1 Peter 5:8

1 Peter 5:8 says, Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:  Peter gave them and gives us a very specific warning that we are to be sober and vigilant, because the Devil is our adversary. Peter tells us that the Devil is a roaring lion seeking those that he can devour.  We never really have to fear the Devil as long as we are following the leadership of the Holy Spirit, but if we begin to feel that we no longer are open to his temptations, then we need to really be alert.  Verse nine adds, Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.  Peter calls on us to remain steadfast in our faith and tells us also that we are not immune to trouble in the world.  I don't believe that once you become a Christian that all your troubles are going to disappear, nor do I believe that the Bible teaches this.  The troubles in life may increase.  As a matter of fact, in Peter's day, and in many countries today, this was and is a fact.  Verse ten continues, But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.  The reason we do not have to fear the Devil is because of the God of all grace.  The grace of God is always sufficient to overcome any evil or temptation for now and for all time.  Even if we lose our life because of our faith in God, we are still secure in His loving grace. Verse eleven states, To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.  We are to acknowledge that honor and dominion belong to God forever.   No matter how bad things may get here in the world, we are to honor God and acknowledge that He alone is God.  Verse twelve adds, By Silvanus, a faithful brother unto you, as I suppose, I have written briefly, exhorting, and testifying that this is the true grace of God wherein ye stand.  Peter said that he had written this letter by Silvanus, who he knew to be a faithful brother to the others that he was writing to.  We need to acknowledge the fact that there are many other faithful Christians in the world today and uplift them in our thoughts, and prayers and give them recognition when we can.  Verse thirteen continues, The church that is at Babylon, elected together with you, saluteth you; and so doth Marcus my son.  When we hear the name Babylon, we usually think of a bad place, but Peter said that there was a church there.  He also said that the Christians there were equal to all others.  Peter also called Marcus, or Mark, his beloved son.  Verse fourteen concludes, Greet ye one another with a kiss of charity. Peace be with you all that are in Christ Jesus. Amen.   Peter told these Christians to greet one another with a holy kiss.  We used to handshake or give a hug more today than a kiss, or at least we did before the pandemic, but the real statement is that we should have a genuine affection for one another through our faith in Jesus Christ.  Peter also called for peace to be with all who were in Christ, and I believe that this was a call to spiritual peace no matter what is going on around us in the world.