Latest / Mount Eaton Church / The Word God Said - “The Care and Life of The Flock of God” - 1 Peter 5
Transcript
- 0:08All right, so I'm going to read chapter 5, and
- 0:11then we're going to dig in, okay? So I exhort
- 0:13the elders among you as a fellow elder and a
- 0:16witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well
- 0:20as a partaker in the glory that is going to be
- 0:22revealed, shepherd the flock of God that is among
- 0:25you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion,
- 0:30but willingly, as God would have you, not for
- 0:33shameful gain, but eagerly, not domineering over
- 0:36those in your charge, but being examples to the
- 0:40flock. And when the chief shepherd appears, you
- 0:43will receive the unfading crown of glory. Likewise,
- 0:47you who are younger, be subject to the elders,
- 0:50clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility
- 0:54toward one another. For God opposes the proud
- 0:57but gives grace to the humble. Humble yourselves,
- 1:01therefore, under the mighty hand of God, so that
- 1:04at the proper time he may exalt you, casting
- 1:08all your anxieties on him, for he cares for you.
- 1:11Be sober -minded, be watchful. Your adversary,
- 1:14the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion
- 1:16seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in
- 1:20the faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering
- 1:23are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout
- 1:25the world. And after you have suffered a little
- 1:29while, the God of all grace, who has called you
- 1:32to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself
- 1:35restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you
- 1:40to him. be the dominion forever and ever. Amen.
- 1:44By Silvanus, a faithful brother, as I regard
- 1:48him, I have written briefly to you, exhorting
- 1:53and declaring that this is the true grace of
- 1:56God. Stand firm in it. She who is at Babylon,
- 2:01who is likewise chosen, sends you greetings,
- 2:04and so does Mark, my son. Greet one another with
- 2:09the kiss of love. Peace to all of you who are
- 2:12in Christ. May the Lord bless the reading of
- 2:15his word. There is a lot in this chapter. There's
- 2:20a lot of doctrine, a lot of stuff we need to
- 2:22deal with. And I will give you a very good overview
- 2:26of it. And we'll dig in another time to get even
- 2:29deeper into some of these things. But I think
- 2:33for the most part. you'll get a really good understanding
- 2:35of why this chapter is so important and why he
- 2:38finishes this letter that way. The principle
- 2:42number one, the men whom God has ordained have
- 2:45been called and commanded to the care of the
- 2:49flock of God. The men whom God has ordained have
- 2:53been called and commanded to the care of the
- 2:56flock of God. In Acts 20, 26 through 28, therefore,
- 3:02I testify to you this day that I am innocent
- 3:05of the blood of all, for I did not shrink from
- 3:08declaring to you the whole counsel of God. Pay
- 3:11careful attention to yourselves and to all the
- 3:14flock in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers
- 3:17to care for the church of God, which he obtained
- 3:21by his own blood. Now, this is important. If
- 3:25I can, there you go. This is important because
- 3:30what we're going to read in chapter 5, verse
- 3:341 through 4, is almost the same declaration.
- 3:39That the reality of God's flock, his church,
- 3:44Paul has made every attempt to proclaim to the
- 3:50people and the doctrine of God to the people.
- 3:55that he is innocent of all their blood. In other
- 3:59words, it is on them if they shrink away. And
- 4:05then he says, for I did not shrink from declaring
- 4:07to you the whole counsel of God. So as elders,
- 4:10and there's only two of us here, I think. As
- 4:15elders, we are held responsible to teach the
- 4:19full counsel of God's word, whether you like
- 4:21it or not. The word is offensive. It is difficult.
- 4:26And we can't skip things or go over things because
- 4:31they're too difficult to handle. Or they're going
- 4:33to be offensive. And the scary part in the day
- 4:37that we live in, which is thriving in deception,
- 4:41is men of God do this all the time in the pulpits
- 4:46today. And we don't have the option. To do that,
- 4:54we must declare the whole counsel of God, not
- 4:59part of it. We must not tickle the ears so that
- 5:03you feel comfortable and happy. Pay careful attention
- 5:07to yourselves. Are you walking and preaching
- 5:12the gospel to yourself? Are you walking and teaching
- 5:16the full counsel of the word of God and studying
- 5:19the full counsel of the word of God for yourself?
- 5:21Are you? Paying attention to yourself carefully
- 5:25as you should also to all the flock that God
- 5:29has entrusted. And God has entrusted each and
- 5:32every person that walks in this building to us
- 5:35as elders. You don't carry the burden. We do.
- 5:42And that's important to understand. And it is
- 5:45a heavy burden to carry. But that does not mean
- 5:49that we don't. Love and enjoy the moment. I love
- 5:53shepherding the flock of God with all her beauty
- 5:58and with all her ugliness. There is no greater
- 6:02calling for any man on the face of the earth
- 6:04than to be a shepherd of God's people. And that
- 6:06includes the president of the United States.
- 6:08There is no greater purpose of any man than to
- 6:13care for God's people. And it is humbling that
- 6:21he would call such a man as I or such men as
- 6:26we. Because we don't deserve it. But he is wise
- 6:32and good and he knows. And so we do. Because
- 6:37we love you. And because we love him. Notice
- 6:42it says, in which the Holy Spirit has made you
- 6:45overseers. He has made us as overseers to care
- 6:53for the church of God. Beautiful word. Which
- 6:57he obtained by his own blood. So what does this
- 6:59mean? We don't own you. God owns us. And the
- 7:05cost is a cost that can never be repaid. There
- 7:10is nothing that is greater value than the blood
- 7:13of Christ, which he has paid for you. Not gold,
- 7:16not silver, no precious stones could ever match
- 7:19the value of the blood of Jesus. And so in 1
- 7:24Peter 5, 1 through 4, this is what he says. So
- 7:27I exhort, I plead, I beg the elders. Presbyteros
- 7:34is Y is typically an U. So he begs, he pleads
- 7:45the elders among you. Why? As a fellow elder
- 7:49and a witness, one who testifies. Testifies to
- 7:54what? To the sufferings of Christ. This is a
- 7:56term that's used as if someone is being brought
- 7:59as a witness before a judge. This is an... eyewitness,
- 8:04one who clearly can testify to the truth of the
- 8:08reality of the sufferings of Jesus, as well as
- 8:11a partaker, a participant in the glory that's
- 8:14going to be revealed. Why? Do you remember when
- 8:17he ascended and the angel said, do not marvel?
- 8:21In the same way that he has ascended, he will
- 8:24descend. And Jesus says, if I go to prepare a
- 8:27place for you, I will come again to take you
- 8:30to myself. John, I mean, Peter knows full well
- 8:33of Christ's return. And he is a participant in
- 8:39the glory that is going to be revealed. You are
- 8:42a participant. Get that. We're not just spectators.
- 8:47We're involved. How are we involved to this day?
- 8:54Shepherd. So this is to our elders. And this
- 8:57is also to the men who lead and teach. And for
- 9:03those who do lead and teach, even the women,
- 9:05be mindful. Because the principle can apply.
- 9:10Not the office, but the principle to care for
- 9:14those who have been put in your care. Shepherd.
- 9:19Full care. This is important. Because a lot of
- 9:23times we think shepherding is just this or that.
- 9:25It's actually to feed, tend, keep, or govern.
- 9:29And govern, sorry. In other words, the full care
- 9:33of the flock of God has been placed upon you.
- 9:37That's a burden that is very heavy. And it's
- 9:41not easy. And it's not supposed to be easy. But
- 9:44it is supposed to be a place of joy. And I will
- 9:48tell you for the men who serve with me, it is
- 9:51our joy. It is our joy. The flock of God clearly
- 9:58is implying God is the owner. It's his flock.
- 10:04Not my flock. My responsibility is to care for
- 10:07his flock. That is among you. That is a term
- 10:13that's used to imply a local body. or a local
- 10:18flock among the flock. This is a group of people
- 10:25which God has purposed to send to an overseer
- 10:30or a group of overseers in order to care for
- 10:33and take, feed and to govern and to tend and
- 10:41keep. Exercising oversight. This term means to
- 10:46serve as overseers or to see to or care for.
- 10:50It's the same idea as it reminds me, as that
- 10:54we are stewards of what God owns. We are your
- 11:02stewards. Not under compulsion. That means by
- 11:07constraint, force, or unwilling. We aren't to
- 11:11do it because we're forced to. We are to do it
- 11:14because we're willing. And he says this, and
- 11:18not under compulsion, willing, which means the
- 11:21same thing. He gives you the negative and he
- 11:24gives you the positive, which means the same
- 11:26thing. But it's really the attitude of the heart
- 11:30and the mind, isn't it? You ever see men who
- 11:35all they want to do is just sit in their office?
- 11:40They don't really want to shepherd because shepherding
- 11:45is work. And they've taken on the thought from
- 11:51a misunderstanding concerning what it says in
- 11:54the book of Acts when the apostles had set aside
- 11:59deacons to serve the tables and take care of
- 12:02the needs of the people. So their responsibility
- 12:07is just to do the Bible. So he'll sit in her
- 12:10office, do the Bible all day, but not be connected
- 12:11to the people that they got to care for. Can
- 12:13you imagine what would have happened with Moses
- 12:15if that's what he did all day? And he wouldn't
- 12:19be sitting down and meeting and dealing with
- 12:21the needs of the people by judging the issues
- 12:24of the day. If you want to see what a shepherd
- 12:27looks like, look at Moses. Not only did he deliver
- 12:30the word and that he also made sure that the
- 12:33people ate and that they were well taken care
- 12:36of and that they were governed. But he also had
- 12:39assigned by God's leading elders to oversee the
- 12:44tribe so that when they would bring to Moses
- 12:46issues that they could not resolve, Moses could
- 12:49take care of those issues. He didn't stop and
- 12:52say, you know what? You know what? I'll just
- 12:53sit and write another tablet of stone. Shepherding
- 13:01is so much more. Look what it says, as God would
- 13:06have you. It's interesting, the term as God would
- 13:09have you is not in the scripture itself, but
- 13:11it's clearly implied under the word willing.
- 13:14Because it's exactly what God would have you
- 13:17to do. Do it because you're willing to do it.
- 13:22Not for shameful gain, greediness for money,
- 13:24but eagerly, being prompt, ready, cheerful, and
- 13:29wholehearted. That is something that I think
- 13:35is missing in many of our brothers. Because they've
- 13:39let the burden and the weight of people's stuff
- 13:44keep them from the cheerfulness and the wholeheartedness
- 13:48of why they're doing it. For the glory and the
- 13:52edification of the church so that the kingdom
- 13:54of God is built. That's why we do it. It's not
- 13:58because I want to be happy. My happiness and
- 14:01my joy is found in serving the Lord and loving
- 14:04his people well. What else is there? Not domineering
- 14:11to be master or exercise lordship over those
- 14:14in your charge. So what happens in many cases,
- 14:21and I'll say this, it is dangerous to be in a
- 14:24church with a single elder -led pastor or a single
- 14:27pastor. Who runs the church. No man should have
- 14:32that kind of power. The only one who runs the
- 14:35church is Jesus Christ himself, the chief shepherd.
- 14:39And we as under shepherds are to care for his
- 14:43people as stewards, as God has intended. And
- 14:49that's why we are an eldership. It's never meant
- 14:54for one man to do the work by himself. It's meant
- 14:56for us to do it together. And in many cases,
- 14:59just like Moses, he needs someone on his right
- 15:01and on his left to hold his arms up. Thank you,
- 15:06Ben. Over those in your charge, over those assigned
- 15:14to one's oversight and care. That's what this
- 15:18means. Oversight and care. How? But being examples,
- 15:28a type or pattern. How do we live this way? How
- 15:32do we oversee and shepherd and keep and care?
- 15:39By being examples, a type or pattern. 1 Corinthians
- 15:4311 .1, be imitators of me as I am of Christ.
- 15:48To the flock. It's the same idea here. My type
- 15:55or my pattern is Christ, and I must be as Christ,
- 15:58not perfectly, but consistently. And when the
- 16:06chief shepherd appears, you will receive the
- 16:08unfading crown of glory. This is our reward.
- 16:12This is our reward. We receive a crown that no
- 16:16one else will receive. It's our reward. So let's
- 16:20be faithful. Don't worry, I spoke to the other
- 16:23elders too, but they're not here. So it's just
- 16:26me and you, bro. Second principle, because God
- 16:34cares for you, he will exalt those who walk humbly
- 16:37before him. Micah 6 .8, he has told you, oh man,
- 16:42what is good and what does the Lord require of
- 16:45you, but to do justice and to love kindness and
- 16:48to walk humbly with your God. It's really a question.
- 16:52It's a statement question, nonetheless. But hasn't
- 16:55he told you, oh man, what is good and what the
- 16:58Lord requires of you, that you do justice and
- 17:01love kindness and walk humbly with your God?
- 17:03Hasn't he told you that already? Yes, he has.
- 17:07Has he not? This is for every one of us. This
- 17:10is not just for the elders. 1 Peter 5, 5 -7,
- 17:16likewise, in the same way. In other words, this
- 17:19term is being used like this. The elder must
- 17:23be humble and subject to the Lord. So in the
- 17:26same way, you also must be humble and subject
- 17:31to the Lord. That's what he means here. So he
- 17:33gave you a list of how the shepherd or the overseer,
- 17:38the elder should live. The only way he can accomplish
- 17:41those tasks in verses 1 through 4 is to be humble.
- 17:48We cannot sit on the horse of pride. Now, understanding
- 17:55that, he says, likewise, you who are younger.
- 18:01So, got some good news for you guys who are young.
- 18:05Darrell, has nothing to do with age. Nothing
- 18:10to do with age. This word younger has nothing
- 18:14to do with how old you are. This word younger
- 18:18means recent, new, young in the faith or lacking
- 18:23experience. I was talking to Karen Koons after
- 18:29the service. She had shared this with me. She
- 18:32goes, I really love that. She goes, do you know
- 18:33what the Hebrew Bible I use says? I said, what?
- 18:36She goes, lacking experience. Oh, I love that.
- 18:38I got to use that. So you guys got it. First
- 18:40service did it. But that's exactly what it means.
- 18:47Likewise, you who lack experience, be subject.
- 18:52Place or arrange oneself under the elders. Why?
- 18:59Because it's our responsibility to care and to
- 19:03shepherd you, to help you grow, to see what God
- 19:06has for you. Clothe yourselves. Now, what's interesting,
- 19:11this word clothe, is a term that's used for slaves.
- 19:18In Dalton Abbey, you ever notice that all of
- 19:20the servants that lived in the house did not
- 19:24dress as those who lived there? They wore servants'
- 19:29clothes. They put on the servants' clothes so
- 19:35that when the guests and those who came in would
- 19:37be able to know who the servant is versus who
- 19:40isn't. That's what he means here. Because we
- 19:45are slaves to Christ, put on the servant clothes.
- 19:48And what is the servant's clothes? Humility.
- 19:53Clothe yourselves with humility, with a deep
- 19:56sense of one's littleness. Do you get that? That
- 20:02we think of ourselves less than we ought. Not
- 20:07more, but less. This deep sense of one's littleness
- 20:13toward one another. Philippians 2. Do nothing
- 20:18from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility
- 20:21count others more significant than yourselves.
- 20:24Let each of you look not only to his own interests,
- 20:27but also to the interests of others. Littleness.
- 20:33Lowliness. For God opposes. God has set himself
- 20:37in opposition. to the proud, the arrogant, but
- 20:42gives grace to the humble, the lowly. Humble
- 20:45yourselves. It's a different term, actually.
- 20:50It means to lower oneself. Humble yourselves,
- 20:56therefore. Lower yourselves, therefore, by any
- 20:58means, under the strong, powerful hand of God.
- 21:08So that at the proper time, he will exalt you.
- 21:13I know, Jody and I had a conversation about the
- 21:16word may. But I don't do Old English. And everyone
- 21:20else thinks may is may, kind of, sort of. At
- 21:24least I think so. And so the reality is, it's
- 21:27not that he might. He will exalt you. God will.
- 21:32You see, if God might, then God is not a... A
- 21:34God who keeps his promises. Because if I'm obedient
- 21:37and I do what he commands me to do, then he says,
- 21:40I will do this for you. Not maybe. And what will
- 21:45he do? He will lift me up and elevate. He will
- 21:49lift you up and elevate you. And so as a result,
- 21:54if he is lifting you up and elevating you, what
- 21:56should you do? Cast and throw upon. Means to
- 21:59throw all your anxieties on him. Why? Because
- 22:04he cares for you. Matthew 11, 28 through 30.
- 22:12Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden,
- 22:15and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you
- 22:19and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly
- 22:22in heart, and you will find rest for your souls,
- 22:25for my yoke is easy and my burden is light. He's
- 22:29saying, listen, take all your junk and just put
- 22:31it on me. I can carry that. Then what I have
- 22:34to give you to carry is nothing in comparison.
- 22:38Here, you take my yoke, I take your yoke. My
- 22:44yoke doesn't have all the junk. He carries our
- 22:49junk. Third principle, we must be willing to
- 22:55suffer for his glory, knowing he is faithful
- 22:58to do as he's promised. In Ephesians 5, 15 through
- 23:0117, look carefully then how you walk, not as
- 23:04unwise, but as wise, making the best use of the
- 23:06time because the days are evil. Therefore, do
- 23:09not be foolish, but understand what the will
- 23:12of the Lord is. Now, I'm going to deal with some
- 23:20controversial issue right now. Now, I want you
- 23:23to understand something very important. When
- 23:27he says, be sober -minded, 1 Peter 5, 8 -11,
- 23:30be vigilant, clear -headed, be watchful for your
- 23:33adversary, the enemy, the devil, the culminator,
- 23:36the accuser, the slanderer, prowls around, roves,
- 23:39roams, and accompanies or follows like a roaring
- 23:44lion. There is not a day, I think, in all of
- 23:49world history When deception has not been the
- 23:52greatest we have ever seen. And I do pray that
- 24:01one day the president will hear what I'm about
- 24:04to say. The president of the United States must
- 24:07be a man of integrity and keep his word. When
- 24:10he says he's going to do something, he needs
- 24:12to do what he says. If he says he's going to
- 24:15do a ceasefire, then do a ceasefire. Stop playing
- 24:18games. It is wrong, it is sin, and it is a mockery
- 24:23to the responsibility of the office of the President
- 24:26of the United States. We must understand this.
- 24:35Regardless of his pride and regardless of the
- 24:37man he is, he has a woman in his office who tickles
- 24:41his ear. And deception is at the greatest I've
- 24:51ever seen. And it's from every side. We are,
- 24:54as believers, being attacked from every side.
- 25:01Why do I say that? Because we must be sober -minded,
- 25:05vigilant and clear -headed and be watchful. All
- 25:10of us. And not only are we dealing with the reality
- 25:15of deception. In everything that we're dealing
- 25:18with, we're also dealing with in the church.
- 25:22How do we know what truth is? The word of God.
- 25:29All scripture is God -breathed. It is the final
- 25:35authority in all things. It is his word, period.
- 25:42So your adversary, the enemy, The devil, the
- 25:45culminator, the accuser, the slanderer, prowls
- 25:48around like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may
- 25:52devour. What's interesting here is it's the pictures
- 25:58that Peter is painting here. It's not about the
- 26:01devil. It's about suffering. There are enemies
- 26:07around about us. And I will tell you, this term
- 26:17to roam, accompany, follow is exactly what aligned
- 26:20us. Just waiting for that moment. And there are
- 26:26those who are devilish who continue to do the
- 26:29same thing. I will tell you this, and I have
- 26:30been praying and thinking about this quite a
- 26:33bit. And I'm more convinced now than I've ever
- 26:38been that the evil one has been released and
- 26:42is at. and is out deceiving the nations. Revelation
- 26:4620 and Revelation 13. Every nation is in this
- 26:52moment of deception and the people of God, unless
- 26:57they know the word of God, will be deceived so
- 27:00much so that some of them will believe it. And
- 27:03Jesus makes this claim that even the elect, if
- 27:09it were possible, would be deceived. But it's
- 27:12not possible for the elect to be deceived because
- 27:14the Spirit of God lives in us. We have something
- 27:17the world would never have. God living in us.
- 27:22Emmanuel. This word devour means to swallow greedily.
- 27:31Isn't that exactly what it's like, isn't it?
- 27:36Resist, oppose, withstand, firm. steadfast, strong
- 27:41in your faith. I don't know why they put the
- 27:44word him here. Resist him because it's really
- 27:48a list that Peter is placing here that we must
- 27:53resist firm in the faith, knowing the same kinds
- 27:57of sufferings or afflictions are being experienced
- 27:59by your brotherhood. It's really a list. It's
- 28:04not resist him. It's resist anything that's antithetical
- 28:08to God. Firm in the faith. Firm in the gospel.
- 28:13So let me share this with you. There is only
- 28:17one thing that has been given to you that's your
- 28:20responsibility. To contend for the faith. The
- 28:25gospel. So let me give you the gospel very plainly.
- 28:28Okay? This is a gospel that has justified you
- 28:33in the work of Jesus Christ. Okay? Very important.
- 28:39What is the gospel? That Christ came and died
- 28:42on the cross, was buried and rose again on the
- 28:44third day. He came and put on flesh to be in
- 28:48the image of the creation in which he is created.
- 28:51And as a result, sinful man. Because of one man,
- 28:55Adam, all sinned and all have died. But through
- 29:01one man, the second Adam, all will live. Very
- 29:06important. Second, without the shedding of blood,
- 29:10there is no forgiveness of sin. That means to
- 29:12be justified before God. Nothing can justify
- 29:15anyone except for the blood of Christ itself
- 29:18and the work that he has done on the cross. For
- 29:21the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God
- 29:24is eternal life in Christ Jesus. And why is that
- 29:27important? Because there's no one who is righteous,
- 29:29no, not one. No one does good. No one seeks God.
- 29:38Now, understanding this reality, the condition
- 29:42of the total depravity of man has brought man
- 29:45to one position before God, and that is under
- 29:47his wrath. That means all people born are under
- 29:52the wrath of God. And the only way one comes
- 29:56out from underneath the wrath of God, erkomai,
- 29:59is to be born again in Christ, washed by the
- 30:02blood of Jesus, and placed from death to life.
- 30:10There is no greater work in all of creation than
- 30:14the crucified, buried, and risen Savior. There
- 30:17is no greater work. No one has the power to do
- 30:23so except for him. Now understanding this, how
- 30:27should we live? The willingness to suffer. knowing
- 30:32that the same kinds of suffering, affliction
- 30:35are being experienced, fully undergone or endured
- 30:38by the brotherhood throughout the world. Now
- 30:40this is important. The reason why this is important
- 30:43is because of this statement right here. Your
- 30:47adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring
- 30:50lion seeking someone to devour. We can't take
- 30:53it out of context. We know what the context is
- 30:56here. Exactly what it says, knowing that the
- 30:59same kinds of suffering or affliction are being
- 31:02experienced and endured by the brotherhood throughout
- 31:05the world. What does this mean? That the very
- 31:10works of the enemy are at work against every
- 31:14believer. People that live in the world that
- 31:22are under the curse are still under the curse.
- 31:25There is no need for that. They live in deception.
- 31:32Now, this also implies one very important characteristic
- 31:40that Satan does not have. Omnipresence. Because
- 31:47he can't be fully... He can't be... And afflicting
- 31:51all the believers around the world at the same
- 31:54time. Just want to throw that out there. And
- 32:00after you suffered. Now this term after you have
- 32:04is not present. Nor in the tense. But I can see
- 32:07why they put it there. Because it makes sense.
- 32:10At least from an English perspective. And suffering
- 32:13a little while. Not a really good sentence. But
- 32:18I get it. So after you've endured a little while,
- 32:21briefly, the God of all grace, do you hear that?
- 32:25Where sin increases, grace increases all the
- 32:28more. Suffering for the cause of Christ is a
- 32:31result of persecution under the sin of someone
- 32:35else or something else. And where sin increases,
- 32:39grace increases all the more. Why? Because the
- 32:43God of all grace. Who will give you all that
- 32:48you need to endure and suffer under it for his
- 32:50glory. And he will fill your life full of grace.
- 32:56Has called you, has summoned you to his eternal
- 32:59glory in Christ. Do you get that? Eternal security.
- 33:04Isn't it a beautiful thing? To know that in Christ,
- 33:07I'm eternally secure in him. Will himself. Restore,
- 33:16complete, prepare, equip, and train. Philippians
- 33:231 .6, and I am sure of this, that he who began
- 33:26a good work in you will bring it to completion
- 33:28at the day of Jesus Christ. What is God's purpose
- 33:33for our suffering? What is God's purpose for
- 33:36our life on earth? What is your purpose for being
- 33:38on earth to be conformed into the image of his
- 33:40son, which he has predestined you to be? There
- 33:45is no greater calling nor greater privilege that
- 33:50God would bestow upon a creature rebellious and
- 33:55evil to be like his son. What an amazing grace.
- 34:01Now, if God has restored us or is restoring us,
- 34:07he will confirm, he will establish, strengthen,
- 34:10be resolute. Do you hear that? You need to be
- 34:15established, strengthened, and be resolute. Resolute
- 34:18in what? In the truth of the word of God. In
- 34:21the truth of the gospel. In the truth of the
- 34:23person of the divine Jesus Christ. Be strengthened
- 34:29and established. This word established is a foundation.
- 34:33So for us who are being restored and confirmed
- 34:38and strengthened, he has established us on a
- 34:42foundation. Psalm 40 verse 2, he drew me up from
- 34:48the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog,
- 34:51and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps
- 34:55secure. Who is my rock? Jesus Christ. And he's
- 35:01done that through the gospel. What an amazing
- 35:06thing. Christ is our foundation. The foundation
- 35:11is the gospel. The words that the prophets and
- 35:14the apostles have taught us. Christ being the
- 35:18chief cornerstone. To him be dominion forever
- 35:22and ever. Amen. Lastly, God's word is given to
- 35:26exhort us and for us to stand firm in it. Deuteronomy
- 35:31624. And the Lord commands us to do all these
- 35:35statutes to fear the Lord our God for our good
- 35:39always. Do you hear that? So I will tell you
- 35:44again, obedience. I will tell you every single
- 35:50day of your life, obedience. You want to be firm
- 35:57and established in the fear of God? Obedience.
- 36:01Do all these statutes. Why? Because in Christ,
- 36:05I can do them now. It is my freedom and my joy
- 36:09to obey because I want to please him, not because
- 36:12I am obligated to. And if it's difficult to hear,
- 36:17then maybe you should check yourself. For our
- 36:23good always. Isn't that beautiful? The word of
- 36:26God and the fear of God and the obedience to
- 36:29God by the work of Christ in and through us is
- 36:33for our good always. He causes all things to
- 36:37turn to the good of those who love him and be
- 36:38called according to his purpose. We don't get
- 36:41the fringe benefits of salvation without the
- 36:44responsibility of living it. That he might preserve
- 36:51us alive. Remember I told you the word that the
- 36:55law of God is not just the school teacher and
- 36:58it's not the revealer that we are dead in our
- 37:00trespasses and sins, but for us who are alive
- 37:03in Christ, it is life and freedom. There it is.
- 37:09Notice what he says, as we are to this day. Isn't
- 37:15that beautiful? Man does not live by bread alone,
- 37:19but by every word that comes from the mouth of
- 37:21God. 1 Peter 5, 12 through 14, by Silvanus. In
- 37:26other words, by this brother, a faithful brother
- 37:29as I regard him. I am sending this letter by
- 37:34Silvanus. I have written briefly this letter
- 37:39to you, exhorting and declaring that this is
- 37:43the true grace of God. Stand firm in it. In other
- 37:47words, what he's saying is this letter I'm writing
- 37:49to you. is the doctrine of God for your life.
- 37:54Stand firm in it. It is the true grace of God
- 37:58for you. During this great time of dispersion.
- 38:04And she, who is in Babylon, who is likewise chosen.
- 38:12Now what's this mean? Well, come to do a little
- 38:16study on this issue of Babylon. There was like
- 38:18a little city called Babylon, but it's not that
- 38:20type of Babylon. What's he talking about here?
- 38:23Well, almost all of the commentaries refer to
- 38:29Babylon as the environment they were living in,
- 38:33Rome. The Babylonian system. And I want to make
- 38:38this very clear for you. We live in Babylon.
- 38:45Every church on the planet lives in Babylon today.
- 38:50That's correct. She who is at Babylon or in Babylon,
- 38:58who is likewise chosen, do you understand that?
- 39:01You are a chosen people, a people for his own
- 39:06possession. You are to reflect him in every way,
- 39:10especially in these very deceitful days. And
- 39:13your responsibility is to know the word. So this
- 39:19church, whom John is speaking of, the chosen
- 39:23in Babylon, sends you greetings. And so does
- 39:28Mark, my son. Greet one another with the kiss
- 39:34of love. You guys do that very well. You guys
- 39:39do. Some are huggers. Some are kissers. Some
- 39:44are handshakers. But you guys do this so well.
- 39:49That's how you know the love of God is present
- 39:53in the brotherhood. Isn't it exciting to see
- 39:59someone who hasn't been here in a while and you
- 40:00see them, you're like, oh! Peace to all of you.
- 40:07who are in Christ. We live in some very tough,
- 40:14tough days. So here's my challenge to you, which
- 40:19we will be talking about over the next several
- 40:20weeks, which is going to be 2 Peter. I'm going
- 40:25to be dealing with this issue of the devil that
- 40:28prowls around like a roaring lion. During 2 Peter,
- 40:32he deals with a particular issue about false
- 40:35teachers. So as we go through 2 Peter, we're
- 40:40going to address the doctrine of truth so that
- 40:44you can discern and expose the false doctrine.
- 40:49So we will be exposing other denominations, churches,
- 40:56who deal or teach false doctrine and who have...
- 41:00Clearly faded away from the full gospel of Jesus
- 41:03Christ. It's our responsibility to do so. So
- 41:07just letting you know that's going to be coming
- 41:08over these next several weeks. And you're going
- 41:11to learn a lot. So I pray that you would not
- 41:15only walk in the grace, but pray for those brothers
- 41:17and sisters who are in those situations that
- 41:19God would draw them out. It just happens to be
- 41:22in 2 Peter, he deals with it. So we got to deal
- 41:26with it. So it's okay. All right? Anyway. So
- 41:31please stand as I give you the benediction. Now
- 41:36may the God of peace who brought again from the
- 41:40dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the
- 41:43sheep by the blood of eternal covenant, equip
- 41:47you for everything good that you may do his will.
- 41:52working in us that which is pleasing in his sight
- 41:55through Jesus Christ. To him be glory forever
- 41:58and ever. May the Lord bless you and keep you
- 42:01and shine his face upon you and give you peace.
- 42:03And may the Holy Spirit guide you in all truth.
- 42:05In Jesus' name.