Welcome to the sixth part of our series, "Blessed Assurance."
Here is today's text:

(1 Peter 3:1-7)In the same way, you wives must accept the authority of your husbands. Then, even if some refuse to obey the Good News, your godly lives will speak to them without any words. They will be won over by observing your pure and reverent lives. Don’t be concerned about the outward beauty of fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or beautiful clothes. You should clothe yourselves instead with the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God. This is how the holy women of old made themselves beautiful. They put their trust in God and accepted the authority of their husbands. For instance, Sarah obeyed her husband, Abraham, and called him her master. You are her daughters when you do what is right without fear of what your husbands might do. In the same way, you husbands must give honor to your wives. Treat your wife with understanding as you live together. She may be weaker than you are, but she is your equal partner in God’s gift of new life. Treat her as you should so your prayers will not be hindered.

And that word is the Good News that was preached to you..

We can stand strong because we have a blessed assurance that nothing on Earth can touch.

Overall Commentary: 🌎

This passage contains more than we initially notice. When I first read this passage, my initial thoughts were that it was a "simple" (not simplistic) call for husbands and wives to accept and honor each other. As I began to dig deeper, it speaks to the way we each show Christ through the way we process our daily lives in not always perfect circumstances. The goal of this passage is to encourage husbands and wives to engage in mutual submission, but it is so much more. It is about the way we live out our daily lives and how it speaks to our trust in God.

Commentary.

Verse 1-6. Thrive in Complicated Circumstances.

Peter is doing something amazing. He is speaking straight to the women of the churches. This is taken for granted now, but it would have raised the eyebrows of the original audience. During the time, you didn't speak directly to the women because, to be honest, the culture did not see them as part of the conversation. The fact that Peter is speaking directly to them shows that God cares about the lives, examples, and circumstances of all of us.

Verse 1.

"In the same way"- Peter connects this passage to all that has come before. He is reminding the readers that this is linked to being an example to "outsiders" of what it means to honor God through our lives.
"Accept the authority of your husbands." - This reminds women that God has established the order of the home, but it does not supersede their value as children of God. This is even more striking when you realize he is saying this while aware that many of the women had unbelieving spouses. In the culture of the time, it was highly suspicious not to follow the same "gods"as your husband. Peter is saying that they should accept their authority but honor God above all others.
"Even if some refuse to believe"- This is where Peter reminds them that they are to take their walk with God into complicated environments. They are to live for God even in close relationships that do not align with their beliefs.
"Your godly lives will speak to them without any words."- It is through our godly lives that the world will see what is different about us. God moves more through daily acts of faithfulness, rather than grand displays or posturing.

Verse 3-4.

"Don't be concerned about outward beauty..."- During the time, it was considered the height of status and fashion for women to wear braids in their hair with gold ribbons. It was a way to show the surrounding people that your family was part of the higher class. It was also considered a highly sexualized way to dress because the culture considered your hair to be a highly sexualized part of your body. Peter is saying we should not go to culture to find our value. Our value comes from who we are in Christ. Peter is not saying that looking our best is bad. He is saying we should base our value on it.
"Unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit..."- It is the way we live, not what we wear, that should show people our value.
- Gentle- Controlled strength.
- Quiet spirit- settled heart. Unhurried soul. Contentment.

Verse 5-6.

"Trust in God and accept the authority of their husband."- Ultimately, our trust is not in our position in life or our current circumstances. Our trust is in the Lord.
"Sarah obeyed her husband, Abraham, and called him her master."- This does not mean Sarah was a slave in her own home. Peter was saying that, though she was a strong woman, she stayed within her lane. She had no fear of letting Abraham lead, not because she fully trusted him, but because she fully trusted the Lord to lead her through him.

Verse 7. Give Our Lives Away.

Some of us asked why Peter talked to women over the course of six verses, and the guys only got one verse. We have to be careful not to muddy the waters by looking at these verses through the lens of modern culture. During the culture of the time, most of the previous verses would have involved primarily the men. It was the men who worked outside the home and the men who had to deal with matters of government. Therefore, Peter has been talking mainly to men this whole time. Now, he speaks to them again to give them what would have been incredibly progressive instructions. They were actually supposed to pay attention to their wives as co-heirs in Christ.

Verse 7.

"In the same way" - Once again, Peter is connecting this to the overall appeal to be a living example to the world.
"Give honor to your wives"- This would have been incredible to the original audience. The culture of the time viewed men as the lords of their homes. Peter is saying, "You may be the king, but she is your queen. Proceed accordingly."
"Treat your wife with understanding as you live together."- Other translations say to treat her with"knowledge." This means to know her, to study her, to live your life in pursuit of her good. When we examine this text along with Ephesians 5, it is amazing to realize that men are to see their wives as their most significant ministry. Paul said they should love their wives as Christ loves the church.
"She may be weaker than you are."- The term "weaker" is intended to mean physically. Some writers of the time indicate that many viewed women as morally weaker or more easily manipulated. Peter indicates he is saying their social standing and physicality are weaker, not their ability to honor the Lord.
"She is your equal partner in God's gift of new life."- Peter is reminding the men that they are to see their wives as equal in the eyes of God. This is why leadership in the home has to do with job description, not value.
"Treat her as you should so your prayers will not be hindered."- This final verse has created a lot of opinions over time. Some say this literally means that God will judge men if they do not honor their wives. Others say this passage is speaking to men who have unbelieving wives. The prayers would be for their salvation. This would round out the earlier text where Peter was talking to women with unbelieving wives. Either way, the point is the same. How we live in front of others matters and affects our relationship with the Lord.

God's Promise:

(Romans 15:13) I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you TRUST IN HIM. Then you will overflow with confident hope.”