The Psalmist said "Come, O children, listen to me. I will teach you the fear of the Lord." The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. So, children, do you want to live a good and long life? Then listen, children, and I will teach you the fear of the Lord. There are two things the psalmist says to do:

1. Keep your tongue from evil, and your lips from speaking deceit. Do not speak evil of others. Don't call people names, and don't say bad things about them behind their back. Think before you speak, and be careful to say good things about others. Rather than run and tell your parents all the bad things your brother did, run and tell them all the good things!
2. Turn away from evil and do good. It is not only in what you say, but also in what you do. I'll bet you kids know exactly how to get your parents or your siblings upset. You know how to wait until the very last moment before you get in trouble--and THEN you'll obey.

David says to seek peace and pursue it. In your speaking and in your doing, seek peace. Pursue peace. You cannot control others--so stop trying! Instead, take responsibility for your own words and deeds. Make it your goal to keep your words and deeds free from offense.

Some may say, "But Paul says that the gospel is an offense!" People should be offended at us. No, my friends, they should not be offended at us! The offense of the gospel is not supposed to be that Christians are so offensive! The offense of the gospel should be the content, not the messengers. Unbelievers should say of us: "Those Christians are so kind and humble, it's too bad they believe such weird things!" The Jews should be upset at us for believing that Jesus is the Messiah. The Gentiles should be upset at us for believing in the resurrection from the dead. But otherwise, our words and our deeds should be free from offense.

Why seek peace? Why not pursue justice? Why not seek vindication? The Psalmist continues with the heart of his message: For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil. This Psalm is to be read, we are told in the preface, in the context of when David pretended to be a madman, and Achish drove him out [Story in 1 Samuel 21]. The Psalm is to be sung as a song of praise for how God protected David in the midst of affliction. David is being pursued by Saul. There is no city for him to go to. He must flee into the wilderness. Yet he declares the confidence of the saints, that those who fear the Lord will lack nothing.

David does not seek vindication. He does not pursue justice. Instead he seeks peace and pursues it. God will vindicate him in His time. The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous. God sees what you endure. God hears your prayers for vindication. "O fear the Lord, you his saints, for those who fear him have no lack!" "Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all." Indeed, the gospels quote Psalm 34 regarding our Lord: "He guards all his bones; not one of them is broken." Even our Savior Jesus Christ did not seek vindication, or pursue justice. He sought peace, and trusted His Father to vindicate him. Because the face of the Lord is against those who do evil. He will cut off their memory from the face of the earth.

Peter weaves this Psalm into his epistle as the epitome of how the Christian ought to think and live. The "Finally" in verse 8 suggests that he is concluding this middle section of the epistle (2:11-4:11). He has explained how the church ought to think about suffering. Since we are elect exiles, a royal priesthood and a holy nation, we must maintain honorable conduct in the midst of a world that does not love us. Our public lives must be lived in such a way that the Gentiles will glorify God for our good deeds.

In all of our contact with unbelievers, we must make sure that our lives reflect our new identity: as subjects, as servants, and as spouses. Now Peter summarizes this for us: have unity of mind sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. This is addressed to "all of you." This is to characterize your life as a body. How do you think of one another? Two of the best ways to gauge how you think of one another are to look at how you speak to one another, and how you act toward one another. Peter warns us not to repay evil for evil, or cursing for cursing, but rather to bless, for to this you were called, that you might obtain a blessing.

Peter is anticipating his usage of Psalm 34. "The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous." You are not the judge. You may patiently endure the evil that is spoken of you. You may bless the one who curses you, because you are receiving blessing of God. And after quoting the Psalm, Peter says [v13-14]. In general, if you do what is good, who will harm you? But even if someone does, so what? If you suffer for righteousness sake, you will be blessed! Peter then rewrites a portion of Isaiah 8. Isaiah 8:12-13 says, "Do not call conspiracy all that this people calls conspiracy, and do not fear what they fear, nor be in dread. But the Lord of hosts, him you shall regard as holy. Let him be your fear, and let him be your dread. And he will become a sanctuary and a stone of offense and rock of stumbling..." Peter says, "Do not fear their fear, nor be troubled, but in your hearts regard Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is you." Peter reads the Old Testament through Christ-centered lenses. Regard the Lord of hosts as holy means regard Christ the Lord as holy.

God had called Isaiah not to be afraid of the fears of the people but to regard the Lord as holy. Now Peter calls the church to the same mindset. Again, remember that the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. Regard Christ the Lord as holy. Therefore do not fear the suffering that lies before you. You live with honorable conduct before the Gentiles, blessing when they curse, and doing good in return for evil, because you regard Jesus Christ as holy.

And this ought to result in people asking you why you have this hope. Notice the way Peter puts it: be prepared with a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you. You are not commanded to go out and evangelize your neighbors. You are not told to distribute tracts or witness to the cashier at the market. You are told to be prepared to give a defense for the hope that is in you. Peter's whole emphasis so far has been on your conduct. Only now does he explain how your speech fits in. Are you ready for this? Can you give a reason for the hope that is in you? Can you do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame? I'm afraid that one of the reasons why people don't ask us about our hope, is because our conduct isn't much different from those around us. If our conduct does not reflect Christ, then no one will want to hear about him!

A man once told me that he felt that he could not invite his friends to church, because his church was so divided. He said that he didn't think that anyone would get anything out of the worship, and so what was the point of inviting them? He never did invite his friends to come. In fact, he wound up leaving the church. Another man felt the same way but invited his friend anyway. That friend heard the Word of God, and believed on the Lord Jesus Christ and was saved. The first man would witness to his friends, but he wouldn't bring them to church because he viewed the church as too messed up. The second man believed that his messed-up church was still the instrument through which God saves sinners.

The Sunday school class that Andy and I are teaching will be addressing this very issue. What is the reason for the hope that we have? And how should we understand the church--and our place in it.

Copyright © 2003 Peter J. Wallace