Grow In Scripture Knowledge (part 2)

Thank you, Hadley.

You know, as I think about people using their gifts, it not only does it glorify God, but it edifies the body of Christ.

And I know that there's a bunch of hidden talents out there that you all are also trying to keep on the down low, lest uh Pastor Brian or myself uh pressure you into getting up here and sharing them.

But uh I would encourage you, if you sing, play an instrument, let us know.

We would love to include you as part of our worship.

If you have your Bible, would you open it to 2 Peter chapter 3?

2 Peter 3 · chapter mention

2 Peter chapter 3, we're in verses 1 and 2.

2 Peter 3 · chapter mention

We uh started this last week.

This is actually part two of this message called Grow in Scripture Knowledge.

And uh so chapter 3, verse 1 says, This second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you, in both which I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance, that you may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us, the apostles of the Lord and Savior.

Let's pray.

Dear Father, we just ask that you would bless the reading and the study of your word, that you would open our eyes to see you more clearly.

Lord, I pray that we would grasp the big picture today, that we would understand that you have a plan and a purpose, and that you are fulfilling that, and it will be consummated one day.

Father, I just pray and ask that you would help us to grow in our scripture knowledge so that we can become firm in our beliefs and shine brighter in our witness, I pray in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Last week we looked at these verses and noted that in verse one, Peter referred to his previous letter, and in verse two, he referred to the entirety of Scripture.

And I thought that it was prudent for us to go back and look at that first letter as that was somewhat foundational to what he's going to be writing here.

And so last week we focused on that.

We went back and kind of took an overview of Peter's first letter and saw how everything is just concentrated and connected to Christ.

Now I want to zoom out if I can and take a look at the whole of Scripture.

As Peter made reference to that with the statement in verse 2 that we would be mindful of the words which were spoken by the holy prophets.

That's a reference to the Old Testament.

So he's like, I want you to be mindful.

I want you to be aware of everything the Old Testament prophets said and the command of the apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ.

That's the New Testament.

The prophets wrote the Old Testament, the apostles write the New Testament.

And then Peter stated his intention when he said that the goal of his writing was to stir up your pure minds and to make you mindful to, by way of remembrance, the words that were spoken.

And so he has told us, I'm going to take you back.

I want you to have in mind the Old Testament and the New Testament writings.

And what I want it to do is I want it to stir you up, and I want it to make you mindful of these things.

Stir up, that phrase that he uses there, means to wake up or to awaken from drowsiness or slumber.

And uh it uh it is talking about our pure minds, which is our spiritual mindedness.

And so Peter is once again saying, listen, I want to shake you up.

I want to wake you up, I want to bring you out of that stupor that you've slipped into.

I want to stir up your spiritual mindedness.

And for this, I would just have you think about that scene in the Garden of Gethsemane.

The night before Jesus is crucified, he goes and he takes with him his three closest disciples.

Peter, the guy who writes this book, James and John.

And he says, Watch with me and pray.

He is in his darkest hour.

He is feeling the weight of the cross already.

And he asks them to simply stay awake and pray with me.

And if you remember, when he comes back out, they're asleep.

And he wakes them up and he says these words The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.

And I think that this illustrates how that we, as the followers of Christ, have a desire, have an intention to live with Christ with wide-eyed enthusiasm, right?

I mean, I think we want to live with Christ with our eyes wide open and energetically and enthusiastically, but we suffer from spiritual narcolepsy.

What?

And we need to be stirred up from time to time.

It happens.

Can I take a little survey?

Remember, we're in church, gotta be honest.

Do you ever get spiritually sleepy?

Do you ever feel like you're kind of dozing a little bit?

It's not that you've turned your back on God.

It's not that you hate the Lord.

It's just simply, man, you just kind of have dozed off a little bit.

It happens.

Peter goes on to say that he wants to make us mindful.

And that means to keep in mind or to fix in the mind.

And I must tell you that the mind is where the majority of spiritual battles take place in your life.

It's not poltergeist, right?

It's not the exorcist, it is the battle for your thoughts.

And Peter knows this, and he's waging war against the enemy, and he says, I want you not only to be fully awake, but I want you to have some things fixed in your mind.

I want to fortify your mind with scripture knowledge.

I tell you, that's where the spiritual battle takes place.

And I would just point you back to the first spiritual battle in history in Genesis chapter 3, when the tempter comes and he simply plants a thought in the eve of mind.

Genesis 3 · chapter mention

It's not possession, right?

He didn't possess her.

It's not even oppression.

It is a suggestion.

Yay?

You can't eat of that tree?

I wonder why he doesn't want you to eat of that tree.

Oh, I think I know why.

It's because you'll become like him.

And he doesn't want you to be like him.

He wants to have the monopoly on that God thing.

He doesn't want you to infringe on his territory.

Do you understand?

That's a spiritual battle that was fought in the mind of Eve.

A seed that was planted.

And the next thing we find is she's there staring at that tree and saying, Boy, that's some delicious looking fruit.

And it has the promise to make me wise and to open my eyes.

And then she commits the first act of sin.

But the battle takes place in the mind.

I would point you to that great temptation of Christ that opens up the New Testament in Matthew chapter 4.

Matthew 4 · chapter mention

And what you find is we have the same tempter with the same tactics, do we not?

He is he not there planting seeds and suggestions and saying, Well, you could do this, why don't you do that?

But there is a huge difference between those two temptations.

In the first one, Eve succumbed to the temptation.

She lost the spiritual battle.

In the second, Christ does not succumb to temptation.

He wins the spiritual battle.

But how does Jesus overcome this temptation?

Well, it's in that text.

I'll just give you the footnotes, if you will, the cliff notes.

The first time he's tempted, he responds in verse 4 with this statement It is written.

So his response is not to enter into a debate, it is not to pontificate.

He simply says, it is written.

And he quotes Deuteronomy 8.3.

And then after the second temptation, he responds in the exact same way in verse 7.

It is written.

And he quotes Deuteronomy 6.16.

And after the third temptation, would you believe that Jesus responds in the exact same way?

And he says, it is written.

And he quotes Deuteronomy 6.13.

Obviously, Jesus had the scriptures fixed in his mind.

Would you agree with that?

Well, yeah, he's the word of God, the word made flesh.

He's the Logos.

He obviously has the Word of God.

Well, who knew there was that much spiritual power in the book of Deuteronomy?

Well, if you came on Sunday nights, you'd know because I'm preaching through the book of Deuteronomy.

As a matter of fact, if you come back at 5:30, I'll be preaching on worship.

As a matter of fact, I'll be preaching on inappropriate worship.

I didn't encourage you to come.

Because there's power in the word.

And Jesus uses the word.

Look at that.

He simply quoted Scripture.

And that's what helps him win the battle.

Now, I've asked myself, why did Jesus do it that way?

I mean, he could have gone Kazam.

And it was all over.

I'll tell you why.

Because you and I can't go Kazam against the tempter.

But you and I can know the word.

We can fix the word in our mind, and when the temptations come, we can rely on the word which has the power to defeat the enemy.

That's what Peter is encouraging us to do.

When he writes that you may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets.

And the commandment of us, the apostles of the Lord and Savior.

Now, I'll admit, that's a lot to keep in mind.

You're telling me I'm supposed to keep in mind all the words of the prophets and all the words of the apostles.

Do you not know that there's 66 books?

1189 chapters?

783,137 words.

And I'm supposed to keep that in mind.

I'd like to, but I can't.

And so let me give you something to help with that.

I'd like to offer to you a framework upon which you can hang all those 66 books, nearly twelve hundred uh chapters, nearly eight hundred thousand words.

I can give you a framework to hang them all on.

Because the Bible is actually one big story.

Technically, it's called a meta-narrative.

A meta-narrative is an overarching, all-encompassing grand story or belief system that tries to explain history, reality, and human experience through a universal truth.

By the way, the secular world has one, and it's called the theory of evolution.

But it falls short.

It's deficient.

You say, Oh no, oh, you're just not scientific.

You're one of those religious fanatics.

You're uh mysticist.

You you you you why do you say that the theory of evolution falls short?

I'll tell you why.

And I think even evolutionists would agree with this.

It is because evolution attempts to explain the how, but never attempts to explain the why of life.

It explains, although wrongfully, how did we get here?

Well, it all started back in the abyss, and some electrical charge from some unknown place strikes in and creates chemical life, and then that turns into animal life, and then that develops over billions of years from this primordial soup and evolves upward until we get here today.

That's great.

You're giving me an explanation of how, but why?

You see, because the theory of evolution says you're just a collection of random cells.

Well, then why is there any such thing as morality?

Why are there rules?

Why are there laws?

Why is it wrong to kill somebody?

Evolution doesn't explain any of that.

It offers no explanation as to the why of life.

But the meta-narrative of Scripture tells you the how and the why.

It is, it is the better meta-narrative for your life.

The old British scholar, W.

Graham Scroggy, I think, articulated it the most eloquently when he called it the unfolding drama of redemption.

The unfolding drama of redemption.

What I want you to see and fix in your mind is that the Bible tells one big story which is centered on God's redemption of mankind.

That's what the whole Bible is all about.

But get that order right.

God's redemption of mankind.

It's not about mankind's redemption because that puts us first, right?

And we initiate the redemption.

We're simply in need of being redeemed.

It is God's redemption of mankind.

And here's what I want you to see today is that it actually follows a classic story arc.

A story arc is the flow of a story.

And you'll find it in novels, you'll find it in movies, you'll find it in television shows.

It is the flow of the plot from beginning to end.

And I have a little slide I'd like to put up here for you to look at.

And so this is just a very rudimentary representation of what the story arc looks like.

And so the story arc begins with the introduction.

And it gives us the background, it gives us the setting, it introduces to us the characters.

It is known in literature as the exposition, that is the beginning point there.

And so we are introduced to everything, and it is kind of laid out, and we get the feel for life.

It quickly then moves into the inciting incident.

The inciting incident is an unexpected event that upsets the status quo and starts the main story.

And so it starts and then hits the inciting incident.

You didn't expect it to happen.

It disrupts everything, it upsets the natural, the normal, the status quo.

And that really is when the main story begins.

From there it goes into the rising action, in which tensions build.

As action is rising, the tension gets more tense, the conflicts intensify, the plot gets more complicated by the characters' decisions, and it all culminates in a big dilemma or crisis.

And then it is at this point that the story reaches its climax.

The climax is the pivotal moment that changes everything.

What are we going to do now?

Climax.

This turning point is followed by falling action.

The falling action lowers the tensions and it shows the results of that main event.

So the climax is the main event.

From there, the tension lowers, and we get to see the results of that main event.

Lastly, it comes to its resolution, also known as the denumois, if you are familiar with the French.

And uh in this resolution, it uh it it ties up the loose ends.

And it brings the story to a happy ending or a tragic ending.

Denemois, I I knew that there would probably be some uh literature experts who would cite me if I didn't say that word.

Well, here's what I think is interesting about it.

We say this ties up loose ends.

Dénmois means untangle the knot.

Both are ap uh appropriate, aren't they?

Because that's what happens in this story, right?

The straight line gets all knotted up because of the rising action, and then the climax is when it starts to break loose, and then by the end it is all untangled and it's straightened out again.

Or when we think about it, you go through the story and you get all these loose ends going different directions, and they all get tied up in a nice little bow at the end.

Now that we know the story arc, whether you want it to or not, it's there.

I would like to take the Bible and overlay it.

Or overlay this story arc on the Bible.

And what we will find is that the Bible actually follows this classic story arc.

Think about it, it uh the scene is set in Genesis 1 and 2.

In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth.

That's the very beginning.

That's the introduction, is it not?

And then we are given the setting.

He creates the earth, he places them in the garden.

The characters are introduced here, and we have this life that is ironic, it is peaceful, it is idyllic even.

I mean, they are living in a perfect environment.

They are in peace and harmony, they are in the garden, they have everything that they need, and then boom, comes the inciting incident in Genesis chapter 3.

Genesis 3 · chapter mention

The antagonist tempts Eve.

The main character succumb to the temptation.

Mankind experiences a catastrophic fall into sin.

That all takes place in Genesis 3.

So, introduction 1 and 2, inciting incident, Genesis chapter 3, and then the action rises from here all the way to the end of the Old Testament.

Genesis 3 · chapter mention

Think about it.

When you read the Old Testament, tensions are building, conflicts are intensifying, the situation becomes way more complicated because of the decisions of the characters that are involved, and then the first act ends in a dilemma.

Isn't that how the Old Testament leaves us?

I mean, it starts off good, inciting incident, it gets way tense and complicated, and we get to the end of the Old Testament, and God's chosen people are dispersed, they are not looking like they're going to succeed, like they're going to win.

It really looks like all is lost, and for 400 years there is complete silence from heaven.

But then it reaches its climax in the New Testament Gospels.

The protagonist, Jesus Christ, enters the scene.

We didn't see him come and we had hoped we had had some hints, but he hasn't materialized, and all of a sudden he enters the scene, and we've got a feeling that things are going to change.

He's not like the other characters.

He's set apart.

He's different.

He's on a different trajectory.

And that climax reaches its height at the turning point when he is crucified and resurrected.

And it changes everything.

Does it not change everything in your Bible when Jesus dies and rises again?

Think about it.

The irresolvable problem of sin is resolved by the substitutionary atonement of Jesus Christ.

That problem that nobody could work out, that knot that nobody could untie, those loose ends that nobody could tie up.

Then comes Jesus and He is able to do it all.

And then there is the dawning of hope that comes at His resurrection.

The cross pays for our sin.

The resurrection gives us hope.

It's going to be different after this.

There's going to be a different ending to this story.

It is taking a turn that we didn't expect.

The rest of the New Testament shows the results of the main event, what we would call that falling action.

The good news spreads throughout the world.

Isn't that the result?

Go in all the world.

Preach the gospel.

Tell everybody that Jesus has died and risen again.

And the old and the New Testament chronicles that.

And the good news, the main event, is being publicized everywhere.

Everywhere where the curse is found, the gospel is preached.

And they are told that there is hope in Jesus Christ.

And all who believe in this Christ are saved.

Oh man, what a turning point.

Lastly, the resolution comes in the book of Revelation.

All those loose ends are tied up.

What about Israel?

What about the church?

What about sin?

What about injustice?

What about the judgment?

It all gets tied up in the resolution.

And the Bible concludes with the second coming of Christ.

Even come Lord Jesus.

And so we have this beautiful resolution.

But I must tell you that it is both a happy ending and a tragic ending.

It is a happy ending for those who have put their faith in Christ, for they go to heaven to live with God for all eternity.

That is the happiest ending you could ever hope for, is that you get to go to heaven for all eternity, but it is a tragic ending for those who reject Jesus Christ.

Because that same resolution tells us that they are banished to hell forever.

And so the story is going to follow the ark.

But the outcome depends upon what you do with Jesus Christ.

Do you believe?

You have a happy ending to look forward to.

Do you reject?

It's going to be a tragedy for you.

This is what Peter wants us to be mindful of.

What is all of that Leviticus and Deuteronomy stuff about?

Well, it's part of this unfolding drama of redemption, this one meta-narrative, how that mankind fell into sin, and God is working out their redemption, and he is taking us through this story arc so that we can understand how to put scripture together.

He wants us to live with the big picture of Scripture fixed in our minds.

And when we do, it makes life make sense.

I lived without that paradigm in my mind for many years.

I was not saved.

I was not a believer.

I had heard the Bible, but I didn't believe the Bible.

And life didn't make sense to me.

It was actually quite cruel.

I didn't see the purpose in life.

Perhaps I was leaning on the wrong worldview.

But when I got saved, it all made sense.

I was created for a purpose, which was to have a relationship with my creator.

But I wasn't in a relationship with my creator.

That relationship had been severed by sin.

And when I got saved, that relationship was restored, it was reconciled, and I was back into my created purpose.

And it gave me a sense of purpose and fulfillment and hope that nothing else had before.

And it made life make sense for the first time in my life.

And when we can get this big picture, this meta-narrative of scripture, fixed in our minds, it gives us a framework upon which we can build our scripture knowledge.

If you'll keep that big picture in mind when you're reading your Bible, you'll say, Oh, I see where this fits in.

Oh, I see where that fits in.

I understand why this is in the Old Testament and that's in the New Testament.

This is before the coming of Christ.

It's before that climax event.

This is that tension that's building.

These are those decisions that are complicating things.

And now it is different after the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

But whatever you do, don't dismiss this as some sort of religious fairy tale.

Because Peter previously wrote, we have not followed cunningly devised fables.

He answers that objection.

When you hear the story of the Bible, don't imagine that that is some highly crafted fable cunningly devised.

No, he says, when we made known to you the power and the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.

Oh my friends.

Peter wants us, one, to be woken up, get out of that spiritual slumber, be shaken awake if need be.

And two, he wants us to fix in our mind the big picture of Scripture.

Hey, this thing ain't over.

This thing ain't over.

We're coming to that resolution.

We've already seen the climax.

Thank God we believed in Christ and we are saved.

But we are heading towards a resolution.

And we have a responsibility in this period of time, and that is to spread the good news.

To go and tell others that Jesus is mighty to save, because that makes all the difference between it being a happy ending or a tragic ending for them.

And so may we keep these fixed in our mind.

And then that way, the next time we're tempted, the next time we experience that spiritual battle in our minds, we have the fortification, the fort of scripture within which we can hide and defend ourselves.

Would you bow with me?

We bow our heads for just a moment.

Though I use the term story, please do not imagine that it's some sort of made-up story.

It is the realest account of what actually happened.

It is not a mere theory, a hypothesis.

It is the eyewitness account of the Holy Spirit of God who was there, who spoke through holy men of old, and inspired them to pin it down for posterity, so that you and I, who do not have the opportunity to be eyewitnesses to those events, get an eyewitness account.

And I'm telling you, when you take this as your framework and hang everything else on it, it makes life make sense.

And so I encourage you get to know the story of the Bible.

Flesh it out as you read scripture every day and hang it on that framework.

And what you will find is it will fortify your mind and help you when those spiritual attacks of doubt come from the enemy.

Dear Lord, thank you so much for making it so plain to us.

Thank you, Lord, for using literary device and form that we use so that we can interpret your word and understand your word and define your word.

Father, thank you for making it so clear for us.

Help us to get this big picture of Scripture fixed in our minds, and may we grow in our knowledge as we read it day after day.

God help us to stand the test of time.

Help us to grow in this area of spiritual spiritual and uh scriptural knowledge, and help us, Lord, to be ready witnesses for all we encounter.

I pray in Jesus' name.

Amen.