In First Peter, we discover a letter written to a suffering church. It is a suffering church, but, as believers, they have hope in a world not their own. The question Peter seeks to answer is: How are believers to navigate life in a world that often feels out of control? The answer: We trek the divine pathways. We walk according to God’s ordained will for us that ultimately leads to eternity with Him.
We discover in 1 Peter 3:18 one of the shortest and simplest yet profound statements in the Bible of the meaning of what the finished work of Christ on the cross has accomplished. To paraphrase: “Because Christ has suffered once and for all for my sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that He might present us to God, being, in fact, put to death bodily on the cross, yet alive in His spirit, by His own divine power and the power of the Holy Spirit He offers eternal life to all who believe in Him for salvation.” Jesus has dealt with the problem of humanities broken relationship with God in three ways: (1) Jesus made the perfect offering for sin. (2) Jesus endured death due to the unrighteousness (sin) of humanity paying the penalty of sin. (3) Jesus thereby removed the barrier caused by sin and opened the way back to God.
Peter continues in 1 Peter 3:19-22 with a long comparison, which has caused more controversy than any other passage in his letter. As complex as the passage is, the main points are quite clear.
• Christians need to expect opposition.
• Christians need to serve God by faith.
• Christians need to be encouraged because we are identified with Christ’s victory.
• Christians need to trust in Jesus Christ as the only Savior and share this truth with the world around us who need to hear the Gospel.
Simply stated: Believers walk divine pathways when they identify more closely to Christ.
Identifying with Jesus is crucial if we are to walk the divine pathways God has called us to walk. Only through identifying with Christ can we realize we are never alone, for Christ is with us in every circumstance of life into which we invite Him. Christ opened the door by His finished work on the cross, and as we identify with Him, we are empowered to walk with Him victoriously as His witness to those who have yet to believe.
Then, in 1 Peter 4:1-6, Peter writes of the importance of having a Christlike attitude, a militant attitude, towards sin if we are to walk the divine pathways. Living like Christ at all times, especially in times of hardship and suffering, requires that the believer maintain a Christlike attitude. They are to live for the present in God’s will. They do this knowing that they will live for eternity in Christ’s presence. Peter challenges believers to arm themselves with the same courageous attitude Christ had in His suffering when He conquered the destructive consequences of sin. We are called in this earthly life to overcome sinful desires and allow the Spirit to make us more and more like Christ resulting in holiness of heart and life – Christlike living.
This is why a believers interaction with those yet to believe is important to them since we are massagers of the truth of the salvation they need in Christ. When we, as believers, are attacked for merely being Christlike, we are to embrace it as an opportunity to be a witness of the Lord to them. The last earthly effect of sin is physical death. But, here is the believer’s great assurance. Those who have received the Gospel in their lifetime, but die, although they will be “judged” as all people will, but because they believed, God will give them eternal life. The divine pathway God sets us on leads to glory, eternity with the Lord.
Therefore, we walk divine pathways not just by identifying more closely to Christ, but when we testify to God’s workings in us. We are empowered to live such a life when we surrender to God, allowing His Spirit to lead and empower us. If we want to walk the divine pathways God has set for us, we need to continually preach the good news of our salvation and destiny in Christ to ourselves! We need to rehearse it every day! And we need to be in community with other believers who will speak this same Good News to us on a regular basis.
Imagine what it would look like to walk divine pathways with our Lord. We would celebrate as we identify more closely with Him and courageously testify to others of His marvelous workings in us. We would share in Christ victory while sharing the Good News with others that such a life is possible. We would genuinely trust Christ in all circumstances. We would believe in what He has done for us on the cross. We would rely on the resurrection power that is working in and through us. We would trust in our future destiny with Him for eternity. Now that is a divine pathway.
It is a privilege trekking with each of you in Christ. Let’s commit together to walk God’s divine pathways for each of us. As we identify more closely with Him and testify to His workings in us, this will be a genuine reality in our life. Soli Deo Gloria (Glory to God Alone)!