Setting the Stage: Suffering Subthemes and the Study of 1 Peter

Bringing the Study to the Stage

I’m seated at my desk on the stage for this sermon because of a twofold goal when it comes to worship through the Word of God: It’s my desire that anyone encountering this message will:

Eagerly receive the Word
Regularly engage the Word

My prayer is that this message prompts this sort of activity throughout your week—not just on Sunday.

Regular engagement—pouring over God’s Word in a focused manner—requires some practice, some training. This sermon will walk you through an exercise toward that end. We’ll do so still within the context of our series, The Elementary Principles of the Oracles of God, in which we’re in the midst of principle 3: baptisms.

As mentioned in the last sermon, we encounter a difficult verse about baptism in the book of 1 Peter. And when we encounter difficult verses like this, I’m not as interested in simply giving my opinion on how to interpret it, but in inviting you into the process of studying God’s Word.

But here’s the catch. I’m not merely giving you a peek behind the curtain of a pastor’s process (though I do happen to now be a pastor, and I understand there’s some interest in what my process might look like). This is a process I began in the privacy of my own home long before anyone called me to serve as a pastor.¹ This kind of process can be a part of your own Bible study, too.²

This isn’t my study. (This desk is way too clean to be my desk, for one!). It’s our study, undertaken with my original audience at GraceLife and also with my online readers. It is your job to determine in your heart that this isn’t just a passive (reading or listening) exercise, but an opportunity to actively engage the Word of the Lord in a way that edifies your soul and builds confidence in exploring the Bible. Please take this exercise into your daily life! Don’t do it once and then forget about it.

Gathering Your Tools

To engage this message properly, be sure you have the right tools.

First, I recommend an exhaustive concordance in the version of the Bible that you use. For example, I use the same NASB Exhaustive Concordance today that I began using when I started studying baptisms back in college, about 20 years ago. A concordance lists a word in alphabetical order, and you can look it up (e.g., “baptism”) and find every Bible verse that references it (e.g., every reference to “baptism” in the Bible). In the back of the concordance the word is linked to the Greek or Hebrew word from which it is translated.³

Next, have the Bible (preferably a tangible copy, not an app on your phone) available in a reliable translation (I use the NASB95 as my default). If you prefer not to mark up your actual Bible, find the passage online (at a site like BibleGateway.com or Biblehub.com) and print it so you can mark it up as you study. At the link below, you can download the 1 Peter resource booklet that I passed out during the original delivery of this sermon.⁴

In addition, I’m using a red pen and some highlighters to mark up the text. In an initial exercise like this, I recommend printing out a text, which will allow for mess-ups, changes of mind, etc. After seeing which patterns emerge, you can decide whether to make the same notations in your study Bible.

Let’s begin.

Download 1 Peter Booklet

This booklet contains the entire text of the letter we know as 1 Peter. The resource was created as a study aid for our sermon series on the elementary principles of the oracles of God (Hebrews 5:12–6:2). ¹

Levels of Study

Beginning to Study

Our focus Scripture is 1 Peter 3:21, but let’s start a few verses before it, for context:

For Christ also suffered sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God … (1 Peter 3:18a)

In terms of levels of study, this is as easy as it gets. We have a concise and beautiful summary of the gospel. That is the beauty of the Scriptures. We can go to the depths in our study—as we will do in a moment—but also enjoy its simple statements. Here we have an easy to understand, yet profound idea that helps us know how to know God and be saved.

Everything gets more complicated from here—but not so complicated that we can’t tackle it.

Weighing Different Interpretations

The first sort of complication is not because the ideas are hard, but because the interpretation possibilities are multiple. I don’t mean there are multiple correct, but differing interpretations. However, in this process of discovery, we’ll run across different options for interpretation—all that are within the realm of possibility based on the context and grammar—and we’ll need to weigh each. One will be the correct option. (You may decide, after hearing the arguments for each option, that you’re not sure how to adjudicate between them, but that still doesn’t mean there isn’t a correct option.)

Verse 18 continues:

He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit (1 Peter 3:18b).

Consulting different translations reveals some of the interpretive decisions that need to be made. Compare next the NASB:

… having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit (1 Peter 3:18b).

The term “flesh” is used instead of “body,” and “Spirit” (a reference to God) is rendered “spirit” (lowercase s indicating that the Holy Spirit is not in view). Here are just some options for what this part of the verse means:

Bodily death: Peter could be talking about the realm of activity—the realms of death and life; when a person dies, it’s the body that ceases operation (but not the spirit).
By means of the flesh: Peter could be saying that Christ’s body was put to death (crucified on the cross) “by the means of the flesh,” that is, by evil forces, but made alive by means of the good force.

I lean toward the second interpretation. I encourage you to access multiple translations of the Bible to help you arrive at the correct meaning. If you don’t know Greek or Hebrew, you can usually get all the clues you need by looking at various translations. You can do that via analog or digital tools (I often prefer print resources as it’s nice to turn off the world [especially the world of screens], to help you focus).

The idea that the forces of evil sought to kill the Lord, but He was made alive by means of the Spirit, will become an important theme. Evil took place, but God came alongside and did something else; evil didn’t stop Him from carrying out His plan.

Choosing Direction Over Distraction (It's About to Get Weird)

We’ve began with a simple statement of the gospel and moved to a statement with a couple options in verse 18. But in 1 Peter 3:19, it gets weird:

… in which also He went and made proclamation to the spirits now in prison …

What does it mean that He preached (as the NKJV translates “made proclamation”) to spirits in prison? How do you imprison a spirit, which is not physical. Let’s read on:

… who once were disobedient, when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through the water. (1 Peter 3:20)

Why this reference to Noah all of a sudden?

Here is where you will have to make a choice to be an effective student of the Bible: you have to choose between distraction and dedicated direction. There are all sorts of rabbit trails in the Bible, and they prey upon our good curiosities. The one is a big flashing neon sign saying, “Rabbit trail: spirits in prison!”

Now, this—like many of the Bible’s rabbit trails—are good to explore in their proper time. They’re interesting. But this topic is not the one we’re seeking now. Our topic is baptism, and continuing that theme will require disciplined direction.

Our “Problem” Passage: 1 Peter 3:21

And this water symbolizes the baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body, but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God—through the resurrection of Jesus Christ. (Berean Standard Bible [BSB])

“Baptism that now saves you”?! But I’ve always heard baptism doesn’t save you! Here is where other versions will be particularly helpful. The NASB reads:

Corresponding to that, baptism now saves you …

This translation should cause you to ask, “Corresponding to what?” As we just saw, the BSB interprets “that” to mean “the water of baptism.” Some other translations read differently still:

NKJV: “There is also an antitype which now saves us—baptism”⁵

NET: “And this prefigured baptism, which now saves you”⁶

Why is this a “problem” passage? Frankly, that phrase is a bit of a misnomer. It’s a difficult or problem passage not because the language isn’t clear, but because it punches against an assumed theology. What many of us have heard and been taught (especially if we come from a Protestant tradition—and a Baptist and a Free Grace theology tradition in particular)—is that baptism doesn’t save a person. So, when we read “Baptism now saves you,” we wonder, “How can I explain this away?” But our job isn’t to explain anything away. Our job is to discover the truth of the Scriptures.

Our job isn’t to explain anything away. Our job is to discover the truth of the Scriptures.

So, how will we answer the question of what this passage is saying? Because this sermon is all about helping you understand how to study the Scriptures for yourself, I am not as interested in addressing what the answer is, but in how we (you) will answer it. What’s the methodology for understanding difficult passages like this one?

Context: You may have heard that Bible study is about understanding Scripture in context. And it is. And oftentimes, consulting the few verses before and several verses after a verse is a good first check. But it doesn’t guarantee that you’re going to discover the correct interpretation.

If you camp out in the immediate context, it’s not that it’s impossible to arrive at the answer, but it’s an unsure method. It is an especially unsure method when dealing with the sort of oddities we see here in 1 Peter 3. Peter is grabbing a reference without much explanation as to why he’s appealing to Noah, and he makes some obscure references to spirits in prison. Then, he makes a statement that seems to fly in the face of what many of us have been taught.

At this point, you have to decide if you’re going to be a serious student of the Bible or not. Are you along for the entire ride, or will you end your journey as soon as there’s a bump in the road?

To answer what this verse means, you need to answer, What is this book, this letter, about? I urge you: Don’t be the casual observer guilty of immature curiosities over obscure passages. Instead, be the diligent disciple who asks simple yet thorough questions. You’ll discover that the questions we ask of the text are not that hard to answer. We will answer them best if we clean out the preconceived notions in our minds; we need to be dumb enough to answer smart questions or smart enough to ask and answer dumb questions. What does it say? What is the book about? Reading all five chapters of the letter of 1 Peter doesn’t take long (maybe 15 or 20 minutes),⁷ and doing so will quickly illuminate common themes.

Don’t be the casual observer guilty of immature curiosities over obscure passages.

Will you read further in order to answer the question, “What does this mean?” Will you be thorough? The choice is yours. So too is the choice to be satisfied with answers that do not come immediately.

Not to disappoint you, but it won’t be until next sermon that you’ll come to understand how it is that “baptism saves you.” We need to lay some groundwork first.

Establishing Themes

As we look to establish a theme of 1 Peter, know that uncovering a theme is sometimes more art than science; and the Bible, like other books, can have multiple themes.

Main Theme: Suffering

A key theme (the main theme?) of 1 Peter is suffering. You’ll find it mentioned in every chapter of the letter. To see this, take a red pen and your printed version of the text (or your Bible), and each time you see the word “suffer” in the book. Underline, circle, put a box around those words—whatever you prefer.

Here are the verses in 1 Peter that directly reference suffering (suffer, suffering, suffered):

Chapter 1: verses 6, 11
Chapter 2: verses 19, 20, 21, 23
Chapter 3: verses 14, 17, 18
Chapter 4: verses 1 (twice), 13, 15, 16, 19
Chapter 5: verses 1, 9, 10

That’s a lot of red. 1 Peter is clearly a book about suffering. But that’s not even all. Themes aren’t tied to exact words. Word studies are good, but they can also lead to incorrect notions, since the same English word can have different meanings. (We saw this with other words—how there are multiple categories of “faith,” multiple types of “justification,” more than one meaning of “salvation,” and multiple “baptisms.”)

Word studies are good but can lead to incorrect notions, since the same English word can have different meanings.

Suffering is a fairly straightforward term, but the idea of suffering can be captured in different words—in synonyms (like “trials”), or in reference to actions that would cause suffering (like “abuse” or “slander”).

So, let’s go back through 1 Peter again and mark all the verses that reference suffering-themed words or ideas (you can use a red pen again or a different color; you might underline now instead of circling, for example, to distinguish from the actual “suffering” words):

1:6—“trials”
1:24—“All flesh … withers”
2:4, 2:7—“rejected”
2:12—“slander”
2:20—“beaten”
2:23—“heaped abuse”
2:24—“bore our sins in His body,” “by His stripes”
3:9—“insult”
3:13—“harm”
3:16—“slander”
4:4—“heap abuse” (the word for “blaspheme”)
4:12—“fiery trial”
4:14—“insulted”
5:8—entire verse

The amount of red you now see in 1 Peter provides a visual validation of a theme. This is the textual context of our theme.

There is also historical context to this letter.⁸ Christians of Peter’s day faced a lot of persecution—persecution from both the Romans and the Jews. Of course, Jesus Himself was persecuted to the point of crucifixion. His followers were heavily persecuted because of a perceived usurpation of established government, of upheavals within the existing religious systems and society. The persecution was often physical and sometimes fatal. In fact, it was very soon after writing 1 Peter (in the early 60s, likely between AD 60 and AD 64) that Peter himself would be martyred. So everything he talked about was not only true for the time, but also for him personally—giving the letter an almost prophetic tone.

If I were simply preaching on 1 Peter or suffering, I’d expound upon ways in which 1 Peter addresses the issue of suffering and how we should handle suffering in light of this epistle. I’m going to do that, but not without you participating in the study process.

Here is where I want to introduce five other subthemes that are answers to the theme of suffering. How did I arrive at those subthemes?

In studying any book or passage, you first need to read it again and again (not once, and not even just twice). As you do, you’ll begin to notice patterns—themes will begin to jump off the page. You can write down possible themes as you read.

After repeated readings, you’re ready to compile lists. If you think you see a certain theme (like suffering), write down every instance in which you see it appear. Then, go back through and read the book with that theme in mind. When you’re studying on your own, you will find a list may shrink, grow, or even get erased.

A caution: You have to be careful about setting certain expectations of a text. Exegesis—an explanation or interpretation of a text—contains the prefix “ex-” (meaning “out of”). You want to bring the meaning out of the text, not take your own meaning into it (as the opposite term, eisegesis, means). We can have certain commonsense expectations of the Bible, though.

You want to bring the meaning out of the text (exegesis), not take your own meaning into it (eisegesis).

Some themes you might look for from the start based on what you know about the book. And certain themes lend themselves to other (sub)themes, based on the questions they cause us to ask. For example, the theme of suffering naturally leads us to ask things like:

Is there any protection from suffering? (Is anyone aware of it? Will anyone be my advocate? Is it inevitable?)
If suffering is inevitable, then how long will it last? What is the extent of the suffering? Is there anything that will last beyond the suffering?
Is the suffering unto death? (Will I die from it?) Is there any promise of life after death?
Will suffering accomplish anything? (Or is it meaningless, useless?)
If I have to suffer, is there any encouragement along the way? Are there any examples of how to suffer? Has anyone else gone through this before?

All of these questions are reasonable ones to ask. These questions are answered in the subthemes that present themselves in 1 Peter.

To summarize, in this book about suffering, we also see multiple subthemes that are answers to suffering:

Protection
Permanence
Life
Reward
Encouragement

Subtheme 1: Protection

To discover this first subtheme, highlight all terms in 1 Peter related to protection in a new color—I’ll use pink.

Here are the concepts along with the verses (in parentheses) that you should highlight:

We have reservations in heaven. (1:4)
God protects (shields) us by His power through faith. (1:5)
God keeps watch over⁹ our souls. (2:25; 4:19)
We can’t be harmed. (3:13)
God has power, and He provides us with strength, too. (4:11; 5:11)
Protection of shepherds (referring to protected given by God via pastors/overseers within the church). (5:2)
God’s mighty hand. (5:6)
God will secure and strengthen you. (5:10)

Who through faith are shielded by God’s power …
—1 Peter 1:5a BSB

Subtheme 2: Permanence

In addition to protection, there’s a subtheme of permanence: some things will last (survive) beyond your suffering (which is, by contrast, temporary). I will highlight these protection words or ideas in blue:

Our inheritance is imperishable and will not fade away. (1:4)
Our sufferings, in comparison, are only for “a little while.” (1:6; 5:10)
Faith that endures is more lasting than gold, which perishes even though it can withstand fire. (1:7)
We’re redeemed with something imperishable (Jesus and His blood shed on the cross) that has a permanence stretching back into the past, even before the foundation of the world. (1:18–20)
The thing through which we were born again (the Word of God) is imperishable; it lasts forever and cannot die. (1:23–25)
We’ll never be put to shame (we have a permanent standing). (2:6)
We have an unfading beauty. (3:4)
God’s power (and glory) are “forever and ever” (permanent). (4:11; 5:11)
There’s a crown of glory that will “never fade.” (5:4)

For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life you inherited from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ …
—1 Peter 1:18 BSB

Subtheme 3: Life

There’s hope of life beyond our suffering. With this subtheme, unsurprisingly, we’ll see some overlap with the previous one, as the idea of something permanent—“imperishable” as Peter puts it more than once—is that it cannot die; it lives (has life) eternally.

Highlight the following words, phrases, or concepts related to life and living (in the corresponding 1 Peter verses in parentheses) in green:

God has already shown us His power to turn death into life by causing us to be born again in Jesus Christ. (1:3)
Our hope is a “living hope” inasmuch as Jesus, our hope, is not dead but has resurrected from the dead. (1:3)
Our inheritance is imperishable (it cannot die). (1:4; you’ll now have this double-highlighted in blue and green)
Our souls (lives) are saved as a result of faith. (1:9)
God raised Jesus from the dead (unto life). (1:21)
As we’ve already seen, the thing through which we were born again (the Word of God) is “imperishable.” (1:23–25; this is another double-highlight, with blue and green)
Like newborns, we grow up (have life) into salvation. (2:2)
We’re like living stones, being built into a spiritual house. (2:4–5)
We live in freedom; oddly enough, that life in freedom is life as a servant—a servant (of God). (2:16)
We’re to “live to righteousness.” (2:24)
We’re given the “gracious gift of life.” (3:7)
Peter mentions what we’re to do if we “love life.” (3:10)
We’re to “live … for the will of God.” (4:2)

By His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead …
—1 Peter 1:3 BSB

Subtheme 4: Reward (Judgment)

Our new life in Christ results in “an inheritance” that never fades, according to 1 Peter 1:4. That’s the language of reward. And we receive reward via judgment (which we’ll talk more about later, when we discuss the elementary principle of eternal judgment).

Let’s trace this theme through the whole letter using a yellow highlighter:

As mentioned, our new life results in an inheritance. (1:4)
Faith that endures will result in the reward of “praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” (1:7)
We’ll receive these rewards via an impartial judge: “a Father who judges each one’s work impartially.” (1:17)
There is reward in unjust suffering; the unjust sufferer finds favor with God. (2:19–20)
Those who suffer (including being insulted) for the sake of righteousness receive a blessing (reward). (3:14; 4:14)
We’re called to “inherit a blessing.” (3:9)
There will be judgment; people will have to give an account to God, who will judge the living and the dead (that’s why the gospel was preached even to those now dead).¹⁰ (4:5–6; 4:17)
We’re promised that we’ll be partakers of future glory. (5:1)
We’ll receive the “crown of glory” that will never fade. (5:4)
There’s a promise of being exalted if you humble ourselves under God’s mighty hand. (5:6)

But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God.
—1 Peter 2:20 BSB

Subtheme 5: Encouragement (Examples)

In the midst of suffering, we need encouragement. We need examples of those who have suffered well.

Those who read 1 Peter are encouraged to lift their eyes from present problems and trials and behold the vistas provided by an eternal perspective.
—R. M. Raymer (Commentator)¹¹

This theme could distract us. Part of the encouragement in 1 Peter, and across the New Testament as a whole, is the idea that we’re chosen by God.¹² Setting predestination debates aside, there’s this idea of choice—we’re God’s choice people. If you think you’re getting a raw deal in all this suffering, take comfort in that fact that, even if you’re undergoing difficulties, even if you don’t feel chosen, remember that you are. Let the world give its message about you, but you are chosen in God’s eyes because of Christ.

There are other encouragements in 1 Peter, though. Here they are, along with their verses in parentheses:

Because of the promises of God, we “greatly rejoice” even in suffering. (1:6)
Our suffering is not a surprise to God; He is prepared to handle it. He foreknew (predicted) the sufferings of Christ in advance, and insofar as we’re in Him and identified with His sufferings, He knows our sufferings in advance as well.¹³ (1:11)
We’re encouraged and blessed to live in a time in which the gospel is preached to us by the Holy Spirit from heaven through the words of Scripture. (1:12)
We have this example of how to suffer: “set your hope fully on the … [future] revelation of Jesus Christ.” (1:13)
Christ is our example; He suffered for us, and His suffering resulted in glory. (1:11b; 1:21; 2:21–25; 4:1; 4:12–13; 4:16)
The Great Commandments (to love God and others) are still possible amidst suffering; we can maintain purity even while suffering. (1:22)
God is in the business of reversing fortunes. (2:7)
We have been given gifts. (4:10–11)
God is good and takes notice of our suffering. (4:19)
He has given us the example of good leaders. (5:3)
We’re not alone in our suffering. Brothers and sisters in Christ throughout the world are suffering similar things. (This isn’t an excitement about their suffering—“Oh, you’re suffering, too? Good!” Rather, it’s an encouragement that we’re not being singled out. We’re all called to suffer; we’re still chosen in His eyes, and He wants good things for us and to reward us.) (5:9)
Our end is perfection, confirmation, strengthening, and establishment. (5:10)
Whatever happens, suffering is not an argument against God’s truth or against God’s grace. We should “stand firm in it,” Peter says. (5:12)

I have written to you briefly, encouraging you and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Stand firm in it.
—1 Peter 5:12 BSB

Theme Review

Click on the image to view a copy of the pages that were being marked during the initial giving of the sermon.

Assessment

We’ve established a main theme (suffering) and five subthemes of 1 Peter. Where does this leave us? I hope you have the beginnings of a better understanding of this book. We’ll never understand any book of the Bible completely. There’s always more to explore until the Lord calls us home.

Coupled with that, I hope you have an awareness that there’s more to this letter than you initially realized. Because you (I hope) marked up a hard copy of this section of God’s Word, you also have a tangible resource that you can continue to reference. When you need encouraging, come back to this book; on a gloomy day, look at all the orange you highlighted.

I hope this exercise was also a valuable investment of time, even if you never understand what Peter is saying about baptism in this letter. (I haven’t forgotten we’re in the middle of a baptism series, that this all started with a question about Peter’s reference to baptism in 1 Peter 3.) There’s tremendous value in being able to say, in the face of suffering, there’s a place I can go in God’s Word for a message about protection, permanence, life, and reward—a letter that has great encouragement for us, no matter what we’re going through.

I resisted the temptation to preach on each of the above subthemes. I want to be disciplined enough to relate this odd verse about baptism to everything we’ve just seen in 1 Peter. Hold on to this big-picture idea as we return to that question in the next sermon. Understanding a specific verse is possible through understanding a whole letter. In this process of understanding, we open up vistas previously unseen to us. There is no wasted time in Scripture study.

Understanding a specific verse is possible through understanding a whole letter.

Applications

I’ll close with two general, evergreen applications:

Find a study space. Make it yours. Make it personal. Make it a little messy—junk up your desk with resources, pens, and highlighters.
Get into a small book. Don’t start with a book like Ezekiel! Find manageable themes. Read and reread; know the book backwards and forwards. If there’s a passage you’ve struggled with, one you keep spinning around on, wondering what it means, take the method we just learned to the text. (Get some ink on your fingers as you mark it up!) Find themes—building blocks for understanding structure and layout. That’s the clue to meaning.

I call your attention to the rainbow on the cover of the 1 Peter resource we just marked up. The rainbow is a reminder of God’s promise not to destroy the world via water.¹⁴

Now you’ve got a rainbow of highlights on the inside, too, and these words contain the promises of life.

Reflection Questions to Ponder (or Discuss with Someone)

What are your own Bible study habits? Reading is good, but I urge you to excel beyond that. (Remember the words of the writer of Hebrews that began our larger oracles of God study: “Come on! You ought to be teachers by now!” [5:12, paraphrased].) If you’ve found a rhythm for regular Bible study, share it with a younger believer you know. If you’re discouraged by your study habits, share that with another believer who you know is strong in study and ask what their practices are. The fact is, you’ll have more time for study in certain seasons of life, but just because you’re in a tough season—maybe you have small kids at home, for example—doesn’t mean you can’t take in something from the Word. Parents both need to be involved in Scripture study for the household. That (wonderful!) burden often falls to the mother, but fathers should also be engaged in Scripture study for the household. And if you’re a father, take the kids out of the house sometimes so your wife can study. Find the time. Try not to be discouraged by the seasons.
What’s stopping you? The world wants to choke out the Word. Distractions will come this week. The enemy wants to take up the seed that’s been scattered around. He seeks to devour you (1 Peter 5:8), especially if you devour God’s Word. Resist him! Stand firm. Engage the Word.
What did you learn or find valuable in the systematic approach discussed above?
Which subtheme appeals to you most regarding suffering (protection, permanence, life, reward, or encouragement)? Why?

1
The text is from the Berean Bible; cover art is a mosaic from St. Paul's Cathedral. All text and imagery used by permission. Bible text: The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible; BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee. This text of God's Word has been dedicated to the public domain. Cover art: Copyright, Fr Lawrence Lew, O. P. (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 DEED, Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International)

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