1. The NLT 1-Yr. Study Bible provides an excellent summary of what 1 Peter has to say about suffering:

-“We should not be surprised when suffering comes.”

-“God has a purpose for us in suffering.”

-“By suffering in fellowship with Christ, we can be confident of enjoying the glory that He has already won.”

-“We need to commit ourselves to doing what is right when we face suffering,” and not allow suffering to be an excuse to sin

-“Loving enemies in the midst of trials can be a powerful opportunity to share our faith.”

-“We need to remember in our trials that god is both sovereign and faithful.”

2. “1 Peter might well be titled ‘A Survival Manual for Suffering Saints.” (Murdock)

3. Christians can be encouraged even in the midst of suffering because (vs. 10):

-God has a purpose in calling us to salvation and calling us to suffering—we can rely on Him to safely bring us through.

-Trials are for a little while, but the glory that awaits us is eternal. Suffering and glory are linked for believers as they were for Jesus.

-God , through suffering, makes us complete, useful to Him

-God, through suffering, tempers us strengthening us so we can stand fast

-God, through suffering, will firm up our faith

-God, through suffering, will anchor us, setting us on a foundation that cannot be shaken. (see also Matthew 7:24-27)

4. “Nothing can motivate a person like adversity…If you can step back from the negative circumstances facing you, you will be able to discover their positive benefits.” (John Maxwell)

5. “A life with no effort and no discipline almost inevitably becomes a flabby life. No one really knows what his faith means to him until it has been tried in the furnace of affliction. There is something doubly precious about a faith which has come victoriously through pain and sorrow and disappointment. The wind will extinguish a weak flame: but it will fan a strong flame into a still greater blaze. So it is with faith.” (Barclay)