Payback is planted in the bottom of our hearts — every one of us is a born retaliator. If we’re to answer wrongdoing with any other response than wrongdoing, we need a change at the core of our being.

As Christians, all hope for that change is found in Christ. Nowhere else can we find a man who, “when he was reviled . . . did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten” (1 Peter 2:23). Through the redemption and example of his death (1 Peter 2:21), Christians are called to imitate their Lord when confronted with evil: “Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless” (1 Peter 3:9). This blessing — sincere words of good from a changed heart — is a unique witness to a world that does not yet share our hope in a new world to come.

Look at the Book is John Piper’s latest effort to help teach people to read the Bible for themselves. It’s an ongoing series of 8–12 minute videos in which the camera is on the text, not the teacher.

As part of this initiative, Desiring God is putting on regional events focused on certain passages of Scripture. This is Part 5 in a series on 1 Peter called “Hoping, Singing, and Loving in the Refiner’s Fire.” More parts will be released in the coming weeks.