The Christian Counter-Culture: Inheriting a Blessing Text: 1 Peter 3:8-12
Introduction: The Sanity of the Saints
We live in a world that is coming apart at the seams. Our culture is characterized by fragmentation, outrage, and a relentless quest for personal vindication. Everyone is a victim, everyone is offended, and every interaction is a potential power struggle. The world preaches a gospel of self-assertion, of returning evil for evil with interest, and of reviling for reviling with a bullhorn. Into this cacophony of rage and resentment, the Apostle Peter speaks a word that is not merely counter-cultural, but is the establishment of an entirely different culture, a heavenly colony planted on earth. It is a culture of unity, sympathy, love, and humility.
The instructions Peter gives here are not suggestions for a better life or tips for conflict resolution. They are the genetic markers of the new creation. This is what Christians are. This is how the family of God behaves. To fail at this is not to have a bad day; it is to deny our calling. We were called out of the world's dog-eat-dog madness for a very specific purpose: to inherit a blessing. But the great twist, the glorious paradox, is that the way we inherit this blessing is by giving blessings away, particularly to those who do not deserve them.
Our world believes that you get ahead by pushing others down. You secure your rights by screaming the loudest. You find life by making your enemies' lives miserable. Peter, channeling the wisdom of the Old Testament, flips this entirely on its head. You want to love life and see good days? Then you must learn to govern your tongue, turn from evil, do good, and seek peace. This is not weakness; it is the profound strength of those whose eyes are fixed on the Lord of heaven and earth. It is the quiet confidence of those who know that the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and His ears are open to their prayers, but His face is set against those who do evil. This is not a retreat from the world, but the strategy for conquering it.
The Text
Now to sum up, all of you be like-minded, sympathetic, brotherly, tender-hearted, and humble in spirit; not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but giving a blessing instead, for you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing. For, "THE ONE WHO DESIRES LIFE, TO LOVE AND SEE GOOD DAYS, MUST KEEP HIS TONGUE FROM EVIL AND HIS LIPS FROM SPEAKING DECEIT. HE MUST TURN AWAY FROM EVIL AND DO GOOD; HE MUST SEEK PEACE AND PURSUE IT. FOR THE EYES OF THE LORD ARE TOWARD THE RIGHTEOUS, AND HIS EARS ATTEND TO THEIR PRAYER, BUT THE FACE OF THE LORD IS AGAINST THOSE WHO DO EVIL."
(1 Peter 3:8-12 LSB)
The Internal Harmony of the Church (v. 8)
Peter begins by summarizing the practical duties of all believers. After addressing specific roles like citizens, slaves, wives, and husbands, he now gives five essential characteristics that must define the entire Christian community.
"Now to sum up, all of you be like-minded, sympathetic, brotherly, tender-hearted, and humble in spirit;" (1 Peter 3:8)
First, we are to be "like-minded." This does not mean we must all have the same opinion on every trivial matter, from carpet color to car models. That would be uniformity, not unity. This is a call to a shared worldview, a common mind rooted in the truth of the gospel. It is the mind of Christ (Phil. 2:5). We agree on the essentials: who God is, who man is, what the problem is, and what the solution is. This shared understanding of reality is the bedrock of our fellowship. Without it, the church is just a social club with a religious veneer, destined to fracture over the slightest disagreement.
Second, we are to be "sympathetic." Now, we must be careful here. Our culture has elevated the mushy concept of "empathy" to a supreme virtue, defining it as feeling whatever someone else feels, validating their subjective experience without reference to objective truth. That is not what Peter is talking about. Biblical sympathy is not entering into someone's sinful feelings with them. It is suffering with them in their actual afflictions. It is compassion that keeps one foot firmly on the bank of God's truth while extending a hand to the one struggling in the water. We rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep, but we do not rebel with those who rebel.
Third, we are to be "brotherly." The word here is philadelphoi, a love for the brethren. This is a family love. The church is not a collection of individuals who happen to show up at the same building. We are a family, adopted by the same Father, bought by the blood of the same elder Brother. This means we have obligations to one another. We bear one another's burdens. We are loyal. We defend one another. This family bond should be more real and more tangible than any earthly allegiance.
Fourth, "tender-hearted." This is a disposition of mercy and kindness. It is the opposite of being harsh, critical, or censorious. A tender-hearted person is easily moved to compassion. They are not easily offended. They give others the benefit of the doubt. This is the character of our God, who is "merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love" (Psalm 103:8).
Finally, we are to be "humble in spirit." This is the foundation upon which all the other virtues rest. Humility is not thinking less of yourself; it is thinking of yourself less. It is having a right estimation of your own standing before a holy God. It is recognizing that everything you have is a gift of grace. The humble man does not demand his rights, does not stand on his dignity, and is not preoccupied with his own reputation. He is free to serve others because he is not enslaved to himself. Without humility, like-mindedness becomes intellectual pride, sympathy becomes condescension, brotherly love becomes cliquishness, and tender-heartedness becomes sentimentality.
The Asymmetrical Response (v. 9)
Peter now moves from our internal posture to our external response, particularly when we are wronged. The world operates on the principle of reciprocity, of tit-for-tat. The Christian operates on the principle of grace.
"not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but giving a blessing instead, for you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing." (1 Peter 3:9)
The command is explicit: "not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling." When someone does something wicked to you, you are not to retaliate in kind. When someone insults you, you are not to fire back with a cleverer insult. This is asymmetrical spiritual warfare. We do not fight with the world's weapons. To repay evil with evil is to let the evil person set the terms of the engagement. It is to let him drag you down into the mud with him. The Christian response is to refuse to play that game.
But we are not called to mere non-retaliation. We are called to a positive action: "giving a blessing instead." This is radical. It is supernatural. A blessing is not just a polite "God bless you" mumbled under your breath. To bless is to actively seek the good of the other person. It is to pray for their repentance and salvation. It is to speak well of them when you can. It is to do good to them as you have opportunity (Romans 12:20-21). This is precisely what our Lord commanded in the Sermon on the Mount: "Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you" (Matthew 5:44).
Why must we do this? Peter gives the reason: "for you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing." Our calling and our inheritance are tied to this very practice. Notice the logic. You don't bless others in order to earn your inheritance. Rather, because you are an heir of an unthinkably glorious blessing, you are free to give blessings away. You have a limitless supply. A man who has been forgiven a debt of ten thousand talents can afford to forgive a debt of one hundred denarii. A man who has been promised an eternal kingdom is not impoverished by giving away a cup of cold water, or a kind word, or a prayer for his enemy. The blessing we give is the evidence of the blessing we have already received and are destined to inherit in full.
The Good Life (v. 10-12)
To ground this radical ethic, Peter quotes from Psalm 34. This is not proof-texting. He is showing that this way of life has always been God's design for His people. It is the path to true flourishing.
"For, 'THE ONE WHO DESIRES LIFE, TO LOVE AND SEE GOOD DAYS, MUST KEEP HIS TONGUE FROM EVIL AND HIS LIPS FROM SPEAKING DECEIT. HE MUST TURN AWAY FROM EVIL AND DO GOOD; HE MUST SEEK PEACE AND PURSUE IT.'" (1 Peter 3:10-11)
Here is the divine formula for a good life. Do you want to truly live? Do you want to see good days? The world offers a thousand answers: accumulate wealth, pursue pleasure, gain power. The Psalmist, and Peter after him, says the good life is found in godly character. It begins with the tongue. "Keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit." The tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity (James 3:6). The man who can bridle his tongue is a mature man. This means no slander, no gossip, no reviling, no lies. Your speech must be governed by truth and charity.
Next, it moves to action. "He must turn away from evil and do good." This is repentance and faith in shoe leather. It is a decisive break with wickedness and a positive pursuit of righteousness. It is not enough to simply not do bad things. We are called to actively do good things. We are to be agents of restoration, healing, and order in a broken world.
And the goal of this action is peace. "He must seek peace and pursue it." Peace is not the absence of conflict; it is the presence of righteousness and wholeness, what the Hebrews called shalom. And it is not passive. It must be sought. It must be pursued. It runs away from us because of sin, and we must chase after it, hunt it down. This is the work of peacemakers, who are called the sons of God (Matthew 5:9).
The Great Motivation (v. 12)
Why does this pattern of life work? Why does blessing enemies and pursuing peace lead to good days? Because we do not live in an impersonal, random universe. We live in a world governed by a personal, holy God who sees and acts.
"FOR THE EYES OF THE LORD ARE TOWARD THE RIGHTEOUS, AND HIS EARS ATTEND TO THEIR PRAYER, BUT THE FACE OF THE LORD IS AGAINST THOSE WHO DO EVIL." (1 Peter 3:12)
This is the great reality that undergirds everything. The reason we can entrust ourselves to God and refuse to take vengeance is that we know He is watching. "The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous." This is not the cold stare of a cosmic policeman, but the warm, protective gaze of a loving Father. He sees your obedience. He sees the insult you absorbed without retaliating. He sees the blessing you gave in return.
And He not only sees, He hears. "His ears attend to their prayer." The righteous have access to the throne room of the universe. When we are wronged, our first instinct should not be to dial up a friend to complain or to post our grievance online. It should be to pray. We have an audience with the King, who has promised to hear and to act.
Conversely, there is a terrifying reality for the wicked. "But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil." To have the face of God set against you is the definition of Hell. It is to be the object of His settled, holy opposition. This is why we do not need to take vengeance. Vengeance belongs to God, and He will repay (Romans 12:19). He is a far more thorough and just judge than we could ever be. Our attempts at revenge are like a child throwing pebbles at a tank. God's judgment is a mountain falling on His enemies. Knowing this frees us to love, to bless, and to pursue peace, confident that justice will be done, and that our lives are secure under the watchful eye of our Father.