“Because, because…”
And the LORD said to me, 'Arise, go on your journey at the head of the people, that they may go in and possess the land, which I swore to their fathers to give them.'
12 “And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, 13 and to keep the commandments and statutes of the LORD, which I command you this day for your good? 14 To the LORD your GOD belong the heavens, even the highest heavens, the earth and everything in it. 15 YET the LORD set his affection on your forefathers and loved them, and he chose you, their descendents, above all the nations, as it is today. 16 Circumcise therefore… your heart, and be no longer stubborn.
17 For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the terrible/awesome God, who is not partial and takes no bribe.18 He executes justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing.
19 Love the sojourner therefore; for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt. 20 You shall fear the LORD your God; you shall serve him and cleave to him, and by his name you shall swear.
21 He is your praise; he is your God, who has done for you these great and terrible things which your eyes have seen.
13 Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming. 14 As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. 15 But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; 16 for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”
17 Since you call on a Father, who judges each person’s work impartially, live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear. 18 For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. 20 He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. 21 Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God.
22 Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from the heart. 23 For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.
24 For, “All people are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, 25 but the word of the Lord endures forever.” And this is the word that was preached to you.
SERMON: “Because, because, because…” (Please read 1 Peter 1 & Deuteronomy 10: 11-22)
Jesus said to Peter, “Feed my sheep” and like all good teachers he would give his people the solid food they really needed to grow in the grace and knowledge of God. You have your trials now – and you can expect more in future, but you should rejoice; you have reasons for great thanksgiving:
BECAUSE you are saved and there’s more to come…here is Peter’s message in a nutshell.
2 YOU have been chosen and destined by God the Father…
God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ is to be praised BECAUSE…in his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead…
(God has already)… given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, 5 who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 7 These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honour when Jesus Christ is revealed. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy…
9 …you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls (1 Peter 1:9)
(1) Since you call on a Father, who judges each person’s work impartially, live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear:
Believers/worshippers are always those who ‘call on the Name of the Lord’. Isaac built an altar there & he called upon the Name of the Lord (Gen 26: 25)
All who by faith are in Christ are sons (children) of God the Father and can claim kinship with God. “…as many as received (and welcomed) Him, to them He gave the right (authority, power, privilege - to become children of God - in the full spiritual sense, -not as mere offspring of God which is true of all men as, even to those who believe in His name, who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” (John 1)
Jesus taught his disciples to address their prayers to “Our Father…” To Mary Magdalene he said, “Tell the other disciples that I am ascending to My Father and your Father, to My God and your God…” (John 20)
He spoke of Abba-Father in an intimate way which religious leaders would have considered blasphemous. We are able to appeal to God in the same sort of way a child would run to the best of earthly parents for refuge and help.
4 For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. 15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to son ship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.”
{We come to God-the-Father through Jesus the Son in the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus is the way to the Father, the best expression of his Father}. How beautiful and fitting for us to meditate upon what it means for the Father of the Universe, no less, to be Our Father – that he knows us intimately; that he loves us and that we can love him, too…
However – don’t get carried away, Peter says. We cannot simply think of God like this. He is a Father, yes; but He is also a HOLY GOD and should be approached as such.
13 Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming. 14 As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. 15 But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; 16 for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”
Like any good Father he calls for his children to model themselves upon Him (to be like Him) and to do what he says…
{‘If (because) you love me you will obey me…} (Jn. 15)
As God has said: “I will live with them - and walk among them - and I will be their God - and they will be my people.” 17 Therefore, “Come out from them and be separate, says the Lord. {Touch no unclean thing,} and I will receive you.” 18 And, “I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.” (2 Cor 6)
(2) The Father - who judges each person’s work impartially…
He is Father. He is also the Judge. There is no contradiction here. GOD doesn’t play favourites. He’s a good judge. His judgments are fair. Man looks on the outward appearance but the LORD looks on the heart…
“…wealth, culture, social position, family background, education, beauty, intellect, all things that more or less sway the opinions of man, do not count with God when it comes to appraising (judging) a person’s character or worthiness.” (No bribes, as Moses reminded the people)
Paul discovered these things were “dung”.
{Peter knew better than most what it was like to have the piercing eye of God’s judgment trained upon him when he betrayed Jesus…}
(2a) Each person’s work is judged.
People may escape justice or judgment in this lifetime. Countless relatives remain bereft and incensed when those who injured them or their loved ones seem to have got off scot-free. But God shall judge the righteous and the wicked alike…
For it is time for judgment to begin with God’s household; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who do not obey the gospel of God? 18 And, “If it is hard for the righteous to be saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?”
It is because the LORD is a good Judge (and Father):
…disciplines those whom he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives." 7 It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? 8 If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated then you are illegitimate children and not sons.9 Besides this, we have had earthly fathers to discipline us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits and live? 10 For they disciplined us for a short time at their pleasure, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. 11 For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant; later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
IT IS BECAUSE God is Father and Judge that Peter tells his hearers how they are to conduct themselves - (3) Live out your time as foreigners here in REVERENT FEAR - Peter wanted to motivate not terrify his hearers.
Fear of the Lord is not just OT theology. Matthew Henry – “The root of religion is fear of God reigning in the heart, and a reverence of his majesty, deference to his authority, and a dread of his wrath. Fear God, that is, worship God, and give him the honour due to his name, in all the instances of true devotion, inward and outward.” (M. Henry) Fear God and give him glory! (Rev 14:7).
It was Jesus who said don’t waste your time being afraid of men – even if they could harm you and kill you – but be really afraid of the One (God) who could destroy both body and soul in hell…“He shall be your fear and your dread…”
The peaceful church that grew in grace and numbers was the same church that went on in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit. (Acts 9:31); they fear God. They are not afraid of him. In fact they find his presence with them comforting. The fear of God is not craven, cowardly fear, BECAUSE:
“In the FEAR OF THE LORD there is strong confidence. And his children will have refuge. The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life – that one may avoid the snares of death…” (Proverbs 14: 26-27)
Fearing God is synonymous with worship: an evil person is rebellious; he does not fear God (Proverbs 36:1; Rom 3:18); those who are wise know the fear of the Lord; they know they are “Coram Dei” – always ‘before the face of God’.
Fear of God: It will turn you away from the bad; when you fear God you’ll hate it when you stumble into sin and (have to) turn back humbly/quickly to God… The fear of God is evidence, above all, that that you know God as a loving Father…
“At the end of the day – 9 Not only was the Teacher wise, but he also imparted knowledge to the people. He pondered and searched out and set in order many proverbs. 10 The Teacher searched to find just the right words, and what he wrote was upright and true. 11 The words of the wise are like goads, their collected sayings like firmly embedded nails—given by one shepherd. 12 Be warned, my son, of anything in addition to them. Of making many books there is no end, and much study wearies the body. 13 Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind. 14 For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil. (Ecc 12)
10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.
We don’t have to worry about the judgment to come – the Great White Throne – where those who do not upon the Name of the Lord will have to appear – because (taking our humanity for himself) all that judgment he has freely borne on the cross. The punishment that should have been ours – he took it! And there, those who have feared, obeyed and loved God will be finally saved because of Jesus’ perfect work….
Why live like this? Because we know all the most wonderful and lasting AND COSTLY things come from God.
18 BECAUSE you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. 20
God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. 17 This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the Day of Judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. 18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.
“The love of God begins in fear and the fear of God ends in love. And that love can never end. BECAUSE God is LOVE!!”
MFR
24 For, “All people are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, 25 but the word of the Lord endures forever.” And this is the word that was preached to you.