Sermon Tone Analysis

Paul Harvey and that’s the rest of the Story

I have have shared this story with you in the past.

In kindergarten, I rode the bus home.

We had half day Kindergarten and so we had the bus to ourselves.

My bus driver loved listening to Paul Harvey every day.

I will never forget one day as we were riding home I was down between the tall bus seats.

It was a warm afternoon and the windows were down.

I was riding with a friend when in the background I started to pick up on Paul Harvey.

Paul Harvey started to share about the Killer Bees that would come to the United States.

These bees had the potential to wipe out our country.

I vaguely remembering that this would take place before I graduated high school.

For a moment, my identity was found in the future of killer bees coming to the US.

That is, I was scared, afraid, and fearful of the coming killer bees.

My mind drifted away and immediately thought that I would never be able to get married.

I would never get the opportunity to have a family of my own.

I would never get to hold babies of my own.

I remind you that I was in kindergarten but I had GOALS!

As I studied this passage in 1 Peter, I was reminded of my identity being found in Paul Harvey and the killer bees.

I was afraid, I was fearful, I was stressed, I didn’t have hope for the future, I was focused solely on this earth and I accepted my fate for the future from Paul Harvey and “Now the rest of the story”

I reflect on this last year and thought to some degree Christ followers have left what they have known to be truth and chased after a “killer bee” identity.

Today’s passage Peter reminds us as Christ followers of our true identity.

Pray

As Dr. Mackie (The Bible Project) points out, 1:13-2:10 contains a great body of text describing “a new family identity” for believers.

Peter uses Old Testament imagery of Israel and applies it to New Testament

Gentile Christians:

V. 13 – “Gird your loins” (Exodus 12:11)

Vv. 15-16 – The Holy people of God in the wilderness (Leviticus 11:44)

V. 17 – The new exodus and Passover (Exodus 12-15)

Vv. 22-25 – The New Covenant people (Isaiah 40, Jeremiah 31)

Vv. 2:1-8 – The new temple (Isaiah 28:16, Psalm 118:22)

Vv. 9-10 – A kingdom of priests (Exodus 19:4-6)

I love what Dr. Mackie says:

“Applying all of these amazing (O.T. Israel) images to these persecuted Gentile Christians, Peter is placing their suffering within a brand new story.

Therefore

This in scripture reminds us to look at the verses before this verse.

Last week in verses 3-12 we saw that Christ in his great mercy has given us a new birth into a living hope.

This living hope comes with an inheritance that is imperishable, uncorrupted and unfading.

It is protected by God’s power.

Trials are short and temporary.

Angels desire to look into these things.

That is the Gospel we have for us today.

The prophets prophesied about the grace that would come to you and they searched and carefully investigated.

Everything in the Old Testament leads us to Christ and his sufferings for our sake.

There is no one greater than Jesus the Messiah who suffered for our sake.

Knowing all this therefore...

Gird your loins

gird up the loins of your mind’ (so AV), an almost unintelligible phrase for modern readers unfamiliar with the ancient Oriental custom of gathering up one’s long robes by pulling them between the legs and then wrapping and tying them around the waist, so as to prepare for running, fast walking, or other strenuous activity

Your minds must be ready for action.

Get your minds in shape.

Knowing the truth of the Gospel as Elect Exiles get your minds ready.

You don’t get into shape by sitting on the couch.

This is not passive.

This is active.

Likewise you can’t get your mind into shape by sitting on the couch mentally.

Christians must prepare our minds for action.

Christians must train our minds by studying the word of God, Learn from those who teach God’s word faithfully, honestly and who are of good reputation.

there are hundreds of people online teaching things from God’s word, but not faithfully teaching God’s word.

Be serious or sober minded...

Be sober forbids not only physical drunkenness but also (since the phrases before and after have to do with attitudes of mind) letting the mind wander into any other kind of mental intoxication or addiction which inhibits spiritual alertness, or any laziness of mind which lulls Christians into sin through carelessness (or ‘by default’).

Peter uses the same word in 4:7 and 5:8 to encourage spiritual alertness for prayer and for resisting the devil.

He knows how easily Christians can lose their spiritual concentration through ‘mental intoxication’ with the things of this world

Set your Hope

Hope: very confident and eager expectation

In the New Testament, hope is confident expectation, and expectation for one to act on the basis.

Set your confident expectation on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

Live with the end in mind.

As obedient Children...

Again this new identity is that we are Children of our heavenly father

he says

Do not

be conformed to the desires of your former ignorance.

Repent or turn from the passions or sinful desires of our spiritual darkness.

Later this is described as futile or meaningless life.

Don’t let your former identity shape who you are today.

You are obedient Children.

He who called you is Holy Be Holy

Be like the one who called you as obedient Children.

I act like my dad, I talk like my dad and I walk like my dad.

For years growing up, I resented this.

I could answer the phone at his business and they would believe it was him.

As I get older, I am thankful for my dad and thankful for many traits that I have as a result of my father.

This verse is that same idea.

As obedient children as the one who called you is Holy you be Holy like the one who called you.

This week in a meeting with a young adult in our church they described to me life growing up without an earthly father in their life.

They said this to me that their idea of God as father has not been distorted by my earthly father but it has caused me to look deeper into our heavenly father to find out what a father really is.

Holy: Set apart from ordinary or evil use and devoted to use in glorifying God.

To say that God is holy means that he is separated from sin and devoted to seeking his own honour.

God’s children are called to be separated from evil and dedicated to a life of righteousness.

To be holy in all your conduct

This is a pattern of life that transforms daily in every moment, every thought and every action.

To be holy ‘as God is holy’ includes a full and pervading holiness that reaches to every aspect of our personalities.

It involves not only avoiding outward sin but also maintaining an instinctive delight in God and his holiness as an undercurrent of heart and mind throughout the day

Be Holy because I am holy

Imitate the Character of God.

Be Holy because I am Holy.

God’s Holiness is the basis for our ethics.

The final reason why some things are right and others wrong, and why there are moral absolutes in the universe, is that God delights in things that reflect his moral character (and thus reflect his excellence) and hates what is contrary to his character.

Therefore, we are to imitate him

This New Identity is

Gird your loins - Get your mind into shape