Jesus is the Cornerstone of the Church

Now, we have two readings.

Now, as I said, we're going to read in Isaiah 40,

and then we'll be back in 1 Peter chapter 1 and into chapter 2,

1 Peter 1 · chapter mention

and we'll see Peter make use of Isaiah 40.

So let's read the first 11 verses of Isaiah 40.

Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.

Speak tenderly to Jerusalem and proclaim to her

that her hard service has been completed,

that her sin has been paid for,

that she has received from the Lord's hand double for all her sins.

A voice of one calling,

In the wilderness prepare the way for the Lord.

Make straight in the desert a highway for our God.

Every valley shall be raised up,

every mountain and hill made low,

the rough ground shall become level,

the rugged places a plain,

and the glory of the Lord will be revealed,

and all people will see it together,

for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

A voice says, cry out, and I said, what shall I cry?

All people are like grass,

and all their faithfulness is like the flowers of the field.

The grass withers and the flowers fall

because the breath of the Lord blows on them.

Surely the people are grass,

the grass withers and the flowers fall,

but the word of our God endures forever.

You who bring good news to Zion,

go up on a high mountain.

You who bring good news to Jerusalem,

lift up your voice with a shout.

Lift it up, do not be afraid.

Say to the towns of Judah,

here is your God.

See, the sovereign Lord comes with power,

and he rules with a mighty arm.

See, his reward is with him,

and his recompense accompanies him.

He tends his flock like a shepherd.

He gathers the lambs in his arms

and carries them close to his heart.

He gently leads those that have young.

And then in 1 Peter,

1 Peter 1 · chapter mention

chapter 1 and at verse 22,

let's again hear God's word together.

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.

For you have been born again,

not of perishable seed,

but of imperishable,

through the living and enduring word of God.

For all people are like grass,

and all their glory is like the flowers of the field.

The grass withers and the flowers fall,

but the word of the Lord endures forever.

And this is the word that was preached to you.

Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice

and all deceit, hypocrisy,

envy and slander of every kind.

Like newborn babies,

crave pure spiritual milk,

so that by it you may grow up in your salvation,

now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.

Amen.

Now, let's turn together to 1 Peter,

1 Peter 1 · chapter mention

chapter 1 and into chapter 2.

So our theme, the letter,

1 Peter, the theme is

Stand Firm and Stay Joyful.

Well, here today,

Peter wants to make clear to his readers and to us

that God's word is vital for our faith.

So I have really one aim today,

and it's a bold aim, I think.

And my goal is to transform

our view of Bible reading.

Following Peter in this section,

I want him to help us to see

that God must work through his word

to make us Christians

and to cause us to grow and to be transformed,

that those things do not happen without

God's word, the Bible.

So the Bible is vital.

So I want to see one truth,

that God's word is life-giving,

and we're going to think about that.

I want to see two effects of that

that Peter introduces,

that this new life that comes through hearing

the word about Jesus brings new love,

and it brings new longing.

And then because the Bible is so important,

I want to identify three approaches

to reading God's word.

And all the way along,

recognising this reality,

Bible reading must be a supernatural act.

In other words, God must give us eyes to see,

must give us the ability to see the glory

and the worth and honour of God,

of our Saviour Jesus,

if it is to have its proper effect.

So I want to transform how we think about the Bible

and how we read it.

Let's begin with that one truth then,

God's word is life-giving.

So just to remind ourselves of the context,

the first 12 verses of 1 Peter

have really emphasised

for these struggling, scattered Christians

their new Christian identity.

And then section two,

from verse 13 down to where we've just read,

the emphasis is on be holy,

live out that true identity.

As God has set you apart for him,

live that way.

And to be holy,

Peter now is going to say,

to live those set-apart lives for God,

you need God's word to give life.

God's word is the fuel for that engine

of faith and holiness.

So there are three ways we can think about that.

First of all,

God's word gives life.

verse 23.

For you have been born again,

not of perishable seed,

but of imperishable,

through the living and enduring word of God.

John Piper says,

where God's word is at work,

God is at work.

And here,

Peter says,

you are born again,

as God works new life in you through his word.

It's put slightly differently in verse 22.

Now that you've purified yourselves by obeying the truth,

so that you have sincere love for each other,

love one another deeply from the heart.

God's word of truth has that purifying feature

as it is obeyed.

The language of being washed clean,

the image of having a new heart and new life,

and all that to say that being born again

is a miracle of God.

So we don't cause,

do we,

our own physical birth.

Neither do we cause our own spiritual birth.

Rather,

we need the seed of God's word in us

to bring life,

to bring new life into our hearts.

So you cannot be a Christian

without God's word at work.

And so,

every Christian that you will ever meet,

that I will ever meet,

they have a unique testimony,

a unique story of how God has changed them.

But there is always going to be a common factor.

And let me say,

if you're not a Christian,

it might be an idea,

if you know people who are Christians,

to talk to them,

find out their story.

And the common factor

is that faith comes by hearing God's words,

God's word of salvation.

That's all about Jesus coming as fully God,

fully man,

taking our place,

dying for our sins,

to give forgiveness in new life.

So some people,

they hear that message

through being in church on a Sunday

and the word is preached

and they believe.

That was my story.

Now,

other people,

they will be reading the Bible at home

and the truth will hit them

and transform their lives.

That might be your story.

Others,

I know,

were in a course,

like a Christianity Explored course.

And over those weeks,

as the truth,

the central facts of the Bible

were made clear,

people came to faith

in the Lord Jesus.

Sometimes,

it might be a one-to-one chat

over many years' discussions,

perhaps with a family member

or a friend.

But in every case,

what brings life

is the word

that's all about Jesus.

Jesus.

What is that life-giving word?

It's interesting

the way Peter uses Isaiah 40

to draw attention to it.

So remember when,

often when New Testament writers

use the Old Testament,

they use a verse or two,

but we're intended to think about

the bigger,

wider section.

So what have we read about

in Isaiah 40?

Well,

it's a message to exiles.

It's a message of comfort

to exiles.

And remember,

the people in 1 Peter

are described as God's elect exiles.

And that comfort that comes

is that God's word of promise,

of salvation,

of restoration,

that will be kept.

That beyond the difficulties,

beyond the enemies

that they face,

there is something stronger

and more permanent,

the word of God.

That the Lord was going to come,

that his glory would be revealed,

that he would come

bringing salvation,

that he would be that shepherd

who would care for them.

And Peter is announcing

to his audience

and by extension to us,

that promise,

that comfort is fulfilled

in the coming of Jesus.

So the life-giving word

is the message of the gospel,

the message which is all about Jesus,

who is the word of God.

So God's word gives us life.

God's word is our food.

Peter says this as well.

Chapter 2, verse 2,

he continues the new birth image.

Like newborn babies,

crave pure spiritual milk

so that by it you may grow up

in your salvation.

So when a baby is born,

what does it need

and what will it scream for?

For food, for milk.

And Peter says,

as Christians,

we need a constant supply

of spiritual milk

in order to grow.

That we don't cause ourselves

to grow.

And spiritually,

we need the work of God

by his word

if we are to have

spiritual growth and maturity.

And notice that Peter says

spiritual growth

is necessary for salvation.

So we need to grow and develop.

But there's good news.

We grow in obedience

with the grace that God supplies.

So we're not left to our own devices

to try and grow in obedience.

Rather, God supplies grace.

God gives his word.

God gives his spirit

so that we might grow.

I'm sure we've heard

the expression,

you are what you eat.

Well, if we apply that to the church,

the message is that Christians

must be Bible people.

We must be consuming God's word,

digging deep into it

so that it would become who we are.

Or as Edmund Clowney,

another Bible teacher,

says Christians must be addicted

to the Bible.

That's a striking image, isn't it?

Here's the one addiction

that is both good and life-giving.

We must be addicted to the Bible.

So God's word,

it gives life and it is our food.

God's word also brings fellowship.

That's one aspect of life,

brings fellowship.

Verse 3,

continuing the thought of verse 2,

now that you have tasted

that the Lord is good.

So they've tasted the Lord's goodness,

personal experience of the living God,

relationship with God,

knowing Jesus as Lord and Saviour.

What's the sweetness in the Bible?

It's that we get to know

and enjoy God and his words.

Again, to borrow from Edmund Clowney,

coming to the words,

coming to the Bible,

is coming to the Lord's.

We read the Bible

to know God better.

Think about that.

Think about God's grace

in this book.

This is God's revelation to us.

You want to hear God speak?

Then we do that

when we read the Bible.

But think about it too

in terms of an invitation.

This is an invitation to us

as sinful people

to enjoy hearing from God,

being in the presence of God,

receiving life from God.

It's a wonderful invitation.

So when it comes to Bible reading,

we're not reading

to tick a box

in our daily Bible reading planner.

We're not reading the Bible

to learn some morality,

to become a better version of ourself.

We're not doing it simply

to explore its doctrine or truth.

God's desire in his word

is to reveal his love to us,

to reveal his character to us,

to reveal his saving grace,

to show us the wonder of Jesus

so that we would enjoy him more.

So two implications to recognise

in the fact that God's word

is life-giving.

One, we must be a Bible teaching,

a Bible-believing church

here in Becloot.

The Bible must be central

to our public worship

and central to our private worship as well.

Whenever we gather,

we want to be in God's word.

Another implication of that

is we must submit to all of its truth.

We must hear the whole counsel,

the whole wisdom of God

and be willing to submit to it.

We want to be a people

who delight in the gospel.

We see it as truly good news for us

and we must be those

who would teach it to others,

whether that's formally, officially,

or whether that's in our families,

parents.

Are we passing our faith

on to our children?

Are we reading the Bible

with our children?

Whenever we share our faith

with others,

as we tell them about Jesus,

we're finding a way

of sharing the word with them.

So we must be a Bible teaching

and believing church.

And secondly,

we must personally

be Bible people.

not just skimming the surface,

not just giving an occasional glance

when it's convenient,

not simply admiring it

from a distance

for its form

or for its poetry,

that we would feast on it,

that we would soak in it,

that we would pray

that it would be for us

the bread of life,

that when people cut us open

aspergencies,

we would bleed Bible,

that we would read

because we want to enjoy

friendship with God.

That like the disciples,

we say to you,

where else would we go?

You alone have the words of life.

So there's that one truth.

God's word is life-giving.

Now let's see that one truth

and how it has its effect.

There's two effects

of God's word described here.

New love and new longing.

So remember our context.

The context is,

how will suffering Christians

live holy lives

and how will God's word

help them in that?

So let's see that connection

between living holy lives,

set apart people for God

and how God's word helps.

Two main commands.

First command in verse 22,

love one another deeply.

Let's read verse 22 again.

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.

And his point in this section

all the way from verse 22 to 25

is this.

As people who have been loved by God,

as people who have received God's love

in his sending Jesus

to be their saviour,

people loved by God

should love one another.

So he goes to Isaiah 40.

We thought about Isaiah 40.

Remember Isaiah 40,

promised salvation

has come.

The connection is

that as we have received

this promised salvation

in our lives,

that should fuel then

our love for others.

Peter wants to get at that

in the way that he's already

written.

In the early verses,

he talks about

God's people

having been chosen

according to the foreknowledge

of God the Father.

Our salvation

is not an afterthought.

God,

before we were ever made,

chose to save us

and he chose

to send his son

to be the saviour.

Peter has told us

in verse 18 and 19

that we are redeemed,

that we are set free

from our slavery to sin,

our fear of death

and the judgement of God.

We're redeemed

with the precious blood

of Jesus.

Now we're told

in verse 2

that the Spirit

has sanctified us.

We've got this washing,

we've been set apart

from God

and all of this

is an example

of God's perfect love

that he shows

to his people.

And the Bible then,

it functions as a mirror

in the sense that

the love that we discover,

the love that we enjoy

as we read

is then to be reflected

to those around us

and especially

he has in view

to our brothers and sisters

in the church.

It's a picture of life

in a church.

We are to be a family

that is sharing

God's love

as the one thing

we have in common

is that we

are sinful people

who've been saved

by a loving God

through the precious gift

of his son Jesus

as the sacrifice

to pay for our sin,

to take God's anger

from us

onto himself,

to give us new life.

As we have that

in common,

we should share

that love

with one another.

And this letter

in part is going to say

remember what a powerful

witness that can be

to the world

when they see

the love of the church.

Especially think about it

in our own day,

never mind pandemic,

but think about how

divided

the world is.

And think about how

many people live

very lonely lives.

We offer a community

that is marked by

self-giving,

sacrificial love.

And that's a wonderful thing.

That's an attractive thing.

Peter is saying

how does that love come?

Love for one another?

How does it come?

It comes from hearing

and believing God's word.

How does that love remain?

As we remain

in God's word.

So there's the first command,

love one another deeply.

The second command

is in chapter 2,

verse 2,

long for pure spiritual milk.

But before he gets there,

there's a therefore.

In light of having received

the word of the gospel,

he says,

rid yourselves of.

And then there's that list.

Rid yourself of everything

that's countered,

that's opposed to love.

And so there's that list.

There's malice,

ill will towards someone else,

deceit and hypocrisy,

which is fake love,

false rather than sincere love,

envy and slander,

which ultimately is self-love

because we want the good

for ourselves

over against someone else.

And those qualities

are so destructive

in any community

and they're so destructive

in a church.

And so Peter says,

get rid of those.

Now, how do we get rid of them?

And remember,

we're gospel people.

So he says,

it's not through self-effort

and hard work.

No,

it's a supernatural work of God

through his word.

changing our desires.

Verse three,

we've tasted the Lord is good.

Now we've got a longing for more.

We want more of God,

not more of those unloving ways.

We've received that spiritual milk

that's brought life

and we want to crave it,

to long for it,

that we have a changed appetite.

We recognise that this spiritual milk

is what sustains life.

It's what will bring

spiritual growth.

And so God's word

creates this new longing

within us

and that longing

for what is good

and pure and true

causes us to get rid

of what is false.

Holiness comes

as God's word

transforms

what we long for

so that we get rid

of the old ways

that we put on

the way of love

because our heart

is filled with

what is good

and true.

Now,

pause to reflect.

If you've ever changed

or tried to change your diet,

ease your heart.

We know the answer,

don't we?

Training our bodies

for a new appetite

can be a battle.

We can find that

we can,

you know,

have a will

to read the Bible,

but we can become

distracted so easily.

We can find the time

dragging on.

Now we can find it hard

to maintain our desire.

This new longing

to be in God's word

and to be changed by it,

it's going to take discipline.

To take time

to be reading thoughtfully.

We're going to face temptation.

There's going to be

more comfortable choices

to switch on the TV

or to go on our phone

rather than make time

to be in God's word.

But we need to pray

that he'd give us that desire

and that he'd give us that will.

Again,

before moving on

to make our last point,

let me just emphasise again

that you and I need

God to do a supernatural work

in us

by his word

if we are

to be transformed.

So,

if you're not a Christian,

God must

open your eyes

to see

your need,

to recognise

that before God

you are a sinner,

that you are

under his judgement,

that you deserve

condemnation.

We all deserve

by nature

condemnation

in hell.

Open your eyes.

God must open your eyes

to see

his great love

that he has sent

Jesus

to be your saviour,

to take your sin,

to face

the just anger of God

in your place,

to remove

your guilt,

to give you forgiveness

and eternal life.

God must

open your eyes

to see

that you must

trust Jesus

as your saviour.

So,

ask him

to do that

for you.

Read and listen,

asking that you

would experience

his power and love

as you do so.

And for those of us

who are Christians,

remember,

God must work

in us

to change

our appetite

for him

and for holiness.

So again,

we must ask him

and we must

work with him

and we must be

resisting that temptation

towards what is

opposed to God

with his help.

Now,

having recognised

with Peter

that God's word

is life-giving,

that from the beginning

to the end

of the Christian life

we need the word

of God,

as we've recognised

that God's word

has transforming power

to shape

our love for others

and our longing

for holiness,

let's think

about three approaches

to God's word

that I hope

we'll all find

helpful.

That as we see

how much we need

the Bible,

that we would also

have a greater longing

to enjoy God

in the Bible

and that these three

approaches might help us.

One,

when we read the Bible,

read humbly.

Remember that

coming to the word,

coming to the Bible

is coming to the Lord.

It's not a casual thing,

it's a remarkable thing.

So we need to pray

to prepare our hearts,

to prepare our minds.

Also,

read humbly,

recognising this privilege,

our creator

has revealed himself,

our creator

invites us in.

This is a gift

of his love

and his grace.

Read humbly,

too,

in being willing

to submit

and to obey,

to recognise

God is God,

Jesus is Lord

and that his word

is true

and must be obeyed

whether we like it or not.

That we would let

the Bible shape us

rather than have us

trying to shape

the Bible

to what is convenient

for us.

Read humbly.

Secondly,

read hopefully.

Pray like the psalmist,

open our eyes

to see wonderful things

in your word.

Pray that before you read.

Pray that as you're reading.

Stop what you're reading.

When the spirit

speaks something to you,

stop and pray about that.

After reading,

pray

so that the truth

wouldn't be lost

in the ether

as soon as we shut

our Bibles.

Read hopefully

with a sense of expectation

because remember,

the spirit who inspired

the Bible,

what does the spirit

want to do?

The spirit wants to show us

more of the glory

of Jesus,

more of the glory

of God our Father.

That's his delight

and so he'll use the word

to do that in us

and for us.

Read hopefully too,

recognising

that by God's grace,

with the help of the spirit,

you can change.

Peter has said

God's word brings new life.

It brings heart change.

It brings appetite change.

It brings moral change.

So we can change.

We don't have to be stuck

in the same patterns,

the same patterns

of sin and disobedience.

So be willing to listen,

be willing to confess sin,

be willing to obey

as we're led by the spirit.

So read humbly

and read hopefully

and thirdly,

read hungrily.

Never outgrow

our most basic need,

that desperate need

we have for God

to speak to us,

for God

to teach us

more of himself

and more of how we are

to live,

to ask God

to lift our eyes

to see the hope

that we have,

the inheritance

that we have,

the identity

that we have

as those

who are

belonging to

God

through the work

of his son,

Jesus.

Read hungrily

and make this

our regular diet.

You know,

as well as I do,

there are not many things

that both taste good

and are good

for us.

It tends to be

very much

an opposite.

If it tastes really good,

it's probably really bad

for us.

Not so with the Bible.

The Bible is the ultimate

example of something

that tastes sweet

and is life-giving.

So let's not

starve ourselves.

let's not

limit ourselves.

Rather,

let's enjoy

God

in his word,

asking him

to change us,

to shape us,

to transform us,

to meet with us

every time we read.

Whoever you are,

wherever you are,

whatever your story

up until this point,

I can say with confidence,

not being able to see

anybody,

you need

to meet with God

as your most basic

and you need

God

to meet with you.

And both of those

happen

through his

living

word.

So let's

take it

and let's

read it

and let's find

life in it

and from it.

Let's find

Jesus,

the one who is

the way

and the truth

and the life

in his word.

it.

So let's

see you

as

as

people

as

sit

to

and

start

by