2020-01-29 1 peter 1.10-12
Notes
Transcript
10 Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who prophesied about the grace that would come to you, searched and carefully investigated.
11 They inquired into what time or what circumstances the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating when he testified in advance to the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow.
12 It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you. These things have now been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—angels long to catch a glimpse of these things.
I. God spoke through the prophets for your benefit.
I. God spoke through the prophets for your benefit.
10 Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who prophesied about the grace that would come to you, searched and carefully investigated.
11 They inquired into what time or what circumstances the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating when he testified in advance to the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow.
A. Prophets spoke what the Spirit of Christ led them to.
A. Prophets spoke what the Spirit of Christ led them to.
10 Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who prophesied about the grace that would come to you, searched and carefully investigated.
11 They inquired into what time or what circumstances the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating when he testified in advance to the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow.
Illus: Tonight we are going to talk a good bit about how we have the Word of God that we have today.
1. The Bible as we have it was written by Jesus speaking through the prophets.
2. The Bible as we have it is a book about Jesus. All of the Old Testament and New Testament centers around the gospel of Christ. The reason we believe that the bible is closed is because Scripture says it is the complete revelation from and about God.
3. The Bible is not carelessly put together. Prophets did not speak, nor write down what is in the bible without being led by Christ.
Why does all of this matter. If the Bible is not written by Jesus, about Jesus, without mistakes, then we are wasting our time.
BUT if the Bible was written by Jesus through the prophets, that means every word in the Old Testament and New Testament should be typed in red and and given the honor of the words of Christ.
The way we study Scripture should focus through the lens of the gospel. If all of Scripture is about Jesus then we must ask how to understand every passage in light of the gospel.
We must be careful with saying “God told me”. Scripture teaches that the prophets carefully investigated God’s voice. When you say “God told me” you are making a bold claim. You are stating that you speak words on the same level as scripture. As a pastor I apply, explain, and expound what God said in scripture, but I do not speak anything from my own revelation. God has spoken to us today… it is found in His Word.
19 We also have the prophetic word strongly confirmed, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.
20 Above all, you know this: No prophecy of Scripture comes from the prophet’s own interpretation,
21 because no prophecy ever came by the will of man; instead, men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
2 pet 1:
B. Prophets did not always see the ultimate fulfillment. We do.
B. Prophets did not always see the ultimate fulfillment. We do.
10 Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who prophesied about the grace that would come to you, searched and carefully investigated.
11 They inquired into what time or what circumstances the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating when he testified in advance to the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow.
Illus: Back when I lived in Oklahoma our church yard was surrounded with Bradford pear trees. They are a beautiful tree which reaches maturity in about 8 year. During the spring they sprout beautiful flowers. That said they are a very short sighted tree.
The Bradford pear has a life span of 15-25 years. They are trees for you to plant and enjoy today. If you live in the same house your whole life you will see your Bradford pear tree grow from a sapling to a mature tree, and eventually split and die in your life time.
We often live wanting God to work in a Bradford Pear Tree way. We want to see the results of what we plant. We want to see profit of our own work. The problem with that is that a Bradford pear life may not see long lasting fruit.
At my vidalia home we have an Oak tree in our front yard. Oak trees take 30 years to reach maturity. Whoever planted the oak trees on willow street probably did not get to see the beautiful canopy they have formed. Where the Bradford pear gives you instant results the oak is different. Health Oak trees can live 300-600 years!
When Jesus planted the seeds of prophecy in the prophets they were not Bradford Pear seeds, they were oak seeds. The prophets saw the saplings but never saw the maturity.
What Peter is saying here in this passage is that we are sitting in the shade of trees that the writers of scripture never saw. God planted his Word through them fully knowing that it would not blossom for generations to come.
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2 He was with God in the beginning.
3 All things were created through him, and apart from him not one thing was created that has been created.
4 In him was life, and that life was the light of men.
5 That light shines in the darkness, and yet the darkness did not overcome it.
Jn 1:
I. God spoke about Christ’s suffering and glory.
I. God spoke about Christ’s suffering and glory.
11 They inquired into what time or what circumstances the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating when he testified in advance to the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow.
A. The prophets foretold the suffering of Christ.
A. The prophets foretold the suffering of Christ.
11 They inquired into what time or what circumstances the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating when he testified in advance to the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow.
Illus: One of the clearest things Old Testament teaches is of the Suffering Servant. These were words that were foretold that the prophets and the people did not understand.
They found their identity in national pride… and most of their history did not seek God.
The first prophecy in scripture was how Jesus would be a snake crusher. To Abraham God promised an ancestor who would be a blessing to all nations. To the Israelites in slavery a sacrificial lamb. To David God promised a kingdom that would never end.
Every one of these is a piece to Jesus’ greater puzzle.
THere was the promise of a Melchizedek. Then you had the law which existed to see transgression and hopelessness. God gave the tabernacle to help the people see their need of blood sacrifice.
All of this came into focus as Isaiah began to prophecy. He began to talk of a ruler who would suffer on the behalf of others. But even after Isaiah spoke the words of the people did not understand it.
It was not until Jesus died, rose, and explained the whole of scripture to the disciples on the road to Emmaus that every piece of prophecy fell into place.
look at what Jesus led Isaiah to write about…
3 He was despised and rejected by men, a man of suffering who knew what sickness was. He was like someone people turned away from; he was despised, and we didn’t value him.
4 Yet he himself bore our sicknesses, and he carried our pains; but we in turn regarded him stricken, struck down by God, and afflicted.
5 But he was pierced because of our rebellion, crushed because of our iniquities; punishment for our peace was on him, and we are healed by his wounds.
6 We all went astray like sheep; we all have turned to our own way; and the Lord has punished him for the iniquity of us all.
7 He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth. Like a lamb led to the slaughter and like a sheep silent before her shearers, he did not open his mouth.
8 He was taken away because of oppression and judgment; and who considered his fate? For he was cut off from the land of the living; he was struck because of my people’s rebellion.
9 He was assigned a grave with the wicked, but he was with a rich man at his death, because he had done no violence and had not spoken deceitfully.
10 Yet the Lord was pleased to crush him severely. When you make him a guilt offering, he will see his seed, he will prolong his days, and by his hand, the Lord’s pleasure will be accomplished.
B. The prophets foretold the glory of Christ.
B. The prophets foretold the glory of Christ.
11 They inquired into what time or what circumstances the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating when he testified in advance to the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow.
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Illus: Jesus is the glory of God. When the people of Israel saw the promise of the Glory of God they often forgot that the presence of God was the glory.
They saw God’s presence as a means to their glory. The greatest tragedy was the loss of their nation, not the loss of their God.
When you look at the period between the prophets and Jesus, the focus of the entire people of Israel was gaining back their national independence and personal glory.
It was making a name for themselves again, gaining the power they thought they deserved.
Never mind that God was silent for 400 years.
Here is the big question… If your group in America got it’s power back, won all of your elections, passed all of your laws… but we ceased to hear from God would you notice?
God spoke bringing glory to this earth by becoming a man… yet the hearts of the Israelites turned because he was God’s glory where they wanted their own glory.
Jesus alone must be our glory. That is how we endure in the midst of our broken world… our hope is not in politics, power, or winning a culture way. We serve and glory in Christ.
1 “Comfort, comfort my people,” says your God.
2 “Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and announce to her that her time of forced labor is over, her iniquity has been pardoned, and she has received from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins.”
3 A voice of one crying out: Prepare the way of the Lord in the wilderness; make a straight highway for our God in the desert.
4 Every valley will be lifted up, and every mountain and hill will be leveled; the uneven ground will become smooth and the rough places, a plain.
5 And the glory of the Lord will appear, and all humanity together will see it, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.
III. We are apart of the tradition of the prophets.
III. We are apart of the tradition of the prophets.
12 It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you. These things have now been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—angels long to catch a glimpse of these things.
A. When you preach (share) the gospel, you join a prophetic legacy.
A. When you preach (share) the gospel, you join a prophetic legacy.
Illus: The goal of the prophet is to magnify what God has said. Scripture says that God has spoken all that is necessary for life and godliness. All. We are called to share what is already spoken in scripture.
We are called to share the gospel of Jesus christ. Just as God spoke through the prophets before Jesus christ about the coming of Jesus CHrist, we are called to share God’s perfect and complete gospel today.
verse 12 wants you to join in the this line gladly proclaiming that God has spoken clearly by sending Jesus to this earth.
The Old Testament prophet’s job was not to make up new revelation, but to speak as God has spoken. Our job is to do the same… to speak about Jesus as God has spoken in His Word.
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”