Stand Firm in God’s Grace
Notes
Transcript
Good morning, Gateway Chapel
If we haven’t met before…
Happy Father’s Day! Guys - I just want to say thank you for being a group of men who encourage me as a dad, as a husband and as a man. It’s a privilege to be a part of this church family and celebrate Father’s Day with you all. The women got Spider Mum’s for Mother’s Day and they didn’t have any left over unfortunately for Father’s Day, but Sandy Benson has made some amazing cookies, guys please help yourselves before you leave today.
Connect Cards
Compassion Clinic
Ben Lechnir
So many of you serve the body of Christ here at Gateway faithfully and someone who has been especially faithful for a number of years is our worship leader Ben Lechnir, many of you know him as Lechy.
At the end of this month Ben is stepping down as our worship leader. I wanted to say on behalf of the elder team and the church and from my own heart Ben thank you. It is not easy getting up here week in and week out, in season and out of season, getting here before everyone else on Sunday mornings, planning services, picking songs, practicing during the week. But you have been faithful in helping this church worship the Lord.
Can you guys give Lechy a round of applause?
Lechy has a couple more Sundays serving, and then he will be passing the baton to Jordan Floyd as the new worship leader. Jordan has served on the worship team for a while, he and Adri love the church, Jordan has been a worship leader for a number of years before coming to Gateway. He’s a diehard Mariners fan so some Sundays you may need to cheer him up a bit before he comes up and leads.
Please try and take time to thank both Lechy and Jordan in the coming weeks.
Pray
1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood:
May grace and peace be multiplied to you.
Intro
I want you to try and think back to the last time you wrote a hand written letter.
Can you do it?
Think back to the letter and try and remember, how did you sign the letter or end the letter?
Sincerely? Yours truly? To Whom it may concern? Love? Maybe just your name?
When we write letters, we take a lot more time to think through the body of a letter.
The content.
Whether it’s a birthday card and you’re thinking through how to show you love someone.
A thank you letter and you’re telling them what you’re thankful for
A letter expressing care for someone who is hurting
We think a lot about the body or the content of the letter
But the end of the letter has a function too
The end of the letter must match the tone and message of the content. If it doesn’t, then you undo everything!
If you write happy birthday card to a coworker and write, “Love, Chris” You just freaked them out
If you write a thank you card to your mom for buying your kid a bike and end with “To Whom it may concern” that’d be weird.
If you write a get well soon card and end with “Cheers” That’s not going to help.
How you end a letter matters.
And so we’re at the end of the letter of 1 Peter.
As we come to the letter’s conclusion in 5:12-14 we ask, “How does Peter end his letter and why does it end it that way?”
Peter concludes his letter in 1 Peter 5:12-14 by encouraging us to stand firm in God’s grace.
Stand firm in God’s grace
What does that mean and why does he choose to end his letter in this way?
How were they to stand firm in God’s grace and what does that mean for us today?
We’ll walk through this passage one verse at a time verse 12, 13, and 14 and consider what Peter has for us today.
Stand Firm in God’s Grace
12 By Silvanus, a faithful brother as I regard him, I have written briefly to you, exhorting and declaring that this is the true grace of God. Stand firm in it.
These final three verses are a customary end to an ancient letter.
You say your final greetings, maybe a final blessing, maybe a final word.
And the content of this ancient letter was all about hope as exiles. Peter is writing to Christians who are suffering for their faith in Christ and he writes to give them hope to not be surprised by their suffering because they are a part of the chosen family of God and they are living out Christ’s life - suffering and glory - in their own lives.
First, Peter mentions Silvanus
Silvanus is mentioned several times in the New Testament. He’s an experienced letter carrier.
Peter trusts him to take this letter and deliver it to the churches in Asia Minor.
Peter says my letter here was brief.
There’s a letter more I could have said - Peter has no shortage of words.
But he’s exhorted - which is like an urgent encouragement
Like a football coach at halftime Peter is frequently making statements of let’s go, keep going, hang in there to his brothers and sisters in Christ who are suffering for their faith.
And I’ve been declaring what?
That this is the true grace of God.
It’s interesting that he puts true.
He doesn’t mention any false grace of God in 1 Peter, but I think it’s already present. He’ll talk more about false teaching in 2 Peter.
But what has 1 Peter been about? Hope as exiles in suffering. And Peter ends by saying this is truly God’s grace!
Suffering can be a grace from God. That is the true message.
We heard from Pastor Alfonso who leads the cohort of pastors in South Africa a part of Church in Hard Places and he said South Africa is overrun by prosperity gospel churches which is a false message of God’s grace.
The false message of God’s grace is that the better you are as a Christian the happier, richer, and healthier you’ll be.
The true message of God’s grace is that Jesus came and suffered and died to bring us to God and now if we follow him we may also suffer and die but that’s the truth path to glory.
The message of Christianity is not do better and God will make your life better. That is a false message of grace.
And that’s been the message of 1 Peter…your suffering is part of God’s plan.
He hasn’t left you. Your suffering is not a sign of God’s absence but his presence. Jesus suffered and then was raised. You are suffering and one day you will be raised to new life when he returns.
This is the true grace of God.
Peter says his message is the true grace of God.
What is the grace of God?
You might save that God helps those who cannot help themselves.
That we are saved by grace and not by our own efforts.
That grace is the unmerited favor of God towards us.
Yes yes and yes and how does Peter use the word grace? He’s used it nearly a dozen times in the letter. Let’s look at just 3 examples.
10 Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully,
Grace is salvation. Grace is what God promised to do in the Scriptures and did through Christ. That’s God’s grace.
13 Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Grace is the return of Christ. We don’t do anything to deserve it, we simply put our hope in his returns. That’s God’s grace.
10 As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace:
Grace is how we live our lives today. It empowers us to serve and love each other. That’s God’s grace.
But he doesn’t end there, right. He gives another exhortation.
Stand firm in God’s grace.
In one sense that sounds counter to grace. Stand firm! Try harder for Jesus. But that’s not what’s going on here.
The first time in the Bible people are told to stand firm is in Exodus 14.
God has freed Israel from Pharoah. Their flight from Egypt takes them to the Red Sea and they can’t go any further unless they want to swim. And God sends Pharoah - it says in Ex that God hardens Pharoahs heart and sends him after Israel. And now Israel is between a rock and a hard place. And they FREAK OUT! God, why did you free us from Egypt just so we can die in the wilderness? Can we just go back to Egypt?
By the way, doesn’t that kind of sound like what’s happening in 1 Peter?
God, why did you allow me to believe the gospel and save me from my sin if you were just going to have me suffer shame and slander?
But what does Moses tell the people.
13 And Moses said to the people, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. 14 The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”
What an amazing picture of what God does and what we do.
God gives us his grace and frees us from sin and defeats our enemies. We silently watch.
And what a hopeful picture for Peter’s audience. You are suffering.
Citizens of Rome your emperor is a crook! Stand firm and watch God work.
Slaves of unjust masters, you’re lot in life is bleek. Stand firm in the reality that God is a God of slaves and he loves to set captives free.
Wives of non-Christian husbands, you have no rights in the ancient world but stand firm and know that God is a God of grace.
You feel like you’re stuck between the Red Sea and a charging army. But God is coming and he will act. Just stand firm knowing he’s a God of grace.
Maybe you think God is not a God of grace but a God of grades.
If he’s not, why is the Bible full of so many laws and stories of God being angry at people?
Maybe you’re like me and you get caught up in a story that says stand firm, grit your teeth for Jesus.
God is a God of grace. The story of the Bible is God’s grace to save those who could not save themselves. A God who graciously allows his people to come to place where they’re stuck between a rock and a hard place and they get to silently watch his grace in action.
Stand firm in God’s grace.
TRANSITION - That’s not all he says. Notice something in verse 13 that really jumps off the page.
13 She who is at Babylon, who is likewise chosen, sends you greetings, and so does Mark, my son.
Where is Babylon?
Kind of a trick question. When Peter writes this, it’s nowhere. It’s gone. It’s been gone for 500 years.
Babylon was the great enemy of God’s people.
It was a real city but now it is destroyed.
Peter is writing from Rome so he is using Babylon in place of Rome. It’s kind of like this biblical story code word.
But why not just say Rome? Why say Babylon?
He’s talking about exile.
Babylon is where God sent his people into exile in the Old Testament.
Just like he started his letter by saying to the elect exiles - now he says I’m writing to you from exile myself.
And she who is at Babylon - who is likewise chosen. Who is that? The church in Rome.
Rome was the eternal city. The center of the universe.
And yet Peter says I’m there and it’s not my home. I’m in exile like you.
We can stand firm in God’s grace even in exile.
More than that, it is a grace from God to be in exile.
Just like God used Babylon as a grace to purify his people in the Old Testament, now he is using their suffering to purify them and shape their faith until the day he brings them home.
And for us, we remember that Sumner, Lake Tapps, Bonney Lake, it’s not our true home but the fiery trials of life are shaping and purifying us until the day we are called home.
It is a gift from God that we are not home yet.
My neighbor was on the news this week.
His car got broken into, along with another one of our neighbors and over a dozen residents of Sumner.
They think it was a couple of kids driving two black SUV’s and they broke into a bunch of people’s cars in Sumner, Puyallup, and Tacoma.
How many times do we have to hear this story? It’s crazy.
Praise God this is not our home!
Even if you don’t believe the Bible you want it to be true right? You want there to be a better place to come. A hope for a better world.
We are called to work for the good of Babylon knowing full well this is not our true home.
We can fight for justice and know that true justice will come when the judge returns.
Our country can support pride month in June and we don’t have to throw punches but can stand firm in God’s grace, speak the truth in grace, and be thankful this is not our home.
We can vote in November and like ambassadors from a foreign nation we can work wholeheartedly for the good of this country and yet our identity is fixed to another kingdom.
It is God’s grace that we are in exile. Hallelujah this is not our home! We have a greater inheritance a better land.
TRANSITION - We stand firm in God’s grace in exile, and we don’t do it alone.
As a family
14 Greet one another with the kiss of love.
Peace to all of you who are in Christ.
Okay so, turn to the person next to you and give a holy smooch.
It’s in the Bible.
Peter’s point is show affection. Love each other like family.
When you’re gathered together reading this letter, do the things that show each other that you love one another.
And may peace be to the whole family in Christ.
Notice the familial language of these final verses.
Silvanus my brother.
She who is at Babylon - the NIV says your sister
Mark - my son
Greet one another with a kiss
Standing firm in God’s grace in exile cannot be done alone.
It’s too hard to live in exile and be alone.
You have and you need spiritual brothers and sisters and fathers and mothers to stand firm in God’s grace.
Peter could not picture a Christianity apart from deep relationships with other believers in a church. It was not a thing.
And it is a thing today, right? But that’s not what it means to stand firm in God’s grace. We need each other.
We listen to a lot of Disney music in our house and Hercules sings in his song, “Go the Distance”
I would go most anywhere to find where I belong.
What a cool thing that God gave us the church.
And it can be lonely in church, can’t it?
But it doesn’t have to be that way.
Do you have faithful spiritual brothers?
Do you have spiritual sisters?
Do you have a spiritual mother or father helping you stand firm in God’s grace?
If you don’t, find one! Ask someone! We cannot stand firm in God’s grace alone.
Conclusion
How do you conclude a letter?
1 Peter was written by Peter. A witness of the sufferings of Christ. A man who saw Jesus in the flesh. Saw the chosen son of God suffer and die which was God’s grace for sinners.
And he wrote this letter to suffering Christians to give them hope . Perseverance. Confidence in Christ.
And he ends the letter by saying stand firm in God’s grace. Watch God fight for you. Trust him.
So what might it look like for us to stand firm in God’s grace today?
Three suggestions based on the message of 1 Peter as a whole.
Trust your identity in Christ
Who you are is God’s grace and not dependent on what you do. Stand firm in that. Have confidence in that today.
1 Peter is nothing if not an encouragement that those who are in Christ are loved, forgiven, chosen, redeemed, cherished, secure, and ambassadors of the kingdom of God. Even in suffering, slander, and under the attacks of Satan.
So standing firm in God’s grace is having confidence in who you are in Christ.
Rest in the knowledge that you are loved by God. Find courage knowing you are a daughter of God. Take comfort knowing that Jesus died to bring you to God. And forgive your sin.
Living a godly life
Your ability to live a godly life is from God’s grace. Not in your power. Stand firm in that and resist sin!
Standing firm in God’s grace means not running to sin when things get difficult.
By God’s grace, live like Jesus. We have help! The Holy Spirit is inside us helping us.
Don’t run back to Egypt and sin! That old life is gone. Stand firm in God’s grace and he will help you be honoring to everyone, love your family, speak well of others, and love other believers.
Have hope
Your hope in life is not based on your ability to make things happen. GOd’s grace has already guaranteed a victory to come.
Standing firm in God’s grace means not despairing.
Peter’s audience had every reason to despair. But Peter reminded them that their suffering is only a little while and God in his grace is coming again.
Don’t be knocked over by despair. I know you’re suffering, I know you’re in a fiery trial, but stand firmly in the hope and joy and peace that one day Jesus will return and God’s glory will be seen by all.
Endure your suffering. Embrace your suffering knowing it is a grace from God.
How do you need to stand firm in God’s grace today?
Maybe you’ve been knocked over by Satan or others who tell you that you’re nothing. You’re bad. You’re a failure. You’re not good enough.
And maybe this morning you need to be reminded that God’s grace is not for those who are good enough but simply for those he has chosen and loved. You are his.
Maybe you need to stand firm and repent of sin. You’re speaking poorly of others, you’re main aim this week was pleasing yourself rather than God, stand firm in God’s grace and let him help you live a godly life now.
Maybe you need to stand firm and be reminded of hope. There is no hopeless situation or person in God’s kingdom. Hope is on the way. We can stand firm in God’s grace.
We can stand firm in God’s grace.
What’s amazing is that the church - with no political influence, status, money, or army - outlasted Rome, the eternal city. Babylon fell, God’s grace in humble men and women did not. Rome fell, God’s grace did not. America will one day fall, God’s grace will endure.
How do you end a letter?
1 Peter ends with grace and hope as does the end of Scripture itself.
Interestingly enough, so does the Bible.
This reminder of grace and the hope that Jesus is coming soon.
20 He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!
21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen.