First Sunday after Trinity Sunday

Always a blessing to get to speak to you. I know that, well, we're going through 1 Peter and it's a special privilege to go through 1 Peter together, whether we're here at Messiah West or downtown.

And I have a special love for 1 Peter as the Spanish Protestant reformers found it to be very dear to them, as they found themselves to be scattered exiles, very much like the folks that Peter is addressing there in Asia Minor.

And as they came to understand their calling as a royal priesthood. And these themes are really strong in those works that I've been privileged to study for some 15, 20 years now and to try to understand a lesser known aspect of the Spanish, of the Reformation.

And yet it happened and we give thanks to God for raising up people there in Spain just as he did in other parts of Europe.

Are you looking for me to put on a Daniel voice or? Oh, okay.

Okay.

Oh, okay, great.

Well, we've prayed. The key verse that I want to focus on is 1 Peter 4.1.

1 Peter 5.1.

Down in the U.S. in the state of Kentucky.

I occasionally listen to his briefing, he calls it, which he refers to as his daily analysis of news and events from a Christian worldview.

In Friday's episode, he made a fairly significant claim that May 30th, 2024, that is Thursday, will stand as a major turning point in U.S. history.

It was the day that a former president was convicted as a felon.

And the actual charges are not my interest here.

What interested me was the claim of a very thoughtful Christian man,

that we've witnessed a major turning point in American history,

which might as well be world history in this day and age.

One course I teach at Ryle Seminary and a couple of other places is church history.

So you can imagine that I'm interested very much in the question of turning points.

When it comes to the history of Christianity, we can quite safely say that there have been some real turning points or decisive moments.

I don't know if you've seen this book by Mark Knoll, any of you,

but it's a fantastic introduction to the history of Christianity that takes as its way of studying church history,

specifically that, turning points, decisive moments in the history of Christianity.

Let me, technical move here, removing the little clip.

For instance, think of the French Revolution, which was in 1789.

Thank you.

It was a turning point, a turning point, because it led directly to this.

And just about every sphere you can think of,

the economy, the spiritual quest, life itself, history, human history,

all these things were turned in on themselves.

Meaning what?

Well, we stopped thinking about these things in relation to God and His ways

and started to think about them in relation to themselves.

They turned in on themselves.

In that sense, the sexual revolution that I think I talked about

when I was here in this spot last time

was probably just a footnote to the French Revolution.

Why am I going into all this?

Well, God's word to us this morning through Peter,

as recorded in what we refer to as chapter 4, verses 1 to 11,

is about a turning point and its significance.

And in fact, we're talking about the turning point in human history.

But I don't want us to think about it in the abstract only,

but instead to ask,

what does the fact that Jesus suffered bodily 2,000 years ago change?

How does this fact change the way you and I live our lives today?

Part 1.

At this point, you're probably thinking,

right, what we've signed up for this morning is an explanation of how Jesus is suffering,

gives us an example to follow,

and so we'll all go out and we'll try a little bit harder to do just that.

Well, patterning our lives after Jesus' example is certainly part of the message,

but it's not the core message.

In fact, without the core message,

without the new reality or the breakthrough that the core message points us to,

attempting to imitate Jesus is an exercise in futility.

We won't have the power to do it.

So, to the text.

Since we're dealing in turning points this morning,

we're naturally thinking about things in terms of a before and an after.

To start with the before part,

we need to not start at the beginning,

but we need to jump to verses 3 and 4.

So, let's hear those again.

For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do,

living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing, and detestable idolatry.

They are surprised that you do not join them in their reckless wild living,

and they heap abuse on you before.

Who are the pagans that Peter's talking about?

Well, some translations just say the nations,

the people groups that the scattered Christians lived among there in Asia Minor.

And according to chapter 2 and verse 12,

they're the mission field,

because the Christians are to live exemplary lives among them in hopes for what?

Hopes that one day, through their witness,

these pagans too will give glory to God,

having, we must assume, embraced their witness and their example.

And what was their condition, being pagans?

Well, it would be hard to believe that they spent every day,

every single day of their lives in debauchery and drunkenness and gluttony,

and I don't think Peter is necessarily trying to tell us that,

because pagans can lead quite decent lives.

Hey, says the modern pagan in Ottawa,

I don't cheat on my wife, I care for my family,

I do my job, I'm a volunteer firefighter.

But as we read on, we get to the heart of the matter,

and it's idolatry.

It's not these outward manifestations,

it's the idolatry.

In the first century,

the orgies and the gluttony and the worship of idols,

well, they were all at peace,

they were all bound up together.

If we're modern, more enlightened pagans,

what do we worship?

We worship an impersonal God,

who kind of animates the whole flow of life,

and whose nature and ways are impossible to know.

And either way, we're in darkness,

because we remain slaves to our self-gratification,

slaves to our own self-actualization.

We're only living in the moment, in fact.

And in this sense, this living only in the moment,

means that the turning points as an actual occurrence

don't make sense to us.

They imply a before and an after,

which aren't real.

Well, why aren't they real?

Well, because everything gets collapsed into the present,

where what guides my behavior

is more of an intuition or a feeling.

Some years back, there was a popular song

that had this line,

it can't be wrong if it feels so right.

How do you think we can manage living with that philosophy?

That reminds me, for a couple of years,

Stella and I were privileged to get to know,

when we were living in Egypt,

a man named Ashley Null.

Apart from being well-known as a top Cranmer scholar,

he's well-known for a piece of wisdom

that he has articulated and is floating around out there.

And he said this, I think I heard him say it in person,

what the heart loves, the will chooses,

and the mind justifies.

What the heart loves, the will chooses,

and the mind justifies.

Consider what this means for the before condition,

when you and I were pagans,

possibly very decent pagans,

but living still without hope

and without God in the world nonetheless.

As pagans, it makes good sense to say,

I can live as I please

because I love earthly pleasures.

It makes good sense to say

that whatever path you choose

is right for you

because we love the idea

that we're masters of our own destiny.

And it makes good sense

to say that all reality is one

because we've come to love what idea?

That our deepest self is divine.

To complete the picture of our actual state

in all of our confusion,

we have to say that we're not just that, confused,

but in a state of disobedience

and under judgment.

And here you don't take my word for it,

but you look with me at verses 5 and 6.

But they will give an account.

They will have to give account to him

who's ready to judge the living and the dead.

And then there's this wonderful teaching

that Peter gives us.

For this is the reason the gospel was preached

even to those who are dead

so that they might be judged

according to human standards

in regard to the body,

but live according to God

in regard to the spirit.

Now, there's some debate

about who the dead are

and I don't think we need to get

into that debate here

because I think the point is this.

As the gospel is proclaimed,

whenever and wherever God chooses to send it,

not only is life promised through the spirit,

not only that,

although that's the marvelous joy

that comes through the gospel,

but rebellion against the moral law

that you and I know through nature

and through human conscience

is made plain.

The rebellion is made plain

so that as Paul puts it in Romans 1,

we are without excuse.

Before we turn to part two

of this three-part sermon,

we might ask,

how is a turning point

even supposed to break into a system

that makes them impossible?

Think about it.

I mean, it's a system

where there's nothing external

to the system itself

and where the only way

to know anything

is through your intuitions,

through your feelings.

Use the force.

Luke?

Any Luke's here?

No.

Well, humanly speaking,

it's impossible.

Right?

And it takes a special act of God.

It takes what Lewis called

a grand miracle.

And the author himself,

if you love literature,

I know there's a few here,

the author himself

has to put in an appearance

in his book.

The creator has to enter creation,

but without collapsing himself into it.

Part two.

So back to our passage.

Where do we see such a turning point?

Well, it's right at the beginning

in verses one and two.

Therefore, follow with me.

Verse one.

Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body,

arm yourselves also with the same attitude,

because whoever suffers in the body

is done with sin.

As a result,

they do not live the rest of their earthly lives

for evil human desires,

but rather for the will of God.

Brothers and sisters,

at Messiah West,

this is the turning point

that creates a before

and after

in human history.

And as we'll see,

it's not just a historical

before and after,

although it's no less than that.

It involves a personal

before and after.

Let's camp out on the historical side first.

That's over here, you guys.

Historical side.

What does it mean to say

that Jesus suffered in the body,

in his body?

Well, the answer actually

is there plainly five verses earlier

that we heard last Sunday.

For Christ also suffered once for sins,

the righteous for the unrighteous,

that he might bring us to God,

and here's the key,

being put to death in the flesh,

but made alive in the Spirit.

That's 3 verse 18.

For Jesus to suffer in the body

didn't just mean

that he experienced pain.

A surface reading

might make us think that.

It means,

you need the whole context,

it means here that he died,

and that by his death,

sinners can be made right with God.

Satan and his team

have been dying

to get that turning point

removed from history.

They'd like us to hear the words,

move along,

nothing to see here.

Recall how Satan

tried to derail things

when he tempted Jesus

in the wilderness.

And we can help Satan

and his team

to get that message out

by massaging

or dropping

one part or another

of what Peter says here,

Christ suffered once for sins.

Here's how we've managed to do that.

Maybe you can think of other ways

that we've managed to do it,

but I came up with

at least three ways.

we've proposed the idea

that Jesus didn't die

since God would not let his prophet

undergo such an indignity.

Someone else had to die in his place.

Or we've said Jesus didn't die for sins.

God being God

would not need for that to happen.

Or we've said whatever happened,

it doesn't really matter

because what happens in history

is an illusion.

Suffering isn't real.

With any of these,

we can retain a form of godliness,

something,

a kind of spirituality

that will compel others,

but we're still without a savior.

But let's face a challenge

we often hear head on.

We may be ready to accept

that Jesus suffered

and that his suffering is real,

but why did someone have to die

for sinners to be forgiven?

Have you heard that question?

I'm sure you have

in one way or another.

But think of what's embedded

in the question.

It's like insisting

that if God wants to speak to me,

he needs to do it directly

rather than send someone

to tell me what he wants to tell me.

The truth is,

God could forgive directly

if he chose,

just as he could,

if he chose,

put everything right in an instant.

The fact that Scripture teaches

consistently that he died

what we call a substitutionary death,

which we get from phrases like,

for sins,

the just for the unjust,

invites us first and foremost

to receive the means of salvation

he provides,

simply because the sovereign God

has chosen to provide it that way.

If we start there,

just as a disciple does

when he hears Jesus' words,

come follow me,

we'll begin to marvel

at the way he chose

to reconcile the world

to himself,

precisely through Jesus,

precisely in the way

that he did.

Consider Hebrews 2, 9-10.

But we see him

who for a little while

was made lower than the angels,

namely Jesus,

crowned with glory and honor

because of the suffering of death,

so that by the grace of God

he might taste death for everyone.

For it was fitting

that he for whom

and by whom all things exist

in bringing many sons to glory

should make the founder

of their salvation perfect

through suffering.

God's means in God's time.

What we see here is this,

that God's purpose

is to reconcile us to himself

not directly,

but in and through

his son's offering of himself

in our place.

His purpose is to deal with sin

and death not directly,

but through the death

that conquered death.

And by the same principle

we can say this,

God's purpose is to cleanse us

not directly,

but by his word.

Remember what Jesus said

to his disciples

in John 15, 3.

You're clean by what?

By the word

that I have spoken to you.

The wonder of this truth,

the truth that God uses

means that he sees fit to use,

and I'm not talking about

apart from the work

of the Holy Spirit.

I'm saying with the work

of the Holy Spirit.

But he uses these means,

reminds us that salvation

comes from him.

We receive it

as we look to him

and not into our hearts

or into our own resources

that we might contribute.

We don't decide

which garments

we're to wear

to the feast.

And this brings me now

to this side,

to the personal,

to the personal

aspect of the before

and after

that Jesus' death

brings about.

To the change

it brings

to your life

and to mine.

It's there in verses

1 and 2,

which I'll read again

with a different emphasis.

Therefore,

since Christ suffered

in his body,

arm yourselves also

with the same attitude,

because whoever

suffers in the body

is done with sin.

As a result,

they do not live

the rest of their

earthly lives

for evil human desires,

but rather for the will of God.

What's Peter doing here?

He's putting Jesus'

suffering death

side by side

with the suffering

of believers,

of those who,

through the grace

and mercy

of their baptism,

have died to sin

so that they are free

to serve God.

Now,

what's the point

of putting them

side by side

like this?

Well,

clearly the command

to imitate Jesus

is part of it,

as I mentioned earlier,

but there's a much

stronger link

between Jesus'

suffering death

and our own

suffering for his sake.

And Peter uses,

for that stronger link,

he uses the word

participation.

participation.

In next week's passage,

we'll hear Peter say,

Rejoice

insofar as you share

Christ's sufferings,

that you may also rejoice

and be glad

when his glory is revealed.

The wonder of this

is that as you and I

surrender our lives

to God,

what's he do?

He includes us

in the turning point.

That third hymn we sang

made this point for me.

But we're included

in the turning point.

That's how Paul saw it

when he said,

and here we're talking

about a man

who persecuted

the Christians.

He said,

I've been crucified

with Christ.

That's what he's getting at.

We're included

in the turning point.

We're drawn into it.

I no longer live,

says Paul,

but Christ lives in me.

It's not that Paul is gone,

but that there's this

participation

in Christ's life

that Paul is speaking of

and that Peter

is pointing us to.

Well,

what's the theology

of sharing

in Christ's sufferings?

I'm sure that books,

I know that books

and books and books

have been written about it.

How should we understand it?

The point is not,

I think,

that Jesus'

suffering death

is somehow extended

or prolonged,

if you like,

in the suffering

and death

of his people.

Rather,

it's that through

his once

and for all

death

on the cross,

we who receive

him by faith

are included

in his death

and resurrection.

That's a different thing.

Our lives

are taken up

into his

so that we can say

that sin

no longer reigns

in our lives

because Jesus does.

And we can say,

by the same token,

our death

is taken up

into his

so that his victory

over death

is also ours.

Now,

I don't know

how you hear that,

but to my ear,

this message

of being included

in Christ

by faith,

or as the theologians

speak about it,

union with Christ

by the Spirit,

is a word

of real comfort.

And it's not as though

it's a truth

or a reality

only for people

on this side

of the cross.

Why?

Well,

the Israelites

who settled

in the promised land,

there were some

who never knew Egypt,

but yet they could

still consider themselves

part of the Exodus

saying,

God brought us

out of Egypt.

And that's how

they reminded

themselves

and embraced

God's promise,

his faithfulness,

and they took

comfort in it.

God brought us

into the promised land,

so too he will

one day bring us

into the promised

new creation.

We can be sure

of that,

and we can take

hold of that promise

and experience

the joy

that comes

with taking hold

of it.

And once that happens,

we can't help

but share it

with others.

There's a strong

missionary theme.

It's a subtle one,

but it's a strong one

in 1 Peter.

We can share

this with others.

We can share it

with others

who are used

to living

only in the now

and who think

of the past

as simply gone

and the future

as radically open

and who therefore

despair

when the now

starts to look

meaningless.

And there's a real

evangelistic opportunity

there.

As we do speak

with neighbors,

friends,

and colleagues,

as God gives us

the opportunity,

I think it's important

to acknowledge

that we will

necessarily have

a before

and an after

story to tell.

I say that even

as someone

who was raised

by godly parents

and who knew

of God's grace

as long as I can

remember

in the home.

In my case,

at some point,

I started down

the path of thinking

in essentially

pagan ways

in search

of what I thought

might be a more

respectable form

of Christianity

than the one

I had grown up

with there

in some slums

in Mexico City.

And disregarding

what I had learned

of how devastating

sin is,

I came close

to trusting

in an idea

instead

of a person.

and that idea

was something

that goes by

the name

of a kind

of Christ

principle.

As soon as you

take the historical

and you make

a principle

out of it,

you're going to

run into some

big snags.

And I did.

Because I started

thinking that there's

this Christ principle

that teaches

whereby I could say

that God is at work

in a saving way

in all the religions.

To cut to the chase,

I needed my mind

to be renewed.

I needed to repent

of idolatry,

of trying to make

God in my own image,

of thinking that

I could improve

on the simple story

of God's redemption

in and through

the life and death

and resurrection

of Jesus.

I promised a part three

and you'll get one

because as long as

Jesus hasn't come back,

we'll need one.

That's because

while we're

God's redeemed people,

regenerated by

His mercy

into a living hope,

as we learned

back in chapter one,

and included in Christ

so that we already

have a foretaste

of the eternal kingdom,

we're still on this side

of the new creation.

To borrow something

from Martin Luther,

God is still at work

helping us get used

to our justification.

That's what

sanctification is.

getting used to

our new clothing,

if you like.

So God has instructions

for us

for the rest of the journey.

Let's hear them.

In verse seven,

he starts

with these words,

the end of all things

is near.

That's not an instruction,

that's a preface.

And I think we should

pause at that preface

for just a second

and remind ourselves

that whether we're

first century Christians

or 21st century Christians,

our task is the same,

to think,

to behave,

to worship,

to work

in the light

of Jesus' return.

So still in verse seven,

let's hear the instructions.

Therefore,

be alert

and of sober mind

so that you may pray.

Above all,

love each other deeply

because love covers

over a multitude of sins.

Offer hospitality

to one another

without grumbling.

Each of you

should use

whatever gift

you have received

to serve others

as faithful stewards

of God's grace

in its various forms.

If anyone speaks,

he must do so

as if speaking

the very words of God.

If anyone serves,

they should do so

with the strength

God provides

so that in all things

God may be praised

through Jesus Christ.

to him be glory

and power

forever and ever.

Amen.

What's implied here

when we read a passage,

we say,

why is he saying it

the way he's saying it?

Well,

what's implied here

is that as long

as we're pilgrims,

we're going to struggle

in some key areas.

You and I,

we're going to be able

to tick all these boxes.

Yep,

done that.

And let's look

at three main areas briefly.

The first is in the area

of our mental habits.

That's why Peter says,

be alert

and of sober mind,

reminding us

that if we're distracted,

if we're not watching

and waiting,

we're going to find it

very hard

to commune with God,

to hear his voice,

to pray.

The second area

is in our care

for one another

within the Christian family,

within the body of Christ.

Our default setting

is to look out

for ourselves.

This is part of our,

in part,

part of our,

of our self-reliance culture,

which is not universal,

by the way.

But anyway,

it encourages it

in some ways

to look out for ourselves,

to make life secure

and as predictable

as possible

for ourselves

and for our families.

And with that,

we're not naturally alert

to those around us

who could use

our friendship

and our hospitality.

And we offer,

carry resentment

in our hearts

towards other Christians.

But as we remember

where God has brought us

and ask him

to help us see others

with compassion,

I believe we can learn

something of what it means

for love to cover

a multitude of sins.

I think God has been good.

He's given us examples

of how he's turned people around

so they've learned

to forgive

and to get on.

The third area

we struggle in

is ministry.

Whether we're,

and we're all in ministry,

whether we're called

to preach

and teach

or to serve

in some other way.

There will be more

to come about this

in chapter 5,

but here,

Peter's point is this,

as you use your gifts,

don't forget

the giver.

Don't forget the source.

If God has given you

an ability

to put words together

so that others

can be edified

through your writing,

through your explaining,

through your preaching,

through your teaching,

he wants you to teach

what he has revealed

in his word

and not pass off

your own ideas

as brilliant as they may be

as though they were his.

In the same way,

if God's given you

an ability to serve

in practical ways

for building up

the church also,

he wants you to serve

in his power.

That's what the text says.

When you and I

focus on the gifts

rather than the giver

or we expect things

from others in return,

we show that we're actually

relying on our own strength.

We're running

on our own steam.

Well, Peter ends

the passage

by telling us

why all these instructions

are good and right

and it's so that

all the glory

will go to God.

So let me just conclude

and also to encourage

how we might pray

about these things.

As we think of the moment

we're living through

in human history,

a fascinating moment,

as we ask for wisdom

to discern

what time it is

and to know

where and when

and how our obedience

fits

into God's purposes,

may the turning point

that we've considered

here this morning,

may the cross

be our foundation

and hope

and may the Holy Spirit

fill us with strength

to endure

as we keep our eyes

fixed on Jesus.