“To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps” (1 Peter 2:21).

Our contemporary culture has bought into the lie that if the Lord loves you, all will be well: that, or there is no God and we’re prosperous anyway.  So we send happy thoughts to one another in a grand illusion.  Christ suffered in this world of sin because sinful people hate righteousness.  If you follow Christ, you will suffer for His Name’s sake.  You then become an example of the suffering that happens because of sin.

Lord, let me not fall into the trap of thinking that all will be well if all goes well, You have said that I would be blessed if I was persecuted for Your name’s sake.  When I suffer in this way, I begin to sip of the sea you drank for me.  Lead me, O Lord, in the right way of living such that even if I do suffer, it is because of You and the Good News of the Gospel.  Help me to persevere.

Lord Jesus, for all of our sakes, You suffered death on the cross.  Guide me, dear Lord, in the way of life, teaching me to stand fast knowing that there are those who will hate me because of You.  Through thick and thin, grant me the fortitude to forever hold fast to the truth You have revealed once for all.  In Your goodness, lead me according to the Father’s will to lead a life that follows You no matter what.  Amen.  

“But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God” (1 Peter 2:20).

Be careful with the path of self-justification. It may lead you astray into pride. But truly, if you are being persecuted for Jesus’ sake, then endure it with fortitude.  But if it is deserved, be quick to repent and be led by the Spirit of the Lord.  He who is faithful will lead you in His goodness  through all circumstances.  Come to Him and be led by His grace and not by what you think or feel.

Lord, You must lead, for I do not understand the full truth of any situation.  When it is time, lead me to look to You and if persecuted, to persevere through all that may come my way.  This life is a struggle, and You are the Lord of all.  Guide me, Lord, in the way of eternal life so that I may now and forever be led by what is right and true.  Help me in every circumstance to go where You lead.

Lord Jesus, You know what it is to be persecuted for no reason at all.  You suffered beating and death for our sake.  Lead me, O Lord, in the way of truth so that I may now and always be guided by Your goodness and mercy.  Help me for Your name’s sake to walk in the humble way of serving You in others.  Through all things, teach me to persevere in order that I may indeed become more like You in all things.  Amen.

“For it is commendable if someone bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because they are conscious of God” (1 Peter 2:19).

If you are receiving what is due for bad behavior, what is that?  If you give and others know and applaud you, what is that?  The Lord is teaching us how to endure through the suffering of this world.  Too many fold at the first hint of suffering.  It is not about you, but about Him.  The Lord is the One who made us and we are to learn to honor Him no matter what.  Suffering is a part of what will happen in this age.

Lord, there are many places in Scripture where You teach me that I will suffer.  If I suffer because of my own misdeeds, that is one thing, but if I suffer because of You, help me learn how to patiently endure so that I may continue in the upward path of learning to love as You love.

Lord Jesus, You know the struggle.  You walked amongst those who were hating You every step of the way.  You endured all the way to the cross where they heaped upon You their final indignation, which was Your plan all along.  Guide me to follow Your footsteps in order that I would go where You want me to go and not where I want to go.  Help me learn from You gentle Savior.  Amen.  

“Slaves, in reverent fear of God submit yourselves to your masters, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh” (1 Peter 2:18).

The principle is true today.  Bosses, co-workers, and all those with whom you interact are the ones whom you treat with respect.  If it helps, simply think in terms that the other is also a precious one for whom the Lord died.  Do not treat others in reaction to how they treat you but treat them as bearers of the image of God.  We all have been created in the image of God.  This, in part, is what it means to love your neighbor.

Lord, I am a bundle of self-centered nervousness.  I do not react emotionally to others as I should.  Guide me, dear Lord, in the way of truth so that I would learn to simply treat others as Your beloved and not neurotically.  Teach me to be a willing servant in every circumstance and to forgive when others do not treat me as I am treating them.  I know that suffering produces endurance.  Help me learn how to endure.

Lord Jesus, my hope is in the salvation You have given me by grace.  Guide me this day to be and act impartially well to all in how I treat them.  Whether they be harsh to me or not, teach me to be Your willing servant, learning to love my neighbor as You love me.  Through all these things, guide me in the upward way in order that I would hold fast to Your goodness and mercy and see You face to face.  Help me become one in whom You are well pleased.  Amen.

“Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor” (1 Peter 2:17).

What can be added to this list?  It is a great list, but many do not do this.  Oh, there is respect in these things for some.  There is love for some.  There is honor if it is a Caesar that you admire.  But these things are decided by the self and not applied in the whole.  Scripture is teaching us that uniformity is important.  We do not get to choose who our neighbor is.  Everyone means everyone and not just a few.

Lord, I may not like it when it feels like You are taking it to the extreme; but I am the one who is extreme.  I want to pick and choose.  But I am not You, who makes all the rules.  Dear Lord, lead me out of this mess to live in You.  Guide me out of my desire to be in control in order that You would be the One who leads my life.  I do not know how, but You do.  You must be the One who leads me.

Lord Jesus, You taught us that You did nothing on Your own but spoke the words the Father gave You to speak.  So also, lead me to not try to figure out my own words, but  speak the words the Father gives me to speak.  Lead me to learn what it means to always be faithful.  Lead me to learn how to love everyone, being honorable and always loving in all circumstances.  Amen.

“Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as God’s slaves” (1 Peter 2:16).

How often are you influenced to do what the world wants you to do because you do not want them to see you in the freedom Christ has given you?  If you smoke or drink that simply means that you smoke or drink.  But there are all kinds of attitudes surrounding these things.  Live knowing that you are always in the Lord’s presence.  Not in fear, but in truth that you do what is pleasing to Him.

Lord, You know those places where I do these things.  Guide me, dear Lord, to see them as they are and come into the place where it is You whom I seek to please.  Keep me from the incessant conformity of this world so that I may spend my time and energy being conformed to the image of Christ.  Lead me, Lord, in the way of truth.  You have redeemed me and I am Yours now and forever.

Lord Jesus, You know how constraining the wickedness of this world is.  I struggle each day to live in the freedom You give me.  Guide me dear Lord so that I would not be bound by the things of this world but transformed by the renewing of my mind in You.  Lead me according to Your mercy to not use my liberty for sordid gain, but to learn to become like You in all things.  Amen. 

“For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people” (1 Peter 2:15).

What a powerful truth to put into effect.  This requires the understanding that through perseverance, God will do what is necessary both for you and for those who oppose His will.  Do not cease to do good and learn to endure.  The ignorant are always with us and they will continue to talk foolishly, but do not tire of looking to the Lord and seeking what would please Him.

Lord, help me to always look to You so that I may see what You would have me do.  Open my ears to hear when You speak in order that I may obey Your command.  Through all that happens in this world, may I be guided by Your goodness and mercy and not react to the wickedness of this world.  Keep foolish talk from my lips in order that I may not be unwise, but live as one in Your light.

Come Holy Spirit and lead me so that I may walk as You navigate the way before me through the difficult times of this age.  Help me when I stumble and help my focus to be upon You, for on my own I do not know what to do.  Lead me in the way of everlasting life.  Guide me according to Your goodness and mercy in order that I may now and always be found doing good.  Let others see my good works and turn to You.  Amen.

“Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human authority: whether to the emperor, as the supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right” (1 Peter 2:13-14).

The Christian life is not about feeling good.  Yes, we are to be in that struggle where we submit to authority and live our lives as peaceably as possible.  Do not be contentious, nor seek for your what is your own, but focus upon what is right in the sight of the Lord.  We are on the journey of being saved through the grace won by Christ on the cross.  In Him you have your hope and being.

Lord, I am often quite contentious.  Lead me, O Lord, to see that only in You is there hope and a future.  Guide me according to Your goodness to know that in Your love is where I will find the truth of life.  Lead me according to Your grace to see through the temptations to live as the evil do, but instead follow Your ways.  Guide me, dear Lord, now and forever in Your established way of salvation.

Lord Jesus, You have come so that we may have life, light, and liberty.  Lead me dear Lord Jesus so that I may now and always go where You lead me.  Help me to continue on the path You have set before me in order that I may grow each day to be a little more like You.  In Your grace, guide me this day so that I may humbly walk according to Your word.  Thank You for the salvation You have prepared for those who walk in Your light.  Amen.

“Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us” (1 Peter 2:12).

This is perhaps one of the most overlooked passages in all of Scripture.  It is not to do good so that others think you are good.  It is to seek to be so in Christ that others wonder what it is that causes you to be thus.  You will be accused if you do good.  Do not let that hinder the seeking to do good in every situation.  He who is in you will lead in the way that you need to go in every circumstance.

Lord, You know the struggle better than any of us.  Help me see through the fog of this age to neither get caught up in its traps, nor do good for any other reason than to please You.  Do what you will through my life but help me see these things so that I may lead the kind of life You know I need to live to stay in the salvation You have given me by grace.  Guide me this day, Lord.

Dear Lord Jesus, You invited me to live into the life You give through grace.  Help me now and always to follow You first and above all things.  In the grace You have given me, keep me on the path of doing good for its own sake.  Help me to see what I need to see and thank You for every opportunity You give me to do good.  May I always do good for its own sake and for no other reason.  Amen. 

“Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul” (1 Peter 2:11).  

We do not fight against flesh and blood, but against forces of darkness and principalities.  Yes, the journey of being Christian is difficult.  It is a battle.  Do not live as those tossed about by the whims of this age, but as those who know they are in the salvation of Christ.  Take seriously the call you have been given by Christ and walk humbly with the one who has saved you through the grace He gives.

Lord, You are the One who makes all these things possible.  In You is all hope and an eternal future.  Lead me, Lord, so that I would walk humbly with You knowing that only in You is there hope and an eternal future.  Guide me, Lord, to know that I am not, nor should I be, comfortable with or in this world.  In Your providence, help me know that You are preparing the way before me.

Thank You, Lord Jesus, for the salvation You have given me by grace.  Guide me this day to know that in You is all hope.  Prepare me to fight the battle I need to fight and to trust that You will lead me through all that needs to be done.  Guide me in the upward way in order that I may live as You would have me live.  Keep my soul firmly in Your hands now and forever.  Amen.