Just Stand 1 Peter 5: 8-10

In conjunction with Episode 15 of Z180 Radio.

1 Peter 5: 8-10
8Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 9Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings. 10And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast

Be Sober; Be Vigilant
Sober here is marked by temperance, moderation or seriousness. We should be in a watchful purist of holiness. Why? A watchful attitude creates a pilgrim mentality. It reminds the Christian he is a citizen of heaven, a sojourner on earth. You see spiritual sober mindness includes the ideas of steadfastness (which is loyal, constant, unswerving), self control, clarity of mind and moral decisiveness.
You have to realize that the outside evil forces which come against the Christian demands us to be alert. We should not and cannot be care free. Why? Because of our adversary the devil that’s why. The greek word for devil means “slanderer” He is a malicious enemy maligns believers. That simply means he is a reputation killer, he is vicious and causes willful and wreck less damage.

So even though we believe in God’s sovereignty, we cannot be careless. We have to be vigilant which means to keep watch, stay awake be alert!!
Satan forces are always active. His desire is to overwhelm us with doubt, persecution and discouragement. He accuses us before God. He wants to convince God to abandon us. Be sure of this brothers and sisters of the faith, nothing can separate us from the Love of God.

Charles Spurgeon paints this picture:
Here comes Esau, hungry with hunting, there is a mess of pottage ready, that he may be tempted to sell his birthright. Here is Noah, glad to escape from his long confinement in the ark, he is merry and there is the wine-cup ready for him, that he may drink. Here is Peter, his faith is low, but his presumption is high, there is a maiden ready to say — “Thou also was with Jesus of Nazareth.” There is Judas, and there are thirty pieces of silver in the priestly hand to tempt him, ay, and there is the rope afterwards for him to hang himself with. If there be a Jonah, wishing to go to Tarshish rather than to Nineveh, there is a ship ready to take him. Satan has his providences as if to counterfeit the providence of God. At least, he knows how to use God’s providence to serve his own ends. One of the greatest mercies God bestows upon us is his not permitting our inclinations and opportunities to meet. Have you not sometimes noticed that when you had had the inclination to a sin there has been no opportunity, and when the opportunity has presented itself you have had no inclination towards it. Satan’s principal aim with believers is to bring their appetites and his temptations together; to get their souls into a dry, seared state, and then to strike the match and make them burn. He is so crafty and wily with all the experience of these many centuries, that man, who is but of yesterday, can scarcely be thought of as a match for him. Did he not drag down the wise man, even Solomon, whose wisdom was more excellent than any of the sons of men? Did he not cast down the strong man, Samson — who could slay a thousand Philistines, but who could not resist Delilah? Let us sorrowfully remember that we have hardly met with a perfect and an upright man against whom Satan has not vented his spleen, and over whom Satan has not in some degree triumphed.

9Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

This means to live in accord with the truth of God’s word. As the believer knows sound doctrine and obeys God’s truth, Satan is withstood!
Be ready to tell him, “It is written”, “thus says the Lord”! Stand on the word of God!

I can appreciate the fact that us as believers are always going through similar trials. We experience the same sufferings, some more or less than others, but we can relate. Be confident that God never gives us more than we can handle. The roaring lion never stops trying to devour believers. Knowing this should produce a seriousness in us about learning God’s word and pursuing it as much as possible.
A friend of mine said this on twitter and I believe it captures our diligence in reading the word and how it affects being steadfast in the faith..


You ever wonder why it seems like you living one day and dying the next. Its cause God word is progressive; you can’t pick it up one and down the next.
Before we can understand God’s word and apply it, we have to read it.

10And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast

We know “Who called us” is an effectual saving call.

Mc Arthur say it like this:
We are to living under the understanding that God’s purpose realized in the future requires some pain in the present. While the believer is being personally attacked by the enemy he is being personally perfected by the Lord.
We should rejoice in that! That’s why James said count it all joy when you fall into various trials knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience, but let patience has its perfect work, that you may be perfect complete lacking nothing.
Let him perfect, establish, strengthen and settle you:
I will end this message like this:

May your character not just be writing upon the sand, but an inscription upon the rock! May your faith be no "baseless fabric of a vision," but may it be built of material able to endure that awful fire which shall consume the wood, hay, and stubble of the hypocrite. May you be rooted and grounded in love. May your convictions be deep, your love real, your desires earnest. May your whole life be so settled and established, that all the blasts of hell, and all the storms of earth shall never be able to remove you.


I pray this has blessed you.

Your brother in the Lord,
Zerub