Vida en Cristo - El Verbo, lleno de gracia y de verdad.

To understand 1 Peter and the phrase, 'suffer according to the will of God,' we need to look at the entire letter and its context for clues.  The phrase, 'the will of God,' first appears in 1 Pet. 2:15.

 1Pe 2:15    For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men:

 
Here Peter establishes that the will of God is that we through 'well doing' put to silence foolish men.  This is speaking of our testimony in the face of those who might oppose us.  This would establish the basis for the phrase in its subsequent appearances in the letter.

 
The entire letter of 1 Peter deals with the persecutions and trials that the readers have been experiencing, and is an exhortation to remain firm.  Please read 1 Peter 1:6-7, 1 Pet. 2:12, 19-21, 1 Pet. 3:14-17, 1 Pet. 4:1-2, 12-16, 19, and 1 Pet. 5:8-9.

From these references we can glean the following:

 - Their faith was being tried due to their circumstances

- They were being spoken against as evildoers and were exhorted to continue in good works

- They were exhorted to endure grief and suffer wrongly with patience.

- Christ was their example as one who suffered wrong and bore it patiently

- If they suffered for righteousness' sake that should be happy

- They were being falsely accused.

- They were to arm themselves to suffer in the flesh as did Christ (persecutions)

- They were not to consider such trials and persecutions as abnormal.

- Their sufferings were comparable to Christ's sufferings, being reproached for His name.

- They should not be ashamed of suffering for being a follower of Christ.

- They were to resist the tactics of the enemy by faith

 
In all of these references we find that the topic is the patient resistance to the persecutions that were abundant due to their faith in Christ.  There is no mention of God putting sufferings or sicknesses on His people. Non believers and enemies of Christ were the source of the sufferings and persecutions.

 
In 1 Pet. 3:17, Peter says the following:  For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well doing, than for evil doing.

 
Based on the context that we have mentioned, we can see that the 'will of God' is the Christian's well doing in the face of opposition.  So this verse is explaining that if we suffer for well doing, that it is the will of God, rather than suffering for evil doing.  If our lifestyle of good works stirs up persecution, then it is God's will that we endure patiently.

1 Pet. 4:19 completes the thought:  Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator.

 
Our suffering 'according to the will of God' is referring not to God putting suffering upon us, but rather refers to our attitude in the face of persecution for being followers of Christ.  His will is that we patiently endure and not be ashamed of our testimony.  His will is that by continuing in good works, we silence foolish and ignorant unbelievers.