‘In which you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been put to grief in manifold trials, that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which perishes though it is proved by fire, may be found unto praise and glory and honour at the revelation of Jesus Christ.'
Peter now tells them that, although he knows that they are rejoicing in their salvation, he is not forgetful of the trying time through which they are going because of their commitment to Christ. And he encourages them, in view of the rejoicing that is theirs as a result of their commitment to Him, to consider what that suffering will mean for them eternally.
Peter has learned how necessary suffering is, but notice how, while not dismissing it, he turns the emphasis away from the thought of suffering to the thought of blessing and glory. We are to be greatly rejoicing in what God has done and is doing for us. And thus if fiery trials come on us (see 1 Peter 4:12 and compare 2 Corinthians 4:8-12) we should not be disturbed, for such trials indeed have a purpose which is very necessary for us. They will have the result of ‘proving' our faith on the anvil of suffering, shaping it and deepening it, and demonstrating its reality, a proving which is much more precious than passing wealth, for it makes it firm and strong and able to cope with anything. For just as gold is refined in the fire, so will the fires of persecution and tribulation refine those who are His (see Isaiah 48:10; Zechariah 13:9; Malachi 3:2; Romans 5:3-5), with the result that we will come out of them with our dross removed and with the certainty that at the final ‘appearance and manifestation' of our Lord, Jesus Christ (compare the same word in 2 Thessalonians 1:7, where the afflicted are encouraged by it), we will receive praise and glory and honour (1 Corinthians 4:5; 2 Corinthians 5:10; compare Psalms 8:5), and at the same time bring praise and honour and glory to Him (1 Peter 2:9; 1 Peter 4:11; Revelation 5:9-10).
The fact that our faith needs to be ‘proved' is a warning to beware of faith that is false. The danger in a so-called ‘Christian society' is that people can call themselves Christians for all the wrong reasons. Their faith might be in the church and what the church can do for them. Many a man who has lived like a monster has then looked to the church to put things right for him, often in return for large sums of money. But his faith has been in vain, because it was faith in the wrong thing. It was not faith in a living Saviour. But even humble people can live in the belief that the church will save them if only they go through the right ritual and mainly conform to the church's requirements, following which they can live their lives as they choose. And they too are going to be disappointed. For unless they break through the barrier of the church to contact with Jesus Christ Himself they will be without hope. In the case of others their faith is in what they see as the goodness of their lives. They think that because they are respectably ‘good' they will be acceptable to God. And they even think that that is the Christian position. Others like the message and atmosphere and comfort of the church and rest content in the hope that this will be enough to please God. They are sure that being in the right atmosphere must be sufficient to bring them into a condition where they are approved unto God. Many consider that the church has a noble philosophy with which they agree. They do not think that they need saving. Their faith is in themselves. John also tells us of many who ‘believed in Jesus' because of the miracles that He did (John 2:23-25). They acknowledged that He was some great One. But they were not interested in any kind of commitment to Him. So Jesus would make no commitment to them. In a similar way Jesus warned of those who received the word, but in whom it was unfruitful It produced no real response within (Mark 4:15-19). Saving faith, however, goes beyond all these. For saving faith is the faith of someone who recognising his own inadequacy and sinfulness casts everything on Jesus Himself. He longs to be saved and he looks only to Him. And that is where persecution comes in. It helps to sort out people's faith and to bring out whether it really is true life-affecting faith in Jesus Christ Himself, or faith in something else. There is nothing like persecution and suffering to make people think out their position. In Peter's terms it makes them consider whether their faith is ‘unto obedience'.
Note that ‘greatly rejoice' is in parallel with ‘put to grief, in heaviness'. There is no suggestion that he is unaware of what pain they are really suffering, or thinks that the rejoicing removes the pain completely. Indeed he recognises that such joy often goes hand in hand with grief. They rejoice while in pain. It is a warning that we must sometimes be ready to ‘praise God through gritted teeth'. The point is that we must be like Jesus Who ‘for the joy that was set before Him, endured the cross, despising the shame, and is sat down at the right hand of God' (Hebrews 12:2). It is not wrong to weep, but it is certainly wrong not to have rejoicing accompanying our weeping as we recognise what God is, and what He is doing for us in it. For true faith will always triumph over present circumstances.
‘For a little while' No tribulation lasts for ever, nevertheless it may not always seem ‘a little while to us'. However, it is always ‘a little while' in God's terms. For the real point is not how long it will last, but that it will not go on for ever. However bad it may be, it is temporal, not eternal.
‘More precious than gold which perishes.' We refine gold because it is so valuable, but to God the faith of those who are His far outweighs the value of gold, and that is why He takes such trouble to ensure that by our being tried it remains firm and strong.
‘If need be.' This could mean, ‘if the necessities of your environment require it', or it could mean ‘if God feels it necessary for you'. It may well be inclusive of both thoughts, but is a reminder that not all will necessarily experience the same fiery trials, although all will at some stage necessarily experience the troubles of life and should recognise in them a preparation for that Day.
We can compare with these verses how James tells us to ‘count it all joy when you fall into varied testings, knowing that the proving of your faith works patient endurance', resulting in our becoming ‘perfect and entire, wanting in nothing' (James 1:2-4). See also Romans 5:3-5; 2 Corinthians 8:10, and note Proverbs 17:3; Matthew 5:10-12; Acts 5:41; Romans 8:31-39. Thus we constantly learn that it is ‘through much tribulation' that we will ‘enter under the Kingly Rule of God' (Acts 14:22). On the other hand we should ever note that Jesus taught us to pray, ‘do not lead us into testing' (Matthew 6:13). Suffering is not something that Christians should seek, or that should be courted. We must leave it with God to determine what is necessary for our good, and what we can bear, and then we must trust Him through it.