INTRODUCTION
Flocks tend to bolt and scatter when danger comes. As the church faces danger, fearful lions, alluring temptations, how does God guard His flock? He takes away their fear, and gives them peace.
THE TEXT
The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed: Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; Neither as being lords over God’s heritage, but being ensamples to the flock. And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away. […] 1 Peter 5:1ff
SUMMARY OF THE TEXT
The saints have just been instructed to prepare for persecution by entrusting themselves entirely to God (4:19). Peter now turns to exhort his fellow elders. Peter is not only a witness of Christ’s sufferings, but is also a partaker of the coming revelation of Christ’s glorious vindication (v1). Peter gives a job description for these elders, which can be summarized as shepherding God’s flock, in imitation of the chief Shepherd (vv2-4). Such elders can expect the reward of an amaranth crown (v4b).
Peter has frequently used the word “likewise”. The duties proper to each office (wife and husband, elders and young men) are all to be undertaken in conformity to the example of Christ. Our duties to each other are done in the light of Christ, and with Christ’s example in mind. Young men, then, are to submit to their elders (v5a). All the saints are to don the apron of servant-like humility, bearing in mind Solomon’s proverb about how God will treat the proud and the humble (v5b, Cf. Pro. 3:34). Peter returns to the Psalter to exhort the New Israel to not fret because of evildoers; rather, in humility cast all their cares upon the God who tenderly cares for them (vv6-7, Cf. Ps. 37:5).
Peter now summarizes his entire letter with a final punchy exhortation (vv8-11). The devil, in the form of a ravening lion, is prowling around looking for saints to devour. This danger demands sobriety and vigilance (v8), along with steadfast resistance (v9). The saints should remember that the afflictions of some saints are shared by all the brethren across the world (v9). We all face tribulations of varying severities. All the sufferings which await these saints are sent from the hand of the God of all grace. This God has called them unto eternal glory by Jesus Christ, and though there be a “little while” of suffering, this God of all grace will use those sufferings to make the saint perfect, established, strong, and immovable (v10). This deserves a fervent doxology: all glory and dominion be unto our God (v11).
Silvanus is the one who will deliver this letter. Silas’ presence here actually closes an interesting NT loop. Paul had written his letter to the saints of Galatia in the run up the Jerusalem council (~AD49). Paul had first visited the Roman province of Galatia (Acts 13:14, 51, 14:6, 20-21), after the ruling of the Jerusalem council (Acts 15); Paul and Silas take the news of that decision to both regions known as Galatia (Acts 16:6; 18:5). Remember that Paul detailed to these Galatian saints his rebuke of Peter for drawing away from the Gentiles due to his fear of the judaizers (Gal. 2:11-13). Now Peter sends Silas with this letter telling these Gentiles––the sort he had once drawn away from––that they, though Gentiles, stand with him in the true grace of God (v12). The church in Babylon (Rome), also numbered as the elect (1:1), sends their greetings; along with Mark, whose Gospel (~AD42-45) was already in circulation amongst the Gentile believers (v13). Mentioning Mark also calls to mind Jesus’ prophecy of great judgement coming, which Peter has been preparing these saints for (Cf. Mk. 13). Lastly, the saints are summoned to be warm and affectionate to each other. The shalom of Israel’s God rests upon all who are in Christ Jesus (v14).
THE ELDER’S JOB DESCRIPTION
When a ship goes through stormy seas, the captain must be found at the helm. When a lion is prowling near the flock, the shepherd must remain alert. We are provided with a snapshot of the elder (who he is), his duties (what he does), and his demeanor (how he does it). The elder has two primary duties: to feed (pastor/shepherd) and oversee (episkopos). He leads the flock to verdant pastures and still waters, he foresees dangers, and keeps his eyes out for wandering sheep. Both duties demand true sacrifice of the shepherd himself.
Thus, Peter explains three ways in which these two overarching duties are to be done. First, an elder should be willing to serve, not forced to serve just to be a warm body to fill a seat. Second, he should be eager in the work, not coaxed with cash. Third, his leadership should not be marked by bossiness, but by modeling Christ-like sacrificial authority. Notice those qualifications: gladness to serve, generosity in that service, and exemplary Christ-likeness. He ought to be the sort of leader that people say, “I want to be like him.” An elder need not be perfect, of course, but he is not lazy, he is not stingy, and he is not a bossy-pants.
There are a few more interesting ecclesiastical tidbit. Peter does not identify his office as a superior one, but as an equal one to these elders’ office. Presbyteros often refers to age, but is not restricted to it as we see in the instance of Timothy. It also hearkens back to Jethro’s advice to Moses as Israel was first constituted in the wilderness (Ex. 18). We find here two identifiable lists which constitute the local congregation: the list of who the elders are that the flock is to follow, and a list of the flock which the elders are tasked to oversee. This text provides us a clear argument for why we ought to elect qualified men to the office of presbyter, as well as why church membership is vital in order for the shepherds to know which sheep they are supposed to give God an accounting of!
The lesson here is that elders must lead by example. Peter himself gives the church a wonderful example of this. Only a year or two after making these exhortations Peter was crucified upside down by Nero. Peter could have fled. He could have, once more, denied the Lord. But the new birth truly made this fisherman from Galilee a rock. This is what elders are to be like.
STARVING LIONS
Nero would dress in animal skins and attack prisoners who were bound to stakes. He would do incredibly vile and obscene things to these prisoners. He was a prowling lion. This is how Peter paints Satan. Nero is a devilish beast. As Nero hunted for victims of his sadistic desires, the devil hunts to devour your soul. How can a saint be devoured? The primary way in which a saint is devoured is when they forsake the faith; when they try to escape the sufferings by renouncing Christ. The saints resist their adversary the devil (and his human henchman like Nero) by remaining steadfast in their faith in Christ (5:9), even if it means torture and death.
Once more Peter shows that the Psalms should be on our tongue as we prepare to suffer. In Psalm 17, as well as elsewhere, the wicked are likened to lions. Although Satan prowls around like a hungry lion (1 Pt. 5:8), the saint knows that the Lord shall take tender care of him. It is Satan, and his young lions, which will go hungry (Ps. 34:10). By steadfast faith in Christ, when faced with temptation and persecution, the lions are starved.
WHAT UNIFORM YOU WEARING
We are a new Israel. With that comes a uniform. We saw this back in chapter 2, and we see it again here. What uniform does the saint wear? Not the fig leaves of self-preserving fear, but the apron of service. The priests of old were identified by their priestly garments, garments which indicated that they were preoccupied with service to Yahweh.
This has not fundamentally changed. When the elder humbly rebukes the straying member, when the mother calmly talks the toddler down from a tantrum, when a husband gently corrects his wife, when a slave cheerfully does his master’s bidding, when the citizen obeys the lawful ordinances of his nation the glory of Christ is displayed. The new Israel is summoned to service, and the uniform is humility. You will be called to go through sufferings and slander, but if you persevere by faith you shall also partake of the glory of a crown which does not fade away. A crown of life. A crown for victors.