how gracious our God is to all of us.
Stand firm in it!
Have confidence in your faith, as standing on the foundation Rock.
She who is in Babylon, chosen together with you, sends you greetings, and so does my son, Mark.
Here are some personal notes, mentioning mutual friends.
Greet one another with a kiss of love.
The custom of that day was to give a kiss on the cheek in greeting someone you consider to be a faithful friend (Luke 22:48).
Peace be to you all who are in Christ.
His final admonition to end the letter.
Peter wrote this whole letter to share how God's Grace to us gives us security, prompts our submission to Him and to one another, strengthens us in the suffering we experience, and encourages us in our service to one another in the church. It's all God's grace.
G.R.A.C.E. = God's Riches At Christ's Expense. We cannot earn it or deserve it. God gives it to us because He determines that we are worth it to Him. He values us with the highest valuation, even higher than His Angels!
Paul wanted to make sure that we would realize the eternal value God places on us, so that we would respond to Him in the appreciation and gratitude that would teach us to live our lives in the order and Love that God put into His Creation. So that we would have purposeful and joy-filled lives here and enjoy His glory and presence forever and ever.
O my Father, You are more than we could ever imagine! Higher and greater and kinder and powerful and mighty and good and sweet and beautiful! Father, You are everything, the source of all that exists. We all live and move and have our being inside You because we are Your imagination!
O Father, teach us who You are, we want to know You. Teach us how You see us, for that is who we are.
Teach us how great is Your graciousness toward us, that You Redeem us from where we were into where we are now, and where we will be for all eternity.
And every eye will see, every knee will bow, and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord, to the glory of God the Father!
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
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