Seeing Through Eyes of Faith

Let's begin our worship today by singing to God's praise.

We're singing in Psalm 27, in the Sing Psalms version.

Psalm 27, in the Sing Psalms version, verse 1 to verse 5.

The Lord's my Savior and my light, who will make me dismayed.

The Lord's the stronghold of my life.

Why should I be afraid?

We'll sing from verse 1 to verse 5 to God's praise, and we stand to sing.

The Lord's my Savior and my light, who will make me dismayed.

The Lord's the stronghold of my life.

Why should I be afraid?

When evildoers threaten me

To take my life away

My hundred studies and my foes

Will stumble in that day

Although an army hands me in

My heart will feel no dread

Though one of this may shoot arise

I will lift up my head

One thing I'll plead before the Lord

And this I'll seek for ways

That I may come within God's eyes

And dwell there all my days

That on the beauty of the Lord

That on the beauty of the Lord

I constantly may kiss

And in His heart

And in His heart

May seek to know

Direction in His ways

For in His dwelling

For in His dwelling

He will keep me safe

He will keep me safe

With troubled days

With troubled days

Within His dead

He'll shelter me

And all of the Lord

And all of the Lord

And all of me raise

Now let's come to God in prayer

Let us pray

Our Father in heaven

We have been reminded of the purpose

Of coming to worship You

Of coming to gather us a people

To call upon Your name

And to hear Your word proclaimed to us

We come with that longing of the psalmist

That we may gaze upon the beauty of the Lord

Constantly

For we would recognize that we need You

And how we need You

In the world in which we live

And all that's going on around us

We pray for Your calmness

And Your peace upon us as a people

That as we come in Your name today

That You would still us

That You would still us

And help us to be still

And to know that You are God

So may Your word be blessed to each one of us

From the youngest to the oldest

That You would give us all ears

To hear what You are saying to us

And also give us eyes to see

Eyes to see that in all the chaos around us

That You are still God

And that You reign on high

And that the glory of Your name

Is still proclaimed and heard

Far and wide

And for that we thank You

We thank You that You are speaking to us

And that You minister to us

In all our different needs

So we pray that You will encourage us

In our homes and in our families

To be a people of prayer

To be a people who remember You

Not just as we come to worship You

For this time

But that day by day

We will go on in Your strength

And that we will seek Your face

On a daily basis

That we will seek to honour You

In our youth and into our old age

In all that we do

Whether it's in school or at home

Or in the workplace

Or throughout our communities

That You will give us words

To speak and share with one another

And to encourage one another

And ways to help one another

We do pray Your blessing on us all together

We thank You for all the young ones here today

We thank You for the Sunday school

The creche and the tweenies

We do pray Your blessing upon all that is done there

We pray for our day schools as well

And as they look forward to the holidays

In this coming week

We pray for Your blessing over everyone

Parents and families

And teachers and staff

That You will refresh and be with them all

Look after them and take care of them

So Lord continue with us in our worship now

Help us and guide us in all that we do

And hear our thanks and our praise to You

As we offer up

In the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ

For the forgiveness of our sins

Amen

Well as we were singing in that psalm

We were reminded that it is such a good thing

To come and worship and praise God together

And it is good to come together

And worship God on a beautiful sunny day

When we feel His warmth

A day like today

What do you think?

Is it a beautiful sunny day today?

Hands up if you think it is a beautiful sunny day today

The sun is shining

And we feel the warmth of the sun

Hands up if you think that is true

No hands going up

My goodness

You must all think that it is just a terrible day outside

Where is the sun then?

Where is the sun then?

Where is the warmth of the sun?

Do you think just because we don't see the sun

It is not shining?

Or do you think just because we maybe think

It is a horrible cold wet day outside

That there is no heat from the sun?

Well if we do we are mistaken

And in our study in 1st Peter

We are thinking about people who are looking around

And they don't think the weather is nice and sunny and warm

Because there are so many bad things going on around them

They think it is just all these storms and gales that keep coming

Because their eyes are very much just looking down

Even if you are walking into church this morning

You probably had your eyes down to the ground

To try and keep your face away from the rain and the wind

But actually if you lift up your eyes

And if you look around

You actually think to yourself

Well the sun must be there

Because if the sun wasn't there

It would be pitch black

If the sun wasn't there

We would be freezing cold

And just because it is cloudy and wet outside

Cloudy and wet outside doesn't mean that there is no sun

The sun is still there

And for that we have to be thankful

And I was reminded of that this week

Because on Tuesday I flew to Glasgow

And then on Thursday I came back on the plane from Glasgow

And both of these days were almost days like today

It was cloudy and wet and dull

And you are thinking to yourself

What a horrible day

But then as the plane went up into the sky

We came through the clouds

And what do you think I could see then?

I could see a blue sky

I could see the sun

The sun was there all the time

And as a great reminder to ourselves

Just as we are thinking about the people in Peter's day

Think of our own day to day as well

We can often focus on all that is wrong around us

And ask, where is God in all of this?

Why has he left us?

But he hasn't

Just like the sun is always there

No matter the weather

We still feel its warmth

Even though we might think it's cold

If the sun wasn't there

We would perish

But because the sun is there

We have life

And the same is true with God

There are times when we think

We can't see God

Or where is God

And especially when we are going through

Times of difficulty

But God is always there

Just like the sun is shining

We feel his warmth

We know his blessing

Even when the going is hard

So we look up today

We remind ourselves

Just because it's a wet

And windy and cloudy day

The sun still shines

And we remember that God

In the midst of all our troubles

And all our challenges

God is always there

Giving his warmth

Giving his light

And guiding us in all our ways

So may we trust him

In the beautiful sunny days

But also in the days

When it's wet and windy

May we trust him

With all our hearts

We're going to say

The Lord's prayer together now

Let's say the Lord's prayer

Our Father which art in heaven

Hallowed be thy name

Thy kingdom come

Thy will be done on earth

As it is in heaven

Give us this day

Our daily bread

And forgive us our debts

As we forgive our debtors

And lead us not into temptation

But deliver us from evil

For thine is the kingdom

The power and the glory forever

Amen

We're going to sing together

To God's praise

Once again we're singing

In Psalm 43

In the Scottish Psalter

Psalm 43

We're singing the whole of this Psalm

Page 264

Of the Psalm books

Judge me O God

And plead my cause

Against the ungodly nation

From the unjust

And crafty man

O be thou my salvation

And then verse 3

It says

O send thy light forth

And thy truth

Let them be guides to me

And bring me to thine holy hill

Even where thy dwellings be

We'll sing the whole of this Psalm

To God's praise

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

CHOIR SINGS

CHOIR SINGS

CHOIR SINGS

CHOIR SINGS

CHOIR SINGS

CHOIR SINGS

CHOIR SINGS

CHOIR SINGS

CHOIR SINGS

great crowd. Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside.

And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, Jesus, son of David,

have mercy on me. And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more,

son of David, have mercy on me. And Jesus stopped and said, call him. And they called the blind man,

saying to him, take heart, get up, he is calling you. And throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and

came to Jesus. And Jesus said to him, what do you want me to do for you? The blind man said to him,

Rabbi, let me recover my sight. And Jesus said to him, go your way. Your faith has made you well.

And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way. And we'll turn to our second reading

in 1 Peter chapter 1. We'll take up our reading at verse 8 as we continue our study in this letter.

1 Peter 1 · chapter mention

So 1 Peter, taking up our reading at verse 7, where we just remind ourselves what we were looking at

last week, the tested genuineness of our faith. We go through various trials. And faith is more

precious than gold. That perishes though it is tested by the fire, may be found to result in praise

and glory and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him,

you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is

inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours,

searched and inquired carefully, inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was

indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. It was revealed to

them that they were serving not themselves but you in the things that have now been announced to you

through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which

angels long to look. And so on. And may God bless these readings from his word. Again, bow our heads

in a word of prayer. Let us pray. Our Father in heaven, as we continue in our worship of you,

we thank you that you have already sent forth your light and your truth, that they have been what has

been the guide to your church down through all the generations. And even at times when churches and

people have wandered away from the truth, there is still your light shining brightly, guiding us back to

yourself and back to your way. There are times when we have to come just like Bartimaeus because their eyes

have been blinded, crying out, Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me. We do come confessing our sins.

We acknowledge, O Lord, all that we have done past and even in the present, how we sin in so many ways.

And acknowledging that even as we go forward, we go forward as sinners in need of help, in need of

repentance. But assure that as we come to you, that you are the one who is able to help us to see

and to see all things, to see through eyes of faith what you have done for us, the things that we could

not do ourselves, the salvation we could not purchase for ourselves, the way to heaven that we could not

find by ourselves, the hope of eternal life that we could never afford or purchase in any way.

But we thank you that all has been done for us, that we have in Jesus Christ, the one who is the way,

the truth, and the life. And we thank you that we can come anew day by day and rejoice in the hope that

he is able to give. And so we pray for your blessing on us as a people, as we come to worship your name

this day, as we come to hear your word, that you would truly bless it to our souls. That even these

words that we have read of the Lord Jesus, that though we do not see him, we can believe in him

and rejoice with a joy that is inexpressible. May you give us all that joy in our hearts today, the joy

that only comes from you. And we pray that throughout our land and throughout this world,

from the rising of the sun to its setting, that no matter what situation people find themselves in,

no matter how dark our days may seem, that we rejoice that the Son of God is shining from on high,

that the warmth of your word, the blessing of your spirit is still ours to be had. And so we continue

to pray that you will send your light forth and your truth day after day, and that people will come

to rejoice in it. We thank you for all our homes and our families, and we thank you for the gift of

fellowship and prayer for one another. And we thank you that even as we come in prayer just now,

there may be many people on our minds, many situations that we are praying for, and hear the

prayers of all our hearts as we offer them up as one. And as we say amen together, Lord, we ask,

hear our prayers, and your will be done in all things. Remember those who need you in particular

ways. Remember those who are unwell, those who are laid aside at this time and struggling

in maybe many different ways, unseen to us, when there are issues of the heart and the mind

and even the soul. When there are troubles that surround us that no one else sees, we thank you

that you see and that you know, and that you are able to guard our hearts and our minds in Christ Jesus.

And so we pray that you will surround your people, that you will uphold them, that you will strengthen

them as every need they have, that they will be able to cast their cares upon you, for you care for us.

We pray your blessing on those who are blind to you in these days. We pray, Lord, that there will be a

longing to see, and only you can give that longing to the hearts of the blind. So we pray for you to send

your spirit down upon us, an awakening, Lord, in our hearts and in our souls, and to seek the Lord

while he may be found, to call upon him while he is near. We pray, Lord, for your blessing over us

as communities and as islands. We thank you, Lord, for all that is done for us as a people, for every

service that we have to hand, for those who are on call in emergency services, for those who are working

in different aspects of our community life, seeking to benefit the good of all our people, for those who

are leaders over us and seek to direct us in the right path in these challenging days, financially and

in so many other different ways. We pray, Lord, for you to give wisdom from on high, for you to lead us

and to guide us. We pray for our nation and the nations of the world, and we see so many things

happening in our midst. We think today of that great tragedy in Donegal for the families who are

grieving and mourning there in a community that is so shocked and stunned by these events, a community

much like our own, where people will know one another, love one another and care for one another,

and I will be hurting so much. We pray, Lord, that you will surround them, that you will draw near to

them, that your presence will be known to them, that you would comfort us only you can and give healing

in the midst of all of their pain. We remember that for others throughout our world and greater

situations as we see too where nations are in conflict and so many atrocities happening. We think of

Ukraine so much in the news and continue to pray for peace and stability there, but we know that

throughout the world so many of your people are suffering in different ways. There is a darkness

that surrounds so many. There is a wickedness and an evil that is active in so many ways and places,

but we thank you that there is greater at work too, that you are in our midst and that you are greater,

that you are victorious. And we see that especially at the cross, where we see that even in the midst of

the darkness, in the middle of the day, and in all the sorrow and anguish that surrounded it,

that still there was life, and that you gave hope to all your people, that even in our darkest hour,

we can look and see the one who suffered in our place, but now the one who is risen. On that glorious

resurrection morning, the light of the gospel has resounded clearly from that day, so that even today as we

gather, we have the hope that is spoken of even here in Peter, the good news of the gospel preached to

many. And so we pray, Lord, for your word to go out with power, for it to convict and convert, for it to be

found precious to us all, and that we rejoice not just in the word, but the one who is the word, that we

would rejoice in Christ Jesus anew, and seek to follow him, and look to him with eyes fixed on him,

eyes of faith. So pardon our sins, and hear our thanks, receive our praise, and all we ask, we ask in his

precious name. Amen. Before we turn to look at 1 Peter, we'll again sing to God's praise in Psalm 19.

Psalm 19, singing at verse 7 to verse 11 in the Scottish Psalter, page 223 of the Psalm books.

God's law is perfect and converts the soul in sin that lies. God's testimony is most sure and makes

the simple wise. We'll sing from verse 7 to 11 to God's praise.

God's law is perfect and converts the soul in sin that lies. God's testimony is most sure and makes the

simple wise. The statutes of the Lord are right, and do rejoice the heart. The Lord's command is pure,

the love is crushed, and pours the mother. The God says, the love of the Lord our calling has not

The judges of the Lord are true, and righteous are together.

They more than gold, they much shine gold to be decided on.

And honey, honey, from the cold, that hopeth sweeter far.

More over me, thy servant born, that he is my true friend.

A great reward provided is for them that keep us safe.

We can turn together to our second reading there in the first letter of Peter.

1 Peter chapter 1.

1 Peter 1 · chapter mention

And we can take up our reading again at verse 8.

Though you have not seen him, you love him.

Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible

and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls,

and so on.

We're continuing our study in this letter of Peter to a people who were scattered far

and wide and a people who were suffering in many different ways and situations.

And Peter here is speaking in verse 8 about their vision, what they're seeing, or maybe

what they're not seeing at this time, but the promise they have of what they will see.

The last time we were looking at verse 3 through to verse 7.

And we were reminded there of the trials that the people were going through,

but also of the hope that they had and the inheritance that they had to look forward to

at the revelation of Jesus Christ, at the coming of Jesus Christ,

the day when everyone will see the Lord Jesus.

But for now he is saying, you do not see him.

But he says, you love him.

So I begin today by asking you a question.

What is your eyesight like?

Mine is poor.

And from a very young age, I knew I would need to wear glasses to help me see.

If I take off my glasses, everything just suddenly becomes a blur.

And I can still remember the first pair of glasses I got and just how amazing it was to put them on

and to actually be able to see things clearly, everything that I'd been missing out on for so long.

The difference it makes when you're able to see properly.

And maybe that's something that many of you know or have experienced in life

through long or short-sightedness.

The need to put on glasses, otherwise everything before you is just blurry.

So as we dive into this letter of Peter,

and we see him addressing this people who were scattered far and wide,

living in a hostile world.

They were living in a time just like our own,

when the world is often hostile towards the gospel.

But here is Peter writing to them with a great purpose.

He's writing to them to help them, to encourage them.

But he's writing to them not just to survive or to get on day by day in a quiet way,

in a quiet sense, just to get through.

He's writing to them to help them to thrive,

to go on strengthened, equipped in life.

And in particular, he's writing to them to be on the mission of God together,

to remind themselves of this hope,

this inheritance that they have, that they can share,

even though they are going through their times of trial.

And they know that as they are living in this world,

to live for the Lord Jesus comes at a great cost.

And the same is true for ourselves so often today.

To live for faith in the Lord Jesus Christ often comes at a cost.

Maybe we don't feel it or know it in the same way as the people in Peter's day

or even many others throughout the world today.

We know too, though, that we experience difficulties and trials along the way.

And the difference between merely surviving or just getting by in this world

and actually thriving is often based on what we see and what our focus is on.

And so what Peter is getting at here in these verses is to have a clear vision,

a clear focus, not in a physical sense, but in a spiritual sense.

And to look at the world around us, not through eyes that are dimmed by sin

and the darkness around us, but to look at things through eyes of faith.

To have eyes of faith.

To see, even as Bartimaeus saw, a vision restored through faith.

Not just seeing physically, but seeing Jesus and following Him in the way.

And so what is your vision like?

What is your eyesight like in this sense?

How are you seeing spiritually today?

Are you looking at things around you and just seeking to survive,

just to get through each day as it comes?

Or are you looking to Jesus and seeking to thrive and to live for Him?

That's a challenge the people in Peter's day had.

And it's a challenge to ourselves today.

And that is what Peter is encouraging them to hear.

To see Jesus in the midst of all their challenges.

To live in a world that has, yes, a different culture

to the way that we should be living in many ways.

But to live a life that we don't compromise our faith

because of the culture around us.

But also to say that we will not retreat from the culture around us.

We're not just going to go and back away from everything

that we see wrong in this world.

But we are to go forward as a people of faith.

With a vision of Christ.

And that being a vision that we long to share with others.

So it's helpful that Peter has the reality of life in mind here too.

Knowing the sufferings that the Christian will have.

But knowing too the great hope that we have in the Lord Jesus Christ.

And to have that vision of Him is so helpful

as we walk through this life.

As we journey in this world.

As strangers, as we've exiled, as we've seen already in this letter.

This is not our permanent home.

We're just passing through.

But as we are passing through.

We can say to ourselves as someone once did.

If I must walk the path of suffering.

Well we can remember that our Saviour has walked it first.

And when we wonder will these trials, will they never end?

We can look to our Saviour's life.

And remember suffering but then glory.

As it says in verse 11 there.

The end of verse 11.

Inquiring into the person or time of the Spirit of Christ Jesus in them was indicating.

When he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories.

He suffered for us.

That our inheritance would be to be part of his glory too.

So we look to our Saviour.

And he is reminding us to keep our eyes on him.

To look to him.

So we're going to look at this in three different headings.

First of all, thinking of it all under the heading of seeing through eyes of faith.

Seeing first of all, we see what others can't.

Secondly, we see what has been done.

And then thirdly, we see what others long for.

So the first thing we see is we see what others can't.

As Peter is writing from his own experience.

And we looked at this in the first part of our study.

He was writing as one who had lived with the Lord Jesus Christ.

He had walked with him.

He had seen him.

He had seen the Lord and been with him.

And he'd gone through many different experiences.

Many different ups and downs in his own life.

But here he is now writing to our people who haven't seen him.

And we see that clearly in the change between verse 7 and verse 8.

He was saying in verse 7 that we are waiting the result of praise and glory and honour at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

That day when he is going to come and we are going to see him.

But then in verse 8 he says,

Though you have not seen him, you love him.

Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with a joy inexpressible.

So he knows what it's like to see Jesus.

But he's writing to our people who cannot see him.

And not seeing can often lead to questions.

When we are seeing something clearly in front of us, we understand it better.

But when we are not seeing something, even when someone is talking about it, we can struggle to understand.

Think about sitting in a classroom when you are learning.

And someone is describing a situation or something to you.

It's more difficult to understand when you are not actually seeing it.

But if you are taken to a place and you are shown something and you see it for your eyes, you begin to understand.

For example, the mechanics of how some kind of machine works.

You may be being explained to you how an engine works and you just, as it is being spoken of, you don't understand.

But when you see something in front of you, you begin to recognise the parts and what everything is doing.

So Peter is speaking having seen.

But he's writing to our people who have not seen.

And he's saying to them though, even though you do not see him, you love him.

And how can you love someone you haven't seen?

Well, he's trying to understand who he is.

And especially to understand through faith.

Peter here refocuses their attention, not on the sufferings going on around them, but on the one who has suffered for them.

He focuses their attention on the Lord Jesus Christ.

Though you do not see him, you believe in him and rejoice with a joy inexpressible.

You don't see the physical Jesus in front of you today.

But you see of him.

You hear of him.

You know of him in other ways.

You know of him through his word.

You know of him through his providence.

You know of him through his creation.

We see the Lord in many different ways.

And though we do not see him face to face, we can still love him.

Because of the difference he has made in our lives.

And it is only through eyes of faith that we can see that.

We see what others cannot see.

We see things that we didn't see ourselves in the past because we were blind.

Until Jesus opened our eyes, we couldn't see or understand.

But by grace, he opens our eyes to love him.

To see him through eyes of faith.

To rejoice with a joy inexpressible.

And even though there are things that will seek to take that joy away from us.

Those trials that we go through.

Peter is saying, refocus.

Look to Jesus.

Trust in him.

Perhaps the greatest example of this kind of situation was Thomas.

Another of the disciples.

And after the resurrection, you read about it in John chapter 20.

John 20 · chapter mention

Thomas was there with, or he wasn't there when Jesus appeared to the other disciples.

And Thomas said, unless I see, I will not believe.

And a week later, he saw.

And what did he say?

He said, my Lord and my God.

But what was Jesus' response to Thomas in John 20?

He said, have you believed because you have seen me?

Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.

Who was Jesus speaking to?

Who did he have in mind?

Those people Peter was writing to scattered far and wide.

Those who had not seen him yet had not, but yet believed.

And he's saying blessed.

They are blessed.

He's writing to his church down through all the generations.

Church going through, God's people going through all their trials.

We have not seen him, yet they have believed and are blessed.

He's writing to ourselves today.

We have not seen him, yet we have believed through eyes of faith.

And we are blessed.

So what helps us to see in all of these situations?

It's the eyes of faith.

Otherwise, we cannot see.

I remember in school, and perhaps many of you experienced this as well,

either through school or through having medicals for work.

Part of the test you would go through would be an eyesight test, but also a colorblind test.

And you'd be shown, maybe you opened a book that had all kinds of different colored dots on it,

and there'd be a number or a shape that you had to recognize.

And if you weren't colorblind, it was easy to see.

You could see the numbers, maybe 25 or 16, and amongst all the dots.

But to a colorblind person, there's nothing there.

They cannot see.

That colorblindness is hiding everything from them.

It's impossible to see if they're colorblind.

It doesn't mean it's not there.

It is.

And you could say to the person, look, it's there on the page,

but because of their colorblindness, they just cannot see it.

And it's the same when it comes to seeing Jesus.

When we know him, we see him.

Because he's opened our eyes.

We've got eyes of faith.

But all around us is a people who cannot.

It's the gift of faith that enables us to see.

And so what's our focus?

During a time of recession and depression many years back,

similar to the situation our own nation is finding ourselves in,

or the world is finding itself in,

there was a man who was asked to go and speak to a room of businessmen

to try and get them to refocus in the midst of all of the challenges.

And the man who was invited in to speak,

he brought in a sheet of white paper,

he put it up on a board,

and he just proceeded to do a black dot with a pencil.

He then asked the men in the room,

what do you see?

The first person replied, I see a black spot.

The second person replied, I see a black spot.

And so it went on, one after another,

they all said, we see a black spot.

The man, he had expected this.

And he turned to them and said,

yes, there is a black spot,

but none of you are seeing the big sheet of white paper.

Your focus is on the small instead of the greater.

And that's really what Peter is saying here too.

He's saying to us,

our focus can be on the troubles and the trials of life.

And that can be just like the dot.

But the greater picture is that God has a plan and a purpose

for better for all of his people.

So we are to see through eyes of faith,

things that others cannot see.

We see through eyes of faith,

to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus.

But we see too, as we go on here,

we see through eyes of faith,

what has been done.

The eyes of faith help us to see clearly

what has been done for us.

How do you see yourself in life?

What do you see in your life that you're happy with,

that you're satisfied with?

Or what do you see in your life

that's maybe still lacking?

Sometimes we are not seeing clearly

and our focus is wrong.

Just like the men in the room

who all they could see was a black dot.

Perhaps our focus is on the tiny thing in life

that seems like the biggest issue in our life.

Instead of focusing on the greater issue

of who God is.

It would be easy for those who Peter was writing to

to just focus on the struggles

and the problems around them.

And to then be tempted just to forget about God

and to find peace and joy

in the things of this world.

To begin to think that God isn't with us.

We're going to have to go this alone

and sort all this out for ourselves.

God has disappeared out of you.

He's not even with us

in our greatest times of need.

We're going to have to achieve our own salvation

or fix eternity for ourselves.

But verse 10 goes on here to say

that we see this salvation.

We see what has been done for us

through eyes of faith.

It begins in verse 9 really

obtaining the outcome of your faith

the salvation of your souls.

What has been done for us

through Christ on the cross.

He paid a price that we could never pay

for the salvation of our souls.

And concerning this salvation

the prophets who prophesied about the grace

that was being to be yours

searched and inquired carefully in the scriptures

inquiring what person or time

the spirit of Christ in them was indicating

when he predicted the sufferings of Christ

and the subsequent glories.

The time of the sufferings of Christ.

We see through eyes of faith

what has been done for us.

But do we believe it?

That Christ died for our sins?

That he rose again on the third day?

That he is coming again?

Can we better anything

that he has done for us?

No.

We could never achieve any of it for ourselves.

But maybe for some it just sounds too simple.

Sounds too easy.

We live in a world

where everything is instant and quick.

Fast food is just becoming more and more.

Microwave meals

so that everything is done quickly.

Well back in the day

when they first started

bringing these kinds of things out

a company had produced

an instant cake mix.

You see it more and more now.

Everything is in one packet.

You pour it into a bowl.

Mix it together.

And it's all done for you.

Well when they first started

producing these things

a company had done this

and the instructions said

just add water and bake.

But they weren't selling.

Nobody seemed interested in them.

They were buying public.

We were uneasy about this.

A mix that all you had to do

was add water.

And so the people thought

the company thought

we've got to do something about this.

So they added another instruction.

They changed the formula.

And instead of just add water

they said add an egg

and water and bake.

And all of a sudden

people began to buy.

It became very popular.

Sales jumped dramatically.

It just sounded too easy initially.

And so they changed the formula.

It was too good to be true.

And in many ways

that's the way the gospel is to some as well.

The gospel tells us

the good news preached

that all we have to do is believe.

Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ

and you will be saved.

But it can't be that easy

can it?

Surely there's something

we have to add into the mix

ourselves

to make a difference

to make it right.

Well the gospel is saying

no.

All you have to do

is believe.

Faith

is the gift of God.

It's not of anything

we've done ourselves.

It is the gift

we receive

through faith.

The salvation

of our souls.

The Bible is clear.

We're not saved

by anything

we add ourselves

into the mix.

We are saved

through faith.

Through the sufferings

of Christ.

And then

the subsequent

glories.

Unlike the cake

manufactured

God doesn't change

anything

in this formula.

It's the same

today

as it ever was.

Jesus.

But how is your vision?

How is your eyesight

when it comes to this?

Are you still thinking

but

surely I've got to do

something.

Surely there's something

I need to do

to finish off

this formula

this mix.

No.

It's all

done.

So how do you

see your life

and what is

your focus?

Well Peter

is saying

our focus

is to be on Christ

and his finished work.

He has done it all.

It is complete.

An old man

was once sharing

with a young friend

about his own

experience

in life.

Looking back

over many years

he said

son

I'd like to tell you

about my life.

He began by saying

I was born

into this world

as a sinner.

I was baptized

soon after I was born

and I became

a baptized sinner.

As I grew older

I wandered away

from the church

and found pleasure

in the things

of this world

and I became

a sinful sinner.

However

he said

I began to realize

that my life

needed to change

and I needed

to do something

and so I started

attending church

and he said

I became

a church

attending sinner.

Then he said

one happy day

my life

was transformed

when I accepted

Jesus Christ

as my own

personal

saviour

and I became

a saved

sinner.

You know

son

he said

a saved sinner

is the only kind

of sinner

that can find

real joy.

And the Lord

will welcome

him

into heaven.

Does that

life

experience

does it resonate

with you?

Maybe that's the way

your life

has been

to baptize

going into the world

and going your own way

becoming a sinful

sinner.

Maybe then

starting to come back

to church

and thinking

that's what's going

to make the difference.

But you're still

just a church

attending sinner.

sinner.

The key is

seeing Jesus

and believing

in him

loving him

with all your heart

still a sinner

but becoming

a saved sinner.

When we see

what has been

done

for us

that is what

we are to look

upon.

That's what can

fill us with joy

inexpressible

through faith

through eyes

of faith

seeing

what Christ

has done.

So our eyes

are to be fixed

on him.

The final thing

we see here

then is

what others

long for.

As you look

at verse

12

well

10 through to 12

really

but verse 12

it says

it was revealed

to them

that they were

serving not

themselves

but you

speaking about

the prophets

of old

and the things

that have now

been announced

to you

through those

who preach

the good news

to you

by the Holy Spirit

sent from heaven

things into which

angels

long

to look.

In these verses

from verse 10

to 12

there's

people

various people

and even the angels

looking to see

what is being said

in this word.

And what's the

greatest gift

anyone has ever

given to you?

There may be

many things

in life

that you

hold precious

gifts

that have

been given

to you

that are

precious

maybe a

piece of

jewelry

a perfume

keys to a

car

an item

of technology

there are

many things

that we can

appreciate

in life

and we

give great

thanks for

well Peter

is reminding

a people

here

a people

who had

very little

in the sense

of gifts

in the way

that we enjoy

so much

but he is

reminding them

that all

that they

have

is right

before them

and for

ourselves

today

the greatest

gift

we can

have

is right

before

us

the word

of God

and I'm

sure at

some point

along the

way

you've

received

a bible

it may

have been

in Sunday

school

or school

may have

been through

the Gideons

distributing them

it may have

been through

a family

member

or a friend

who's given

you a bible

and maybe

written a little

message in the

front of it

it's lovely

to receive

them

and why

has that

person

given it

to you

why have

you received

it

because the

one who is

giving it

knows

the difference

it can

make

it is the

word of

God

that can

help us

to see

and to

truly

see

and it

comes

with a

love

and a

longing

that you

would

search

and know

the

Christ

that it

speaks

of

just as

Peter

is writing

to them

in the

midst

of their

trials

it's not

so their

focus will

be on

the

trials

but that

they lift

their eyes

and see

Jesus

in the

midst

of it

and that

is the

longing

that we

have

for one

another

too I

hope

that we

would come

to see

Jesus

when you

see it

spoken of

here

concerning

this

salvation

the prophets

who prophesied

about the

grace that

was to be

yours

searched

and inquired

carefully

they went

and they

looked

into this

word

the question

is

have you

have you

inquired

and searched

diligently

this word

and what

do you

see in

it

do you

just

hear it

and put

it on

the shelf

to the

next

time

or will

you take

it away

and search

diligently

and even

like

Bartimaeus

of old

cry out

to Jesus

son of

David

have

mercy

on me

help

me

that I

might

see

give

me a

vision

of faith

to see

in the

midst

of everything

in life

how precious

you are

if you

are seeking

a way

in this

world

to know

eternal

life

and the

blessing

of Christ

come

and search

this word

diligently

and don't

let it

go

don't put

it on

the shelf

take it

out and

read it

through

and see

to yourself

what it

says about

the way

to life

and the way

everlasting

it is

found

in Christ

Jesus

so if

you are

seeking

seek

inquire

diligently

even though

you do

not see

him

you can

come

to love

him

and rejoice

with joy

inexpressible

obtaining

the salvation

of your

souls

the greatest

thing you

can ever

know

the joy

of Christ

and if

you are a

Christian

today

what will

you do

with this

word

are you

going to

take it

home

and put

it back

on the

shelf

until the

next time

we meet

or is it

your meat

day by

day

is it

your sustenance

day by

day

is it

your longing

and your

desire

not just

that you

will know

it better

but that

others

will know

it

that others

will come

and see

the beauty

of Christ

it's a story

told of a

missionary

who was a

physician

who went

to China

and was

working in

the hospitals

there

he was an

eye specialist

and back

in the days

when he went

there many

people were

blind

because of

cataracts

they couldn't

see

and one

man came

to this

physician's

hospital

and was

cured

of his

blindness

and he

rejoiced

that he

was able

to see

and he

went away

rejoicing

well a

fortnight

later

48

blind

men

came

with him

to the

doctor

out of

the

wilderness

out of

the

wilds

they

came

to them

holding

onto

a rope

the one

who had

been given

his vision

back at

the front

leading

the way

leading

the other

48 blind

men

behind

him

holding

onto

the rope

he brought

them

to the

physician

who was

able

to cure

they had

walked

250

miles

why did

he do

it

because he

knew

who could

help them

to see

he knew

who could

give them

their vision

back

and Christian

today

if your eyes

have been

opened

if you have

eyes of

faith

you have a

great gift

to give

to others

to say

come

see a

man who

knows

everything

about

could

this be

the

Christ

may we

come

and see

through

eyes

of

faith

the

things

that

others

can't

the

things

that

have

been

done

for

us

and

the

things

that

others

long

for

to

see

as

Bartimaeus

saw

to

see

Jesus

with

eyes

of

faith

and

follow

him

on

the

way

yes

there

are

many

challenges

around

us

there

are

many

troubles

and our

focus

can so

often

be

on

that

but

let's

see

the

greater

let's

lift

let's

let's

see

Jesus

and the

hope

that he

gives

in the

midst

of

everything

and

rejoice

with joy

inexpressible

that he

has gone

before us

to show

the way

to eternal

life but to

lead us

in that

way

everlasting

let us

pray

our father

in heaven

we do

rejoice

in your

goodness

to us

for all

that you

have done

for us

and that

even though

we do

not see

you

we can

love you

with all

our hearts

and rejoice

with a joy

inexpressible

that comes

through

seeing

through

eyes

of

faith

we

acknowledge

our

blindness

so often

and like

Bartimaeus

of old

we cry

Jesus

son of

David

have

mercy

on me

and help

us to

see

the beauty

of Christ

and all

his glory

for we

ask it

in his

precious

name

Amen

we're going

to conclude

by singing

to God's

praise

in Psalm

25

the first

version of

the psalm

in the

Scottish

Psalter

page

231

to thee

I lift

my soul

O Lord

I trust

in thee

my God

let me

not be

ashamed

nor foes

triumph

for me

we'll sing

from verse

1

to the end

of verse

5

to God's

praise

没

on

let me

not

be

ashamed

Now to save for me.

Work down the day of日,

говорить for tooth shape,

Ochocam,

The Lord, who stand with thy cross transgress, let shame upon them fall.

Don't take thy grace, O Lord, thy past, Lord, teach thou me.

And do thou lead me in my truth, and my teacher be.

For thou art all the dust, to thee salvation's end.

And I have all thee all the day, expecting to attain.

After the benediction, I'll go to the door to my left.

We'll close with the benediction.

Now may grace, mercy, and peace from God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, rest upon and

abide with you all, now and forevermore.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.