Getting back on Target...

Staying on Target...

Last year, leading up to summer, I started a series called, “Staying on Target.” We started looking into the book of 2nd Peter, so I want to start with just a little refresher of a little of what we talked about.

We share the same

Precious Faith

Your faith cost Jesus the same as it did for me. It’s the blood of Jesus that cleanses us from all sin.

We have been given

Everything that we need for living a godly life in Christ Jesus.

In God’s word, we have great and precious promises that show us who we are in Christ. His divine power, has given us everything that we need to live lives that please God.

Romans 8:2–4 NIV

because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

When making a recipe, there are certain ingredients that we can’t live without. It’s amazing what a pinch of salt can do.

We need to

Make every effort to add to your faith...

2 Peter 1:5–8 NIV

For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

We need to

Keep the faith, no matter the cost...

No matter the temptation, no matter the ridicule or persecution, we need to keep the faith. This life is but a vapor in comparison to eternity.

What does it profit a person, if they gain the whole world and forfeit their soul? What will a person give in exchange for their soul? We have been purchased with the precious blood of Jesus.

We will never find the peace and contentment that we are looking for apart from Jesus.

Over the next couple of months we are going to be taking...

a bird’s eye view...

over the rest of the book of 2 Peter. There is some deep things to look at. Some will cause us to look deep into our hearts, and ask some hard questions. Some of this will be hard slugging, but let’s

2 Timothy 2:15 NIV

Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.

Let’s pray!

Lord as we come to your word this first Sunday of 2023, we ask that you would stir our hearts this year. May we be found in you not having a righteousness of our own, but a righteousness that comes through faith in Jesus Christ. As we look into your word, may we be challenged and transformed to be more like Jesus. May 2023 be a year of enormous growth for all of us.

We ask for a special presence of the Holy Spirit to speak to our hearts today, In Jesus’ name. Amen.

This morning, I’d like to look at

Standing firm in the truth...

2 Peter 1:12–18 NLT

Therefore, I will always remind you about these things—even though you already know them and are standing firm in the truth you have been taught. And it is only right that I should keep on reminding you as long as I live. For our Lord Jesus Christ has shown me that I must soon leave this earthly life, so I will work hard to make sure you always remember these things after I am gone. For we were not making up clever stories when we told you about the powerful coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. We saw his majestic splendor with our own eyes when he received honor and glory from God the Father. The voice from the majestic glory of God said to him, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy.” We ourselves heard that voice from heaven when we were with him on the holy mountain.

Who was Peter?

Peter was one of the three closest disciples of Jesus. He was the one who walked on water. He was one of the three that Jesus asked to watch and pray, while Jesus was in the Garden of Gethsemane.

It was Peter, James, and John that were on the Mount of Transfiguration, when God said, “This is my beloved Son...”

It was Peter that preached the message on the Day of Pentecost and 3000 came to faith in Jesus.

Now Peter is

Reminding them how to walk the walk

Peter is like a father. He’s like a coach. He’s reminding them of the play.

Have you ever been on a team, and the coach draws up a play. You’ve got less than a minute and the coach calls a time out. It’s time to pull the goalie. You’ve been through this time and time again at practice, and the coach wants to remind you one more time of what you need to do.

Do you know why it’s so important to remind each other?

Sometimes, we need to be reminded and encouraged about how we need to follow Christ. Paul would say, “Follow me as I follow Christ.”

The devil doesn’t want us to feel that we are worthy to say this. Thoughts might pop into our minds, “Who do you think that you are to say that? Remember when you said this or did that?”

Romans 8:1 NIV

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,

If we can’t say this, we need to find out who we are in Christ. We may need to draw near to God, press in to the truth in His word.

2 Corinthians 5:21 NIV

God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

1 John 3:18–24 NIV

Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth. This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence: If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything. Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him. And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us. The one who keeps God’s commands lives in him, and he in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us.

We need to humble ourselves before the Lord and He will lift us up.

It’s not about pride, it’s not about thinking too highly about ourselves, it’s about showing people Jesus. Satan wants nothing more than your heart to condemn you so that you can’t be who God has called and created you to be.

Hebrews 10:23–25 NIV

Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Sometimes we

Feel scolded when we are reminded...

Peter’s intent wasn’t to scold his fellow believers. He didn’t question whether or not the knew what he was teaching them or even if they were standing firm in the truth, he wanted to keep reminding them as long as he was there, because he believed that he wasn’t going to be around for long.

Sometimes we can feel scolded by the way something has been said to us, as much as what has been said to us. We know the Sunday School answers. We’ve read the Bible from cover to cover many times, and yet it seems like we are being taught the same things over and over and over again, just as if we didn’t know it or if the pastor thinks that we are all terrible sinners.

Peter’s urgency was that he didn’t know how many more times that he would be able to tell them, and he wanted to drill it in so that nothing could sway them in their faith.

Each of us needs to make every day count. Peter knew that one day, he would be crucified. He didn’t know when but he knew his time on earth was short.

It’s so easy to be lulled to sleep thinking that we have lots of time to encourage each other. We might think that we’re going to be here for a long time and we have everything that we need.

There was

a Rich fool

that thought that. Here’s the story Jesus told,

Luke 12:16–21 NLT

Then he told them a story: “A rich man had a fertile farm that produced fine crops. He said to himself, ‘What should I do? I don’t have room for all my crops.’ Then he said, ‘I know! I’ll tear down my barns and build bigger ones. Then I’ll have room enough to store all my wheat and other goods. And I’ll sit back and say to myself, “My friend, you have enough stored away for years to come. Now take it easy! Eat, drink, and be merry!” ’ “But God said to him, ‘You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get everything you worked for?’ “Yes, a person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God.”

We need to know

what we believe and why we believe it...

We have an enemy that roams around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. The early church leaders knew that there would be wolves in sheep’s clothing that would lead people astray. They wanted to prepare, another word for prepare is to disciple, the people to walk with God all the days of their lives.

The gospel is the power of God

Have you ever wondered if the story of Jesus is really the truth or just some carefully concocted story?

The easiest way to know that something is counterfeit is to know what the real thing looks like and feels like.

If this was a myth, do you think that the disciples would have literally given their lives for the gospel?

I want to read what Peter said and then John.

2 Peter 1:16–18 NIV

For we did not follow cleverly devised stories when we told you about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ in power, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. He received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with him on the sacred mountain.

Here’s what John had to say:

1 John 1:1–4 NLT

We proclaim to you the one who existed from the beginning, whom we have heard and seen. We saw him with our own eyes and touched him with our own hands. He is the Word of life. This one who is life itself was revealed to us, and we have seen him. And now we testify and proclaim to you that he is the one who is eternal life. He was with the Father, and then he was revealed to us. We proclaim to you what we ourselves have actually seen and heard so that you may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. We are writing these things so that you may fully share our joy.

Peter, James, and John had seen Jesus when he was glorified. God gave them a glimpse that this man was no ordinary man, but He was the Son of God.

After Peter denied ever knowing Jesus, he was ready to go back fishing. I’m sure that there are worse things that you could do other than going fishing, but it was more than just going fishing, it was going back to the old way of life.

But after Peter had seen Jesus, there was nothing that he could do but talk about Jesus.

He didn’t dream up stories. He didn’t have any fables about a carpenter from Nazareth. He had encountered God in human flesh and blood, who came to bring hope to the hopeless, healing to the hurting, life to those who are spiritually dead.

After many were offended and left Jesus, Jesus asked the twelve, “Are you going to leave Me too?”

John 6:68–69 NLT

Simon Peter replied, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life. We believe, and we know you are the Holy One of God.”

If Jesus has the words that can give us life, who else would you want to turn to? What else would you turn to?

Because Peter had heard God’s voice telling him that Jesus was God’s Son. Peter’s confidence went through the roof, of what the Bible said in the Old Testament about Jesus.

What will it take for you to believe? It takes faith. No matter what you believe about anything, it takes faith.

Changed lives

2 Corinthians 5:17 NLT

This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!

When we look back at our lives, and we see how God has worked as we have yielded. We know that we aren’t the same. Story after story can be told of what God has done in people when they believed in Jesus.

You are evidence that there is a God, and as you and I follow Jesus, many will see Jesus’ love and know that He loves them.

Let’s not get tired of being encouraged to follow Jesus. Even if we have heard it many times, keep the faith, always stand firm in the truth. Keep your eyes fixed on Jesus. He will never fail you. He is the One who is able to do above and beyond what you can ask or imagine.

Jude 24–25 NIV

To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy— to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.

Let’s pray!