As Peter had presented the best plan for house-hold relationships, so here he described the best plan for church relationships. The younger men should accept the authority of the elders, meaning to submit to their decisions and to treat them respectfully. Finally, all the believers had a responsibility in the congregation: they should serve each other in humility. Humility means being able to put others’ needs and desires ahead of one’s own (see Philippians 2:3–4). Young people should follow the leadership of the older people (especially those who have been put in authority over them as elders). The elders, in turn, should lead by example. All should actively serve one another. No doubt Peter remembered how Christ served his disciples with humility as he washed their feet (see John 13:1–17).
Peter quoted from Proverbs 3:34 to make his point. The believers must deal with one another in humility because “God sets himself against the proud, but he shows favor to the humble” (see also James 4:6). Not only does pride keep people from listening to or following God, it also can keep older people from trying to understand young people and young people from listening to those who are older.
5:6 Because God sets himself against the proud and shows favor to the humble (5:5), Peter admonished the believers to humble themselves. This would be an act of the will; humility does not come naturally. But when the believers humbled themselves under the mighty power of God, they were actually submitting to his care and protection. They must humble themselves even in the face of persecution because God would honor them. Being “honored” refers to a reversal of past misfortunes and troubles, triumph over their oppressors, and participation in Christ’s glory. The honoring may be in this life or in the next. In any case it will be in his good time; that is, in God’s perfect time. Most likely, Peter was thinking of that last day, when the head Shepherd would appear (5:4) and all those who have faithfully followed would be exalted and given eternal glory.
5:7 This verse explains what it means for believers to humble themselves (5:6). It is not negative and reactive; believers are not abandoned to the arbitrary will of God. Rather, it is positive and active: Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about what happens to you. Peter explained that the believers who continued to carry their worries, anxieties, stresses, and daily struggles by themselves showed that they had not trusted God fully. It takes humility, however, to turn everything (literally, “throw your anxieties”) over to God and trust that he cares. God is not indifferent; he knows what he’s doing in our lives. Sometimes we think that struggles caused by our own sin and foolishness are not God’s concern. But when we turn to God in repentance, he will bear the weight even of those struggles. Letting God have your anxieties calls for action, not passivity. Don’t submit to circumstances, but to the Lord who controls circumstances. Peter wanted the believers facing persecution and suffering to remember to give their troubles to God and that he cared.
5:8 At the same time that believers can cast all their cares on God, they must still be careful and watch out. As soldiers wait and watch, so believers must be constantly alert for the enemy. All of the persecution facing believers ultimately comes down to one source: the Devil, your great enemy. The Devil has other names—Satan, Accuser, Beelzebub—but he is the source of all evil in the world. He hates God and is God’s archenemy; thus he also hates God’s people and is their enemy as well. While Satan has no power against God, he does what he can to harm God’s people. Peter described him as prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for some victim to devour. Lions attack sick, young, or straggling animals; they choose victims who are alone or not alert. Lions prowl quietly, watching and waiting, suddenly pouncing when their victims least suspect it.
Peter warned believers to be alert for Satan, especially in times of suffering and persecution, for he walks up and down the earth (Job 1:7) seeking whom he or his demons can attack and defeat. (For more on demons, see Mark 1:23–26 and Ephesians 6:12.) When believers feel alone, weak, helpless, and cut off from other believers, they can become so focused on their troubles that they forget to watch for danger. In those times, believers are especially vulnerable to Satan’s attacks, which come in various forms, often at a person’s weakest spot—temptation, fear, loneliness, worry, depression, persecution. Therefore, Peter and Paul urged the believers to always be alert for Satan’s tricks.
5:9 James wrote that if the believers resisted the Devil, he would flee from them (James 4:7). Once we have identified the Devil as our enemy, we need to understand who he is and how he operates in order to effectively take a firm stand against him. Satan is the leader of angelic beings who revolted against God and were banished from heaven. His primary purpose now is to separate people from God. Destined for destruction, Satan wants to take as much of creation with him as he possibly can. We desperately need God’s grace because we are locked in mortal combat with a superior enemy; we need God’s help to resist this enemy, Satan. The best way for believers to take a firm stand is to be strong in their faith. This means trusting in Christ, who has already defeated Satan and will ultimately destroy him. Paul described the “armor” that believers must wear in Ephesians 6:10–18.
These believers were encouraged also to remember that they were not alone in their suffering. Other Christians scattered all over the world were suffering for the faith; this fact should give them strength. All of this, of course, was under God’s control and was accomplishing his purposes.
5:10–11 When we are suffering, we often feel as though our pain will never end. Peter gave these faithful Christians the wider perspective. In comparison with eternity, their suffering would last only a little while. This repeats what Peter said in 1:6. Some of Peter’s readers would be strengthened and delivered in their own lifetimes. Others would be released from their suffering through death. After that time of suffering, God promises to restore (set right what has gone wrong, put in order, complete), support (by admonition and guidance), strengthen (give courage no matter what happens), and place them on a firm foundation (build on a “rock,” therefore being unmovable). While their suffering will be only for a little while, their glory in Christ will be eternal. In life or in death, God’s purposes will be accomplished and his promises to believers will be fulfilled because believers have been called into God’s eternal glory. God called—this was his initiative. He will do as he promised because all power is his forever and ever.
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Source: Bruce Barton et al., Life Application New Testament Commentary (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale, 2001), 1124–1126.
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