Devotional 12 September 2025
“Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler. Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name.” (1 Peter 4:12–16, ESV)
The world often asks, “If God is good, why is there so much suffering?” From their perspective, suffering looks like evidence against God’s power or goodness. But Peter tells us to see it from another angle. For the Christian, suffering is not meaningless. It is part of God’s refining work, exposing darkness and revealing light. Just as gold is tested by fire (1 Pet. 1:7), so faith is purified through trials.
Paul reminds us that “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation” (2 Cor. 5:17). The old world is passing away, but the new has already broken in. Creation itself groans with birth pains, longing for redemption (Rom. 8:22). We, who already belong to Christ, live as citizens of that coming world. The world’s opposition should not surprise us, because the old order resists the new. Jesus warned, “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you” (John 15:18).
Peter also makes a careful distinction. Not all suffering is blessed. “Let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler” (1 Pet. 4:15). If we suffer for evil, that is simply justice. But when we suffer because we follow Christ—because we live as children of God—then we share in the sufferings of our Lord (Phil. 3:10). That kind of suffering is not a cause for shame but for glory. “If anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name” (1 Pet. 4:16).
So we do not mourn when affliction comes for doing good. We rejoice, because “the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you” (1 Pet. 4:14). What the world calls shame, God calls honor. Suffering for Christ is proof that we are part of His new creation, and one day, we will share in His revealed glory. Therefore, let us be bold in doing good for the glory of God, no matter the cost.