Peter makes a very clear distinction between persecution and punishment. When bad things happen and people mistreat Christians, they must ask themselves, “do I deserve this”? If we did something to another we must apologize, but if they are just haters then we rejoice as James 1:2-4 says so that our faith can grow, and we are to love on and pray for our enemies as Jesus says in Matt 5:43-48, Paul echoes this in Romans 12:9-21. We must always remember that God is our avenger and we must not retaliate against people who harm us (Deut 32:35). Let’s look at some of Peter’s writing on the subject.

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