The epistle of First Peter was written to first-century Christians, who were dealing with pressures and persecutions from non-Christians. It was truly a “fiery trial” of their faith (1 Pet. 4:12) that they were facing. How could they deal with these “various trials” (1:6) and overcome them? The book is filled with imperatives, as Peter provides direction to defeat the devil’s efforts (5:8), but his emphasis in one area may surprise you.
To be victorious over trials as a Christian, Peter repeatedly focuses on the need to “love” our brethren. Don’t misunderstand. The trials were not coming from brethren but from outsiders. But to overcome them, he said, “love one another fervently with a pure heart” (1:22), “having compassion for one another; love as brothers” (3:8), “above all things have fervent love for one another” (4:8), “be hospitable to one another” (4:9), “minister to one another” (4:10).
Today we are facing various persecutions because of our faith. What can we do? One thing for certain—get busy loving (an active, serving verb) our brethren!