Diligence In Rememberance

A Psalm; a Song at the Dedication of the House. A Psalm of David. 1 I will extol You, O Lord, for You have lifted me up, And have not let my enemies rejoice over me. 2 O Lord my God, I cried to You for help, and You healed me. 3 O Lord, You have brought up my soul from Sheol; You have kept me alive, that I would not go down to the pit. 4 Sing praise to the Lord, you His godly ones, And give thanks to His holy name. 5 For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for a lifetime; Weeping may last for the night, But a shout of joy comes in the morning. 6 Now as for me, I said in my prosperity, “I will never be moved.” 7 O Lord, by Your favor You have made my mountain to stand strong; You hid Your face, I was dismayed. 8 To You, O Lord, I called, And to the Lord I made supplication: 9 “What profit is there in my blood, if I go down to the pit? Will the dust praise You? Will it declare Your faithfulness? 10 “Hear, O Lord, and be gracious to me; O Lord, be my helper.” 11 You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; You have loosed my sackcloth and girded me with gladness, 12 That my soul may sing praise to You and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever.

Pre- Sermon Scripture

Isaiah 56 NASB95PARA

1 Thus says the Lord, “Preserve justice and do righteousness, For My salvation is about to come And My righteousness to be revealed. 2 “How blessed is the man who does this, And the son of man who takes hold of it; Who keeps from profaning the sabbath, And keeps his hand from doing any evil.” 3 Let not the foreigner who has joined himself to the Lord say, “The Lord will surely separate me from His people.” Nor let the eunuch say, “Behold, I am a dry tree.” 4 For thus says the Lord, “To the eunuchs who keep My sabbaths, And choose what pleases Me, And hold fast My covenant, 5 To them I will give in My house and within My walls a memorial, And a name better than that of sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name which will not be cut off. 6 “Also the foreigners who join themselves to the Lord, To minister to Him, and to love the name of the Lord, To be His servants, every one who keeps from profaning the sabbath And holds fast My covenant; 7 Even those I will bring to My holy mountain And make them joyful in My house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be acceptable on My altar; For My house will be called a house of prayer for all the peoples.” 8 The Lord God, who gathers the dispersed of Israel, declares, “Yet others I will gather to them, to those already gathered.” 9 All you beasts of the field, All you beasts in the forest, Come to eat. 10 His watchmen are blind, All of them know nothing. All of them are mute dogs unable to bark, Dreamers lying down, who love to slumber; 11 And the dogs are greedy, they are not satisfied. And they are shepherds who have no understanding; They have all turned to their own way, Each one to his unjust gain, to the last one. 12 “Come,” they say, “let us get wine, and let us drink heavily of strong drink; And tomorrow will be like today, only more so.”

Sermon

2 Peter 1:12 NASB95PARA

12 Therefore, I will always be ready to remind you of these things, even though you already know them, and have been established in the truth which is present with you.

2 Peter 1:12

Therefore, I will

Always: two meanings 1. perpetually, 2. As of here it is: invariably, at any and every time of successive occurrences. As something is to be repeated according to the circumstance.

be ready: will not neglect you. This is to care for another, or to not be careless of them. There has been a definite decision to not make light of the well being of the church but to care for her.

to remind you: to put in remembrance. This is to cause one to remember. To put in the forefront of ones mind. The caring of the apostle here for the church is displayed in the action of speaking the truths of the gospel of Christ the Lord so that they are always in the forefront of the minds of the elect. That they may always be mindful of the glory, freedom and benefit of their pursuits as listed in v.5-7 and as such may live in present circumstance as free citizens of Heaven.

of these things: the freedom and pursuit of the gospel as listed in vs. 5-7 and all verses preceeding this. The reminder that the regenerate Christian has been given all things in Christ and perhaps most supreme of these gifts is the favor of God, which is made evident in faith. Thus the favor of God does not end with faith but continues through all things listed, making itself most evident of it’s unconditional nature in that gift and fruit of agape love. Thus the favor of God is not something that we pursue, but knowing that we have the favor of God upon us as made evident in our faith, we add to such favor the continued graces which work together to proclaim the love of God through the lives of the saints. Such a pursuit of abiding in the faith of God, keeps ones path straight and feet from stumbling.

even though you already know them and have been established in the present truth: The emphasis here is that these things be in the forefront of our minds, not just stored away as knowledge. The knowledge here is one of perception. You have been established on the present truth, which has given a good and proper perception as to this world. What good is proper perception if one then closes their eyes? What good is truth if one then pursues lies? Thus, even if you know, their remains the constant need for a reminder, for a sharpening, a check as to wether your eyes are open or purposefully being shut.

I consider it right as long as I am in this earthly dwelling, to stir up by way of reminder,

Alexander Mcclaren once said to the church, “if you would win the world, melt it, do not hammer it.” I prefer the word that the Holy Spirit uses here “to stir up” or “to wake up” over the idea of “winning”. Nonetheless, Mcclaren is right in that the heart here is a tender heart of concern, to keep awake those who are of Christ and to awaken those who are yet asleep unaware of to whom they belong. Just as Christ continually returned to Peter in Gethsemane to awaken him and remind him of the reality of the circumstance, so now the Holy Spirit has Peter doing to the church, and by His grace has the Word of God doing to you this morning.

knowing that the laying aside of my dwelling (tabernacle) is imminent (speedy), as also our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me.

The closing hours in this tabernacle of dwelling does not weary the regenerate, but revives him. As a parent in the closing hours with their child, one comes to the sober reality of the weight of the counsel that is to be left. This is not the time to coast, but to speak with all the more vigor, tenderness, earnestness, and love. This is the time to finish well. Let the Christian who nears the end of his journey be found more youthful in his labor and effort than a thousand men of the world, for what he is labouring unto and the rest which awaits him is far beyond any comparison.

I want you to get the accurate understanding that the knowledge of Peters quick coming exist from this world does not slow down his labor in Christ but makes it all the more intense, urgent and passionate.

Until Christ calls us home, we do not graduate nor retire from our labor in Him. We do just the opposite. The longer this ol’ steam engine perseveres, the more momentum it picks up and the stronger it goes until the conductor who is the Lord himself says that it’s time of running the track is done. Until then saints, we take joy in being in operation as one conducted by the Lord Himself.

And I will also be diligent also at every time for you to have after my departure these things to have in remembrance (call these things to mind).

I have emphasized numerous times that these words are the work of the Holy Spirit and not of Peter. If it was of Peter then his confidence of remembrance would only be able to be while he was yet present, but being of the Holy Spirit, His confidence is upon the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit and thus unshaken.

The work then of the Holy Spirit even at the departure of the apostles is not that the church takes on a more creative approach to its ministry or that it receives a new calling, new work, or new strategy. No, the heart, the concern, the diligence is that the church is diligent in remembrance of the truth by which and for which it lives and exist. It is this truth that keeps the church of the regenerate awake to the reality of her circumstance that she might not fall asleep in the garden of lies.

Are you awakened to the truth of the gospel my friends?

Are you awake to the favor of God in your life, or are still trying to earn it?

Is the goodness of God at the forefront of your mind, or have you closed your eyes to it, forgetting the true perspective that you have been given, and thus living in a manner of stumbling after the things of the world?

For we did not follow: this is to follow out as from a start to an end. There is a connection to the OT as to how one would follow the ways of Baal. A manner and method of following (myths) in order to win (mythological) favor with a false god. That is not how this true gospel has been laid out or followed.

It is not...

cleverly devised tales: That is myths purposed to manipulate one into religious duties to earn some sort of favor. We must be diligent that no such form of religion enters our church’s, by first making sure that we are not operating from such a root of false faith. ()

when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty. For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, such an utterance as this was made to Him by the Majestic Glory, “This is My beloved Son with whom I am well-pleased”- and we ourselves heard this utterance made from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain.

We dwell in Christ our Lord and the pleasure of God has already been made known by His own spoken word as to His pleasure in Christ. We do not live seeking the favor of God, because our faith is to live in the Son and the Son has been given already the full favor of God. Your works can earn you nothing in this area and as such, the favor of God can neither be robbed from you. The favor of God the Father to you rest upon Christ, and this favor has been made in the presence of first hand witnesses as a binding truth upon the holy mountain.

So we have the prophetic word more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your heart

Pay attention to the truth of the gospel, the truth of the favor of God upon you, and live that out, until the morning star, until the personal fulfillment of Christ coming to receive you fully unto Himself (just as Peter is preparing for). This effectual work of the true gospel of the favor of God poured out to you will spring up within you rooting out every piece of depravity and as has already been it reveals the new man of righteousness in Christ. The heart is that which is inclusive of all of man, from his mental, emotional, and strength of all of his being.

But know this first of all, that every prophecy of Scripture is not of its own interpretation.

The Word of God is not made or given for man to put his own spin on it. The writers, the apostles, the prophets never did and neither should any man. The scripture is given so that man might know truth and in knowing truth, know the God of truth. The scripture is not given so that one can create his “own truth” and through clever interpretation enslave or manipulate others to do their own will.

for no prophecy was ever made by human will, but by the Spirit Holy being born spoke the Holy of God men. (the Holy Spirit born in men spoke the Word from God)

What you read is the word of God, the spoken will of God and that truth declares that you in Christ have found favor in God. It has declared that you are free to live not of this world but as citizens of Heaven having been given a new, a true perspective on who you are and who your belong to. You are not under the law of religion to earn your status before God, but rather the law of love, the law of grace having know the favor of God, by which you serve Him now joyfully and freely in the fullness of life, throughout all of your days, until your time in this tabernacle has been called to an end by Christ our Lord.

Let us then be diligent to remind each other of this, throughout this Christian pilgrimage. - Amen.

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