Restored for a Purpose
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A couple weeks ago, Debbie and I were talking about my vision finally getting better and not needing to wear glasses to read any longer. She said, “Oh, so your vision has been restored?” I replied back, “Yes, it has been restored for a purpose.”
Our General Conference President, Kevin Butler, has been talking about this for several months, I know other pastors have touched on this, and I figure I may as well jump on the band wagon. Just a reminder, General Conference is going to be virtual again this year, it is free to register, although they do suggest $25 to help defray some of the costs, but if you do not register, you are going to miss out on the bible studies, messages, workshops and such. Ok, end of my shameless plug for General Conference.
I hope most of you are familiar with this weeks text. 1 Peter 5:10 says,
10 And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.
This morning, we are going to look at 4 things. 1. Suffering, 2. God of all grace, 3. Called to His eternal glory, 4. Restored.
Suffering
On July 18, 64 A.D., the city of Rome ignited in flames and burned for six days. Historians tell us that it’s likely that Nero was behind the fire because he wanted to rebuild Rome in his image. With the rumors pointing to Nero, he blamed the Christians for starting it. This unleashed a fire of persecution against believers that spread to other parts of the Roman Empire. Nero was nasty to Christians! History records that he covered Christ followers in tar and set them ablaze while they were still alive, using them as torches to provide light for his garden parties. He also covered Christians in the skins of wild animals and sent out his hunting dogs to track them down and tear them to pieces. He nailed some to crosses, lacerated others with hot knives, and even fed some to lions for sport. Christian groups under Nero weren’t losing their status; they were losing their lives. It was into this hostile culture that Peter wrote the letters we know as 1st and 2nd Peter. They are filled with hope and instruction on how to live.
Talk about suffering for a little while. Over the past year, we had been told at times that we could not meet to worship God, because it was non-essential. Luckily, this was not long-lived here in Michigan. California on the other hand, had to wait until the Supreme Court intervened and forced California to allow houses of worship to reopen this past February. Closed almost a year, as the government considered worshiping in church as non-essential.
And we have it made compared to countries such as China, Iran, and Iraq. People thrown in jail just for owning a Bible. The Bible never says life as a Christian is going to be easy. I would say that things are getting more complicated now in the United States, because if we follow what the Bible says about certain things, we are labeled for hate towards the LGBTQ+. We are told that we are not tolerable of other people’s beliefs. That we need to conform our thoughts and the way we do things to come in line with society. That a church has to hire people that may not have the same Christian beliefs.
Instead of the church influencing society to be inline with Biblical teachings, society is influencing what is taught in church. Certain things cannot be discussed, things have to be glossed over because they may not be comfortable for people to talk about.
This Will Pass - After you have suffered for a little while. The heat of trial feels like it will never end, but your trial WILL pass. If we look at Psalms 30:5,
5 For his anger is but for a moment,
and his favor is for a lifetime.
Weeping may tarry for the night,
but joy comes with the morning.
The life of a Christian is filled with interchanges of sickness and health, weakness and strength, want and wealth, disgrace and honor, crosses and comforts, miseries and mercies, pleasures and sorrows, success and failure, and joy and mourning. A life of all roses would weaken us; of all thorns would crush us. It takes both to keep us healthy in our perspective and walk with God. Thomas Brooks, England’s nonconformist preacher said, “It is best and most for the health of the soul that the south wind of mercy, and the north wind of adversity, do both blow upon it; and though every wind that blows shall blow good to the saints, yet certainly their sins die most, and their graces thrive best, when they are under the drying, nipping north wind of calamity, as well as under the warm, cherishing south wind of mercy and prosperity”. 457 verses in the Bible say, “it came to pass”. Jesus said something recorded in 3 of the 4 Gospels, "Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.” If heaven and earth will pass, your circumstances will certainly pass. Be encouraged, your trial WILL PASS; Weeping may last for a night, but JOY WILL COME; this will pass!
2. God of all grace
The word grace appears in the ESV translation 131 times. And, when looking at the various meanings in the Concordance for grace, you find favor, benefit, gift, forgiven, cancelled the debt.
Our Christian life begins with saving grace. Ephesians 2:8-10,
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
It continues on a serving grace, 1 Corinthians 15:9-10,
9 For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me.
Paul writes in Romans about the sanctifying grace, Romans 5:17,
17 For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.
Warren Wiersbe said, “God allows us to suffer that He might be able to shed His grace upon us. When we suffer, we come to the end of ourselves and learn to lean on Him.”
People like to put limits on what they think God’s grace can cover, what He can forgive. Romans 5:20 says,
20 Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more,
Kevin Butler mentioned this in his article in the May edition of the Sabbath Recorder, “…His grace exceeds your sin.” No matter what you have done, by the grace of God, and Jesus taking your sin upon himself on the cross, God’s grace has got you covered.
John 1:16-17,
16 For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
We received grace through the sacrifice of Jesus. Grace is getting what we do not deserve because what we do deserve, is death because of sin.
3. Called to His eternal glory
Because of the grace of God, we are called to His glory. With everything we do, we should be asking ourselves if it is glorifying to God. If it isn’t, then we should really reconsider what we are doing.
I am going to share some verses here and see if you can think of the significance of them.
2 Thessalonians 2:13-14,
13 But we ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth. 14 To this he called you through our gospel, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
1 Thessalonians 2:11-12,
11 For you know how, like a father with his children, 12 we exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory.
1 Timothy 6:12,
12 Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
1 Corinthians 1:9,
9 God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Colossians 3:15,
15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.
By the grace of God, we were called to salvation, His kingdom, eternal life, and fellowship with Jesus. If we look at 1 Peter 5:10 again, it says we are called to his eternal glory in Christ!
Every time someone comes to Christ, it brings glory to God. When someone who turned their back to God comes back, it brings glory to God. If we are not sharing the gospel, or treating others with love like Christ showed us, how are we helping to bring glory to God?
Everyone is being called by God to his eternal glory. The problem is, people are not listening. People are not sharing. People are suffering, but looking in the wrong places for help.
I am not saying that every conversation has to be one that is trying to bring someone to Christ. It can take many conversations from many different people before they finally see it. But, how you interact with that person, and it could just be a smile and a good morning, can really set the tone for this person to be open to that conversion conversation.
4. Restored
Peter is talking from experience here. Peter’s own restoration from pain and failure puts credibility behind the promise in verse 10. If you remember, Peter denied knowing Jesus after his arrest.
74 Then he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know the man.” And immediately the rooster crowed. 75 And Peter remembered the saying of Jesus, “Before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.
Peter the denier became Peter of Pentecost spoke from deep experience. After denying Jesus 3 times, Peter was restored for a purpose.
God will make the followers of Jesus strong and stable, providing us with courage to go on. God will make us firm and steadfast, so that our foundation in Him is secure.
Restore in the Greek, means to repair or adjust, to perfect.
The Apostle Paul wrote this to the Philippians, Philippians 1:6,
6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.
Our salvation AND sanctification was begun by God. Paul & Peter based their firm conviction that it was permanent; that God would carry it out, finish it. It would not be started just to be abandoned. This “good work” would be “performed” or “finished” only:
(1) by keeping them from falling from grace, salvation
(2) by their ultimate entire perfection, sanctification
Their firm belief is something like the following:
It is in God alone. No reliance is placed on us keeping ourselves. We are too weak; too changeable; too fickle; too predisposed to yield to temptation. The reliance is on God. God began the work. He had a design in it. It was deliberate, and intentional. It wasn’t hit-or-miss or by chance. It was because of His great love for us. There is no reason why God would begin such a work and then abandon it. It couldn’t be because He lacked the power to complete it, or because there were more enemies to overcome than He had expected; or because difficulties arose, He didn’t foresee; or because it was no longer needed or wanted. God abandons nothing that He begins! There are no unfinished worlds or systems; no half-done and forsaken works of His hands. There is no evidence in any of His works of a change of plan, or of having forsaken what He began from disgust, disappointment, or lack of power to complete them. God promised to keep us. Listen to the words of Jesus in John 10:27-29,
27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.
The idea that God will finish what He started in us caused Paul to write, Romans 8:28-30,
28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. 29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.
Causing him to say in verse 35, Romans 8:35,
35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?
Paul follows with verse 38-39,
Romans 8:38-39,
38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Be encouraged! What God began in you HE WILL finish and there is no power on earth, under the earth, above the earth and beyond the earth that can dissuade Him from His faithful task!
Yesterday, I had the privilege to officiate a funeral for a man who was 44. When he was younger, he got into trouble and ended up in prison for about 10 years. After his release, he was baptized and accepted Christ. He spent the rest of his time, being a father-figure to his nieces and nephews, and some that were not even related to him, to make sure they made better choices in life than he did, to make sure they got set on the right path. He was restored for a purpose.
Nothing is too big for God to overcome. What are you suffering from this morning? God wants to restore you. Are you praying for a God’s vision for you? God has a purpose for you, are you listening to him?
This morning, God was pressing upon me the need to pray for His people. To have the deacons pray for His people, so, if you are suffering and are in need of prayer, I urge you to come up front and ask me or one of the deacons to pray for you.
God has promised, that after we suffer a little while, he will restore and establish us, for His purpose.