Standing Firm in Christ
“Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, [7] casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. [8] Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. [9] Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. [10] And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. [11] To him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen.”
Having a background in the military, I always appreciate the battle language used in scripture regarding the Christian faith. Paul says in Ephesians 6:12 that “our struggle is not” (NASB) or “we do not wrestle” (ESV) against flesh and blood but instead against the rulers, powers, world forces of darkness and spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Paul follows that reality with the command to prepare for battle by putting on the full armor of God (Ephesians 6:13-18).
Here in 1 Peter 5:6-11 we see Peter giving a list of commands using similar battle language. Peter authoritatively exhorts believers to “humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God,” to “cast all our anxieties on him (God),” to “be of sober spirit,” and “to be on the alert.” In this context, Peter is writing to believers during a time of intense persecution, and he is working to encourage and strengthen them in the truths of the Lord. I can imagine that in that time, the initial perception for believers was that their struggle was against “flesh and blood,” having been oppressed by people who disagreed with their beliefs and practices. But the apostles knew that their battle was against Satan and his forces, the “worldly and spiritual forces of darkness,” as Paul stated in Ephesians. In that time, evil was relentlessly at work seeking any means to snuff out all efforts to spread the gospel of Christ.
So, in an intense time of persecution, Peter was commanding believers to stay strong in the faith by first humbling themselves under the mighty hand of God (v.6). In that humble submission, believers commit themselves to the sovereign hand of God. They submit to His full control over their situations. They don’t fight him and try to do things in their own power. Peter’s next step, after that call to humility and submission, is to "cast all your anxieties on him (God).” The language here means to “throw something onto another something.” When we cast our anxieties on God, we fully let go of the things that weigh us down and we fully trust in Him. Complete humility and submission to God ties directly into one’s ability to cast their anxieties onto Him. Trusting in someone requires an attitude of humility and submission. Verse 7 then ends with the comforting reassurance that God cares for us. We can cast our cares and anxieties onto Him because He cares for us.
“Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.”
Then, in verse 8, Peter commands believers to be “sober-minded” and to be “watchful” or to be on the alert. Being sober minded here means to be of a clear mind, to have a clear conscience, and to be calm and collected in spirit. We can maintain a state of clarity in our minds and remain calm and collected in spirit only after our anxieties are thrown onto our Lord. Having a state of calmness and collectedness in our spirit, we will not be weighed down by the cares of the world. Also, while in this state, we are then able to be on the alert. Why do we need to be on the alert? Because as it says in verse 8, our enemy “the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” Prey is easily overcome by the predator when it is distracted, disoriented, lost and weak. Believers are easy targets for Satan when they are not in humble submission to the Lord, are full of anxiety over things they cannot control, are not sober in their minds, and are not alert because of all of life’s worldly distractions.
Moving into verse 9, Peter says believers can resist the devil by standing firm in their faith. The language to resist is to oppose, to stand against--not to hide, separate or shrink back in fear. We must stand firm in Christ--not only in spirit, but also in our minds. To stand firm is to be fixed and unmoved. Using battle terminology again, this would mean to hold your ground and not give up any territory. The image here is to fight, to push back, and to gain ground against the enemy.
I believe this ties into the sermon from Easter Sunday in which Colossians 2:6-8 (NASB) says:
“Therefore, as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, [7] having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude. [8] See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception in accordance with human tradition, in accordance with the elementary principles of the world, rather than in accordance with Christ.”
How do we stand firm in our faith? We do so by standing firm in Christ and by avoiding worldly philosophy and empty deception. How do we avoid the attacks of the devil? We become firmly rooted in the knowledge of Christ and the practice of His truth. We read and study scripture (the Holy Bible, God's word) and lean on it as our only source of truth against the powers of worldly darkness. Scripture is the ultimate authority and anything that is contrary to scripture has the potential to deceive us, to lead us astray, and makes us vulnerable to the enemy’s attacks (Colossians 2:8). Anything presented outside of scripture that masquerades as truth, knowledge, revelation, visions, or new ideas and concepts, must be scrutinized against God’s word. If it doesn’t align with or confirm scripture, it is false, a deception, and we must deny it.
As we come off this Easter weekend and we reflect on the power of the risen Lord, we should be moved to a deep awe and wonder for how awesome the gospel message is, how awesome and powerful God is, and how awesome His plan for us is! We should find immeasurable rest in knowing that his power overcomes our adversity, troubles, trials, persecution, sadness, depression, sin, sorrow, etc. We, in humble submission to the risen Lord, can cast our anxieties on Him, and He is faithful to take them from us, because He cares for us (v.7). He cared for us enough to die for us, to take on the full force of God’s wrath on our behalf, atoning for our sin so that He can stand in the impassable gap interceding on our behalf for our wellbeing both mentally and spiritually. This is done so that we can, by His strength and wisdom, remain sober in spirit, having a clear mind and a clear conscience and then we can be on the alert against our adversary, the devil himself. In Christ, we are able to resist the schemes of Satan and his army by holding fast and standing firm in our faith so that we can endure all that this life throws at us, and in that victory, we can effectively remain steadfast in our pursuit of aligning to God’s will.
Peter ends verse 10 with the assurance that though we will suffer in this life, when we endure, after a little while, “the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.” What great hope is that? We can rest in knowing that, in Christ, no matter what this life throws at us, we have the God of all creation, the God of infinite power, grace, love, patience, and mercy, on our side. With Jesus as our Lord, we are in a battle we cannot lose. And as Romans 8 so famously says:
“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. [29] For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. [30] And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. [31] What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? [32] He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? [33] Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. [34] Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died-more than that, who was raised-who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. [35] Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? [36] As it is written,
”For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”
[37] No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. [38] For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, [39] nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
In Christ, we know we are on the winning side. God’s will cannot be thwarted, altered, or undone! He has, and does, and will prevail in all things! We, having put our full trust in Him will prevail with Him! We have nothing to fear--we only need to “Trust and obey, for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.”
