24-0324p Transcript

Preacher: Mike Mathis

(0:39) Good evening. We continue the lesson we started this morning on (0:48) precious promises. Looking at the word precious, dealing with some thoughts (0:57) about precious things that I’ve talked about this past Wednesday evening and today, and now (1:16) talking about precious promises. We talked about promises that God made this (1:28) morning to the serpent, to Abraham, by Moses, that Moses told the people that a (1:43) prophet would rise, that would be like him, and that it would be required of the people to (1:56) listen to him.

And we found that all these promises that we looked at, they were (2:07) indeed fulfilled. The promise of the prophet was fulfilled through Jesus. We are (2:21) required to listen to Jesus.

If we listen to Jesus, we’ll listen to God. But I (2:29) want to deal now with, in 2 Peter, the first chapter, want to begin reading with (2:44) verse 1. Simon Peter, a bondservant and apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who have (2:56) obtained the life-precious food with us by the righteousness of our God and Savior (3:10) Jesus Christ, grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of (3:18) God and of Jesus our Lord, as his divine power has given to us all things that pertain to (3:31) life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have (3:43) been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers (3:54) of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. Now I didn’t see (4:09) the life-precious faith that was up in the first verse that said, to those who have obtained life-precious faith with us, but yet (4:32) tonight our concern will be on the precious promises.

We learn here that we have been given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by glory and virtue. (5:00) And these promises then are given to us and they are for us and we look at this word, the Bible, in the Bible and we’ll find the things that are necessary for us that pertain to life and godliness. (5:31) And we gain these things through the knowledge of him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises.

(5:53) Notice it’s not just precious promises, it’s exceedingly great and precious promises. (6:03) For these promises that have been given to us are precious and we should realize that these promises are to be counted as precious and that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, (6:31) having escaped the corruption that is in the world we are lost. (6:37) We find that when we come to Jesus and we obey him, we are baptized into him, the sins that we have committed have been washed away and we throw off the old man of sin.

(7:07) And we have this corruption that we’ve been in thrown off and we have escaped the corruption that is in the world and these promises that God is giving us are very precious indeed. (7:36) Now I want to turn our attention to the first chapter of 1 Peter and we’re going to look at some things there and in these is concerns the promises that we have and the things that are promised to us. (8:03) Beginning with verse 3 in 1 Peter 1. (8:33) So our hope then is not a hope that is weak and doesn’t have any foundation, but it is a living hope and you might call the opposite of that a dead hope, well that would be no hope at all.

(8:58) But here we have a living hope and that is through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, that gives us assurance that when we depart this life that we too can be resurrected as Christ was resurrected. (9:24) We learn that he came forth from the grave and he arose from the grave never to die again and we, and this gives us hope then that we too will resurrect and he is our living hope to an inheritance into heaven. (9:56) He is incorruptible and undefiled that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you.

(10:05) Now this morning we talked about Abraham being promised the land, his descendants would be those that would possess the land that God would show him and indeed God did what he had promised. (10:36) He gave them that land and not one of those promises failed but then because of their departure from God they lost that land, they were driven into captivity and especially Judah being taken into captivity by Babylon. (11:11) And Babylon’s king Nebuchadnezzar and they did return but eventually the physical land was taken away from them but we have a spiritual promise of an inheritance that is incorruptible and undefiled.

(11:42) The land does not fade away, it’s not an earthly inheritance that we gain but it is in heaven and it is reserved for those that are in God and have been begotten from God. (12:14) We’ve been begotten again to a living hope and this beginning has happened through our obeying the word of God, being obedient to his word, trusting in Jesus that when he said, (12:34) He that believes and is baptized shall be saved, we put our trust in him, we will be buried with him in baptism and receive salvation but it also caused us to be spiritually born again. (12:53) And it is through this word that he has begotten us and as I say to a living hope, to an inheritance that is incorruptible and undefiled, that does not fade away.

(13:15) We can read in Revelation that no sin will enter into that land, that God is going to be the light where I have no need of the sun but the one thing that won’t be there is sin. (13:44) Sin will not enter into that place and sin is what corrupts mankind and defiles man but it will be incorruptible and undefiled. (13:59) It won’t fade away.

Things on this earth do fade away as flowers do, as flowers have the tendency to bloom and then fade away but not this, this does not fade away. (14:27) And it says who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. (14:41) So in saying this we see God’s abundant mercy, we see that God gives us mercy and mercy is that which we don’t deserve.

(15:03) We were treated as we lawfully would be treated, we would be in real trouble but he gives us mercy and he has abundant mercy and therefore we receive his abundant mercy. (15:29) And we are kept by the power of God through faith and it is through faith for salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. (15:48) So this faith that we have, we are kept by his power.

God has power and he has power to work with us and to be with us in spite of the various trials that they go through. (16:17) In this you greatly rejoice though now for a little while if need be you have been grieved by various trials that the genuineness of your faith, that which is genuine is true and it is the truthfulness of your faith. (16:44) It is not made believe, it is real faith and it has been much more precious than gold.

(16:55) We learned Wednesday night, this past Wednesday of the precious things, the word of God that it should be looked at and should be thought of as being more precious than gold. (17:22) But so should the faith of those of us who are in Christ. The genuineness of your faith being much more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire.

(17:45) Yes, gold is tested. It is melted down and it is made into other objects and it is tested by fire. (18:00) And these trials and tribulations that we go through for Christ and we suffer and are tested, we should come through these trials just like the gold will come through that is tested.

(18:27) We may be found to praise, honor and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ. (18:37) And so here we find that these are things that we have and then the inheritance that we possess that will be ours that is incorruptible. (18:57) This is a promise that is to be fulfilled in the future.

We will or should receive that inheritance. (19:13) Let us keep our faith and let us keep it and be genuine in our faith so that when Jesus does return he will find us faithful. (19:31) And then he goes on and says that in verse 9, receiving the end of your faith.

And what is the end of our faith? It is the salvation of your souls. (19:55) Yes, the salvation that we have been promised if we obey what God has said. (20:12) Down further in this first chapter of 1 Peter, Peter tells these brethren in verse 22, (20:26) Since you have purified your souls and obeyed the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart, (20:42) having been born again, not of corruptible seed, but incorruptible through the word of God which lives and abides forever.

(21:04) Now it is here that we find these promises that he makes to us. He indeed keeps us by his word. (21:19) And we then, when we obey his gospel, we obey the truth, we purify our hearts and we purify our souls when we obey his word.

(21:45) Now it is the salvation of our souls that is the end of our faith. (21:56) And he says in verse 10 of 2 Peter that this reading that John read in your hearing, (22:05) He says, Therefore brethren, be even more diligent to make your cause and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble. (22:19) And those things that he’s talking about is adding things to our faith, virtue, and then adding to virtue knowledge and knowledge self-control.

(22:38) And to self-control, perseverance. To perseverance, godliness. To godliness, brotherly kindness.

To brotherly kindness, love. (22:48) And he says, For if you do these things, for if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. (23:08) For he who lacks these things is short-sighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.

(23:21) So these are the things that he is saying that these virtuous things that he says that we are to add to our faith, and we keep adding these to, we will never stumble. (23:41) Then he says, For so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. (23:57) You know, someone has said that it felt like he would be squeaking through the pearly gates, but no, he won’t.

(24:26) If we do what is necessary, the promise is that the entrance into that everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, it will be supplied to you abundantly. (24:53) The door will be opened wide to us if we stay. (25:00) This is a promise, and isn’t it precious to us? (25:09) Will we not deem this one of those promises that God has given to us that is exceedingly a great and precious promise to us? (25:27) If it is, and if you in any way are subject to the gospel invitation, we offer the invitation for you to come and to respond to that invitation so that God will bless you and keep you.

(25:55) Certainly, as he kept all the promises that he made through the Old Testament fulfilled in Christ, he made promises to us to be with us and that we would gain heaven. (26:16) Let us then tap into the precious promise and let us remain true. (26:26) And if you are subject to the gospel invitation in any way, why not come while we stand and while we sing? (26:33)