1 Peter 1:10-16
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I have been on a few trips in my life, where I was required to get on an airplane.
I’ve been to Ethiopia, Tanzania, Canada, England, France, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic.
And all of these trips, I got there by plane.
Now, I’ll just tell you, I do not like planes.
And its not because I’m afraid of the plane failing to make it to its destination.
There’s really nothing to worry about it when it comes to that. Statistically, they say you are more likely to die on the way to the airport
I don’t like planes because of the tight spaces.
The seats are tight. The bathroom is tight. I always request an aisle seat because I don’t like being trapped.
But anyway, if you have ever been on an airplane, you know that before you take off, the steward or stewardess will walk you through the safety precautions for the aircraft in case of emergency.
I’ll be honest, I don’t know that I have ever listened intently during one of those safety speeches. I prefer not to know about the emergency precautions.
I’m pretty sure, if something happens, the stewardess’s instructions on what to do and reminding me to remain calm at the beginning of the flight is not going to come into play.
There will be some visible anxiety in people as a whole if that pilot comes on saying anything other than we will be landing soon at our destination.
I say that to say, I think my actions illustrate that we really don’t like to think about ahead of time what we will do when things go wrong. We would rather just assume they wouldn’t go wrong.
This is why so often, when things do go wrong, whether it be on a plane, or in life in general, we don’t know how to respond.
This passage today gives us instructions on how to live life in a fallen world and it emphasizes the sufficiency of the Gospel for doing just that.
So look with me here beginning in verse 10-
As to this salvation, the prophets who prophesied of the grace that would come to you made careful searches and inquiries, seeking to know what person or time the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating as He predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow.
Interesting verses.
He mentions here the prophets of the Old Testament
And put simply. The Old Testament prophets prophesied of the grace that would come in Christ.
But their prophecies were of future events, so they had to study them.
Peter says here they made careful searches and inquiries.
Meaning they studied these OT prophecies.
Verse 11 tells us why they studied them. What were they looking for?
seeking to know what person or time the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating as He predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow.
So they were look for who and when the Messiah would come
You see-
The OT prophets knew the Messiah would come.
They had prophesied and They had made explicit references to one who would come.
In Isaiah alone, we find multiple prophecies of the Messiah. I’ll read a few of those for your benefit-
“Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.
For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.
Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, And a branch from his roots will bear fruit.
Isaiah 53 is probably the clearest picture of the nature of Jesus’s ministry.
But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are healed.
So they knew a Messiah was coming. They made prophecies about the coming Messiah.
But they studied- They asked questions about these prophecies to gain information.
seeking to know what person or time the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating as He predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow.
They wanted to know who?
They wanted to know when?
The next verse goes on to tell us what they learned in their study.
Look at verse 12-
It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you, in these things which now have been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things into which angels long to look.
So essentially, Peter here says that it was revealed to them that their prophecies were going to be fulfilled at a later time.
This verse tells us, They were not serving themselves, but instead they were actually serving those who would come during and after the time of Christ.
So his first point here is that we have presently what the OT prophets wrote about and wished for.
But the verse goes on-
In the next portion he says that it has been announced and preached to us through the Holy SpIrit.
In other words, what the prophets longed to know, has been announced to you through the preaching of the Gospel by the Holy Spirit.
So what they wrote about but never saw, we now see.
What they longed to experience (the coming of the Messiah), we now experience in all His glory.
Which is to say very clearly, We are no longer waiting for the Messiah.
We have what the prophets longed for in Jesus.
He goes on to say that this message and what we know is something even angel long to look at and see.
His point here in these verses is to express that no matter what we may be facing, the privilege we have to have the Gospel is a grand and great privilege. We no longer like the prophets of Old have to wonder who the Messiah is. The Gospel of Jesus Christ has been preached to us.
1 & 2 Peter and Jude—Sharing Christ’s Sufferings Encouragement from the Angelic Host
• Prophets labored their entire lives to present the true gospel to us.
• Preachers have traveled around the globe to ensure that it has gained a hearing before us.
• Angels would like nothing better than to gaze into what God has done for us.
So what we are now privileged to know is this-
The Messiah has came. His name is Jesus, and we are given a perfect account of who he is and what he came to do right here in His Word.
His name was Jesus, born of the Virgin. He is fully God and fully man. He lived a sinless life. He performed miracles that testified to who he was.
But many still did not believe in Him. In fact, most rejected Him.
He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him.
Eventually, Jesus would be betrayed by one of his own friends and disciples
He was nailed to a cross at the hands of godless men, and on the cross, the weight of our sin was placed upon Him, and the greatest pain of the cross was that, God the Father poured out His wrath on Him, as he stood in our place.
Jesus on the cross, and He was taken and placed in a tomb, and three days later, because it was impossible for Him to be held by death’s power, he rose again providing the only way of salvation.-----
Thats the message the prophets spoke about, but only could look forward in faith to what he would eventually do.
Thats the message and story the angels long to be apart of, but the redemption story is for those who are made in the image of God.
And that is the message we have.
That is the message Peter gives to these scattered people living as aliens in a hopeless world.
Now the question becomes though-
What does this message mean for me now?
How do I apply the Gospel when I’m suffering?
These people were suffering. They were surely struggling to live in the world as believers.
They were living as aliens.
They are struggling under the weight of the world around them that hates them.
That said-
How will Peter encourage them?
Being honest with you today,
Sometimes you just don’t know how to help.
A while back, I was leaving a store, and as I walked out, there was an older lady there with her hood up on her car with smoke, and I could tell she was having a bad day.
Obviously, something was wrong with her car. She was frustrated with that, and she asked me, “Sir, do you know anything about cars?”
Now, I’ll tell you, I don’t much about cars.
I can change a tire. I can jump a battery. I can change oil, but anything beyond that, I’m going to have to call someone.
So back to her question- “Sir, do you know anything about cars?”
Of course I said I know a little bit, whats going on? As if somehow I could help her.
Her response- Well I don’t think its suppose to be smoking like that.
Now in my experience, I have never dealt with a smoking engine.
Never had that happen to me. I’ve never fixed a car that had a smoking engine.
But in my pride as a man, I walked over to her car “Let me take a look” and started looking around like I knew what I was doing. Put my hands on a few hoses, tighten the oil cap, made sure they were good and snug.
The whole time, in my mind, I know, “There is no way I can help this woman get her car fixed.”
So I ended up telling her to call someone else more knowledge than me. I left her car smoking that day.
If I am honest, at times as a pastor, I feel like this as well. Walking into a home or a hospital room, or phone call, or text, and whatever the problem is, theres an expectation of the pastor to help. That’s my job right?
But many times, I don’t know how to help. Many times, I don’t know what to say. I struggle with how to encourage you in the moment.
I feel like at times, I leave and your car is still smoking.
But I want to encourage you today that there is some biblical wisdom in this passage for us when we are going through trials and difficulty.
Peter inspired of the Holy Spirit gives us some instructions here about living in this world as aliens.
He gives 5 commands beginning in verse 13- Read with me-
Therefore, prepare your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
I believe he is answering the question How does the Gospel deal with the hardships of this place?
He ties it back to the previous section where he spoke of the privilege of having the Gospel, and from there, he gives five commands-
First
Prepare Your minds for Action
Prepare Your minds for Action
Your translation may say something to the affect of gird up the loins of your mind-
This is a lot like when we say things like:
“Fasten your seatbelt.” or “Roll up your sleeves.”
And very simply it is saying- As believers in the world, we must be prepared for the battle that will inevitably come to us.
We are living in a world that is not our home. Comfort as the church is an odd thing. Its not normal for the church to be comfortable.
I think in our country, We have enjoyed many years of peace and religious freedom. I certainly am thankful for that.
But I think times of peace and freedom can lull us to sleep as the church.
Where we become so comfortable, that our minds are lulled to sleep when it comes to the reality that the Christian life is a fight.
So when the test and trials do arrive, we are left unprepared.
(College Exam Week- Everything is due, papers, and then final exams- Going to sleep with the plan to wake up and study). I woke up too late. I had to get to class and take the test and ended up doing poorly on the test, because I had failed to prepare).
I think this is where we are in the American church culture. The tests are arriving. Our religious freedoms are being attacked, and we really don’t know what to do because instead of preparing, we’ve been asleep.
The church is ill prepared to face hardships.
I think a lot of this is because most Christians are biblically illiterate. We don’t really know God’s Word.
We don’t know what we believe or why we believe it. (Sunday Night Plug)
Peter here, is telling us to do the opposite. We cannot become lax in our Christian lives. We have to prepare our minds for action.
We have to know God’s Word.
Keep Sober in Spirit
Keep Sober in Spirit
John Macarthur says that being sober in Spirit-
Means Steadfast, Self Controlled, Clarity of Mind, Moral Decisiveness.
The Sober minded Christian is someone who is not intoxicated by worldly things.
As believer we ought to be controlled by that which is within us, rather than that which is in the world.
When we think of the word sober- We think of the opposite of drunk.
Drunk being inhibited by a substance. uncontrolled, Care-free.
I believe being sober minded- or sober in spirit- is especially hard for us today.
There are so many things in this world that vie for our attention. Satan would love nothing more than to make us drunk with pleasure and keep us intoxicated by the things of the world.
As Americans, in general we live in a prosperous nation. We have many pleasures at our fingertips.
And we indulge those things to the neglect of being sober minded spiritually.
By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to endure ill-treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin,
Why would he do that?
Because he knew what truly lasts.
Are we sober? Or intoxicated?
I think a good evaluative question here for us:
What do we seek for fulfillment? And will it last?
Is it a hobby? Is it money? Is it your job? Is it worldly treasures? Is it material possessions? Is it sex? Is it drugs? Alcohol? Some other substance? Is it physical health?
What is it for you? What are you seeking to fulfill your life?
Isaiah the prophet asks this very question-
“Why do you spend money for what is not bread, And your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, And delight yourself in abundance.
He will go on to say
Seek the Lord while He may be found; Call upon Him while He is near.
We will not find fulfillment in this world.
We must be sober in Spirit and not try to fill our lives with things that won’t satisfy.
Instead let our lives be free from worldly intoxications.
Fix your Hope on the return of Christ
Fix your Hope on the return of Christ
Therefore, prepare your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
When it speaks here of the revelation of Jesus Christ, it is referring to the time when Christ shall return.
We tend to set our hope on things that constantly disappoint. This is even some what related to what we seek fulfillment in.
As believers we tend to set our hope on-
Health- But our health will fail. Our bodies will wear out. We will fill the pain of age.
Money and the economy- But money runs out
Possessions- But possessions wear out and never bring true hope.
Politics- but politicians and politics fail.
Doctors- But doctors fail us. We don’t find hope there.
And these are just some of the things people trust in. But what we find is that even if these things offer temporary enjoyment, none of it provides hope.
We ought not expect to find hope in this world. This is why Peter says- Set your hope firmly at the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
For the believer, our hope is in the return of Christ- where he will make all right.
Just a reminder that Peter is speaking to a group of people who were dealing with difficulty and hopelessness in the world. And he tells them- Don’t fix your hope on anything else other than Christ’s return.
The previous three all relate to our mind and heart and how we are to live.
With our minds ready
Our minds steadfast
Our minds hoping in what is coming in Christ for us.
Now he turns to discuss how we are to conduct ourselves.
Do not be conformed to your past sin
Do not be conformed to your past sin
As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance,
For believers, there ought to be a stark difference in who we are in Christ, and who we were before Christ.
There ought to be specific instances in your life of increasing in Christlikeness.
We ought to look different than we did before Christ.
I want you to truly think about this-
What difference has Christ made in your life?
Do people closest to you notice a difference in your life? Do you notice a difference in your life?
Our lives should reflect what we have been given.
We have been declared righteous according to the righteousness of Christ. We have been given a new heart.
We are new creations in Christ.
Which means our desires, our joys, our hopes, our fears, are all subject to the Lordship of Christ over our lives.
The last thing he says here-
Be Holy
Be Holy
but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; because it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”
God’s requirement and expectation of our lives is that we live holy lives.
Now when we think about that word holy- it means set apart-
We spoke about this a little on Wednesday Night.
But for the believer, we are to live holy lives because the one who has called us to salvation and called us to Himself is holy.
It is important to note here-
“The standard is not “be holier than your neighbor.”
That is not the standard.
We sell holiness short when we compare ourselves to other Christians, because other Christians live under the weight and power of their own indwelling sinfulness.
Holiness is an attribute only God possesses.
So when he says, “Be holy as I am holy.” He is giving us the standard.
When we measure our holiness- it ought to be a vertical measurement.
Not horizontal.
Being holy as God is holy is not something we will perfectly achieve in this life, but it is the standard and it is the expectation for the believer, and believers SHOULD grow in our holiness by the Spirit of God.
This passage gives us specific biblical instruction on living life in this fallen world.
Prepare Your minds for Action
Keep Sober in Spirit
Fix your Hope on the return of Christ
Do not be conformed to your past sin
Be Holy
These are easy to list and harder to carry out, but I would encourage you to commit these verses to memory.
Memorizing Scripture is a way to have whats on God’s mind in our mind.
Memorize these verses and run to them when not if you face difficulty and you ask the question-
How do I live as a Christian in this world?