Was Peter Right?

Good morning, everyone. Today, we continue with 1 Peter, chapter 5, which is also the final chapter of 1 Peter. I pondered for a long time, and I wasn't sure what else I should say. So, I gave it a title: "Was Peter Right?" In fact, we should all have this attitude: after we've said a lot, were we right? Did we make ourselves clear? This is a very good habit.

It's not just about whether Peter was right, but also whether this pastor is right. I'm not afraid of that. Don't think that if you ask me, "Teacher, is what you're saying correct?" I'll get angry. I won't get angry; I'm not that petty. Because I'm very clear that I'm not the one who possesses the truth. I'm also constantly exploring to understand. I also encourage everyone to have the same determination to seek, especially with the sermons I've been giving recently, which are about seeking God.

Is it Suffering for Christ? Is There Glory in This Kind of Suffering?

Therefore, as a fellow elder and a witness of Christ’s sufferings, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed, I exhort the elders among you (1 Peter 5:1).

What was Peter doing when he wrote this book? 1 Peter is to exhort those who are fellow elders with him, to exhort them to be witnesses of Christ's suffering and to share in the glory that is to be revealed later. I'll leave the second sentence for now and address it in the next question. What kind of suffering is this? Today, I want to talk to you about and sort out the suffering that Peter endured.

When the Holy Spirit descended at Pentecost, Peter began something called being filled with the Holy Spirit. This was a very good thing. At that time, he gave a sermon, and several thousand people believed in the Lord. Later, he gave another sermon, and again, several thousand people believed. If our church today gave a sermon and several thousand people believed, would you think that's a good thing or a bad thing? We won't say for now whether it was a good thing or a bad thing that Peter brought several thousand people to believe, but the subsequent developments gave us the answer.

The subsequent development was that the entire Jerusalem church sold their possessions, and then everyone ate together, breaking bread all day long. I was wondering, did they not go to work? Did they not do any labor? Then they just ate, turning the church into a cafeteria, and everything was held in common. As a result, many conflicts arose. Why? Some people ate too much, some ate too little, some contributed more, some contributed less, and everything was in chaos. Was that a church?

Later, seven deacons were chosen, and then Peter said, "I am a great apostle; it is not right for me to manage food. I should concentrate my time on prayer and preaching." As this matter progressed, there were things like the lame walking, which were all good. But was he doing the right thing in establishing the church? Peter never asked this question. He was very confident that it was absolutely right.

As a result, the church in Jerusalem encountered persecution. I ask everyone: who was persecuting them? Was it the devil persecuting them, or was it God persecuting them? The subsequent development of the story gave us a clear answer. In fact, God was very dissatisfied with this. How could you turn God's church into this? Is the church a place to eat and drink? Is the church a place where everything is held in common? Everything was in chaos. This persecution was significant because the church in Jerusalem was scattered. After being scattered, a group of people ran to Antioch.

At this time, an event occurred: Peter was arrested and put in prison, and everyone prayed for Peter. Peter was brought out by an angel, and then he saw them still praying. This was the persecution of the church. But from then on, a very strange thing happened: Peter was no longer the leader, and he gave the position of church leader to James, the brother of Jesus Christ. No one knows what happened in this story. Why was he arrested? Why did he step down to second place? We can't say for sure why. But no matter what, God chose another person named Paul. God chose Paul and raised him up to build His glorious church.

But the church that Paul built was completely different from the one that Peter built. So, in this world, there is the Jerusalem church model and the Antioch church model. One is the church built by Peter, where everything is held in common, eating and drinking, which is not called church revival. I think later there were many Pharisees in the Jerusalem church who went everywhere to create chaos and strife in the churches built by Paul. Then I ask everyone, did the persecution that Peter encountered come from God or from the devil? I tell you, it came from God. If it didn't stop, it would become more and more corrupt. I ask everyone: what testimony is there in suffering this kind of suffering? What glory is there in this kind of suffering? There is none.

In fact, Peter later wandered around to various churches. If you read Paul's epistles, you will find that this matter is a bit strange. Explicitly and implicitly, Paul's epistles belittled Peter. The tone was very strong. For example, Peter was being a hypocrite. Anyway, in Paul's eyes, Peter was just causing trouble. The church in Corinth had those who belonged to Cephas, those who belonged to Apollos, and those who belonged to Paul, which caused this. Then I ask everyone: did Peter go to the church in Corinth? Aren't you an apostle to the Jews? What are you doing in the church in Corinth? They divided the work very well: Paul went to the Gentiles, and Peter preached the gospel to the Jews.

But later, the Jewish churches basically all failed, and Peter had nowhere to go. He had no income, and life was not good. So, what to do? In fact, in the current church, Peter's habit is still retained. He goes to other people's churches to give a sermon, and the church gives him some love offerings. That's how it is, making a living this way. Does he suffer? Yes, he suffers. Is it hard? Yes, it's hard. Why? He does this all day long. Paul built the church, and he went there to be invited to give a sermon. Does the church have pastoral care? Is the church just about giving a sermon?

What kind of suffering is this? Did Peter suffer later? Yes, he suffered, but is this a testimony of suffering for Christ? I don't think so. Sharing in the glory that is to be revealed later, is it the glory that is revealed later? Our brothers and sisters must know that through studying the epistles of the Apostle Paul, through studying the Old and New Testaments of the Bible, and through my own view of this salvation, it is not seeing God's glory after death, but living out God's glory while alive.

So sometimes, I also belittle Peter quite a bit. Does he have a pursuit of eternal life? He has a pursuit of eternal life, but is he doing it right? He never asks himself. Many of our brothers and sisters are like Peter, with Peter's nature flowing in them, never thinking that they have a problem. Then I ask you, what have you grown in this past year? The same as last year. What about the year before? What have you grown in these past two years? Are you doing everything right? If you feel that you are not doing it right, haven't you found a point of growth? Isn't that right? This year is the same as last year, last year is the same as the year before, the year before is the same as the year before that, and the year before that is the same as the year before that. How can you grow? How many wrong things have you done?

So I tell you, Peter is not a person with a concept of growth. He is not the kind of logic of living out God's glory while alive. It was later, and we don't know how long that later was, whether it was after death, we don't know. Then what glory that is to be revealed later does Peter enjoy? The church is failing, and the pastoral care is not successful. He is pastoring very poorly. Why? The reason is also very simple: he only has a few tricks up his sleeve. Is there any glory in this? I tell you, there is no glory in it. He failed the church, and Jesus didn't hold him accountable. Jesus gave a persecution, so the church in Jerusalem failed. Everyone doesn't do anything, everything is held in common, eating and drinking together. It would be strange if it didn't fail. Is that God's teaching? When did anyone teach you to build a church like this?

To put it bluntly, it's a bit silly, with no knowledge in the brain. Later, someone learned it and invented communism, everything held in common. That era failed, so I ask you: will everything held in common fail? It will also fail. If you keep doing it, it will fail. So if you do it wrong, can there be glory? I am very surprised. It's good enough that God doesn't hold you accountable. Has everyone learned? So you must often ask yourself: am I doing this right? If you always think that you are doing everything completely right, who are you if you're not Peter? You have become Peter.

What is Pastoring?

Shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock. And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory (1 Peter 5:2-4).

How was Peter's pastoring? I didn't see Peter pastoring anything. I really don't know how Peter's pastoring was. How could it be good? There are many stories later. Mark, whom Peter calls my son, followed for a while and then stopped following Peter. Following was actually running on both sides. If you don't give Peter some face, you can't get over it in your heart. If you give Peter some face, he really can't stand that stuff. Mark was a cultured person. You can imagine that Mark was educated, a wealthy young man, who went to good schools, and then became Peter's secretary. So how did the Gospel of Mark come about? It was Peter's preaching that was organized and written by Mark's hand, resulting in the Gospel of Mark.

Peter's pastoring was very poor. He didn't have the concept of pastoring in him. He didn't pastor much at all and didn't know how. So where did Mark go? He went to Barnabas, and later to Paul. So Paul retrained Mark, dealing with those absurd logics in him one by one. It's not easy. You think, it's so much effort to teach someone Peter taught to Paul. That's why he followed Paul out the first time, and then Paul never took him again. Why? He had a lot of problems, a bunch of Peter's stuff, which is very difficult. Later, Mark deeply repented, and Paul took him in again. That's the relationship.

Shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock (1 Peter 5:2-3).

When I read what Peter said, I thought, what kind of example is this? An example of suffering. Isn't that how the theology of suffering in the previous chapter came about? An example of suffering, that's not to say that the matter of pastoring is done right. In fact, there is a bit of a flavor in this teaching, this mentality, if you read carefully, it's as if you are making a great contribution to God.

Still, he serves as a suffering example. One thing I dislike most is acting as if I am helping God, as if making a great contribution to Him.

"And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away." (1 Peter 5:4)

If you revisit the teachings of the Apostle Paul, he states: "This is your reasonable service." My view? Service is a grace. But with Peter, it seems like a grand sacrifice. There's a problem with this notion; God truly needs no help. What does God need? Your collaboration with Him in shepherding, which is not a drudgery.

Peter operates on a logic of lacking merit but possessing toil. However, I share a concept: I have no concept of toil. If you toil away and err, I might hold you accountable. To err proficiently is laborious, and I must rectify it, adding to my burden. What deeds did Peter accomplish, yet he deems himself hardworking?

Brothers and sisters, be cautious. Is it a sacrifice? No. Many of you shepherd small groups in local churches, and our content is widely used by smaller congregations. If this concept remains unchanged, you will suffer. Why? Can you avoid suffering when helping God? God will make your life bitter. Shepherding is not a sacrifice but a gain. Over the years, our church's small group leaders rarely change. However, I've seen churches where small group leaders "help" God, burning out within years, becoming spiritually barren.

Can shepherding lead to barrenness? If you view it as helping God, you'll be weary. Some fervently pray for God to change their pastors or churches. What are they doing? Are they competing with God? Telling God how to act? Demanding God to act according to their will? We often fail to ask ourselves: "Is my approach correct?" Peter, too, failed to question his shepherding. 1 Peter, in its entirety, conveys that work is a grace.

I am often struck by the way some perform in their jobs. A young high school principal reminded our pastors of my teachings. The worst is an incompetent yet diligent teacher, working tirelessly from seven in the morning until eleven at night. Is that right? There's not that much work. I cannot bear it because they are erring. If children learn from them, they will be ruined.

Careful study reveals that learning, when approached correctly, requires little time. If you believe in "Heaven rewards diligence," and err proficiently without self-reflection, you become foolish. The principal urged incompetent teachers to cease their diligence, believing they could compensate for mistakes through hard work. Being both foolish and diligent is troublesome; it's not foolishness but a lack of reflection.

Shepherding is a grace. A pastor with brain cancer attributed it to his hard work. Remember, if you toil to the point of brain cancer, you are erring. My colleagues rarely contradict me. If someone claims to be hardworking, I point out their errors and potential accountability. They mistake their great failures for great contributions.

Under my guidance, our small group leaders and pastoral staff do not work themselves to exhaustion. If you do, unbeknownst to me, I do not appreciate it. I prefer composure and correctness. Why create so much work?

I often ponder that if you frequently ask, "Am I doing this right?" you will become wiser. If you ask, "Teacher, am I doing this right?" I will likely point out your errors. If you boast about your accomplishments, I will find numerous flaws. You may think you've done well, but I see many missteps, perhaps mirroring my mistakes from three years ago, which I have since outgrown.

What is shepherding? The key is to practice God's Word. Knowing its effectiveness, share it with others, unlike Peter, who nearly ruined the church, driving his flock to Paul. I tell you, I did not emulate Peter. Shepherding enhances value and God's image. Value is not merely monetary; it involves creating value. As Jesus said:

"His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!'" (Matthew 25:21)

Are you listening? You are my talents, given to me by God. If you live in abject poverty, with a leaky roof, there is a problem.

Why are people poor? They lack value. Perhaps you are not a talent but a stone. Give it to me, and I will transform it into a talent, even into gold. The value is entirely different. I love hearing testimonies of growth. Your growth is my greatest comfort, surpassing gifts.

If someone overcomes depression, finds joy, and creates value, escaping poverty instead of relying on welfare, I will help them escape poverty, ignorance, and self-righteousness. Enhancing value is fulfilling and joyful. Can such a shepherd burn out? I am constantly happy. If our small group leaders are exhausted, I address their exhaustion first.

If they believe they are making great contributions while exhausted, everything is skewed. If I, too, become exhausted and develop brain cancer, everything is skewed. What glory is there in such suffering? Verse 4 mentions receiving an unfading crown of glory when the Chief Shepherd appears, which is perplexing.

What is Submission? What is Humility?

"In the same way, you who are younger, submit yourselves to your elders. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, 'God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.' Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time." (1 Peter 5:5-6)

It's strange that the younger should submit to the older. Is it because the older have more experience? If so, how would Timothy act? Peter's words would confuse Timothy: "The younger must submit to the older. I am seventy, you are seventeen; you must submit to me. I have more experience, but how many words do you know? How much truth do you understand?" Timothy would be bewildered.

Does this teaching make sense? It does, because it's not about age but about spiritual maturity. Those with less spiritual maturity should submit to those with greater spiritual maturity. But wouldn't that create chaos? Should one submit to someone merely because they are older and bearded like Marx? They might ruin the church.

Then, you must submit to one another. A mother submits to her daughter, and the daughter demands submission from her mother. What kind of teaching is this? Does Peter know what he's teaching? A mother disciplines her daughter's flesh because she is immature, but the daughter says, "You are not humble; you should submit to me." The mother is confused because 1 Peter says to submit to one another. "You are a proud mother, and God opposes proud mothers. Can you be more humble?" How can this teaching be applied?

Brothers and sisters, relationships must not be inverted; authority is non-negotiable. A mother must act like a mother, and a child must act like a child. Why are you hitting me? What if I hit you? Many mothers try to reason with their children, only to find themselves without reason. The child, reading 1 Peter, demands humility. "Can you submit to God's mighty hand? Why are you hitting me?" Everything is chaotic.

How did Peter nearly ruin the church? Through this logic. He never asked himself, "Am I speaking correctly?" God told him to build the church on the rock, saying, "You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church." How did Peter build it? Chaotically. Humility and submission were all done incorrectly.

Many err, thinking they are humble because they believe in mutual submission. Even now, many churches have chaotic relationships. I knew of a terrible member who stormed into the senior pastor's office and berated him. The pastor, however, was wise. Some wanted to have him removed by security, but the pastor said, "No, no. Since he's here, we must resolve this peacefully. Removing him would only create more trouble." The pastor knelt before the man, confessing and repenting, resolving the chaos. Thankfully, I have not encountered such a situation. What is this called humility?

**Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you. (1 Peter 5:6-7)**

If I am a lackadaisical pastor, how can I shepherd well? Am I, in my weakness, to simply hand over my responsibilities to God? This sounds familiar, doesn't it? Especially if you come from various churches. God gives you work, you hand it over to Him; God gives you more work, you hand it over again. What exactly are you doing? What is your purpose? I am to humble myself, to submit under God's mighty hand, and even my responsibilities are to be handed over? Isn't that like old Eli? Ignoring his sons' misdeeds? Isn't that the responsibility you should bear? Samuel's sons misbehaved, but Samuel managed them. Some ask: How do you know he managed them? How could Samuel not manage them?

This is the crux of the matter. What is obedience? Obedience is obedience to the Word of God. Write this down. You can challenge me; you don't need to obey me, but you need to obey the Word of God. What is humility? Humility is not believing in people, nor believing in their words, but believing in God's Word. To say that what is impossible for man is also impossible for God is not humility. To say that what is impossible for man is possible for God is humility.

Some say: "Hey! That's impossible." Is that humility? No. Some say: "Building a church according to God's Word? Impossible." What kind of talk is that? Others say: "Building a church according to the Apostle Paul's model? How is that possible?" Following Jesus' words to be a disciple? How is that possible? Who can forsake their wife? Who can forsake their children? Who can forsake themselves? Oh my goodness, why is it impossible? Because these people haven't understood the Bible.

**And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for My name’s sake, shall receive a hundredfold, and inherit eternal life. (Matthew 19:29)**

Is this forsaking or gaining? It is gaining. So Peter's confusion didn't start with writing 1 Peter; he was a confused fellow even during Jesus' time, not pursuing holiness. So when you see those who don't pursue holiness, speaking and acting recklessly, that's probably Peter. What is obedience? Obedience to God's Word. What is humility? Believing in God's Word. Understand? It's not saying: "Oh, sister, I'm wrong, you're right." That's feigned humility, useless.

## Is the Devil Really That Powerful?

**Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world. But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. (1 Peter 5:8-10)**

I tell you, what's the problem with this passage? In Peter's theological system, angels are very powerful, and devils are also very powerful. Is that the case? And between the lines, suffering comes from the devil. But from my analysis, from my sorting out, I find that Peter's suffering didn't come from the devil, but from God. If God wants to create some suffering in Job's life, what happens? The devil goes to God and says: "God, can I go and mess with him?" God says: "Go ahead." Only then does the devil go. If God says no, the devil can't touch him.

The problem here is, everyone must understand that the devil isn't that powerful. Exaggerating the devil as "seeking whom he may devour, like a roaring lion" is problematic. Today, I must tell you that in the Old Testament, you can trample on the great serpent and the lion. Understand? Is the lion more powerful or is man more powerful? God's people should be able to trample on the great serpent and the lion. Peter's understanding of God is flawed, and his understanding of the devil is also flawed.

Actually, the earliest devil wasn't a roaring lion, saying: "Adam, I'll bite you to death; Eve, I'll bite you to death." It wasn't like that. Even now, ghosts aren't like that. If you're walking down the street and suddenly see a headless, floating white robe, don't be afraid. What's there to fear? We should be afraid of people. I'm not afraid of ghosts. Why should I be afraid of ghosts? Ghosts couldn't do anything to me when I was alive; how could they do anything to me when I'm dead? That's not scary. Even today, people live with absurd understandings of ghosts. Actually, someone is holding a bamboo pole and running underneath, wearing black clothes so you can't see them. We should be afraid of people, especially robbers, people with knives. That's scary.

What's so scary about zombies? So the devil's first lie is "the devil is like a roaring lion." The devil's power lies in the lies it releases. Among all the animals God created, the serpent is the most cunning. So the first thing it did was encourage Adam and Eve to eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. It wasn't a poisonous snake that bit Adam and Eve to death; it just told Adam and Eve: "Go ahead and eat it, it's good. After you eat it, you'll be like God." As a result, after they ate it, they became like devils. So what's the problem? Suffering doesn't come from the devil; suffering comes from the flesh. The more carnal a person is, the more they love this world, the more pain the devil will cause you. That's the logic.

If the concepts inside a person aren't changed, nothing can be changed. Regarding suffering, first, the devil isn't scary. It's not like a roaring lion that you can recognize at a glance. What's scary is the devil's lies. Second, pain and suffering don't come from the devil. Remember, suffering comes from a person's carnality. Actually, the most critical process in a person's faith is mortifying the deeds of the flesh.

The more carnal a person is, the more pain they will experience. This kind of pain has no glory. The more a person loves the world, the more pain they will experience. This kind of pain has no glory. Don't pass the buck to the devil. Passing the buck to the devil might give you some comfort, give you some confidence, but we must slowly mortify the flesh. The flesh and inviting devils are the same thing.

Peter's pain didn't come from a roaring lion. Where did it come from? It came from not building the church properly according to God's Word, not growing and shepherding properly. And he had a flawed logic, thinking he had done his best. Peter thought: "Although I messed up the church, I still put in the effort." He thought his hard work had God's glory. There's no such thing! In the end, Peter was like a piece of firewood pulled from the fire, almost burned up, very painful. So all of man's curses come from disobeying God's Word, not from the devil. A carnal person is an enemy of God. Think about it, is that serious? A person who mortifies the flesh, even in prison, is joyful. That's not pain.

Peter used to think believing in the Lord was very painful. Even now, many Christians find believing very painful, and they still think they have glory. Actually, they're missing a screw in their heads. They haven't thought: "Am I doing this right?" Pain doesn't come from the devil; it comes from God. Let me explain another one to you. Was Saul in pain? Saul was in great pain. Why? Because the Spirit of God had left him, and an evil spirit from the Lord tormented him. Was that devil powerful, or was God powerful? Actually, it was sent by God. If you read the Bible carefully, it's all like this. God transcends the devil; the devil isn't more powerful than God. This logic might not have been corrected even today.

**Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world. (1 Peter 5:8-9)**

Be vigilant about what? Actually, we sometimes exaggerate the devil too much. As long as we do our best to shatter our carnal and worldly logic system, the devil will collapse on its own.

## Has This Grace Been Proven?

**By Silvanus, our faithful brother as I consider him, I have written to you briefly, exhorting and testifying that this is the true grace of God in which you stand. (1 Peter 5:12)**

What do I think Peter wrote this letter for? Were contemporary Christians being persecuted? Yes, they were. His tone is completely different from Paul's. And what is he doing here? Exhorting you and testifying that this is the true grace of God. What is true grace? What Peter wrote about is the grace of suffering. Even today, the theology of suffering is very prevalent in the church, but much suffering isn't God's will. This kind of suffering has no glory from God. Peter doesn't have Joseph's capacity; he isn't Joseph. Even Joseph being sold into Egypt, what did he do? He didn't say he was suffering to death there. What exactly is a Christian suffering to death? I think this is worth pondering.

Some say: "Teacher, I'm very tired." I say: "Why are you tired?" He says: "Oh, they're all fighting with me for the family property. I got so little, they got so much. Oh well, I forgive them." Doesn't that sound strange? Can you hear the flavor of that? Very painful. Why? Painful because what should have been obtained wasn't obtained, and what shouldn't have been obtained wasn't obtained, so it's also painful. Some say: "Teacher, I'm very upset recently." I say: "What's wrong?" He says: "The sugar daddy who was giving me money is ignoring me." It's all these things. Exhorting you and testifying that this is the true grace of God. What kind of grace is this? The grace of suffering. Actually, much of our suffering has no glory.

It's that we haven't stood firm in the grace of mortifying the flesh. Actually, by the Holy Spirit, mortifying the passions and desires of the flesh, this is our salvation. While alive, we can live out God's glorious image. I'm very moved. What Peter wrote, I didn't dare say he was wrong. I only said: "Is what he said right?" Don't argue with me. I left a little leeway, which is that I didn't want to directly say that what he said was wrong, but I said there's clearly something wrong with it. Thank God! We won't be confused by these things.

I must tell you, if you're suffering, what exactly is it? Are you doing things right? You messed up the work, and you still think you worked hard. I have no merit, but I have hard work. Hard work doesn't count! Then you say: "Hard work doesn't count? I'm very condemned and discouraged after hearing what you said. You've ruined my faith." No, I've ruined the false faith inside you.

May God bless everyone!