1 Peter 5:8-11

“Be sober and alert. Your enemy the devil, like a roaring lion, is on the prowl looking for someone to devour. Resist him, strong in your faith, because you know that your brothers and sisters throughout the world are enduring the same kinds of suffering. And, after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace who called you to his eternal glory in Christ will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. To him belongs the power forever. Amen.”

— ‭‭1 Peter‬ ‭5‬:‭8‬-‭11‬‬ 

The humility and dependence on God of the previous verses must inform this paragraph as well. We cannot fulfill these commands on our own power/strength.

Alert/awake. Engaged in thought and action. This probably is the same train of thought as Paul’s renewal of the mind. Christianity is not a passive, go with the flow mindset. We are counter cultural by nature, even though that does not mean we are anti-people. (I know we can easily confuse that).

The enemy—Peter clarifies—is the devil. He’s hungry, he’s prowling. This verse is easy to use to scare people, and sometimes rightfully so. We underestimate the enemy way too often. But we also forget the devil has been defeated, too. We need a viewpoint of tension here. Don’t forget that we are still weak in our own strength and bodies. But we do have the Spirit inside and the old man/flesh is dead. 

Resist him…I wish Peter would have made it a bit more explicit exactly how this is to be done. I strongly discourage talking to Satan or demonic forces. I don’t think that’s what he was saying. I don’t want to get into a mind game with the king of evil. Also see the sons of Sceva in Acts. 

Perhaps “strong in faith” defines our resistance. Being weak in faith would make us easy targets/prey. But strong in faith, enduring suffering would be a testimony to the power of the resurrection and Jesus’ lordship.

The same suffering are being endured by the brotherhood around the world. The Christian community is global, and we forget this so often. The early church may or may not have had a better understanding of this, but it is a truth we must constantly remind ourselves. Get a bigger picture of the church. 

I always must remember the “suffering” in Peter is not burning at stake/lions in Colosseum, yet. It’s close. But it’s ostracism, it’s isolation. Business deals failing. Family neglect. Maybe legal rulings against Christians. They’re one emperor away from being harshly abused and killed. This is why Peter can tell them throughout the book to maintain witness and be holy among their communities.

This suffering (and any suffering) is temporary. Then God will establish the believers. Strengthen, confirm. Peter doesn’t give a timeline or definition of what that eternal glory is. But we do get to experience God in His glory. And all glory and power does belong to Him.