1 Peter 5:8-11

Satan only wants to destroy you because you believe in the deity and the salvation of Jesus Christ, King of kings and Lord of lords. Do not let him. If he can steal your joy in salvation he takes away your strength.

This was my post yesterday on facebook…1 Peter 5:9”knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world”. We are ALL going through struggles right now. Rejoice we are not alone. 

We will be strengthened and made stronger by the lessons we can learn in this pandemic. 

1. Life is to be simpler than society would have you believe. 
2. Holy Spirit is within you for a reason, he will not leave you, it is imperative that we listen carefully to Him.
3. We walk out our Christian faith in loving others and caring for them in the same way that we do our families.

The simplicity of the Gospel saves lives.

Be self-disciplined, think rationally and not foolishly. Be alert to the spiritual pitfalls of life and take appropriate steps to make certain that you do not stumble. Satan is our avowed enemy. He never ceases from being hostile toward us; he is constantly accusing us before God. Satan is both cunning and cruel. He attacks when least expected and desires to destroy completely those whom he attacks.

We are not commanded to run, but to resist—to fight rather than flee. Victory comes when we remain committed to God, because He is greater than our enemy. Like a doctor setting a broken bone, God will mend our broken lives and make us whole. God will make our way stable, despite the instability we feel living in a world that inflicts suffering upon us. God will give us the ability to succeed in all that we do for Him. As a consequence of our facing the attacks of our enemy, God will build in us a firm foundation that will make us steadfast and immovable.

God is in control of all things both in this world and throughout eternity. NKJ Bible.

Peter alerts his audience to the devil’s constant threat to the people of God. Within the wider context of the passage, Peter’s use of animal imagery depicts God’s people as vulnerable sheep in desperate need of their shepherd’s protection from all sorts of threats, including persecution and preying animals like the devil. Faithlife Bible.

Believers throughout the Roman empire were suffering both localized persecution as well as opposition from the devil. Peter offers his audience a final word of comfort. He reminds them that God will empower and ultimately glorify those who remain steadfast in their faith under the weight of their present suffering. Faithlife Bible.

1 Peter 5:8-11

8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. 9 Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world. 10 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. 11 To Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.

Proverbs 28:15  Like a roaring lion and a charging bear is a wicked ruler over poor people.

1 Corinthians 1:9  God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

1 Thessalonians 2:12  that you would walk worthy of God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory.

1 Timothy 6:12  Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, to which you were also called and have confessed the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.