Author: kguy

When Jesus sought his first disciples, the invitation didn’t come with a test or a trial.  There was nothing to prove.  He didn’t accept resumes or conduct interview or call references. 

To be fair, who knows if these men would have jumped through those kinds of hoops before deciding to follow this man Jesus. 

But what Jesus offered was an invitation.  It was an enticement. 

Have you looked everywhere but have yet to find it?  Did you think you found it once but it turns out you were not as fulfilled as you’d hoped?  Is it proving elusive?  Are you finding yourself wanting more?  Are you trying to force someone to be it for you – your husband?  Your kids?  Did you think you’d find it in the perfect job?  The perfect home?  The perfect weight?

What are you looking for? 

Could it possibly be him? 

Jesus didn’t really promise anything.  He didn’t sell himself to the disciples either.  He just invites them to come along and find out who he is and what he’s about.  He’s confident he will win them over.  He knows he is exactly what they need. 

In him, they would find what they were looking for.  Won’t we too?  What will we see when we truly see him?

And truly we do.  We see the Word become flesh, our sins paid for on a tree, the resurrection of life, the Spirit come down on mankind, the face of our God.  We see abundance and grace and compassion and mercy.  We see love overwhelming.  We see light overcome the darkness.  We see the power in meekness and the absolute authority of our God.  We see victory, sure and final.

We are ushered into the eternal, to a kingdom we can’t see but that is our home and our family.  We are marked and sealed with an invisible but powerful Spirit that is ours forever.  We become living stones in a growing church.  We are washed clean.

We do see greater things, not always big but always greater – the shifting of our hearts, the choice for humility, the forgiveness of others.

All of it wrapped up in the “Come and you’ll see” invitation of Jesus. 

Jesus, keep my eyes open and my mind alert.  I want to see.  I want to be looking, searching for you always, finding you in the great and in the small, but always finding you.  What am I looking for?  I’m looking for you, Jesus.

And in seeing you, I find all my heart has longed for, everything I’ve ever needed, and all my eternity.  I find purpose and passion and meaning.  I find worth and my true identity.  I find the love of my life, a life that becomes eternal through you.  I find home. 

And finally, I’m not looking for anything else.  I’m just looking to keep my eyes on you.

1 Peter 5:10-14

Time works in funny ways.  When my first child was born, the days (and nights) were so long.  With nothing else to do, no other focus, nothing to distract, the hours drug by until finally another 24 went in the books.

As my kids grew, there were still long days, for sure, but the weeks ticked by faster.  Still time moved slow enough that it felt like we would be in the toddler-preschool phase forever, eternally, without any end at all.  The day when my children would both be in elementary school was so far away it was laughable. 

But, of course, the time came.  My youngest went off to kindergarten last fall while my older is in 1^st grade.  And just like that, my season changed, my life changed.  Time had marched on after all.

I shouldn’t have been surprised.  I’ve learned this lesson before.  Agonizing for so many years about my apparently unending unmarriageable status, waiting impatiently for the right man to come along, I was convinced my time just wasn’t coming.  But sure enough it did, bringing the right (and handsome!) man along with it.

The years of waiting felt so long.  But looking back, I realize how they flew by.

Time likes to play these kinds of tricks on us, and we fall for her schemes.

But all of this, this whole life you have and I have, it’s truly only a little while.  In the grand scheme of a God outside time, who created our days and weeks and years, who keeps all moving right along, our lives here are but a little while.

And then we will be called home by the God of all grace, called to his eternal glory in Christ, where we will abide forevermore.  There he will restore us, every part of us finally made whole, unbroken and restored to the original and very good plan of God.  He will confirm us, recognize us as his own, call us by his name.  The seal of the Holy Spirit will be fulfilled as we fully enter our rightful place within the family of God.  Forevermore.

He will strengthen us, fully and completely, as he makes us like his Son Jesus Christ.  We will no longer know weakness against sin, weakness against temptation, weakness of body, mind or emotion.  We will be complete in him, perfect like him.  And he will establish us, our place with him forevermore.

Whatever we have lost, whatever has been broken, wherever we have hurt, whatever the cost – he will make it all right.  Not just for a little while.  Forevermore.

It’s a picture so beautiful, so awe-inspiring, that my only response can be

Thank you Jesus.

Thank you Lord.

You deserve all the glory,

Forever and ever.

My God of abundant, all-consuming grace.

I am yours and you are mine,

forevermore.

This is his promise to those whom he loves and those who love him.  This is the true grace of God. 

Stand firm in it.

Stand firm in his grace, in his love.  Remember.  Abide here.  Hold onto it with everything you’ve got.

This is all but a little while.

The promise is coming.  It’s already yours.

Just a little while longer.

Stand firm.

Forevermore.

Come, Lord Jesus.  Come.  Amen.

1 Peter 5:6-9

You and I, we’ve seen great leaders.  These are the ones who inspire rather than boss, who help those around them become better, dream bigger, do greater things.  They light fires in people.  And we’ve also seen terrible leaders.  These are the ones who get drunk on their power and position.  They push people into doing things, they ridicule and bully, or they make it all about themselves.  We lose respect for them quickly and our inner rebellion kicks in.

Then there are the kind of leaders who aren’t really leaders at all.  These are the leaders who get run over, pushed around, whose words go unheeded.  They may have a beautiful lesson, great ideas, or a wonderful plan, but these never get implemented because their leadership style is ineffective.

Being a godly leader doesn’t mean we become a door mat.  Sometimes I believe we confuse being a humble leader with being indulgent and making concessions.  It’s as if we assume that exercising humility as a leader will actually lessen our leadership and disqualify our message.

We are not weak because we pursue godly leadership. 

And it is good that we are not.  We must be on our guard, watching out, because we have an enemy who would seek to devour us and stifle our influence.  We learn to practice leadership that is both strong and humble, both vigilant and compassionate, both truthful and loving. 

So we must stay sober-minded, focused and purposeful.  We fight to resist the enemy’s deceptions and his efforts to quiet us.  We stand firm in our faith by the strength and power of the Holy Spirit at work in us. 

And when we pursue this kind of leadership, we act in accordance with the Chief Shepherd.  Our leadership style emulates our Lord Jesus, who is the perfect leader.  Walking closely with him, we pursue his example.  We seek his gentleness, commitment, care and concern, grace, service, sacrifice and love and then we give them to those we lead.  And we do this with strength, clarity of purpose, passion, unwavering truth, and dignity, just as he does. 

This Christlike leadership is the kind he notices and appreciates, even rewards with the unfading crown of glory.  As leaders in our homes, in ministry, in the workplace, we are called to a high standard with weighty responsibility. 

I want to lead people the way Jesus leads people.  Because truthfully and maybe selfishly, I want to be more like him.  I also want my leadership to constantly be pointing to him.  I want him to be my north star in all things – my life, my leadership, my words, my actions, my attitudes.  I want all of it to be pointing to him, centered on him, glorifying him. 

I’m certainly not perfect in this.  But what I want to do is to grow in this direction.  And I believe that the God who exalts the humble, who gives us his own Spirit to guide us, who gives grace immeasurable – I believe that God will help me to grow in his ways.  I believe his desire is for me and not against me. 

And he will do the same for you, beloved.  He is for you and not against you.  Your leadership matters to him.  Your leadership is what brings the message of Christ to the hungry, hurting and broken world around us.  Your leadership spreads his message and his glory far and wide.

Let’s lead like he does.  Let’s choose humility and find our strength in him. 

I’m cheering for you – you godly leader in-the-making.

Lord, we ask you to use us.  Wherever you have placed us to lead, use us up here.  We want to be leaders who champion you, who make your name great.  Mold us to become like Christ’s humble and compassionate leadership, strong because you are strong.  Steel our backs for the fight against our enemy.  Drive our feet deep into faith, that we may stand firm for you, Lord.  Make us women of valor who usher people straight to you, the God of all grace.  Amen.

1 Peter 5:1-6

As I was growing up, I often heard from teachers, mentors and my parents the importance of growing as a leader.  I focused on serving as a leader in school clubs, as a camp counselor, over my student body.  Looking back, I realize that although I held these leadership positions, my view of leadership was far from sophisticated.  In leading, I liked being the boss and feeling important and I liked the idea of how these positions would cast a favorable view of my character on my college admission applications. 

After college, I worked for a while as a classroom teacher.  Certainly I felt the importance of leadership in front of all of those little faces, but after leaving the classroom to stay home with my own children, the idea of myself as a leader faded away. 

When Peter addresses the elders of the church in 1 Peter 5, it’s easy to dismiss his instructions as only for church leaders.  But in truth, his admonitions apply just as much to me as to office holders in the church. 

Because the truth is that I am a leader.  Most likely, you are too.  Most of my leadership happens at home these days, but the skills I need there as a mom and a wife are no less important because my audience is small.  In fact, since I’m the only mom my children have, I’d argue that my leadership of them is vitally significant. 

So as we lead, we shepherd our flock (5:2), whoever it is that God has given us to lead.  We tend them, guide them, and manage them.  We walk with them and show them the way. 

We shepherd with oversight (5:2) to ensure their safety, physical but also spiritual, as we lead them away from and teach them the danger of sin.  Guarding their well-being, we show them what is beneficial and how to determine priorities.  Our job is to help them grow in maturity and in their faith. 

We do this willingly (5:2), not begrudgingly.  We do this regularly, not only when we sense an urgent need.  Leading gladly, as God would have us do, comes from a place of love.  And because it is out of love, our leadership comes from an eagerness to serve, even when it requires sacrifice, even when there is no gain nor return (5:2). 

In our leadership, we choose not to become domineering (5:3) or controlling.  The Holy Spirit is the one who convicts and leads others to repentance, not us.  We speak truth in love and discipline our own children, but we do not decide the course of lives that aren’t our own.  Instead we stand as an example with our own lives, faith, decisions, attitudes, and righteousness.  We work to get our lives right, rather than manipulating or forcing others to change theirs.

Striving toward humility (5:6), we do not seek to boss those we lead.  Knowing our humble place before the Lord, we give the very grace we have been given.  We consider the benefit of others before our own, making much of others and of God rather than of ourselves.  Even with our children, we apologize when we blow it and seek forgiveness.  We continually, perpetually seek to do what is good and to reject what is evil. 

In a world where humility is not necessarily lauded, we remember that God opposes the proud but exalts the humble.  This may not earn us status, power or fame as leaders, but at the proper time, God will lift us up.  We don’t let our worries of what people will think of us get in the way of leading like this.  Instead, we cast our cares on God.  He will take them all because he cares so deeply for us. 

Our leadership matters.  God has given it to us for our good and for his glory.  In striving to lead the way he desires, we will see the kind of impact that makes much of him and that points others to who he is.  And we will know that we are smack in the middle of God’s will for our lives when we follow his plan for leadership.

I don’t know about you, but that’s the kind of leader, wife, mom, human I want to be.  Because when I am like this, I am representing my Jesus well.  This is who he is.  And I want to show him to the world.  I want to become just like him.  I want his name to go forward and be lifted high. 

God, I want to be the kind of leader you designed me to be.  I want my leadership to be a sign pointing everyone around me back to you and who you are.  I want to lead people straight to you.  Lord, help me use my leadership and my influence to make much of you. 

1 Peter 4:12-19

Beloved, you are God’s beloved.  Always.  At all times and without fail.  No matter what you did today or yesterday or what you will do tomorrow.  He calls you beloved, so you are loved.

But being beloved by God doesn’t mean we escape the tough things of life.  We live under the weight of sin and brokenness in this world.  Knowing the full story of the fall of man and the problem of sin, we shouldn’t be surprised by the fiery trials of life.  This sin and brokenness brings trouble, heartache, difficulty and suffering of all kinds.  This isn’t strange.  We see it all through the Old Testament, in the gospel accounts of Jesus, and even all around us this very day. 

But we don’t need to live in fear of the suffering. 

When we suffer, we share in Christ, the Suffering Servant who endured impossible, unbearable suffering that he didn’t deserve on our behalf.  When we too suffer, albeit differently than Christ did, we experience intimacy with Christ that we don’t experience outside of suffering.  We draw nearer to him in our desperation and need.  He draws near to us in compassion, understanding, comfort, peace and love.  So many of us feel closest to Christ when times are tough.  That intimacy is a blessing we uniquely experience in the fiery trials.

And just as God the Father equipped Jesus to endure, God also equips us to suffer well.  He has given us his Spirit, our Comforter, Counselor and Guide.  The Spirit who walks with us through life walks us through suffering as well. 

So we don’t suffer like others do.  We never suffer alone.  We suffer with hope.  We know strength, wisdom, comfort and peace are always available to us in Christ.  We suffer with our eyes above and beyond our circumstances, the apparent weight of our problems, and our visible present. 

We suffer as Christians, as Christ-followers.  With eyes on him, we focus on the eternal rather than the present.  We know our victory is secure in him.  With faith, we walk through trials knowing he is always for us, never against us.  We endure while believing there is good and blessing to be found even in the midst of it. 

God is God and he is restoring all things, working all things for good, and aligning all to his good and perfect plan.  Because God is everything good and nothing bad.  And no matter what it looks like out here, we can trust him. 

So we battle for that, in the midst of daily life or our troubling world or even heavy suffering.  We battle to trust him.  We practice it in the good times, the obvious and easy moments.  And in the really tough times, we fight for it.  We grab hold and wrestle it down, hanging on for dear life.  Because we know in our bones that he is trustworthy.  No matter what.  All the time.  Forever and ever.

Amen.

Father, may we not spend our lives in fear of suffering.  May we live in abundant, joyous confidence that you are for us and not against us, that you are working for our good, that you love us beyond anything we could fathom.  And when the suffering comes, may we find you there.  For all of your beloveds today who are enduring suffering and trials of many kinds, may they draw near to you, draw strength from you, find comfort in you, know hope because of you.  In all of our suffering, may we find an intimacy we never knew possible.  No matter what, God, we declare you are good.  There is no shadow in you, no doubt of your character.  In you there is nothing bad, only good.  You are so, so good.  Let us live like it, Father.  Amen.

1 Peter 4:1-11

It is often the times we suffer most that we draw nearest to God.

Something about the experience of suffering moves us away from living for pleasure, comfort or security.  When we suffer well, we become fully focused on God, pursuing and submitting to him rather than chasing what we think benefits us most.  Perhaps this is because our focus changes in suffering, our priorities shift.  The things that once seemed so important no longer carry such weight. 

In this way, suffering can cut through the sin in our lives (4:1).  It rearranges what is most important, what we think we need.  We learn a little more to honor God in every experience and in everything we do.  As we learn and grow, our faith expands and we take another step toward sanctification. 

We move forward knowing human passions aren’t the goal (4:2).  We choose not to engage in the chase for pleasure that the world is racing – sensuality, drunkenness, sex, drinking parties, and lawless idolatry (4:3).  We move in another direction as we choose to pursue God.

Of course we don’t have to suffer to learn this, but suffering often hastens the lesson.

As one who pursued many of the worldly pleasures, I can attest that culture sells us that this will bring us joy, contentment, freedom, gratification, fulfillment, and acceptance.  But what a wicked lie.  The brokenness in us cannot be healed, the holes in us will not fill with such base and fleeting pursuits.  If anything, these only pepper us with more holes, shattering us all over again. 

No, we were made in God’s image for the eternal.  We were made for so much more.  And our hearts and our souls will never find rest until we find it in him.

He is the God who is restoring all things.  He is the one who fills us and heals us.  He knits us back together, sometimes with the pain of his needlework coming through, only to breathe life into us once again, making us wholly new, wholly his.

No night of drinking or sex, nor any idol can do that. 

This is the way.  We who were dead in our sins, decaying though alive, we have received this immeasurable, incomprehensible, completely undeserved grace from the one who loves us so thoroughly and unconditionally.  We receive this grace that not only squelches the allure of sin, but that whets our desire for righteousness.  This grace seeps into every crack and fissure, every break and gaping hole.  It fills us and, in so doing, transforms us.  It gives us a hope and a future, births new life abundant and eternal.  We are healed, changed, and marked by this magnificent grace.

And then we go bearing this grace into the world, like Oprah giving away cars.  Enthusiastically, no joyously, gifting this grace to others because we have so ridiculously much of it.  What could we do but give it freely away?  There is no hoarding grace, after all.

So we give it in love, in forgiveness, in hospitality, and in serving others (4:7).  We give it in our words, actions, and attitudes.  We give it in everything, in every single little thing.

And all of it is a sweet aroma of God’s glory to a wearily desperate world, to people so dry and parched they are desperate for a trickle, a mere taste of this fountain of joy we have.  Shower them, drench them with grace.

A funny secret emerges when we do.

God will never stop filling you with his grace.  So you will never run out of more to give away.  You’ll never run out of opportunities to glorify him in your lavish grace-giving (4:11).

Because his is the glory forever and ever.  Amen. Lord, you are the one our souls long for.  Nothing of this world nor in this world can heal us like you.  It’s your joy to fill us to overflowing with your grace, and there we know delight, like a child splashing in the rain.  Teach us to shower your grace on others, Lord, not to hoard it like beggars but to lavish it on others while trusting you for endless refills.  May we bear your grace boldly, unapologetically, and generously so you, Lord, get all the glory.  Amen.  

1 Peter 3:8-22

The temptation to worship myself is always there, creeping in through pride and selfishness and control.  Self-preservation comes to roost in insisting on having my way, in apathy, selfishness, hardness of heart, and arrogance.  I quickly return zinger for zinger; I angrily plot revenge, even if only in my head, as I rehearse arguments and my pithy responses.  I am capable of such terrible stuff.

But the thing about worshipping myself is that I’m a lousy god.  I’m not even any kind of god.  The real God, the only true God demands that I give up this idea of my own deity and accept both my need for him and his absolute claim as Yahweh. 

And in doing so, I accept and learn to practice the greatest commandment.  Love God and love others (Mt. 22:36-40).  I seek to be a blessing to others (3:9) because God loves and values people so much that he died for them.  And if I love him, I love what he loves.  So instead of devoting myself to myself, I choose to pursue unity, sympathy, brotherly love, tenderness, and humility (3:8). 

When I choose to be a blessing by embracing the values and commands of God, I see God’s blessing on me.  I shouldn’t be surprised at this.  As much as God loves and values people, when I do the same, he gets pumped.  I act the same way when someone loves and values my kids.  Only his reaction is times infinity, because you know – God. 

So to bless others, Peter uses Psalm 34 to tell me to keep my tongue from evil and my lips from deceit (3:10), to turn away from evil and do good (3:11), and to seek peace and pursue it (3:11).  When I pursue such righteousness in my actions and words, the blessing of God’s presence, his concern, his listening ear, and his comfort become mine.  He is like the attentive and caring mother who is for her children.  But when I am against his ways, God sets his face against me (3:12). 

I desire the good blessing the Lord gives, and that’s not wrong.  The desire for goodness in us as image-bearers reflects God’s innate goodness.  We are made to be like him, and as such we too desire goodness.  Of course, it gets us in trouble when we expect good only in the sense of ease and comfort. 

As I honor Christ the Lord as holy (3:15) by my choices and actions, I should expect that suffering may come (3:17).  Jesus warns his disciples before his death that they would be hated for his name’s sake (Mark 13:13), and we shouldn’t be surprised at the same.  Yet even in suffering, we find God’s blessing (3:14), though perhaps not in this life.  But in choosing righteousness despite the consequences, we are promised God’s blessing.  And God always keeps his promises. 

What am I willing to suffer for?  Will I suffer to maintain my own comfort and ease and security?  Will I suffer for what lasts or what doesn’t?  Will I suffer for what is good or for what is evil (3:17)?  Would I suffer for God?  Will I choose ease or righteousness, comfort or holiness?  What am I willing to endure?  Is he worth the risk?

The disciples certainly thought he was.  In Mark 13, Jesus vividly describes the arrests, beatings, and punishment the disciples would endure as they proclaimed Jesus’ righteousness throughout the age.  In Luke 22:31, Jesus explains to Peter that Satan desires to sift him like wheat.  Suffering was coming for these disciples as they chose to follow God with their lives.  And yet they endured and declared his message in the face of all the suffering he promised would come.  They didn’t back down.  Will I?

As C.S. Lewis reminds us, God isn’t safe but he is good.  How good?  Good enough that he too suffered.  In his suffering he conquered sin, made us righteous, and brought us to himself (3:18).  He is so good that he came for us, rescuing us and making us his own. 

He’s not safe.  Following him is not safe.  Worshipping him and not myself or comfort or ease is radical.  There is risk involved in this life of faith.  But he is good.  He’s worth the risk.  And one day there will be no more tears and no more suffering (Revelation 21:4), but only joy in the presence of our Lord.

Lord let us not live this life afraid – afraid of suffering, afraid of not having control, afraid of not being important.  May we live for you and not for ourselves.  Help us to say yes to you, yes to your righteousness, in whatever circumstance and facing whatever earthly consequence.  God, you are so good, so worthy.  May we lift you higher in every choice we make.  Amen.

1 Peter 3:7

In the garden of Eden, God set Adam apart as the authority in his relationship with Eve.  Eve was his helper while Adam carried the weight of responsibility for Eve.  Eve initiated the original sin, eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and Adam ate too.  When God came calling for them, he called for Adam and not Eve, even though in his omniscience, God knew who the initiator was.  He called for Adam because Adam held the authority and the responsibility within their relationship (Genesis 2-3).

Scripture calls wives to submit to their husbands, but he does not call husbands to submit to their wives.  As the authority in the relationship, husbands carry different responsibilities and weights within the marriage.  These are no less important, no less difficult, no less costly than a wife’s submission. 

Like wives (3:7), husbands are called to obey the commands of the Lord in regards to their role within marriage.  Husbands don’t get to create their own rules for marriage, only the Lord does that.  And although their wives are to submit to them, God does not give permission for husbands to abuse that authority. 

Instead, husbands are to be considerate (3:7 NIV), to live with their wives in an understanding way (3:7 ESV), to give honor to their wives (3:7 NLT).  They are to show kindness in their awareness and understanding of their wife’s feelings and circumstances.  They are careful in their thoughts toward her, keeping her in mind and attentive toward her.  In this way, husbands are students of their wife, deliberately learning her.

This student husband then will develop a discernment of his wife, a special intelligence that understands her feelings, thoughts, triggers, insecurities, strengths, and so on.  In his knowledge, he will seek to cooperate with her in a generous, kind, compassionate, forgiving, and empathetic manner. 

As he learns her, he will grow to honor her (3:7) with respect, reverence, and admiration.  He will grow in trusting her and will call her praiseworthy.  In fact, he will celebrate his wife and may even develop a sense of awe of who she is and how she reflects and glorifies Christ.  He will find her excellent and declare her dignity.

When a husband treats his wife in this way, he will delight in her (3:7 MSG).  He will find pleasure, enjoyment, joy and rapture in his wife.  He will know satisfaction and contentment in his marriage. 

Because he is the authority in the marriage relationship, it is the husband’s job to create a safe, nurturing, empowering, dignified place for his wife.  It is his job to be her defender and protector, to see her inherent value and worth, and to uphold her dignity in a world that may not always see her as he sees her.  Along with the role of authority comes the responsibility for protecting the weaker vessel (3:7) within that relationship, the subordinate.  The one with the strong arm always uses it to help and defend, to lift up and bear forth, but never to harm. 

But when he fails to do so, the Lord refuses to honor his prayers.  As husband, he is responsible before the Lord God Almighty, just as Adam was in the garden.  When he fails in his obligations as husband, his prayers are hindered (3:7 ESV) and ineffective (3:7 AMP).  It is God’s choice to not heed his prayers.  Scripture gives no specific consequence for women who do not submit to their husbands.  But husbands have been given the authority, so God demands more from them.  To whom much is given, much will be required (Luke 12:48).  God holds husbands accountable. 

These instructions, held within a mere verse in 1 Peter 3:7, paint a picture not only of how husbands should value their wives, but also how God values women.  He declares us precious, a treasure, valuable, worthy.  And he expects our husbands to see us the same way.

This command from God does not depend on the husband’s emotions, how he feels toward his wife.  There will be days when honoring his wife comes easy, when his pleasure in her is pure and good.  And there will be days when honoring his wife is a choice he makes in spite of whatever disagreement, misunderstanding, or injury has taken place within their relationship.  This is the work of marriage.  This is the weight of responsibility for husbands.   

Lord, be near our husbands with the wisdom, strength, perseverance, and humility it takes to fulfill the role you have set before them.  Lead and guide them as they pour themselves out for us and for you.  Lord, help us as wives give the patience and grace they need as they grow.  Set our husbands’ hearts on obedience to you, for you are worthy Lord.  Amen.

1 Peter 3:1-6

I admit, the idea of submission sparks rebellion inside me.  That I should have to obey anyone else, that they would have authority over me, it makes me start to get defensive, frustrated, even angry.  It makes me want to scream my independence.

And yet I know that I was bought at a great price, costing my loving Father his own Son.  I am free and yet indebted to him, my master (2:16).  I’m not actually independent at all, but wholly dependent on him. 

As such, I obey him.  He is truly my lord, my master.  He issues commands which I am to follow.  I know that these commands are for my good and for his glory, so I typically do my best to submit to them.  I know he is infinitely good, unconditionally loving, always kind, that he guards, protects, comforts and guides me.  Knowing his character, I know that obedience to him benefits me. 

But when Scripture commands me to submit to my husband (3:1), I get ruffled.  But there is no mistake here.  This is what God requires of me.

We see evidence of this elsewhere, since the ideas of authority and submission appear throughout the Bible.  The Trinity exists within the bounds of authority and submission – God the Father holding ultimate authority.  Jesus, the Son, submits to the Father and the Holy Spirit submits to both the Son and the Father.  Thus this design existed before humankind, our world, even our universe was created.

God recreates this model in Adam and Eve.  He gives Adam authority in the relationship and sets Eve under him.  This relationship doesn’t reflect that every woman is subject to every man, but represents the marriage relationship, that a wife is under the authority of her own husband, something Peter affirms in this letter and Paul in his letter to the Ephesians.  Significantly, this authority/submission structure occurred before the fall, meaning this is God’s created intention for man and woman inside marriage, unmarred by sin and deemed very good by our Father.  It is not the result or the fallout of sin, but is the intended order established by God.

Nonetheless, this order is affected by sin.  Once Adam and Eve sin against God, their relationship (and every husband-wife relationship thereafter) becomes twisted and marred by conflict.  Adam’s desire would become to force his dominion on his wife, to abuse his authority to exercise his power over her.  And Eve’s desire would become to control her husband by nagging, beauty (3:3), sex, manipulation, and any other way in which she might gain the upper hand.  Sin damaged the marriage relationship, setting husband and wife against each other, giving them conflicting goals, upsetting peace and unity.

This isn’t how it is supposed to be.  Our marriage relationships should represent the love, peace and unity of the Trinity.  We never see Jesus try to control or manipulate the Father.  When he  prays to ask that the cup pass from him, even then he chooses submission.  But our culture, our world tells us that this submission is wrong – unfair, unequal, abusive and weak. 

The submission of a wife to her husband is precious (3:4), meaning costly.  It does cost that wife her pride, her desire to sin in exercising control, her choice to obey the Lord, and her trust that God’s way is always best.  What it doesn’t cost her is her dignity, her value and worth, her equality, her personality, her self, or her strength.  Exercising submission proves to be a show of strength, not weakness, as she proves her faith in the ways and character of God.  A weak woman doesn’t submit, a strong one does and proves her gentle, quiet spirit (3:4).

Her gentleness chooses not to engage in conflict but to exercise meekness, her power under control, just as Jesus did.  Her quietness doesn’t mean she limits her volume, but rather that she is an agent of peace and not war within her marriage.  A woman can have a gentle, quiet spirt and still be passionate, extroverted, talkative, enthusiastic, and even deafening.  God created our personalities and endowed us with what he desired for us to use to serve and glorify him.  He wouldn’t undo his good work or suddenly decide it wasn’t right or best.  He wants us to remain true to ourselves but choose to practice meekness and peace in our marriages, whatever our personalities.

Be loud, sister, in praising your husband and declaring the goodness of the Lord.  Be the biggest personality in the room, a banner of joy in the Lord.  Get passionate and bold championing God’s truth and each person’s value as an image bearer of God.  Talk away, tell everyone who will listen what the Lord has done for you.  And if you are naturally quiet, in your quietness glorify God.  You have all the freedom to celebrate the personality God has given you at the natural volume limit he has set for you. 

Lord, may we be women who glorify you in our marriages.  Even as we embrace the personalities you have given us, may we seek to obtain gentleness with our husbands and quiet peace in our households.  And as we pursue you, Lord, be near to us.  Amen.

1 Peter 2:11-25

There are times when I look around, be it at nature or people, and think to myself how wonderful it all is.  And then there are times I look around and feel uncomfortable and discontented.  I’m full of the realization that this place is broken, we humans are broken and meant for something so much higher, so much better.

This is not my home.  As breathtakingly beautiful as it can be, as overwhelmingly fulfilling as people can be, there’s something deep inside me that knows I was made for more than this.  When I come up against brokenness, I feel it profoundly, as if I know deep within that it wasn’t meant to be this way.

We as Christians are sojourners and exiles (2:11) here in this world.  Though we spend our mortal lives here, we truly are just passing through, bound for our true home with the Lord.  Our citizenship lies in heaven, though we spend our days here and enjoy this world until it is time to go home.

Since we are passing through, our standards are not based on this world.  We adhere to the ways of the Lord, not the culture.  We abstain from passions of the flesh (2:11), rejecting sin and choosing restoration over brokenness.  We are beholden to the Lord, to carry out his mission for our time here.

The Lord calls us to be a beacon of his glory in the world.  We show the world God’s character through our deeds, calling them to behold the one who is good so they too might glorify him (2:12).  Our mission is to shine our light before men through our good deeds (Matt. 5:16), so that they might come to know and worship the light of the world, so they too may come to know our future home.

In our time here and as part of our good works, God calls us to work within the boundaries of the world by subjecting ourselves to human institutions that exercise authority over our lives.  God has allowed, established and enabled human authority throughout this world, certainly in civil government but also in police, parents, church officials, bosses, boards of volunteer organizations, teachers and academic officials.  We find institutions exercising authority in all facets of life, and in each one we are called to respect and submit.  We obey these authorities because the Lord himself has called us to do so (2:13). 

I realize speaking of submitting to authority comes with heavy questions today about police brutality, institutional racism, political discord, and even college admissions scandals.  Being subject to human institutions doesn’t mean that we do not work to make those institutions better representative of God’s view and value of all people.  It does mean that we submit even when those very institutions treat us unjustly (2:18) and when we suffer for it (2:19).  God doesn’t let us off the hook when things get hard.  After all, which of God’s commands is actually easy to follow? 

And in choosing to obey God even when we endure unjust suffering, we follow in the footsteps of our Lord Jesus Christ (2:21).  As the suffering servant, Jesus did not sin, deserved no suffering, and received unjust punishment (2:22).  Yet he still did not lash out, speak ill of, or threaten (2:23).  Instead he trusted and submitted to the Father (2:23) and, in so doing, submitted the human institutions which put him to death. 

This submission is the will of the Lord, and it is designed for our benefit.  By being a good citizen, a respectful subject, in obeying the laws of the land and showing respect to governmental authorities, who will speak ill of our behavior?  By doing good, we put to silence the ignorance of foolish people who would heap disdain on us (2:15).  It’s hard to speak evil of those who are continually doing what is right.  This good helps to silence those who would criticize Christians, and in turn, our God.  And even if it doesn’t silence our critics, we still submit confidently knowing we are acting in obedience to God.

If we need any more evidence that following God’s commands always leads to blessings, even when it means submitting to human institutions that may or may not be unjust, we need look no further than Jesus.  His submission and his death at the hands of unjust men, his body hanging on that tree, led to our salvation and our justification (2:24).  By his wounds we are healed (2:24).  Through him, we are able to return to our Father, the shepherd and overseer of our souls (2:25).  What man may mean for evil, God can use for good.  Any time.  Every time. 

Nothing can stand against our Lord.  It’s safe to bend a knee to his will.  There is our blessing and our victory.

Lord, there is no power in this world to rival your power.  And yet you ask us to submit to the authorities you have allowed in this world.  Help us to do so out of respect, obedience, and love for you.  And as we survey this broken world, Lord, guide your church to be agents of restoration.  Your kingdom come, your will be done.  May earth be as it is in heaven.  Amen.