Prepare for War: 1 Peter 5

Faith was never meant to be a comfortable journey from here to eternity. If yesterday’s assassination of one who championed the name of Jesus reminds us of anything, it is that the enemy has declared war on God and His saints because he knows his time is short. Followers of Jesus are not wrestling against hateful, murderous people. Their war is with Satan, the father of lies and destruction. The book of 1 Peter was given to equip the saints for just such a time as this.

Because I rotate Psalms and Proverbs every month, today’s reading led me to Psalm 55:22.

Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and He shall sustain thee: He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.

God’s repetition connected with 1 Peter 5:7, reminding me that He is always in full control.

Casting all your care upon Him; for He careth for you.

1 Peter 5:10 highlights exactly what God accomplishes with His care, reflecting back to the immovability of those anchored in God.

But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.

In his commentary on the Psalms, Charles Spurgeon wrote of Psalm 55:22, “Many would destroy the saints, but God has not suffered it, and never will.”  By what Peter calls “true grace” in verse 12, God uses suffering to perfect His people with an eternal perspective, establish them with deep roots of faith, strengthen their resolve, and settle them in the unchanging, sustaining Word of God.

Those who do not anchor themselves in God’s truth will blow away like chaff in the storms of this life. Christian, there is no better time to get into God’s Word to find His instructions for this evil and wicked time we live in. His Word may surprise you. He does not call you to vent your anger on social media. He does not give you permission to stop loving and praying for your political enemies. He leaves no loopholes for unholy behavior in any situation. He has called you to watch and pray, to love fervently, and to steadfastly resist Satan’s tactics with faith.

This is war, and it is not meant to be comfortable. Your only weapons have been named in Ephesians 6:17-18, and they are not the ones this world uses. The Word of God and prayer are mighty to the pulling down of strongholds. (1 Corinthians 10:4).

With this final chapter of 1 Peter, our study comes to an end, but I hope the truths we have learned anchor us for the storms to come. Without the light of Jesus shining out of His people, the lost will stay in darkness. Who will join me as we prepare for Satan’s advances?