To God's elect, strangers in the world, scattered throughout the earth, who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and sprinkling by his blood:

Grace and peace be yours in abundance. You are invited to come to the Wednesday evening prayer meeting and pray. (8:30 PM EDT Wed., Oct. 31, 2001) (If you have e-mail prayer requests, please send them before 5:00 PM.)

Here are some quotations from the word of God: "Submit yourselves for the Lord's sake to every authority instituted among men." (1 Peter 2:13) "Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities." (Romans 13:1) And from this week's passage, "Slaves, submit yourselves to your masters." (1 Peter 2:18) Also, "Wives, in the same way be submissive to your husbands." (1 Peter 3:1) And, "Children, obey your parents." (Eph. 6:1) These are quotations from the word of God -- his commands to us. God has established human relationships that require submission. Why is that? Let's see what we can learn from the passage.

Verse 18 says, "Slaves submit yourselves to your masters with all respect." The word translated "slaves" in this verse generally refers to household servants. These would be people who would be likely to have continual interaction with the master of the house so that there would be plenty of opportunity to demonstrate submission. But, just what does it mean to submit to someone? One of the verses I quoted to show that God has established human relationships that require submission doesn't use the word submit. It says, "Children obey your parents." What's the difference between obeying and submitting?

Obedience is not simply a question of whether or not you do what you are told. Obedience is an attitude of your heart. I have a story that I think illustrates the point. I read it a long time ago and have used it many times since, but I think it's worth repeating. It was written to illustrate the very point I want to make.

According to the story, back in the 1800's a farmer in Ohio bought some land in Kentucky and wanted to start a farm there. He sent his two sons to spend the summer clearing the land and to start the foundations for the house and the barn. He told them exactly where to put the foundations and also where to dig the well. When his sons arrived at the location, they agreed with theirs father's choice of places for the house and for the barn and built the foundations in the designated places, but they didn't agree with their father's choice of the place for the well, so they dug the well in a different place. After telling the story, the writer asked this question: "Were the sons obedient to their father?" He said, "You might answer by saying that they were obedient in two out three cases, but the fact was that they did what they thought was right in every case." In their actions, the sons were obedient two-thirds of the time, but inwardly they were not submissive at all.

I know the question of submission is a little more complicated than what the illustration I just gave implies. It really has to do with a servant's having the master's interests at heart rather than his own. That possibly was the case with the two sons in the story also, but I hope you get the point.

Now, before going on, I want to make one more point. According to the law of Moses, God's law given in the Old Testament, a person could only serve as a slave for six years. At the seventh year, he had to be set free. But, that slave could declare that he loved his master and his masters family and didn't want to leave him. The master would, then, make a hole in the slave's ear lobe with an awl, and the slave would serve the master for life. The reason I brought this up, is because, in our present-day culture, we think that being absolutely subject to someone else's authority is so onerous it is hard to imagine anyone voluntarily making himself a slave to anyone else. We might consider a person who would do such a thing to be mentally ill or mentally incompetent, and look down on him and pity him. We think that it's OK to submit to someone else's authority if we get paid for it, but only if it's not for one hundred percent of the time and we are free to break the arrangement at any time. And even so, we are not too submissive. And we still tend to despise anyone who tries too hard to please the boss.

Now, to go on, the text says, "Slaves, submit yourselves to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh." "...not only to those who are good and considerate, but also, to those who are harsh." We have trouble imagining ourselves voluntarily (or even involuntarily) submitting completely to anyone's authority, even if that person is good and considerate, let alone if he is harsh.

Verse 19 says, "It is commendable if a man bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because he is conscious of God." And in this passage, pain means being beaten. Verse 20 says, "But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it?" We think that nothing we could do would deserve a beating, and that anyone who would do such a thing ought to locked up in prison for a while. We have laws to that effect.

But Peter says -- that is, the Holy Spirit of God, speaking through Peter, says, "If you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. To this you were called." Isn't that an incredible statement? To this you were called! To suffer for doing good and to endure it. Jesus taught in the Sermon on the Mount, "Do not resist an evil person. If anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also." We usually take "Turn the other cheek" to mean, "Walk away," but Peter is telling us that a person who is literally beaten should just accept it. (At this point, I should also point out that, if there a danger of personal injury because of someone's violent behavior, there are "governors who are sent by [the king] to punish those who do wrong -- 1 Peter 2:14." -- or in our case, police and courts who are empowered by law to punish those who do wrong.)

But, to continue, why are we called to endure unjust suffering -- to "turn the other cheek?" It's because Christ died for us, leaving us an example that we should follow in his steps. "He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth (v22)." And, to continue that quote from Isaiah, chapter 53, "It was the LORD's will to crush him and cause him to suffer..." and to make his life a guilt offering. (All these things were planned by God from the beginning and foretold hundreds, and even thousands of years before they took place.)

Verse 23: "When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly." Jesus had the choice of retaliating -- or entrusting himself to the one who judges justly. Which choice do you think was better? Which choice do you think it would be better for you to make? Do you think that, if you are mistreated, you should threaten or retaliate? Or is it better for you to entrust yourself to the one who judges justly? Jesus did not threaten or retaliate. He entrusted himself to the one judges justly.

Jesus would have been right to utterly destroy those who were beating and insulting him. They were beating the one through whom the universe was made -- their creator -- the source and giver of life. Why would he not execute on them what they deserved? But, he said, "Father, forgive them. For they don't know they are doing." Jesus did not do what would have been right and just. Instead, he did what would seem to be unjust beyond all measure -- infinitely so. He let us put him to death by our sin. "He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness (v24)." By his wounds we have been healed. All of us were like sheep going astray (to our death), but now we have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of our souls (v25).

Jesus suffered unjustly and did not threaten or retaliate. Instead, he entrusted himself to the one who judges justly. He is asking us to follow in his steps. He is our master. Do you think he is harsh in telling us to do this? Or, do we have a good and considerate master? He, himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; by his wounds we have been healed. He is a good and considerate master. He loves us. He wants us to be like him.

Here's a hymn that you can read or sing if you know the tune. It's number 284 in the old hymn book:

I gave my life for thee; My precious blood I shed,
That thou might'st ransomed be, And quickened from the dead.,
I gave, I gave My life for thee. What hast thou giv'n for Me?
I gave, I gave My life for thee. What hast thou giv'n for Me?

My Father's house of light, My glory-circled throne,
I left for earthly night, For wand'rings sad and lone.
I left, I left it all for thee. Hast thou left aught for Me?
I left, I left it all for thee. Hast thou left aught for Me?

I suffered much for thee, More than thy tongue can tell,
Of bitt'rest agony, To rescue thee from hell.
I've born, I've born it all for thee. What hast thou born for Me?
I've born, I've born it all for thee. What hast thou born for Me?

And I have brought to thee, Down from My home above,
Salvation full and free, My pardon and My love.
I bring, I bring rich gifts to thee. What hast thou brought to Me?
I bring, I bring rich gifts to thee. What hast thou brought to Me?

Frances R. Havergal, 1836 - 1879

Pray for us to not think that we need to threaten or retaliate, but that we will entrust ourselves to the one who judges justly.

Come and let's pray for each other as well as for the whole church. Come and encourage your brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus. Love them.

Love in Christ,
Dean

PS: If you absolutely can't make it to the prayer meeting, send your prayer requests back to me by e-mail and we'll pray for them.