The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed:
Peter — one of Jesus's original twelve disciples and a key leader in the early church — is writing to communities of Christians scattered across what is now Turkey who were facing real social hardship and persecution for their faith. Here he addresses the elders, the recognized leaders within those local communities. What is striking is how he opens: not with his apostolic authority or his famous status, but as a "fellow elder" — a peer, an equal. He grounds his appeal in two things: he personally witnessed Christ's suffering (he was present during Jesus's arrest and crucifixion), and he holds onto the promise of future glory. He leads not from above, but from alongside.
Lord, make me a leader who leads from beside rather than above — someone who has sat with suffering and still points to glory. Strip away my need for status, and fill me with the kind of quiet authority that only comes from actually knowing you. Amen.
Peter had every credential to pull rank. He was one of the three disciples invited to witness Jesus transfigured on a mountaintop — his face shining like the sun, Moses and Elijah appearing alongside him. He was in the garden the night soldiers came to arrest Jesus. He was, by any measure, someone who could have walked into a room and simply demanded to be heard. And yet here, writing to church leaders under pressure, he does not lead with any of that. He says: I am one of you. I have seen what this costs. I have also seen what is coming. That kind of leadership — built on shared experience rather than title, on "I have been there" rather than "listen to me because of who I am" — is rarer than it should be and harder than it looks. The leaders who have genuinely shaped your life were probably not the ones who stood tallest or spoke the loudest. They were the ones who sat down beside you, admitted they had struggled too, and pointed to something bigger than themselves. Peter lays that model out here — for elders, yes, but really for anyone who has ever been asked to lead anything, anywhere. What kind of leader are you becoming?
Why do you think Peter introduces himself as a 'fellow elder' rather than leading with his identity as an apostle and eyewitness to Jesus? What does that choice communicate about his understanding of leadership?
Think of a specific leader who has genuinely shaped your life. What was it — their position, their honesty, their presence during a hard moment — that actually made them influential?
Peter grounds his authority partly in suffering he witnessed firsthand. Is personal suffering a legitimate source of wisdom and credibility in leadership? Are there limits or dangers to that idea?
How does the way you lead — in your family, your workplace, your church, or your close friendships — reflect or contradict the model Peter lays out here?
What would it look like this week to lead from beside someone rather than above them — to say 'I have been there too' instead of 'here is what you should do'?
For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
Romans 8:18
But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:19
For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.
Colossians 3:3
Rebuke not an elder, but intreat him as a father; and the younger men as brethren;
1 Timothy 5:1
For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
Romans 3:23
And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.
Jeremiah 3:15
So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs.
John 21:15
And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
Ephesians 4:11
Therefore, I strongly urge the elders among you [pastors, spiritual leaders of the church], as a fellow elder and as an eyewitness [called to testify] of the sufferings of Christ, as well as one who shares in the glory that is to be revealed:
AMP
So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed:
ESV
Therefore, I exhort the elders among you, as [your] fellow elder and witness of the sufferings of Christ, and a partaker also of the glory that is to be revealed,
NASB
To Elders and Young Men To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder, a witness of Christ’s sufferings and one who also will share in the glory to be revealed:
NIV
The elders who are among you I exhort, I who am a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that will be revealed:
NKJV
And now, a word to you who are elders in the churches. I, too, am an elder and a witness to the sufferings of Christ. And I, too, will share in his glory when he is revealed to the whole world. As a fellow elder, I appeal to you:
NLT
I have a special concern for you church leaders. I know what it's like to be a leader, in on Christ's sufferings as well as the coming glory.
MSG