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Bible study at Cottonwood Creek Church, Allen, Texas

Lessons last updated
Oct 18, 2026

Home / 1 & 2 Peter: Verse by Verse / 1 Peter 5

Shepherds, Suffering, and the God of Grace

Passage: 1 Peter 5
Taught: December 14, 2025
Series: 1 & 2 Peter: Verse by Verse

Summary

Peter exhorts the elders as a fellow elder: shepherd the flock willingly, eagerly and by example, not under compulsion, for shameful gain, or by domineering. The lesson compares episcopal, presbyterian and congregational church leadership, and notes the crown of glory promised when the Chief Shepherd appears, alongside the other crowns named in Scripture.

Next comes humility. Everyone is to clothe themselves with humility, because God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. The lesson looks at Jesus washing the disciples’ feet as the picture of servant-leadership, then at Proverbs 3:34 in the Greek and Hebrew. Humbling ourselves under God’s mighty hand means casting all our anxieties on Him, because He cares for us.

Finally, Peter warns us to be sober-minded and watchful against the devil, who prowls like a roaring lion. Resist him, firm in the faith, knowing the same sufferings are shared by believers everywhere. After a little suffering the God of all grace will restore, confirm, strengthen and establish us. The letter closes with greetings and a charge to stand firm in the true grace of God.

Thus far in 1 Peter

The slides recap the letter before the final chapter.

Chapter 1. Born again to a living hope, called to holiness.
Chapter 2. Living stones and a royal priesthood, honorable among unbelievers.
Chapter 3. Godly conduct in marriage, blessing when wronged.
Chapter 4. Live for God’s will, love deeply, and rejoice in suffering for Christ.
Chapter 5. Shepherd the flock, be humble, resist the devil, and stand firm in grace.

Practical takeaways

The slides draw out these lessons from 5:8–14:

Stay alert and resist the devil (James 4:7).
Trials are common to believers but temporary, and God promises restoration (2 Corinthians 4:17).
Stand firm in grace, the foundation for endurance (2 Timothy 2:1).

Questions to talk about

Am I serving others willingly, as God would have me?Work heartily, as for the Lord (Colossians 3:23).
Am I clothing myself with humility, serving as Christ washed the disciples’ feet?The Son of Man came to serve (Mark 10:45).
Do I cast my anxieties on God in prayer, or carry them myself?Cast your burden on the Lord and He will sustain you (Psalm 55:22).
Am I staying alert and standing firm against the enemy?Submit to God, resist the devil, and he will flee (James 4:7).

Scriptures in this lesson