Advice For The Christian Life Pt. 3
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer. And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins. Use hospitality one to another without grudging. As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.
For the last few weeks, we have been moving through this section of Scripture found between verse 1 and 11 here in chapter 4 of the book of 1 Peter.
We are looking at the thought of “Advice For The Christian Life” ...
Lord willing, we will finish this part of up tonight.
So far, we have been looking at several pieces of advice we are given by the Holy Spirit of God through the Apostle Peter for living the Christian life.
The devil is always looking to trip us up; we have seen that in the prior messages, we looked at this past Sunday morning on the desire of Satan, and there’s so much mentioned in the Word of God about this, not because God wanted to just repeat Himself, but because it’s a very serious thing and as children of God, we need a constant reminder of what the Devil desires to do to us.
In the first part of the message, we saw that we are told to Stay Armed - with Jesus Christ and His mind.
Then we are told to Stay Aimed - so we don’t waste our time on this earth, and because we have the best target, which is the will of God.
Then last week, we were told to Stay Adamant - by avoiding past associations, getting accustomed to present accusations, and being aware of future accountability.
Tonight, we are going to see the fourth and final piece of advice in these verses, and that is we are to...
Stay Agreeable
Stay Agreeable
Often it is not our “position” that gets us into trouble but our “disposition.” Jesus was full of “grace and truth” according to John 1:14.
It’s easy to get upset and frustrated with all of the wrong in this world. But our beliefs will not be attractive to anyone if our behavior turns them off.
In a world filled with turmoil and negativity, it is crucial to remember the power of our disposition. While our position on various matters may differ, it is ultimately our disposition that can either bring us closer to others or drive them away.
It is natural to feel upset and frustrated when confronted with the wrongs in this world. However, it is essential to recognize that our beliefs will not be attractive or persuasive if our behavior turns others off. Our actions and attitudes play a significant role in how others perceive us and are receptive to what we have to say.
And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.
So, how exactly do we stay agreeable? - I’m glad you asked, look in verse 7 where we find:
I-A Heavenly Communication
I-A Heavenly Communication
But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.
Peter is giving the church a serious call to prayer and sobriety!
This sobriety means a “sound mind”…A sober mind...
Because the end of all things is at hand we are have a sober mind, and be prayerful people!
We are to have spiritual focus on the will of the Lord in these last days! Peter is laying the ground work to substantiate the charge that he gives the church! Because the end of all things is at hands we are to be serious and watchful in our prayers.
Warren Wiersbe wrote, “If you want to make the best use of “the rest of your time,” live in light of the return of Jesus Christ.”
Are we seeing things from an eternal perspective?
William Barclay wrote, “It is only when we see the affairs of earth in light of eternity that we see them in their proper proportions; it is when God is given His proper place that everything takes its proper place.”
Our focus must be serious in prayer!
Our ability to stay right with people starts with staying right with God. It’s hard to dislike a truly spiritual person. If our vertical relationship with God is right— the horizontal relationships with people seem to work themselves out as well.
When a man’s ways please the LORD, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.
We must have a heavenly communication if we are going to stay agreeable!
II-A Household Charity
II-A Household Charity
And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins. Use hospitality one to another without grudging. As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.
Now, if you’ve been here listening to these messages through the book of 1 Peter, you know that thoughout this letter, Peter, through the inspiration of God, emphasizes love as that which whould characterize the church above all...
Above all our religious activity,
Above all our ambitions and priorities,
Above all our agendas,
Above all our desires,
Above all of our goals,
Above all, we are to love one another!
As a matter and a fact, I love stuff like this, there is one important verse concerning love in each chapter so far...
Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently:
Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king.
Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous:
And then, there’s the verse we just read in chapter 4, verse 8…Charity and love are used synonymously throughout Scripture, when you see the word charity, it’s simply another word for love...
When we love one another, we’ll overlook a multitude of sins.
That’s not to say we don’t take sin seriously, we must keep this in the context of the letter, when we take it out of context, we mess up. We must take sin seriously; as a matter and a fact, Peter has spent much time in his letter urging us to display the holiness of God in our lives.
If the Church simply ignored sin, we wouldn’t be providing a faithful testimony to the unbelieving world.
So, you might be wondering, what exactly is Peter saying here? Well, he’s referring to Proverbs 10:12...
Hatred stirreth up strifes: but love covereth all sins.
Remember, this letter is written to the Church, there’s your context…Peter is concerned about the potential for division among the brethren.
“…love covereth all sins” means that we don’t go around looking for faults in others; but we do go around seeking to think the best of others; and that we don’t spend our time lingering over the past flaws of others.
We always stand ready to forgive one another.
After all, the end is near, and we are going to live with our brothers and sisters for eternity!
And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.
Brothers and Sisters in Christ should have love for one another, and should show hospitality toward one another, and do it without grudging, which means to do it in the right spirit!
We must have household charity!
The third thing that we need in order to stay agreeable is...
III-A Humble Cooperation
III-A Humble Cooperation
If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.
We must be humble...we must be careful not to steal any of the credit for ourselves when God blesses our lives. Our motive is not our glory, but His and His alone.
Peter gives a word about the motivation for our service. In this verse Peter categorizes all the spiritual gifts. He places all the gifts in 1 of 2 categories. There are speaking gifts and there are serving gifts.
So the charge to speak the oracles of God applies to all who are able to teach God’s word: pastors, missionaries, Sunday-school teachers, youth workers, children’s workers, small-group leaders, counselors, and individual Christians who can disciple one another—which does not leave many, if any, of us out!
The oracles of God should reverberate throughout the church so that it builds itself up in love.
Warren Wiersbe wrote, “Whoever shares God’s word must be careful about what he says and how he says it, and all must conform to the written Word of God.”
When a man of God preaches he is to be sharing the Bible with the people. When the Sunday school teacher teaches they are to teach the scriptures. When a singer sings they are to be singing the sayings of God, the word of God, and magnifying the Son of God.
Whoever serves is to serve “…as of the ability which God giveth:”
Serving can be exhausting, but we don’t serve others in our own strength. Our gracious God, the One who has gifted us, provides the strength we need to serve one another, and we must keep a humble cooperation, realizing that it’s all for His glory...
Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man? I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase. So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase. Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour. For we are labourers together with God: ye are God’s husbandry, ye are God’s building.
Conclusion
Conclusion
Peter gives advice for the Christian life in these verses we’ve studied over the past three weeks...
The conclusion of the matter is Satan will try to pull you away from God and His people when the trials come.
He not only wants to destroy you but all of God’s work.
I don’t know about anyone else, but when the Lord comes back, I want Him to find me armed, aimed, adamant, and agreeable!