1 PETER 1:1-16 SURVIVAL TIPS FOR SUFFERING SAINTS2020 Teaching by Jerry B Simmons

Teaching Transcript: 1 Peter 1:1-16 Survival Tips For Suffering Saints

You are listening to FerventWord, an online Bible study ministry with teachings and tools to help you grow deeper in your relationship with God. The following message was taught by Jerry Simmons in 2020. Well, this morning as we look at this passage, we're reading a letter from the Apostle Peter.

He wrote this letter probably a year or two after the close of the book of Acts. So a lot of ministry has happened. A lot of churches have been planted. It's probably 63, 64 AD. And Paul is perhaps in prison at this time or just recently released. And so there's been a great movement of God. And yet at the same time, there's been some challenges that the Christians are facing. And

And as he writes this letter, he's writing to dispersed Christians. That is, Christians who have been scattered, who are in various parts of the Roman Empire. They've been scattered, perhaps isolated, separated from their families as a result of their faith and as a result of their relationship with God through Jesus Christ. People...

that Peter is writing to are going through challenging times, unexpected changes, trials and persecution, and their lives have been turned upside down. And so as we read through this chapter or read through this book, it's a really great and timely message for us who in this year have really been experiencing lives turned upside down. And so I've titled the message this morning, Survival Tips for Suffering Saints.

Survival tips for suffering saints. Suffering is really a subject that Peter focuses on here in this letter. He focuses on hope as well as suffering. 17 times Peter uses the word suffering here in 1 Peter, sometimes referring to the sufferings of Jesus, but mostly referring to the suffering of Christians. And he's alluding to, in these times of suffering, persecution that is going on.

And perhaps it is, you know, Saul's persecution that began in Acts chapter 8 when Saul was persecuting the church. Remember, the church was all in Jerusalem. All the Christians, they were in Jerusalem. But then they were dispersed from there as Saul attacked the church. And they were moved out into all of the regions of the Roman Empire. And so that is what prompted them to, you know, spread out at that time.

But also later on comes the persecution of Nero, the Roman emperor. And so it's possible that Peter was writing a little bit later and was writing to Christians who were experiencing really persecution by the government as the Roman empire turned against the Christians, as Nero blamed a humongous fire upon the Christians. And so there was this great turning against the Christians and persecution of Christians.

At the same time, the Christians, regardless of whether it was, you know, this kind of persecution or that kind of persecution, they were just facing difficulties living in a world that did not know God.

The commentator Roger Raymer says it this way. He says,

And it was involving all kinds of things. Sometimes government persecution, sometimes religious persecution, sometimes it was just society, sometimes it was physical, sometimes it was, you know, lost opportunities or closed doors as a result of their faith. Whatever their specific conditions were, Peter is writing to these saints who are suffering as they walk with the Lord. And so Peter gives some encouragement, right?

And as I put it today, some survival tips for these suffering saints, things that we can learn from. And so we're going to walk through these verses, starting in verses 1 through 5. For the first tip that Peter gives, here's tip number one for surviving suffering, and that is to be praising God for a sure salvation.

be praising God for a sure salvation. Again, verse 1, Peter introduces himself and says, Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the pilgrims of the dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, Bithynia, elect according to the foreknowledge of God, God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ, grace to you and peace be multiplied.

Peter, as he introduces himself, he proclaims that he is an apostle of Jesus Christ. We're very familiar with Peter, that famous disciple of Jesus, the apostle of Jesus. But he identifies who he's writing to. He's writing to the pilgrims, or other translations put it, the sojourners.

The pilgrims are those who are traveling through. A sojourner is a person who is in a foreign country for a brief season. It's someone who is passing through a region, passing through an area.

And in the context here, as Peter is writing to the pilgrims, he's writing to Christians and he's saying, look, first of all, in order to work your way through times of suffering, something that's really helpful is to remember that we're just here temporarily, that this life is temporary, that we are sojourners passing through this life, that this isn't the permanent, this isn't the eternal, this is the temporary. Right?

Pastor David Guzik says the idea behind the word pilgrims is of someone who lives as a temporary resident in a foreign land. Pilgrims are sojourners and travelers, and pilgrims live in a constant awareness of their true home. And it is abundantly helpful for us as believers, especially in times of suffering, to be constantly aware that this is not our home.

Constantly aware of our true home, recognizing that we are passing through this life into eternity. And sometimes we bind ourselves to this life to such a degree that when we experience the trials and the difficulties, and it's become such a part of our foundation that we become really shaken when those things are moved.

And Peter is saying, look, you're sojourners, you're pilgrims. You need to be reminded to look up and remember where your true home is. He says, he's writing to the pilgrims of the dispersion. Again, these are the scattered Christians.

They're scattered. They're isolated. They're in various places, perhaps where they did not grow up, perhaps where they, you know, did not live their whole lives. But through various circumstances, they're in all of these different places, right?

experiencing difficulty. As he writes to these various places, it's a large part of what's called Asia Minor, part of the Roman Empire. It's a large geographic area that Peter is writing to. He's not writing to a single church. He's saying, look, there's this broad truth that Christians all over the place are suffering. They're going through things. They're going through difficulty and they need to be reminded that

We're pilgrims. We're here temporarily. And that our eyes need to be fixed on the true home that is eternity. Well, as he goes on to verse 2, he really establishes the reality of our salvation and the sureness of it. He says, he's writing to the elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father. And so the Christians are not only pilgrims, but they are chosen. They're elect or chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father.

And so you're passing through, but at the same time, something that is sure, something that is steadfast is the fact that the Father has chosen you. And these are Christians who are in the midst of the sanctification of the Spirit. And so another sure thing and steadfast thing that you can count on is the Holy Spirit is at work in your life, bringing about sanctification or setting you apart for the Lord and the things of the Lord.

He says, for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ. And so you see here Peter wrapping in the triune nature of God for us as believers to remember and reflect upon the sureness of our salvation in that God himself, every aspect of him, every part of him, every element of the triune nature of God, the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit are all at work in the salvation of your soul.

and the establishing of you for all of eternity. And so in verse three, he says, blessed be the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to his abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. Blessed be the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Another way to put that is praise the Lord. Praise the Lord. And this is where we get the point. Be praising God for a sure thing.

salvation. Again, as Peter is writing to people who are going through difficulty, experiencing hardship and suffering, he begins the letter with a reminder of the surety of the salvation, and he begins the letter with praise. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Praise the Lord.

And really what he's doing is he's stirring up these believers. He's encouraging us as believers, even as we endure and go through times of suffering, that we would be praising God. And because of the sureness of salvation, because of the sureness of what God has done for us, we can be praising God no matter what we experience and encounter in this life. Even if we go through and experience hardship.

And even when we experience hurt, we can be praising God as we put our focus on the sureness of our salvation. It goes back, though, to being a pilgrim. If our eyes are fixed on this life, if our eyes are fixed on the here and now, well, we're going to be shaken and it's going to be hard to praise the Lord even in the midst of suffering. But one thing that really helps us

is for us to go back to and remember and reflect upon what God has done for us. Here Peter says, according to his abundant mercy, he has begotten us again. The rebirth or regeneration, being born again is what he's referring to. That we have the opportunity to receive the mercy of God, to be born again because of what God has done for us. And through that, God gives us a living hope

through the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Our hope is alive because Jesus is alive. It's a living hope that continues, that persists, that does not change and does not fail. He drives that home a little bit further in verse 4. He says, I'm not sure that Peter could have said this any more strongly.

This inheritance that you have as a believer in Jesus Christ, having been born again, it's incorruptible. It cannot be corrupted. It cannot corrode. It cannot fade away. And it's undefiled. It can't be defiled. It can't be corrupted in any way. Again, he says it doesn't fade away. So over and over, it's incorruptible. It's undefiled. It doesn't fade away. And then it's reserved in heaven for you.

Now reserved is maybe not as strong of a word in our vocabulary as it is in Peter's vocabulary because we make reservations. You book a flight and then you show up at the door. You're going to get on the flight and say, oh, you know what? Sorry, we oversold the flight. No more seats left. Yeah, but I made a reservation. Yeah, but we, you know, sold more seats than we have.

That's not a very strong reservation, right? Or you reserve a car at a rental company and you go show up at the rental car company and then you realize they don't have the car that I reserved. Even though they tell you you have to reserve a car to be able to, you know,

place it in advance and to get that done. But then you show up. I don't think I've ever shown up at a rental car agency, and I've rented lots of cars. I don't think I've ever shown up at a car agency and received the car or the size that I reserved at the time I made the reservation. It's always different. Our reservations are not very strong. But this reservation that God has made for you is

is steadfast. It's sure. It's incorruptible. It's undefiled. It does not fade away. It's guaranteed. And it's guaranteed, he goes on to say in verse 5, who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation, ready to be revealed in the last time. So this reservation is so strong because it's kept by the power of God. And you are kept by the power of God through faith.

That believing in Jesus Christ, you have this sureness, this guarantee of eternity, this sureness and guarantee of salvation, this promise of everlasting life, this promise of glory in eternity. And so consider the contrast here that Peter is painting. Here you are pilgrims living in the temporary and life is unstable, unpredictable and difficult, but you have a living hope in

a guaranteed inheritance. You are kept by the power of God for the glory of eternity. And so here's a survival tip for suffering saints. Be praising God for a sure salvation. Be praising God for a sure salvation. That opportunity to go back and look at what God has done for us. Remember that your stay here is temporary.

We just finished up not too long ago, the book of Hebrews in our reading. In Hebrews chapter 11, we have that famous hall of faith. All of these men and women of God who trusted God, believed God, they had faith. In Hebrews chapter 11, verse 13, talking about these in the hall of faith, it says, these all died in faith.

not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, were assured of them, embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. You see, we need to understand this is a normal part of faith in God. A normal part of trusting God and walking with God is knowing that all the things that God has for you are yet to come. We get to experience many of the blessings of God in this life.

But the majority of God's promises to us, we're going to receive them in eternity. And like the men and women of Hebrews chapter 11, we're going to die in faith. We're going to die still looking forward to the things that God has in store for us. Not having seen all of them fulfilled, we'll see them afar off, but being assured of them, embracing them.

And we'll have to continue to be confessing that we're strangers and pilgrims on the earth, just like these men and women of Hebrews chapter 11. Be praising God for a sure salvation. Don't be caught up and bound up in this life to the degree that you're not able to praise God in the midst of whatever life throws at you. Well, moving on to verses six through nine, we get the second tip.

Survival tips for the suffering saints. Number one, be praising God for a sure salvation. Number two, be rejoicing with joy inexpressible. Be rejoicing with joy inexpressible. Verses six through nine says this, in this you greatly rejoice. Though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials.

that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, whom having not seen, you love. Though now you do not see him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith, the salvation of your souls."

Here Peter begins to address the subject of suffering. But as he talks about this concept of suffering and difficulty, he ties it together with joy. Joy and suffering. How can those be together? How can those be bound together in the way that Peter binds them together? How can that be? Well,

Going back to the first point, we can rejoice because we have this sure salvation. And that's a thread that continues on here in these verses. Peter is saying, look, even in the midst of trials and difficulties and sufferings, even in the midst of all that 2020 can bring you, all the things that have happened to us, you know, this year. And I don't have to go into those details, right? We have suffered, right?

and continue. And we don't know where the end is. Individual families have been impacted greatly. There has been so much that has happened to us, corporately, individually, as families. And yet at the same time, there is opportunity for us to have joy that is inexpressible, even in the midst of the things that we face. In verse 6, he says, "...in this you greatly rejoice."

in this sure salvation that we were just talking about, we can find great joy. At the same time, acknowledging that in the midst of the things that we face, there's going to be hardship and hurt. He says, though now for a little while you have been grieved by various trials. And there is the opportunity for us to have joy and yet also grieve. It's one of the realities for us as believers that there will be grief, there will be

hurt and heartache and hardship, but at the same time, even through the midst of those things, we can have joy that is inexpressible. One thing that we can take joy in for us as believers is that suffering is only for a little while. Whenever we are suffering, whenever we're going through difficulty, whether it be any kind of difficulty, a financial difficulty perhaps,

It feels like forever. It feels like you're never going to get out of that debt, that hole that you've buried yourself in. Emotional difficulty that we go through, times of crisis that we experience internally, things that our families experience, things that, you know, in our careers. As we are suffering, it always feels like forever. But faith puts time back into perspective. And so Peter is able to say, now for a little while, you have been grieved by various trials.

For a little while, it's a short time. It feels like a long time, but faith is not based on your feelings. Faith is based on what God has said. We walk by faith, not by sight or not by what we feel or perceive. We believe God at his word and we understand, we recognize that our time here on this earth is classified as a little while. And Peter will go on to talk about that in his letter as well. Our time here is short.

Now, he says, though now for a little while, if need be, you've been grieved by various trials. If need be. It helps us to understand here that, as we often say, the Lord is on the throne. God is on the throne. God is on the throne.

And when we experience those various trials, they're part of the if need be of our lives. We can rejoice in suffering because we know that God is working in us and that God is working for us. He doesn't allow into our lives things that are unnecessary or meaningless or fruitless. If he allows difficulty or hardship or hurt or heartache or suffering in our lives, it's because we need it.

And we may not see the need. We may not understand the need. We may not like the need. But if we suffer, it needs to be that way. If there was a better way, God would move us in that direction. If need be, he says, showing us that God is on the throne. Pastor Warren Wiersbe says, there are special times when God knows that we need to go through trials.

Sometimes trials discipline us when we have disobeyed God's will. At other times, trials prepare us for spiritual growth or even help to prevent us from sinning. We do not always know the need being met, but we can trust God to know and to do what is best. We can trust God to know and to do what is best. And so there's opportunity for us to have joy.

Even in the midst of trials. We saw that in the book of James as well, right? James chapter one, count it all joy, my brethren, when you face various trials. Because you know that God's working in your life. You know that God is accomplishing his purposes and he is doing good in the midst of it.

Well, Peter goes on to talk about this in verse 7. He says that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ. It needs to be these sufferings, these trials, they need to be, Peter says, that the genuineness of our faith may be tested, may be found to the praise, honor, and glory at

of Jesus, at the revelation of Jesus Christ. The genuineness of your faith. And he compares it to gold. Gold is valuable. It survives fire and is tested by fire and purified by fire, but it's also perishable. It's not eternal. And your faith is much more valuable than gold.

But similarly, it's tested, it's purified, it's refined by fire, by testing, by trial. Charles Spurgeon tells us this about trials. He says, "'We must expect trial, "'because trial is the element of faith. "'Faith without trial is like a diamond uncut, "'the brilliance of which has never been seen. "'A fish without water or a bird without air "'is faith without trial.'"

We may surely expect that our faith will be tested. We may surely expect that our faith will be tested. It's an essential part. It's a central part of faith. If it wasn't that way, it wouldn't be faith. It wouldn't be trust. No, faith is believing God at his word and trusting God despite what we see, what we feel, what we think, what seems to be inevitable.

trusting God and really resting in his word and his promises. He goes on in verse 8 to say, He's writing to believers who had not seen the Lord. They weren't part of the ministry of Jesus like Peter was. But even though they haven't seen him, they've believed.

And because they've believed in Jesus, he says, you have joy that is inexpressible and full of glory. Where does it come from? It comes from faith in Jesus. Believing the truth, believing the reality that God will accomplish his purposes in our lives for our good. He says in verse 9, receiving the end of your faith, the salvation of your souls. The end of your faith.

Again, for believers, suffering is only for a little while. But believing in Jesus, you will receive the end of your faith, the salvation of your soul. And so be rejoicing. It's an important tip for surviving suffering. Rejoice with inexpressible joy, despite what you go through. Now, joy is not automatic. The instruction here is a command to take joy, to rejoice joyfully.

And we have great reason for joy because we have a far better future. And when we suffer, it increases the future, how much better the future will be. The suffering is temporary, but it's also refining. And God is working in us for our good and for his glory.

Well, heading into verses 10 through 12, we get the third tip for this morning, and that is be ministered to by the scriptures. In verse 10, he says, Now, there's a lot of things in these verses that I'm not going to get into, but

Here, Peter is referring back to the prophets, looking back at the Old Testament, looking back at the prophets who came before and foretold the coming of Jesus, the work and ministry of Jesus, and the glory that Jesus would bring. He says,

And they were searching, he says, to try to figure out what are we talking about? We're saying these things on behalf of God, but we don't fully understand them. We don't fully understand when, what manner of time we're referring to. We just know that these are the things that God has given us to speak forth on his behalf. And here Peter says in verse 10 that they prophesied of the grace that would come to you.

And so God was speaking to these prophets. You can go back 6,000 years of history of God speaking, and he was speaking through men of God and women of God to you about things that you would experience, about things that you would encounter as a believer in Jesus Christ. And so here, Peter really takes us back to all of Scripture, the prophets of old like Moses and Elijah, Isaiah, Haggai, Zechariah.

As Paul says in 2 Timothy 3, all scripture is profitable. All scripture is relevant because these guys were speaking on behalf of God to you. He says in verse 12, Notice what Peter says here.

God revealed to them they weren't ministering to themselves. And although their message, of course, had application to the people around them in the moment, there was always that future perspective, that future look, that future element. And they didn't fully understand the message because they were ministering to us. And that's something to consider. The Old Testament prophets were ministering to us.

This is an important thing to consider as you think about the times of suffering that we encounter. We have this avenue of ministry available to us, this source of strength, this source of comfort and hope, this source of ministry to us that is available in the scriptures where God has laid out and prepared in advance, speaking through men and women of God for thousands of years and

to meet us where we are today and help us walk with God in the way that he has called us to. Warren Wiersbe says,

In times of trial, you can turn to the Bible because these things were written for our benefit. These things were written to help us, to minister to us. Don't miss out on all the ministry that God has for you. He wants to meet you where you're at and to comfort your heart and to bring strength that you need. And sometimes we feel like, where is the Lord? And where is all of his promises of comfort and strength and hope? And it's there.

One of the ways is through the scriptures. Of course, God uses others around us in the present. Of course, God continues to speak to us directly and personally. There's many ways that God ministers to us. But one of the ways and an important way for us to consider is the scriptures have been given to us that we might be ministered to in times of difficulty.

These things that the Lord has spoken through the prophets for so many years are so great. He finishes verse 12 saying, Things which the angels desire to look into. Angels desire to look into these things. The things that God has spoken of us and for us and on our behalf and the ministry that he has for us, they're so incredible that angels desire to look into them. The salvation that he has for us is so great, so profound, so powerful.

angels desire to look into it the prophets search carefully to figure it out to understand it and they're things that god has delivered unto us and so the point is here that well there's a richness there that we haven't we haven't reached the end of there's a there's a wealth there that we haven't run out of

If angels desire to look into it, you and I have not explored the boundaries of it, right? Angels are far more intelligent, far more perceptive and able to understand than we are. And if it's still outside of their grasp, we haven't reached the end of it. And sometimes we can feel like we have good enough grasp on the scriptures and on the things of God and salvation and not be receiving the ministry that should come to us today.

through these things, but we need to be reminded and refreshed of our need to receive from God in this way. Peter will go on in 1 Peter 2, verse 2 to say, as newborn babes desire the pure milk of the word that you may grow thereby. We never outgrow our need for the scriptures, for the milk of the word. We never outgrow that.

We always need to be diving in to the things of God. Charles Spurgeon says, does anyone suppose that he knows all about the gospel and does not need further hours of study, thought and prayer? Poor, miserable fool. Angels who are vastly superior to us in intelligence desire to learn and to know more. Don't be a poor, miserable fool, as Charles Spurgeon says. No, we haven't reached the end. There's much more for us. Let's dive deep.

into the scriptures that we might be ministered to in times of suffering. Well, finally, finishing it up in verses 13 through 16, here's the fourth survival tip this morning, and that is to be holy in all your conduct. Be holy in all your conduct. Verse 13 says this,

Therefore, gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts as in your ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, be holy for I am holy. Here is Peter writes to these saints who are suffering all over the Roman Empire, saying,

Essentially, he says this, because of all that God has done for us, notice the therefore in verse 13, therefore, because of the sure salvation that we have and the joy inexpressible that comes from that, because of the wealth of ministry that has been given to us in the scriptures, therefore, he says, gird up the loins of your mind. Therefore, live out a life that honors God is what he's about to say. Gird up the loins of your mind.

This is an expression that they would use because of the garments that they would wear. For us, it would be like, roll up your sleeves and get ready to work. Roll up your sleeves because you have this sure salvation. You have this joy that is inexpressible. You have this wealth of ministry available to you. So roll up your sleeves and get to, yes, prepare yourself to get to work because even though you're suffering, even though you're grieving, even though you're hurting, even though you face hardship,

There is much resources for you to be able to go forward and live the life that God has called you to. He says, rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Again, he's saying, set your eyes, set your focus on that is to come, that which is to come. When Jesus returns, when he is revealed and all of the grace that will be brought to you, set your hope fully on those things. Set your hope fully on the future.

Set your hope fully on the promises of God that will be fulfilled at the return of Jesus Christ. Roll up your sleeves. It's going to take some work, but prepare yourself for that. Roll up the sleeves of your mind, he says. Notice where we're rolling up the sleeves. In our mind. It's a battle in our minds to focus our eyes on the things that are to come. Pastor Warren Wiersbe says, Christians live in the future tense.

Their present actions and decisions are governed by this future hope. Just as an engaged couple makes all their plans in light of that future wedding, so Christians today live with the expectation of seeing Jesus Christ. Roll up the sleeves of your mind and prepare to focus on that which is to come. Make all of your decisions in light of that future hope.

Work through all of the things that you're experiencing in light of that future hope. Don't get your mind distracted by the winds and the waves like Peter, right? When he first got out of the boat, when he's walking on water, eyes fixed on Jesus, he's doing good, sees the winds and the waves. Now he starts to sink. And in times of suffering, we can experience very similar things. Doing good as we set our hope fully on the things which are to come.

But then when we get focused on the things that are experiencing, the things that are happening around us, we can begin to sink. And the emotions can overwhelm us. And the fears can flood. And these things can pound against us. And we begin to sink. And one of the areas where we begin to sink is in our obedience to God. He says in verse 14, "...as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts as in your ignorance."

In the midst of suffering, there is a temptation in the weakness of our flesh to go back to former lusts, to go back and live according to the sinful nature. Because we're fighting so hard in other areas and we're, you know, facing difficulty in these different ways. And there is a great temptation for us to then be lax in our struggle against the flesh.

and to give in. Perhaps we feel justified. Perhaps we feel like we deserve it. Perhaps we feel like, you know, what else can I do? Or we just need that moment of pleasure. But here Peter is saying, look, yes, I know you're suffering. I know you're going through difficult things, but live as obedient children, not like your former conduct, not like the way that you used to live, not according to your sinful nature, but instead according to your new nature. As he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct.

Because it is written, be holy for I am holy. You are born again. You're a new creation in Christ Jesus. And so don't allow the time of suffering, how much ever it hurts, how much ever difficulty you face, don't allow that to be an excuse for unholiness. An excuse to live out a pattern that is not consistent with what God has called you to.

Don't let that be an excuse to turn back to things that God had once delivered you from. Be holy in all your conduct. The enemy wants to use times of suffering and difficulty to get you to sabotage yourself and to go back into sin, to go back to those bad decisions and hurtful choices. Peter says, don't let that happen. Be holy in all your conduct.

Pastor Dave Rolfe, in teaching through this passage, says, Don't sell out your character because you are coming into difficult times. Everyone who compromises their character, it is almost always because it hurts to do what is right. To compromise our character, usually we do it because to do what's right is hard and it hurts. But that's not a good enough reason to compromise our character. In times of suffering, in times of difficulty, again, compromise.

Some important survival tips. Be praising God for a sure salvation. Reflect on, hold fast to the reality and the truth of what God has provided for you. And be rejoicing. Take joy. It doesn't come automatically and it's not necessarily easy, but you can count it all joy. You can have joy inexpressible even in the midst of suffering. Be ministered to by the scriptures.

We have the opportunity, this wealth of resources that God has given to us that he might minister to us and speak to us and comfort our hearts and encourage us and give us all that we need. Make sure that you give him time to speak to you and to work in your life, spending time in the word of God and be holy in all your conduct. Don't let the difficulty be an excuse to live a life of sin.

but live out the new nature that he's given to you. Be holy as he is holy. Turn from sin and follow him. Let's pray. Lord, I thank you for this word of encouragement this morning as we face a difficult year, Lord, and as we face hardship and things that we would have never known, Lord, how difficult life could become.

And yet through the midst of this, Lord, you have resources for us. You have joy for us. You have a work in us and through us and on our behalf. And so, Lord, I pray that you would help us to believe you at your word, to receive what you have for us. Lord, to trust you in all of your plans and purposes and to rest in the reality of your lordship. I pray, God, that you administer to our hearts as we face these things

Help us, God, to take these survival tips to heart, Lord, that we would live them out, put them into practice, that we might experience all that we need for the life that is set before us. Would you strengthen us? Would you comfort us? Would you encourage us? Would you help us to know you and to trust you more? We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.

We pray you have been blessed by this Bible teaching. The power of God to change a life is found in the daily reading of His Word. Visit ferventword.com to find more teachings and Bible study resources.