<p>3:14 <em>But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you are blessed. And do not be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled- </em>As with the slaves of chapter 2, we get the impression some were suffering for their sins, and others for their righteousness. The connection with the slave passage in 2:18-20 is significant in that Peter is demonstrating that the same principles apply to all in the church; just as submission of wife to husband in 3:1 is actually to be practiced by all members of the church to one another in 5:5. The practical application of common spiritual principles is what brings unity in practice within the church, whether we are slave or master, male or female, or Jew or Gentile. Note that the same categories are in view when Paul teaches that baptism into Christ eclipses all these category distinctions (Gal. 3:27-29).</p><p><i><br /></i>3:15<em> But sanctify in your hearts Christ as Lord- </em>Knowing and having Christ as Lord of our hearts will practically enable us to overcome tribulation, and will lead to a suitably humble witness in response. Peter began in 1:2 by speaking of how the Spirit sanctifies us; but in our hearts or spirit we must consciously act to have Christ as Lord.</p><p>From where do we get the motivation from for loyalty to Christ? I'd suggest that it comes from first of all realizing, on a theological level, the greatness of Christ. He is now Lord of Heaven and earth, all power has been given unto him, He is the &quot;Prince of the Kings of the earth&quot;. Those early brethren who had seen the Lord in His humanity really appreciated this. Thus &quot;Yahweh of hosts, him shall you sanctify&quot; (Is. 8:13 LXX) is applied by Peter to the Lord Jesus, whom we should sanctify (1 Pet. 3:15). Paul speaks about &quot;the Lord&quot; as if we all know who he refers to; <em>the</em> Lord, the one and only Lord, the exalted Lord Jesus. This especially comes out in his breaking of bread passage in 1 Cor. 11:23-29. Such is the supremacy of Christ that &quot;We cannot lift Christ too high&quot; as Robert Roberts expressed it. If we appreciate the extent and height of His Lordship and exaltation, we will see the extent to which our minds should be dominated by Him. Our very consciousness should beat with His spirit, His mind. We are told that He should <em>live in our hearts</em>; for us, He should be the alpha and omega (Rev. 1:11). The confession of faith before baptism is summarized, in its quintessence, as confessing with the mouth Jesus as Lord (Rom. 10:9 RV). All the doctrines a candidate must know beforehand are summarized in this.</p><p>Because Christ is Lord of all, we must preach Him to all, even if like Peter we would rather not preach to them. This was the motivational power and reality of Christ's universal Lordship for Peter (Acts 10:36). The same link between Christ's Lordship and witness is found in Phil. 2:10 and 1 Pet. 3:15 (which alludes Is. 8:13- Yahweh of Hosts, of many ones, becomes manifest now in the Lord Jesus). The ascended Christ was highly exalted and given the Name above every Name, so that for those who believed this, they would bow in service at the Name of Jesus. Peter preached in and about the name of Jesus- this is emphasized (Acts 2:31,38; 3:6,16; 4:10,12,17,18,30; 5:28,40,41; 10:43). The excellence of knowing Him and His character and the wonder of the exalted Name given on His ascension (Phil. 2:9; Rev. 3:12) lead Peter to witness. Because of His exaltation, we confess Jesus as Lord to men, as we later will to God at judgment (Phil. 2:9). According as we confess Him before men, so our judgment will reflect this. Lifting up Jesus as Lord is to be the basis of giving a witness to every man of the hope that lies within us (1 Pet. 3:15 RSV). The knowledge and experience of His exaltation can only be witnessed to; it can't be kept quiet. 3 Jn. 7 refers to how the great preaching commission was obeyed: &quot;For his name's sake they went forth, taking nothing (material help) from the Gentiles&quot; (Gentile believers). For the excellence of knowing His Name they went forth in witness, and moreover were generous spirited, not taking material help to enable this. The knowledge of the Name of itself should inspire to active service: for the sake of the Lord's Name the Ephesians laboured (Rev. 2:3).</p><p><em>Always ready to give answer to every man that asks you a reason concerning the hope that is in you, yet with meekness and fear- </em>They were to be ready always to give an answer to those who ask, albeit with fear; exactly what Peter failed to do on the night of the denials.&nbsp;He continually alludes to his own weakness. The hope within is &quot;Christ as Lord&quot; who is sanctified within our hearts. He is our hope (1 Tim. 1:1). Christ within us is our hope of glory (Col. 1:27). Our hope is therefore primarily about eternal relationship with Him; the environment where we shall enjoy that Hope is the Kingdom of God on earth, but the essence is the eternal relationship with Him.&nbsp;</p><p>In our suffering for righteousness' sake at the hands of the world, we must &quot;give an answer (s.w. 'a defence, clearing of oneself)... a reason (<em>logos </em>, cp. Mt. 12:36)... with meekness and fear... having a good conscience... let him not be <em>ashamed </em>&quot; (1 Pet. 3:15,16; 4:16).&nbsp; This is all judgment seat language. And yet we must go through this now in our confrontations with the world. The trials of our faith are like fire which purifies us (1 Pet. 1:7; 4:12). And yet this is the language of the last judgment (Mal. 3:1,2). In our response to trials, we have the outcome of our judgment. We must rejoice <em>now</em> in our tribulations with the same joy which we will have when we are accepted by the Lord at the last day (1 Pet. 4:13). Job felt that his calamities were God entering into judgment with him (Job 14:3). If we react properly to trials, we thereby receive now &quot;the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls&quot; (1 Pet. 1:9). Thus the question of the degree to which we now are 'saved' is connected with the fact that to some degree, the judgment process is also going on now.</p><p>Because of His exaltation, we confess Jesus as Lord to men, as we later will to God at judgment (Phil. 2:9). According as we confess Him before men, so our judgment will reflect this. Lifting up Jesus as Lord is to be the basis of giving a witness to every man of the hope that lies within us (1 Pet. 3:15 RSV). The knowledge and experience of His exaltation can only be witnessed to; it can&rsquo;t be kept quiet.</p>