He could have saved himself. All he had to do was renounce his faith and turn on his fellow Christians, and he would have been a hero to the people who stoned him. They would have hoisted him on their shoulders and carried him through the streets. Why didn’t he do it? Because he saw His Good Shepherd, sitting at the right hand of the Father in heaven. He saw the One who had willingly suffered to ensure him a place in heaven, and he wanted to be with him. He was willing to Serve the Savior who Suffered for the Sheep, no matter what the cost.

For it is commendable if a man bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because he is conscious of God. Peter would later die as a martyr himself, but that’s not primarily what he had in mind when he wrote these words. He was writing about the day to day suffering a Christian is called upon to endure. He was writing to slaves in particular. He wanted them to remember that the freedom they had in Christ demanded that they be slaves to righteousness, that they maintain the highest standards of faith in action, no matter how they might be treated by their masters.

Slaves can live in some pretty miserable conditions, not the least of which is having no personal freedom, and having all your work benefit someone else. But it’s not impossible to be a slave and still act like a Christian. Christ teaches all of us, no matter what our circumstances to live such commendable lives among the pagans of this world that they may be ashamed of themselves and even be led to inquire about, and maybe even eventually be won for the Christian faith.

None of us are slaves, thank God, but all of us are under some form of authority. And each of us has his own trials and crosses to bear. How we deal with those crosses can be one of the most powerful witnesses to the faith we have in the Shepherd of lost souls. God is urging us through Saint Peter to live such good lives that people see what a difference it makes to have the hope of eternal life. And Peter reminds us that people aren’t the only ones watching. God himself sees your living faith and your good deeds and will commend you eternally. Jesus himself said "You are blessed when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven." (Mat 5:11,12a)

Whether we are suffering from the effects of aging, or disease or an unfair boss or overwork, or whether we are suffering for standing up for the truth of God’s Word or the morality of God’s commands, God is giving us the opportunity to prove our faith.

To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. There are plenty of misconceptions about the Christian faith: That it is a calling to a life of ease, or a life of earthly rewards. How many false shepherds on television don’t preach that false teaching? But we sometimes have the same misguided notion ourselves. We think the church is all about making me comfortable. We’ve got a faithful core of people here at St. Matthew’s who are generous toward the work of the Lord. Yet others give only what they can comfortably donate without it making them uncomfortable. We’ve got a faithful core of volunteers who spend time preparing and teaching Sunday School, or who come to the work days the trustees organize, or who volunteer for the altar guild, or cut the church grass—and then there are others who just expect somebody else to do all that stuff. We’ve got people who want to do whatever it takes to reach out with the message of the Gospel to our friends, our neighbors our coworkers, and then we’ve got others who are afraid they might be uncomfortable if they don’t always get to do things the same old way—and I don’t care about Christ’s longing love that wants to bring people in from the highways and byways. Even learning a new hymn is more suffering than some are willing to endure for the sake of the Good Shepherd. Such selfishness and feeling sorry for oneself is not the suffering that Christ will commend.

We have been called to a life of suffering for Christ. "Take up your cross and follow me," Jesus said. John Kennedy said in his inaugural address "Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country." The same can be said of Christ’s calling of us into the church. "Ask not what your church can do for you. Ask what you can do for Christ and his church." There are a million blessings that go along with belonging to the church of Jesus Christ. Yet the privilege of belonging to Christ’s Church is not to be an opening for the old sinful flesh to pounce on privilege and demand it’s own comfort and ease.

We have been called into Christ’s Church to live out the words of 1 Corinthians 13. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. (1 Cor 13:4-6) If we cannot for the sake of Christ and his Kingdom humbly say "I’m not number one. Christ is number one, and my neighbor is more important than myself," then how will we possibly be prepared to deal with it, when real hardship and suffering come into our lives. Will we be like the seed among the weeds in Jesus’ parable of the sower, that was choked out by the worries and cares of this world?

The Gospel is the wonderful promise of the free gift of salvation to undeserving sinners. You and I have received that marvelous gift. But at the same time, we were called to a life that is anything but carefree and easy. We are servants of Christ. We have been redeemed to serve Him and our neighbor, not ourselves.

Imagine if Christ were like us sinful sheep. We whine, we complain, we are lazy. We’re always ready to look out for number one. But Christ put us first. He put our comfort so far ahead of his own, he was willing to suffer the most agonizing death, so that people who have a hard time even being grateful might be saved from this sinful generation and live for him and with him.

All that he did, that we might be forgiven. Christ has saved us from a life of sin and self-indulgence for an eternal life of self-sacrifice. "He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree." In him we see what God truly expects of us: He committed no sin. And we have been called to put to death the deeds of darkness and to sin no more. No deceit was found in his mouth. And now we have been called to use our mouths to trumpet the Gospel, not to denounce and denigrate, but to build up and heal. "When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate." And we have been called to turn the other cheek—to make peace and to live at peace with all men. "When he suffered, he made no threats." ‘If they don’t do things my way, I’m going to take my ball and go home.’ Are these the words of a servant of Christ, called to imitate him? "Instead he entrusted himself to him who judges justly."

Each of us struggles with sinful attitudes and actions. Not one of us is inclined to put suffering on our "to do" list. Not one of us likes to put the work of the Kingdom ahead of our own agenda. For that we need to ask for forgiveness. And God will freely forgive, because his nature is different from ours.

But God has given us a new heart, hasn’t he? He has kindled a fire in our hearts. He has given us the power to take up our cross and follow him, wherever he leads us. For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

"By his wounds, you have been healed." Praise Him and thank him by imitating him. "He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree—that we might die to sins and live for righteousness." We can entrust ourselves to him who judges justly—for he is the Shepherd and Overseer of our souls. He will let nothing cause us spiritual harm if we entrust ourselves to him. And he will take us to heaven, when our time of suffering is done: "I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever."

It’s not always easy being one of Jesus’ sheep. We are surrounded by cliffs and rocks and wolves and a thousand other dangers, not the least of which is our own sinful flesh, that we have to put to death every day through repentance. But our Good Shepherd will lead his flock safely home. Listen to his voice. Trust in him completely. Serve him. And follow him down the narrow path. Amen.