Jesus' Identity, Mission and Following Him

And 12. Yeah, thank you.

So page 1012.

And it's my aim this morning for us to consider from this passage

to think about what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ.

And obviously we can't understand what it means to be a disciple

unless we know something of who Jesus is and what he has come to do.

And so that's what we're going to look at, Jesus' identity, his mission,

and then what it is for us to be his disciples.

The Bible has more to say about discipleship than just this passage,

but this is the text we have before us this morning,

so let's read through it together.

Starting in verse 27.

Mark 8, 27.

Jesus and his disciples went on to the villages around Caesarea Philippi

and on the way asked them,

Who do people say that I am?

They replied, some say John the Baptist,

others say Elijah, and still others one of the prophets.

But what about you, he asked.

Who do you say that I am?

Peter answered, you are the Christ.

Jesus warned them not to tell anyone about him.

He then began to teach them

that the Son of Man must suffer many things

and be rejected by the elders,

chief priests,

and teachers of the law,

and that he must be killed

and after three days rise again.

He spoke plainly about this

and Peter took him aside

and began to rebuke him.

But when Jesus turned

and looked at his disciples,

he rebuked Peter.

Get behind me, Satan,

he said.

You do not have in mind

the things of God,

but the things of men.

Then he called the crowd to him

along with his disciples

and said,

If anyone would come after me,

he must deny himself

and take up his cross

and follow me.

For whoever wants to save his life

will lose it,

but whoever loses his life for me

and for the gospel

will save it.

What good is it for a man

to gain the whole world

yet forfeit his soul?

What can a man give

in exchange for his soul?

If anyone is ashamed of me

and my words

in this adulterous

and sinful generation,

the Son of Man

will be ashamed of him

when he comes

in his Father's glory

with the holy angels.

Let's pray.

Father, we declare

that your word is true.

We acknowledge

that your word is true.

And we acknowledge

that one day

your Son,

the Lord Jesus Christ,

will come back

in the glory

that you have given to him.

And Father,

in light of that coming event,

in light of the return

of your Son,

would you help us this morning

before your word

to humble ourselves?

Lord, that you would give me

clarity to speak

and give us all hearts,

hearts, Lord,

that are wide open

to receive your word.

Thank you, Lord,

that we have your word

in our language.

Thank you that you have loved us

with an everlasting love

and called us into fellowship

with you,

the triune God.

Help us, Father,

for your sake,

for our sake, Lord,

that we might serve you

all the better

during this time

of exile on earth.

Through Christ we pray.

Amen.

A few years ago,

Roxy and I were in

holidays in Romania.

I'm not too sure

the last time I was here

if I used an illustration

from when I was on

holidays in Romania,

so forgive me if it was,

but it doesn't really matter.

The point was that

we met up with some

of Roxy's friends,

one of her girlfriends,

and this girl's,

Shusie was her name,

this girl's boyfriend,

he was on tour

in Afghanistan.

I think he was serving

with the UN or something

like that,

I can't remember.

Anyway,

he brought this up

in conversation,

he was very proud of it,

and he rightly should have been,

he served very well.

It's a very difficult place

to be,

obviously,

at the time.

And he said,

would you like to see

some photos of my tour?

And I was like,

I would actually like

to see some photos

of what it looks like

and what it looked like

to serve there.

But he showed us,

I would say,

close to a thousand photos.

And we were there for,

I don't want to exaggerate

because let's face it,

exaggeration is just

another form of lying,

really,

but I think we were there

for over half an hour,

huddled around the PC monitor

and clicking next

and next.

And you know,

I think,

have you ever had

that experience

where someone shows you

photos and,

to be honest,

your attention is strained?

When Roxy and I

got our wedding photos

back on a CD,

all the photos,

there was like 700 of them

and we got bored

halfway through

and we just said,

you know,

we get the picture.

Have you ever had

that experience

where someone sits you down

and says,

I want to show you something

and it's just,

it's overkill.

The Bible is not like that.

God does not waste your time

when you read the Bible.

There are parts of the Bible

that are long,

that are detailed,

that require concentration,

but it's not without a point.

God doesn't just,

God never waffles

when he speaks.

But there's a great variety

in Scripture.

There are long psalms

and short psalms.

There are long books

of history,

poetry,

prophecy,

all variety.

But the Gospel of Mark,

if you read through it,

which doesn't take very long,

is a very small photo album.

It's 16 chapters long.

Obviously,

when Mark wrote it,

he didn't say,

Mark chapter 1,

Mark 1:1

verse 1.

He wrote one Gospel

and we've broken it down

into different chapters

and verses

just to help us get through it

and to find our way in it.

But it covers Jesus'

earthly ministry,

which is about

three and a half years.

So if you do the math,

every time you read

a chapter of Mark,

it doesn't really divide up

this easily,

but if you just do

the quick math,

every time you read

a chapter,

it's about ten weeks

of his life,

or of his earthly ministry,

rather.

And so you cover

an awful lot of ground

in a very short amount

of time.

And so as I said

at the start,

I want to begin

looking at what

Mark's purpose is,

which is to say

that Jesus is the Christ

or the Messiah,

those words can be used

interchangeably,

and that he is

the Son of God.

And so that's what

I want to look at

this morning,

Jesus' identity,

the identity of Jesus.

Beginning in chapter 1,

verse 1,

it says,

the beginning of the

gospel of Jesus Christ,

the Son of God,

we read about how

Jesus was baptized

by John the Baptist,

the Holy Spirit

descended upon him

like a dove,

and immediately

afterwards,

that same spirit

leads him out

into the wilderness

where he's tempted

by Satan.

And then he begins

his ministry,

which is primarily

a ministry of preaching,

with the clarion call

of saying,

the time is fulfilled,

the kingdom is at hand,

repent,

and believe

in the gospel.

And Mark's gospel

is absolutely

packed full of examples

of Jesus' ministry,

and I think there's

four,

roughly four main

categories

that you can put

these into.

First of all,

as I said,

there's teaching.

Jesus taught in the

synagogue because

he was a Jew.

He taught on the

beaches,

he taught on the

mountainsides,

in houses,

in towns,

he taught in public,

to the crowds,

and he taught

privately to his

disciples.

Secondly,

he healed people.

He healed a woman

with a fever,

people with diseases,

leopards,

the blind,

the paralyzed,

the deaf,

the mute,

people with withered

hands.

You're talking about

a day when there

are no hospitals,

and a man who,

if you make contact

with him,

will heal you.

Thirdly,

he cast out demons.

demons.

Jesus casts out demons

a lot.

Men,

women,

and children.

And you'll notice

when you read these

that the demons

don't wrestle with

Jesus.

They beg him to be

lenient with them.

He has complete

authority over them.

And fourthly,

that general category

of miracles,

Jesus walked on water.

He brought food

from a very small

amount out to

enough to feed

5,000,

and then 4,000.

But no sooner

had Jesus' ministry

had begun,

than he's been

followed around

by crowds of people.

At one point,

Mark said the whole

city was at his door.

In fact,

they almost crush him.

Jesus and his disciples

can't even get time

to eat.

And it's no disrespect

to say it.

It's accurate to say

that Jesus was famous.

He was famous.

People followed him

everywhere.

He was always

being followed

by people.

And a crowd

attracts a crowd.

And the more

Jesus ministers,

the more his fame

seems to snowball.

People seem to be

coming after him

for all kinds

of reasons.

We could say

the same today,

couldn't we?

People come to Jesus

for all kinds

of reasons,

don't they?

Why did you

come to him

initially?

Something to think

about.

But these people

wanted to be healed

of their sicknesses

and diseases.

Some wanted to receive

free bread.

Others wanted to

just see miracles.

Others were just

probably just curious

about who he was

and what he had to say

and they just wanted

to hear more.

Because he

taught with authority.

He spoke with authority

unlike the scribes.

But this

produces a problem

because Jesus

has a crowd

of people

following him

and they all

have different goals.

They all have

different agendas

as it were.

Some of them good,

some of them not so good.

Masses of people.

And so you can

picture them

where our text

picks up this morning.

They're walking

from the Sea of Galilee,

Bethsaida,

and then they're

walking up north

to Caesarea Philippi.

They're walking

along the road.

Jesus is on his mission.

He knows where

he's going.

And you can picture

them as they're

walking along.

Jesus is in front.

The disciples

are next to him

and then shortly

behind there's

just probably,

I would imagine

a throng of people.

Hundreds of people.

And Jesus

asks his disciples

that question.

Who do people

say that I am?

And they chime in

with the different

views that are

going around

about who Jesus is.

Some say you're

John the Baptist

whom Herod had killed.

John the Baptist

back from the dead

as it were.

Elijah.

If you look at

the very last verses

in the Old Testament,

God says that

he's going to send

Elijah to turn

the parts of the people

back to the Father.

Or one of the prophets.

And so there's

all these sorts

of different ideas

of who Christ is.

And then Christ

brings the follow-up

question to the disciples.

Who do you say

that I am?

Peter seems to always

be the first to speak,

doesn't he?

He speaks on behalf

of the disciples

and says,

you are the Christ

or the Messiah.

You're the Messiah,

the promised one,

the anointed one,

the Savior,

the deliverer

who will restore

Israel to glory,

the one who the law

and the prophets

speak about.

You are the Savior

of the world

to all who believe,

the Jew first

and to the Gentile.

And so Jesus affirms

Peter's answer.

He doesn't say,

no, no, you're wrong.

But he affirms it

and he gives him

a warning.

He says,

don't tell anyone

about who I am.

Now that seems

kind of odd,

doesn't it?

Why does Jesus

at different points

in the Gospel

turn people and say,

don't tell anyone

about who I am?

Or he forbids people.

I do not give you

permission to tell

people who I am.

Why does he do that?

It would seem

counterproductive

if he wants to get

his message out there.

But that's exactly

the point.

There were thousands

of different,

as we've already seen,

different ideas

and concepts

and messages

about who Jesus was

and he wants to make sure

the right one

gets out there.

And until the time

is right,

Jesus does not want

to put fuel

on the fire

of misinformation.

Because there are

people out there

who want to use Jesus

for their own agenda.

They want Jesus

to basically be

a political activist

and to get rid

of the Roman rule

and to break off

the shackles of bondage

so that the Jewish people

can be free.

And if they hear

that he is the Christ

and they'll say,

that's wonderful,

that's it.

And he'll do

what we want him to do.

In John chapter 6,

John 6 · chapter mention

for example,

I'll read it for you,

but right after he's fed

the 5,000,

it says,

Jesus,

knowing that they

intended to come

and make him king

by force,

withdrew again

to a mountain

by himself.

And so Jesus sees

that the people,

having just fed them

5,000 of them,

he sees that they're

so enamored

with his miraculous power

and his usefulness

that they want

to make him king.

Jesus,

you are so useful

and you're so powerful,

you can get so much done.

You tick all the boxes.

You can be our king.

And Jesus wants

nothing to do with it.

The only agenda

that Jesus Christ

is interested in fulfilling

is the agenda

of the Father.

Not my will,

but yours be done.

And so Peter's answer

is correct

in terms of

the words he uses.

But as we go on

to look at Christ's mission,

we'll see that Peter's

understanding

of what the Christ is

is totally off base.

He misses it.

So let's read

verses 31 to 33 again

where Christ goes on

to expand upon

what it means

that he is the Christ.

And he began

to teach them

that the Son of Man

must suffer many things

and be rejected

by the elders,

the chief priests

and the teachers

of the law,

and that he must be

killed and after

three days rise again.

He spoke plainly

about this

and Peter took him aside

and began to rebuke him.

But when Jesus turned

and looked at his disciples,

he rebuked Peter,

get behind me, Satan.

He said,

you do not have in mind

the concerns of God,

but merely human concerns.

So Jesus and his disciples

have been together

for months.

He has taught them

so much,

but at this time

he begins to teach them

about what is going

to happen to him.

They have not heard

this before.

This is the first time

that they have heard

anything about suffering

or dying

or going to the cross

or being rejected

by the leadership

of Israel.

And it says

he taught them.

So he didn't just say it

and throw it out there

and sort of leave

an awkward silence.

He taught them.

He explained it for them.

He said he spoke plainly.

He didn't use parables

to explain it to them.

He just spoke plainly.

This is what is going

to happen.

And no doubt

he would have turned

to the scriptures

and shown how

that is why,

because it is in scripture,

this is why

he must be killed.

As he said later in John,

the Son of Man goes

as it is written of him.

Jesus didn't die

because man got his way.

Jesus died ultimately

because God got his way.

Let me read from you

Isaiah 53.

You can turn there

if you want,

Isaiah 53.

But I'll read it for you.

It speaks

of the suffering servant

who has believed

our message

and to whom

has the arm

of the Lord

been revealed,

speaking of Christ

prophetically

before he arrived.

He grew up

before him

like a tender shoot,

like a root

out of dry ground.

He had no beauty

or majesty

to attract us to him.

nothing in his appearance

that we should desire him.

He was despised

and rejected

by men,

a man of sorrows

and familiar

with suffering,

like one

from whom

men hide

their faces.

He was despised

and we esteemed him not.

Surely he took up

our infirmities

and carried our sorrows.

Yet we considered him

stricken by God,

smitten by him

and afflicted.

But he was pierced

for our transgressions,

he was crushed

for our iniquities.

The punishment

that brought us peace

was upon him

and by his wounds

we are healed.

We all like sheep

have gone astray,

each of us

has turned

to his own way

and the Lord

has laid on him

the iniquity

of us all.

So Jesus is saying

this is

what must take place,

this is why

I am here.

And Peter

takes him aside.

You can almost

picture him

taking him

by the elbow

and saying,

you know,

Jesus,

this is not on.

It doesn't say

Jesus disagreed

with him,

it said he rebuked him.

That's strong language.

He took him aside

and said,

Jesus,

that's not right.

We don't know

exactly what he said

but if it says rebuke

it means he probably

used very forceful

and determined language

towards Christ

that that's not

the way it's going to go.

No one's going to kill you.

You're safe.

Who can touch you?

It says Jesus turns

so Peter's taking him aside

and Jesus turns

and looks at the disciples.

I think that's

indicating that

his response

to what he's about

to say to Peter

is a corrective

for all of them.

Peter has spoken

on behalf of the disciples

and so he's now

responding to Peter

but I think

what he's saying

is true for all.

It's a corrective

for all rather.

It's startling

what he says.

He says,

get behind me,

Satan.

You do not have

in mind

the concerns of God

but merely

human concerns.

That's strong language,

isn't it?

Jesus calling you Satan.

He says,

get behind me.

In other words,

you're in my way.

Insofar, Peter,

as you are getting

in the way

of my true mission,

insofar as you

do not understand

and do not believe

what I have told you

about what I came here

to do,

you are in my way

and you're serving

the purposes

of Satan.

You're an obstruction

to my mission.

You know,

Peter probably,

you know,

took him off

to the side.

Physically and literally

took him aside

from his path

and he's trying now

to put him aside

from his true mission too.

I wonder what Peter's

expression was

in his face.

He's probably very

shocked to hear

Jesus say to him,

get behind me,

Satan.

But unwittingly,

he was

opposing Jesus'

true mission.

And so Jesus responds

in equal force

saying that

that thinking

ultimately,

its source

is satanic.

Can you think

of anything more

that the devil

would have wanted

to have done

than to derail

Christ's mission?

1 John 3, 8,

the reason the Son

of God appeared

was to destroy

the work of the devil.

I recently watched

a documentary

on JFK

and it obviously

dealt with

the Cold War

and the nuclear

standoff.

with Khrushchev

and there was

a point

where the world

really did seem

to be on the brink

of nuclear war.

And in the end,

the final decision,

JFK at times

had advisors

telling him

they've put missiles

in Cuba now,

press the button,

let's get war

on the way,

let's just prove,

let's show them

who's boss.

and the ultimate

decision,

the rest,

the decision rested,

that burden

ultimately rested

on JFK.

No one else,

he was the person,

the commander-in-chief

who had to make

that decision

and he very nearly

came close to doing it

but he waited

and waited

and thankfully

it was avoided.

Friends,

we will never

understand

the weight

of responsibility

that Jesus

had on his shoulders.

The intensity

of the spiritual

warfare that Jesus

endured for you

and for me

is beyond

what we can ever

understand.

No one

was tempted

more

than Jesus

was tempted.

Remember in the

wilderness,

Satan offers him

a shortcut

to glory,

doesn't he?

He says,

I'll give you

all the kingdoms

of the world,

you just bow down

and give me

a little worship.

no one

endured

more spiritual

opposition

than Jesus

did.

And when

Jesus' hour

had eventually

come,

Christ endured

the full burden

of God's wrath

on the cross

for you

and for me.

And as he

prayed before

going to Calvary,

such was the

agony of his

soul that he

prayed,

Father,

if you are

willing,

take this

cup from

me.

Yes,

not my

will,

but yours

be done.

We will

never understand

what Christ

faced on the

cross,

the weight

and the

burden of

it.

There was

no plan

B,

there was

no spare

Messiah,

I don't mean

that disrespectfully,

but there was

one,

and he was

this.

And as

clearly as we

emphasize the

sovereignty of

God and

saying who

can undermine

God's purposes,

no one can,

let us not

say that at

the expense of

also being able

to say that

Christ struggled

and that he

had to,

with all of

his frame,

go to the

cross for you

and me.

I used to

have a bad

understanding of

what it meant

that Jesus was

fully God and

fully man,

I certainly

don't have a

perfect understanding,

but I often

thought that

when Jesus

was tempted

it was sort

of like

it was not

a bother to

him.

It was kind

of like

playing tennis,

it would be

like you and

I playing

tennis or

Roger Federer,

he could just

wipe the floor

with his hands

behind his

back or one

of his hands

behind his

back.

There's no

real effort

involved,

it's just

a show.

But Jesus

was tempted

in his

humanity,

he was

pressured

in his

humanity,

he was being

pulled in

all different

directions,

and in this

instance even

by his own

disciples.

Peter,

you're not

thinking on

the things

of God,

you're thinking

on the things

of man.

And what

follows from

verse 34 to

the end of

the chapter

is an

expansion on

this statement

I believe,

where Jesus

says this is

what it means,

if you're going

to follow me,

this is what

it's going to

look like.

So having

looked at his

identity and

his mission,

finally,

what it means

to be a

disciple of

Jesus.

Verse 34,

then he

called the

crow to

him along

with his

disciples and

said,

whoever wants

to be my

disciple must

deny themselves

and take up

their cross

and follow

me.

I struggled

how to,

in my

preparation,

how to

sort of

express what

Jesus is

getting at

here,

but I

think it's

fairly

straightforward.

I was

getting myself

tied up

on knots.

Jesus is

presenting two

main ways

of life.

Essentially

he's saying,

you can live

for yourself

or you can

live for me.

Thy will be

done or my

will be done.

Following

Jesus Christ

costs you

costs you.

I wonder,

what does it

cost you so

far in your

life?

It costs

different people

different things,

but there is no

one who makes

it to glory,

having followed

the way of

righteousness,

that hasn't

had to pay

some cost.

We're not

saved by denying

ourselves,

we're not

saved by

suffering,

we're not

saved by

denying

anything.

We're saved

solely through

the work of

Christ,

but having been

made his,

we follow

after him

and that

costs us.

It might

cost you

financially,

it might

cost you

in relationships

with other

people who

say, I don't

want to be

with you

anymore,

I don't

want to

know you.

It might

cost you

comfort or

security,

and it

might even

cost you

the ultimate

sacrifice,

which is

your life.

You know,

we get a

prayer letter

of some

friends of

ours who

work in

Jordan,

and one

of their

friends,

I can't

say his

name because

they've asked

we don't

say his

name,

but he's

come to

faith from

Islam,

and he's

gotten text

from people

saying,

we're going

to kill

you,

we're going

to kill

you.

Now,

he's still

alive,

but that

man is

carrying around

with him

that burden

every day.

He is

paying a

cost,

and all

he has

to do

is,

if he

wanted it

to all

go away,

he could

say,

I repent,

I'm not

a Christian,

I go

back to

the Muslim

faith.

But because

he is

following

Christ,

he is

sharing in

Christ's

sufferings.

As Romans

8 says,

having shared

in Christ's

sufferings,

we will

also share

in his

glory to

come.

See,

Jesus says,

I will

suffer,

I will

die,

but I

will

rise

again

in

three

days.

He

will

come

back

in

glory.

And

just as

sure

as

Christ's

resurrection

has

occurred,

so too

is it

sure

that

we

will

be

raised

with

him

in

glory.

And

he

goes

on

in

verse

36,

for

whoever

wants

to save

their

life

will

lose

it,

but

whoever

loses

their

life

for

me

and

for

the

gospel

will

save

it.

In

other

words,

if you

try and

preserve

your

life,

if your

goal is

just to

have as

much as

you can

in this

life,

have

security,

and your

priority is

on you

and what

you want,

in the

end you

lose it

all.

But if

you give

me your

life,

you follow

me,

in the

end,

although you

will have

suffering and

you will

have pain

in this

world,

and trouble

in this

world,

and hassle,

you will

inherit

eternal

life.

In

verse 36,

let me

flick

there.

Verse 36,

where Christ

gives those

two rhetorical

questions.

What good

is it for

a man to

gain the

whole world

and yet

forfeit his

soul,

or what

can a

man give

in exchange

for his

soul?

It hardly

needs

explaining,

does it?

What good

is it if

you get

everything in

this life,

and in

the end

you end

up in

hell?

That's

sobering,

isn't it?

Do you

think there's

anyone in

hell who

takes comfort

from something

they owned

in this

life?

Do you

think there's

anyone who

thinks,

at least in

earth I

had X,

Y,

or Z?

there's

nothing more

important than

the salvation

of your

soul.

What could

possibly be

worth more

to you than

your very

self?

love?

And finally,

verse 38,

Jesus points

out that his

words will be

the dividing

line.

If anyone is

ashamed of me

and my words

in this

adulterous and

sinful generation,

the Son of

Man will be

ashamed of him

when he comes

in his

Father's glory.

There are

lots of

people who

like Jesus,

but let us

as his

people be

those who

listen to

him.

He doesn't

have a

mute button.

We must

listen to

what he

says.

And Jesus

is saying

that there

will be

lots of

people who

hear my

words and

they're ashamed

of them,

they don't

want to have

anything to

do with

them.

No, not

for me.

That's no

thanks.

They might be

even polite

about it,

but they're

just saying

no.

They mightn't

come out and

say that's

shameful, but

they won't

want anything

to do with

them.

And Jesus

is saying

if that's

where you

are at,

then when

I come

back, I

will treat

you the

same.

I won't

want anything

to do with

you.

Now bear

in mind

who Jesus

is speaking

to here.

Jesus is

speaking to

a crowd

of people.

This is

not Jesus

speaking to

his sheep,

saying you

ought to be

ashamed of

yourselves.

Get the

wrong end of

the stick.

But Christ

is giving a

solemn warning

that in order

to follow him,

it involves

denial of

self.

It involves

cost and

sacrifice.

We don't

want to fall

into an

extreme of

saying that

to be a

Christian, you

basically have

to get rid

of everything

you enjoy

in life,

and that

somehow makes

you godly.

I mean,

Jesus was

accused of

being a

drunkard

because he

enjoyed eating

and drinking.

For the

glory of

God.

That's not

what Jesus

is getting

at.

And again,

we don't

earn our

way to

heaven by

denying

ourselves

of things.

But what

Jesus is

getting at

is saying,

when you

come into

conflict with

this world

and you

have a

decision

between

me,

what I

say,

and what

the world

wants you

to do,

you choose

me,

whatever

it costs.

And no,

we don't

always get

it right,

do we?

I was,

yesterday we

were handing

out tracts

in

Valancholy,

we do

that on

Saturday

mornings,

and I

tell you

this because

I feel

it's,

I'm not

happy to

say it,

but we're

handing out

tracts,

and a guy

I used to

go to school

with,

Jack,

I barely

knew the

guy,

and he

was walking

up,

and I

saw him

coming,

and I

started

talking to

somebody

else,

and a

part of

me was

just

embarrassed.

I'm being

honest,

I'm not

proud of

that,

I'm not

saying that's

wrong,

I don't

think in

my mind

I said,

I'm ashamed

of the

gospel of

Jesus

Christ,

I'm going

to turn

away,

but a

part of

me felt

embarrassment.

I'm

sure I'm

not alone

in that,

but friends,

Christ is

gracious,

and he

will give

us

what we

need.

We fail,

I have

failed him,

I failed

him yesterday,

but he

loves you,

and he

will bring

you into

glory,

but let

us stand

by what

he says,

and I

thank God

for the

forgiveness

that we

have in

Christ,

I thank

God that

he bears

with us,

that he

remembers

that we

are with

dust,

he remembers

our frame,

and I

thank him

that he

will help

us to be

faithful unto

the end.

let's

pray.

Let's

pray.

blessed be

the God

and

Father of

our Lord

Jesus Christ,

according to

his great

mercy with

which he

has caused

us to

be born

again to

a living

hope,

through the

resurrection

of Jesus

Christ from

the dead,

to an

inheritance

that is

imperishable,

undefiled,

unfading,

kept in

heaven for

you,

who by

God's

power are

being guarded

through faith

for a

salvation ready

to be revealed

in the last

time.

In this

you rejoice,

though now

for a little

while,

if necessary,

you have been

grieved with

various trials,

so that the

tested

genuineness of

your faith,

more precious

than gold

that perishes

though it is

tested by

fire,

may be found

to result in

praise and

glory and

honor at the

revelation of

Jesus Christ.

Our

Father in

heaven,

we pray,

Lord,

that you

would impress

upon us the

words of

Christ.

Christ,

I pray,

Father,

for your

strength for

us as

your people

in this

adulterous and

wicked

generation

to stand

by your

word,

Lord.

Whatever it

may cost us,

Lord,

help us to

be faithful

to what you

have commanded

us,

what you

have taught

us in

your

scriptures.

And I

thank you,

Lord,

for your

grace,

which covers

our failures,

which covers

our sin.

And I

thank you,

Lord,

that Jesus

Christ,

Lord,

that for the

joy set

before him

endured the

shame of

the cross,

and that he

is now seated

at your

right hand.

Lord,

as we make

our way as

pilgrims in

this world,

as foreigners,

Lord,

I pray,

Lord,

that you