[0:00] it's good to be with you this afternoon and we'll begin this time of worship we'll sing to god's praise from sam 40 sam 40 and we'll sing verses 1 to verse 5 i waited for the lord my god and patiently did bear at length to me he didn't climb my voice and cry to hear he took me from a fearful pit and from a miry clay from the miry clay and on a rock he set my feet establishing my way he put a new song in my mouth our god to magnify and so on to the end of the verse mark 5 we sing to god's praise i waited for the lord my god i waited for the lord my god and cry to hear he took me from a moment to me and from a miry clay and on a rock he set my feet establishing my name
[1:35] And on the rock he shed, my feet shall please sing my name.
[1:53] If I am strong in my mouth, I'll guard my divine.
[2:09] Then he shall see a dungeon here and all the Lord relive.
[2:26] O blessed is the land you slashed upon the Lord relive.
[2:43] Reset me not a threat, nor such a servant aside to lies.
[2:59] O Lord, my God, who let me out the wonders that have lost done.
[3:15] I give his heart to us, Lord God, above all the Lord's life.
[3:31] I give his heart to you.
[4:01] I give his heart to you.
[4:31] Thank you for all that we are able to rejoice in. Just as the psalmist was able to share testimony of all that you had done in his life, we thank you that this is a testimony that we can enter into if we are your people.
[4:44] With the psalmist, we are conscious of our sin. We are conscious of the slimy pit, the mud and the mire that we find ourselves sinking into so often.
[4:56] But with the psalmist, we thank you that we recognize that we have a savior. We thank you that we can call you our father as we bow before you on this day.
[5:11] And we thank you, father, for sending your son Jesus into this world. We thank you that he is the one who lifted us from the pit. He is the one who was able and willing to save us from our sin.
[5:26] We thank you that he is the one who lifted us and who set our feet upon the rock. We thank you that he is the rock of our salvation. And if we are trusting in him, we have been given every assurance that we are safe, that we are saved, that we are kept.
[5:45] And Lord, we thank you for all that we can rejoice in, in the wonder of the gospel message. Help us, we pray, in this day to lift our eyes from all that is in this world.
[5:59] And help us, we pray, to fix our eyes upon Jesus, the author and the perfecter of our faith. Help us, we pray, to have our minds cleared of all that would distract us.
[6:12] All the pressing responsibilities of this world. We pray that in these moments we would lift our eyes from all that would burden us.
[6:25] And that we would be given a sight of Jesus. That our minds would be lifted from ground level to think upon heavenly things. And we ask that our hearts would be touched, that our hearts would be stirred.
[6:38] That we would be given a spirit by which we can rejoice in all that the Lord has done. And all that the Lord promises still to do for us.
[6:51] We thank you for the joy of sins forgiven. We confess our sin, Lord. We confess that in our thoughts and in our words and in our actions and in our inaction at times.
[7:04] We sin and we fall far short of all that you call us to. But we thank you that there is forgiveness. That there is redemption in Christ.
[7:16] We thank you that he is the one who went to the cross willingly. He is the one whose blood was shed and whose body was given. So that we could be cleansed.
[7:28] So that we could be forgiven. So that we could know the joy of being at one with God. We thank you for the atonement that was made for our sin.
[7:41] And through Jesus, that perfect sacrifice, the Lamb of God. Who came to take away the sin of the world. And so we ask, Lord, that you would cleanse us afresh.
[7:52] And anything that may be heavy upon us, even now. We pray that as we confess our sin. That you would give us that assurance that your word gives, Lord.
[8:04] That we are forgiven. That we are freed. That we are cleansed. That we are accepted in Christ. And we thank you for the righteousness of Jesus.
[8:14] Not only are our sins taken away. Because he who knew no sin was made to be sin. But we thank you that we are made righteous.
[8:25] In and through him. We look to Jesus. We see the perfection of righteousness. And all that he did and said. And help us, we pray, to grasp.
[8:38] And to worship you in response. As we think about the fact that the righteousness of Christ. Christ is imputed to us. That we who are sinners become righteous.
[8:50] When we are in him. These things are more than our minds can grasp. That we ask, Lord, that you would give us faith. That we would be enabled to grasp these gospel promises.
[9:04] And that we would respond in worship. Not only in this service. And not only over this communion weekend. But we pray that every day. In our homes.
[9:15] In our workplace. Amongst those that you have placed around us in this world. Help us to be those who are worshipping you. And who are salt.
[9:26] And who are light. Who are pointing people through the things that we say. And the things that we don't say. And the things that we do. Our actions. Our reactions. Our reactions.
[9:36] We pray. That something of the fragrance of Christ. Something of the light of Christ. Would be seen. In our lives. We ask, Father, that as we prepare.
[9:48] As this congregation prepares to come. To the Lord's table. That you would be striving with each one. For your people here, Lord. Those who are trusting.
[9:59] That they would know your blessing. And the grace. That is given to us. As we come. In obedience. To the call of Jesus. To do this.
[10:10] In remembrance of him. We pray for any who. Who may sit outside of the table. And we ask, Lord. That you would be moving in the power. Of the Holy Spirit. That you would be.
[10:22] Opening eyes. That any who are on the outside. Would see Jesus. That they would understand the cross. That they would see. That at that place.
[10:33] There is the offer. Of our sins to be forgiven. And eternal life. To be received. So move, Lord. We pray. In the power of the Holy Spirit.
[10:44] At awakening some. To see these gospel truths. For the first time. We pray for some. Who may be. Be Christians. But be at a distance.
[10:54] Some who may be. Be present. Who may sit here tomorrow. Others who may sit in their homes. Who once sat in this place. We are conscious, Lord. In every area.
[11:05] There are. There are those who. Who slide back. And who drift from you. And we confess, Lord. In our own hearts. In our own lives. Although it may be hidden. From others.
[11:15] We can drift from you. And so for the wanderer. For any who have wandered. So far. That they are no longer sitting at the table. As we think of them. We bring them to you in prayer.
[11:27] And we ask, Lord. That you would draw them back. We thank you that. We have the promise in your word. That all who come to you. None will be. None will be driven away. And we thank you that in your word.
[11:39] We are promised. That if we return to you. You will return to us. And so for the wanderers. For the backsliders, Lord. We ask that you would draw them back.
[11:49] And that they would receive. That grace that there is. As we come back to Jesus. And Lord. We pray now. That you would go before us. In this hour of worship.
[12:01] Bless this congregation. Be with those who are absent. From us today. Those who are with us in spirit. But who are struggling in their bodies. As we think of them.
[12:11] We pray that you would minister to them. In the power of the Holy Spirit. That they would know that you are God. And that you are close to them. That they would know that they are not forgotten. But they are remembered by you.
[12:22] And by brothers and sisters in Christ. So Lord. We pray for them at this time. For those who are sick. For those who are suffering. For those who are grieving. We pray for Ian McCritchie.
[12:34] As he is in gravel at this time. And as he takes this funeral service. We ask Lord. That you would bless them. And that you would bless those.
[12:45] That he brings your word to. That the comfort of God. The Holy Spirit. Would be known. In that place. And that the hope of the gospel. Would be experienced.
[12:56] And that would be believed. And received. In that place. As we pray for those who grieve. In this place. So hear our prayers. Take away our sin.
[13:07] And help us we pray. To fix our eyes upon Jesus. For we ask these things in Jesus name. And for his sake. Amen. We'll sing again.
[13:20] To God's praise. We'll sing. In the psalm. Psalm 51. That psalm. Of repentance. As David returns.
[13:31] To the Lord. Psalm 51. Verses 7. To 13. Do thy with hyssop sprinkle me. I shall be cleansed.
[13:42] So. Ye wash thou me. And then I shall be. Whiter than the snow. Of gladness. And of joyfulness. Make me to hear the voice. That so these very bones.
[13:52] Which thou hast broken. May rejoice. Down to the end. Of the verse marked 13. We sing. To God's praise. Do thy with hyssop.
[14:08] Change me. And there and plenty. Ghские of prodimentos.
[14:20] He washed of me, and then I shall be quiet, dear, and the storm.
[14:38] Of gladness and of joyfulness, make me to hear the voice.
[14:57] That so he's left reborn to Islam, has broken me rejoice.
[15:15] Almighty, which is not yet, thy grace I come, my sin.
[15:34] Create a clean heart, Lord, renew a right, spread me within.
[15:52] Cast me not from thy side nor free, thy holy spirit away.
[16:12] Resort me, thy salvation's joy, when thy peace let me sing.
[16:32] Then will I teach thy wisdom to those that transgressors be.
[16:51] And let us, the sinners, shall then be turned again to thee.
[17:10] If we could turn now to God's word and read a short passage from Isaiah chapter 43.
[17:22] And then we'll read the first chapter of 1 Peter. Isaiah 43 and then 1 Peter chapter 1.
[17:40] Isaiah 43 and then verse 1 to verse 3.
[17:53] But now thus saith the Lord that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel. Fear not, for I have redeemed thee. I have called thee by thy name, thou art mine.
[18:07] When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee. And through the rivers they shall not overflow thee. When thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned.
[18:20] Neither shall the flame kindle upon thee. For I am the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour.
[18:30] And if we turn now to 1 Peter chapter 1, please. 1 Peter chapter 1.
[18:50] I'm reading from verse 1. Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ. To the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia.
[19:05] Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit unto obedience, and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ, grace unto you and peace be multiplied.
[19:19] Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which, according to his abundant mercy, hath begotten us unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, and that fadeth not the way reserved in heaven for you, who are being kept by the power of God, through faith unto salvation, ready to be revealed in the last time.
[19:49] Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations, that the trial of your faith be more precious than of gold, that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ, whom having not seen ye love, in whom thou, though now ye see him not, yet believe in ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory, receiving at the end of your faith even the salvation of your souls, of which salvation the prophets have inquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you, searching what or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ, which was in them, did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glory that should follow, and to whom it was revealed that not unto themselves but unto us they did minister the things which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven, which things the angels desire to look into.
[21:04] Wherefore, gird up the loins of your mind, be sober and hope to the end for the grace that is brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ, as obedient children not fastening yourselves according to the formal lusts in your ignorance, but as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation, because it is written, Be ye holy, for I am holy.
[21:31] And if ye call on the Father, who, without respect of persons, judgeeth according to each man's work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear, for as much as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things as silver and gold from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot, who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times to you, who by him do believe in God that raised him up from the dead and gave him glory that your faith and hope might be in God.
[22:18] Seeing ye have purified your souls and obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently, being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth forever.
[22:38] For all flesh is as grass, and all glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away, but the word of the Lord endureth forever.
[22:52] And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you. Amen. And may God bless that reading of his word to us.
[23:05] We'll sing again now to God's praise, and we'll sing from Psalm 43. Psalm 43, and we'll sing from verses 3 to verse 5.
[23:19] O send thy light forth, and thy truth let them be guides to me, and bring me to thine holy hill, even where thy dwellings be. Then will I to God's altar go, to God my chiefest joy, yea God, my God, thy name to praise, my heart, I will employ.
[23:37] Why art thou then cast down my soul? What should discourage thee? Why with vexing thoughts art thou disquieted in me? Still trust in God, for him to praise, good cause I yet shall have.
[23:51] He of my countenance is the health, my God, that doth me save. We'll sing these verses to God's praise. O send thy light forth, for thou thy fruit, let them be guides to me, and bring me to thine holy hill, even where thy dwelling's to be.
[24:40] Then will I to God's altar go, O God, my chiefest joy, yea God, my God, thy name to praise, my heart, my heart, my will employ.
[25:18] Why art thou then cast down my soul? What should his charity be?
[25:36] And why with vexing thoughts art thou, tis why it is in me?
[25:54] still trust in God, for him to praise, good cause I yet shall have.
[26:13] He of my power, and there is the help, my God, and the name is you.
[26:32] If you could turn back in your Bibles, please, to 1 Peter, chapter 1. And just as we go there, we'll pray.
[26:46] Heavenly Father, we thank you for the word of God, we thank you for this book that is open before us today, and we recognize, we are thankful for the fact that this is no ordinary book, but this is the book that was inspired by God, the Holy Spirit.
[27:07] And we ask, Lord, that the same Holy Spirit to inspire these words to be written. As Peter, the apostle, took up his pen, we pray that we would know the help of the Holy Spirit, that he would be our teacher, that you would help us, Lord God, that you would guide us in our speaking, in our listening, in our responding, to all the truth of your word.
[27:34] We ask that you would illuminate our minds, that you would touch our hearts, that our hearts would burn before within us, as they experienced on the road to Emmaus, as they walked with Jesus.
[27:45] And Lord, that we would know the ministry of the Holy Spirit, in this time. And we ask for all this in Jesus' name. Amen. 1 Peter and chapter 1.
[27:57] We're just going to look at the first few verses of the chapter. And probably the first thing to note in this section, is that this chapter, this book that we're looking at, it's a letter.
[28:14] It's different kinds of literature within Scripture. We've sung prayers, we've sung songs in the Psalms, we've read words of prophecy, in Isaiah, and this section that we come to in 1 Peter, it's a letter.
[28:32] So Peter, has been moved by the Holy Spirit, to write this letter to believers. And these days, it's almost something of a novelty for us to receive a letter.
[28:47] We're getting emails and texts and messages constantly. But when we get an actual letter through the post, there's something very personal, and there's something actually quite special about getting a letter.
[29:04] And we pick it up and we open it. And probably the first thing that we look for is, who is this letter from? And the name that we recognize.
[29:15] And we'll probably, when we pick up a letter as well, scan it. Just allow our eyes to scan back and forth to see, is this a good news letter, or is this a bad news letter?
[29:28] Well, in this chapter before us, we're opening up a letter. And it was addressed to places like Pontius, Galatia, Asia, Bithynia, Cappadocia.
[29:42] So it was for them, back at that time. But this is a letter that was also intended for places like here, like Calumsh. And this is a letter that comes from Peter, the disciple of Jesus.
[30:00] And he's a disciple, I think, that all Christians love. We love Peter because of his sincerity, and his enthusiasm, and his straightforwardness.
[30:14] Peter just spoke very plainly, and clearly. And we love him for that. And we love Peter, I think also because, because of his failings.
[30:28] Peter gives us encouragement. Because as we look at Peter, who often made a great mess of things, as he tried to follow Jesus, we're looking in the mirror, and we're seeing a reflection of ourselves.
[30:47] So this is a letter, it's to these churches, back then, Cappadocia, but it's also a letter to this church here today in Calumsh. It's a letter that came from Peter, and the date of the letter was around about AD 60.
[31:02] So it was about 30 years, or 30-ish years, after the death and the resurrection of Jesus. And the opening theme, and the recurring theme, that runs through this letter of 1 Peter, is the theme of salvation.
[31:22] Peter is encouraging believers who were hard pressed. Peter is encouraging believers who were scattered.
[31:34] And the reason they were scattered was because they were persecuted. And the encouragement that Peter gives them is by reminding them of their salvation.
[31:46] And this afternoon, in the short time that we have together, I want us just to connect, to tap in with that encouragement.
[32:00] I don't know many of you very well, but I recognize you as the Lord's people. And the encouragement, the greatest encouragement that we can receive, is in being reminded of the fact that we are saved.
[32:18] And as we approach the Lord's table, we are called to examine ourselves. And as we examine ourselves, we see our sin.
[32:31] And as we see our sin, we repent. We confess our sin. And as we are trusting in Christ, we are given the promise that we are saved.
[32:43] And then, as those who are saved, we can approach the Lord's table. We can come to the Lord's table with joy.
[32:55] Because we approach a table that speaks to us of the great salvation that we have, if we are in Christ.
[33:07] So with Peter's help, let's think about what it is that we profess as we come to the Lord's table. Let's think about what it means.
[33:19] And what it says as we profess our faith, as we take our place at the Lord's table, and we say that we are saved.
[33:32] So what does that mean? Three points. The first thing that we see in these verses is that we are chosen by God the Father. And the second thing that we see as those who are saved is that we are cleansed by God the Son.
[33:52] And the last thing that we see as we go through these verses is that we are changed. You can also say we are kept. We are changed and we are kept by God the Holy Spirit.
[34:05] The work of salvation is the work of the triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We see the hand of God upon us, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as those who are saved.
[34:18] So first of all, we are chosen by God the Father. And if you just have your Bibles open and looking at the first verse of 1 Peter, it begins by saying, Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ.
[34:35] And I can imagine a smile breaking over Peter's face as he wrote these words.
[34:47] His identity was that he belonged to Jesus. Peter was an apostle of Jesus Christ. That's who he was.
[34:59] That's how he introduces himself. That's how he thinks of himself. He's an apostle of Jesus Christ. And Peter was an apostle of Jesus Christ not because one day he suddenly decided to become an apostle.
[35:14] My middle daughter, Grace, was in school this week and she was meeting along with the rest of your guidance teachers and careers advisors. And they sit down and they say, well, let's think about what you're good at.
[35:27] Let's think about what kind of career, what kind of job you might aim to go into in two or three years time. Peter never sat down with a careers advisor and made a decision one day that he was going to be an apostle of Jesus Christ.
[35:41] Peter was an apostle because he was chosen. He was elected by Jesus. And if we think back, we won't go back in the Gospels, but if we think back to the Gospel accounts, when we see Peter first, he's fishing, he's busy, he's out with the nets, he seems to have no word of Jesus.
[36:06] And one day Jesus chose to call him. He says to Peter, follow me. And Peter hears the call and he responds to that call and he follows Jesus.
[36:22] He becomes an apostle, a disciple of Jesus Christ. And that was true of all the disciples. Jesus chose them. He called them and they followed.
[36:37] Remember in the upper room in John chapter 15, Jesus made that point clear to the disciples just before they were going to go and fail him. He says to them, you did not choose me.
[36:50] I chose you. And if we think about Peter here, whose letter we have open, Peter, as he perhaps thought back through the years, a lot of things had happened in his life.
[37:05] There had been good days and there had been bad days. There had been days where Peter had received a commendation from Jesus for his faithfulness. There had been days when Peter had not been faithful and had to be rebuked.
[37:22] There had been days, there had been weeks even, when Peter, he walked away from Jesus after deserting Jesus and denying Jesus. But today, at the day of writing, as Peter puts pen to paper, he is able to write that he is still an apostle of Jesus Christ because he was chosen by God.
[37:53] He was, he was, as it says in the, in the King James version here, he was elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father.
[38:11] Sometimes we, I think back to a car that I once bought. I once bought a car and it was a, a car that I wanted for a long time.
[38:24] It was in, it was in Audi Allroad. It was before I was a minister. And, I saw this car on Audi Allroad and I thought I really like this car and I looked at it and I studied it and I did a bit of research on the car and, eventually the day came where I was able to, to go and, see the car, drive the car and buy the car.
[38:48] And I drove it home and I drove it a wee bit and it sounded nice and it drove nice but that car was a disaster. And it broke down continually.
[39:00] And every time it broke down, whether it was a mechanical failure or a, or a windscreen wiper that stopped working, it cost a thousand pounds. I hated the car. And if I had had foreknowledge of how many times that car would fail me, I would never have touched it.
[39:23] Now just think about this, that word, foreknowledge. God the Father, he had foreknowledge. He knew beforehand exactly what kind of an apostle Peter would be.
[39:35] none of the failures and falls of Peter or any of the disciples were a surprise to God. And yet, it did not stop God the Father foreordaining, choosing, electing that Peter would be called and that he would be an apostle.
[40:02] And that was true for Peter, it was true for the, for all these believers in Pontius and Galatia and Cappadocia and Asia and Bithynia, modern day Turkey, they were elect and Peter reminds them, God chose you.
[40:20] And that must have been a huge comfort to them and a huge comfort to Peter and to all the disciples to know that God had chosen them and chosen them not blindly, but with the foreknowledge of everything that they would be.
[40:38] All their sin, even. Past, present and future. And that truth chosen by God the Father is a truth that brought encouragement to believers back then and to Peter in his own life and how amazing is it for us to know today that God chooses us.
[40:59] And some might be here, I don't know where everybody here is spiritually speaking, but we've all had conversations where people have said, well I don't know, is God choosing me?
[41:14] How do I know is God choosing me? How do I know if I'm in the elect? Well, if we see our sin and if we see Jesus and we see the cross and we see all that he's done, if our eyes are being opened, our eyes are being opened because God is choosing to open our eyes.
[41:36] And we are given the promise that if we see our sin, if we see Jesus, if we come to Jesus, we will not be driven away, but we will be received, we will be saved.
[41:51] We will be saved. So let's take that first point of encouragement for ourselves.
[42:03] We are chosen by God the Father. Our eyes are open to see Jesus, the Son. And if our eyes are opened and we feel our sin, we are called to come to him.
[42:17] We sometimes sing the words to him, O come to the Father through Jesus, the Son, and give him the glory, great things he has done.
[42:33] And we hear the call of Jesus even this weekend as he calls us to come to the table. We see our sin if we have trusted in Christ the Saviour that we are given this call, this command.
[42:49] Do this. Come. Give him glory. remember and rejoice in the great things that he has done for us at Calvary.
[43:06] We're chosen by God the Father. The second thing that we see here is that we are cleansed by God the Son. In the gospel, you hear this week by week we are called to come to God.
[43:23] We are called to come to the Father. We are called to come to Jesus. But what happens when we come? Are we going to be received?
[43:35] Sometimes we come to a place looking for help and we're not given any help. whether it's a phone line to help us with our internet and we sit on the end of a phone line for an hour queuing, waiting for some help and after queuing all that time we speak to somebody and there's no help.
[43:55] There's nothing they can give to us. Or you go to some organisation looking for a grant to put up a fence and you fill out a thousand forms and there's no help at the end of it. We've all been experiencing this where we've come looking for help and we've been turned away and we've been disappointed but when we come to Jesus we'll never be turned away.
[44:19] That's John chapter 6. When we come to Jesus he cleanses us. The blood of Jesus Peter reminds us cleanses us from all sin and Peter he's writing to believers about the blood of Jesus.
[44:40] He's writing in verse 2 to believers about the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ and that reference for them yes it still applies to us but for those who were reading this in the first instance immediately their minds went back to the days of the Passover in Exodus chapter 12 and the blood is sprinkled over the homes in Egypt and when the blood was sprinkled over the home that home was safe salvation came to that home and that picture that promise is a promise that goes from the Old Testament to the New Testament and the assurance that we are given is that if the blood of Jesus is sprinkled by faith over our lives we are cleansed from sin take that promise is there anyone here who as you approach the Lord's table there's a sense of dread there's a sense of sin that's weighing heavy upon you have any of us come in here this morning with a sense of guilt and the joy of the Lord has been taken from us none of us need walk back out that door with a sense of the weight of sin none of us should be coming to the table with a dreadful sense of the heaviness of sin upon us because we are promised that if we are trusting in Jesus if we are under the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus we are cleansed we are forgiven listen to what
[46:46] John says in 1st John chapter 1 and verses 7 to 9 it says if we walk in the light as he is in the light we have fellowship with one another and the blood of Jesus his son purifies us from all sin all sin if we claim to be without sin we deceive ourselves the truth is not us but if we confess our sins he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness so if having heard the call of God we come in faith to Jesus if we come asking for that that cleansing from sin that that sprinkling of his blood we are given cleansing and we are given as it says in verse 2 grace and peace in abundance it's multiplied to us and Peter he knew that at the the experiential level
[48:11] Peter had taken his sin to Jesus not once not twice but many many times and for Peter there were the sins that were at heart level and they were hidden from others and for Peter there were the sins that were out there in the open they were public and they were disgraceful and yet Peter was cleansed and he enjoyed grace and peace and what was true for Peter is true for all who have come in faith to Jesus all who have come under the sprinkling of his blood we are cleansed what can wash away my sin this is the Sunday school chorus that we hear the children singing in their clubs what can wash away my sin nothing but the blood of Jesus what can make me whole again nothing but the blood of Jesus oh precious is the flow that makes me white as snow no other fount I know nothing but the blood of Jesus there is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Emmanuel's veins and sinners sinners plunged beneath that flood lose all their guilty stains have we come this morning this afternoon now to to be to be cleansed to be sprinkled by the blood of
[50:02] Jesus that's the very simple question have we asked for that that sprinkling of his blood we can't be saved with our sin we need to be saved from our sin and only Jesus can take it away and as we come to the table as we are offered the wine we remember that blood was shed and we come to identify ourselves as sinners who have been cleansed by the blood of Jesus cleansed by the blood of God the Son so what does it mean to be saved we are chosen by God the Father he elects us with the foreknowledge of who we are it's an amazing thing and we are cleansed by God the Son we come under the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus and the final thing is we are changed by God the Spirit
[51:12] I think this is one of the things that holds many people back from either coming to Jesus or professing faith in Jesus there's a fear within us that we will if we come we won't be able to keep on keeping on we've got a fear that if we become Christians there might not be a change in our lives we might end up going back to the way that we used to be and bring disgrace to the name of Jesus and so we hold back because we fear we can't keep on going but to think that way is to misunderstand what it actually means to be saved because when we come to Jesus when we are saved Jesus doesn't just cleanse us from our sin and then send us off to live our Christian lives in our strength because we can't do that now when we become Christians we are given the Holy Spirit and God the Holy Spirit he is the one who gives us the strength to keep on keeping on so Peter in verse 2 he speaks about sanctification of the
[52:31] Spirit and to obedience so what does that mean well to sanctify as you know means to change it means that we're we're being changed gradually we're being made holy we're being made into the saints the believers that God calls us to be we're being made more like Jesus we read in verses 15 and 16 just as he who called you is holy so be holy in all you do in all your conversation for it's written be holy because I am holy and that's a terrifying command we're standing on our own thinking that this is something that we have to do in our own strength we can't do this this is an impossible thing for us to fulfill because this is a work of the Holy Spirit and the good news for us as those who are saved is this is a work that the
[53:34] Holy Spirit that God the Holy Spirit has promised that he will do from the moment that we believe till the moment that we pass into eternity God the Holy Spirit and he is working in us and he is working on us to make us more like Jesus to make us more obedient to Jesus there are some projects some works some jobs that we that we undertake that we commit to doing and we leave them we abandon them and if we drive from one end of the island to the other there are tractors that were probably bought with a youth to be restored and after spending x thousand and so many hours eventually the guy says oh
[54:40] I'm done with it so it's parked up and it stores feed and it's never going to go again and there are flat packs and homes stocked away in the back of cupboards by husbands in the hope that their wives will never see them again because their jobs that they started and got scunnered with and just left to one side we start things that we never finish but God the Holy Spirit never gives up on any of us when he begins a good work in us as it says in Philippians chapter 1 he sees it through to completion now there are seasons in our lives where we wonder if that's true Peter himself at one stage remember he gave up he goes back to fishing and it's not long before he realizes that the fishing that he was a professional at doing before he met Jesus he couldn't do anymore
[55:51] Jesus showed him that so Peter as we look at his life we see that Peter he let go of Jesus for a season for a period but Jesus didn't let go of Peter Spurgeon says it is not your hold of Christ that saves you but his hold of you and Peter could testify to the holding power of Jesus Peter could testify to the keeping persevering work of the Holy Spirit of Jesus and in AD 60 whenever it was that Peter was writing he was still going on with the Lord and the reason that he was keeping on keeping on was not because Jesus was physically with him Jesus was not physically with him but God the Holy Spirit was still at work in him and when we come to Jesus seeking that cleansing from sin
[57:00] God the Holy Spirit he comes in to our lives and begins that changing work of making us less like the old man or woman that we once were and more like Jesus and even though there will be times when we resist him even though there are times in our lives when that work is slowed down because of our own rebellion our back slidings our sinful disobedience God does not give up on us just as he didn't give up on Peter maybe take a moment and pray for the Peters maybe you can think of people who once sat in these places and who once professed faith and who once had a zeal for the Lord's glory and who once followed
[58:09] Jesus closely and now they're fishing somewhere they're doing something else they seem to be at a distance as Peter was don't stop praying for them don't stop reaching out to them remember it's not our hold of Christ that saves us it's his hold on us so pray for the wanderer reach out to the backslider take the encouragement that we see as we look at Peter God does not give up on us just as he didn't give up on Peter our salvation is secure because it's God's work not our work and every time we come to the table we can give thanks for the ongoing work of God in us we can give thanks for the saving and the sustaining the keeping grace of Jesus so says
[59:26] Peter give thanks for your salvation take encouragement from what it means to be able to say that we are saved rejoice and worship the Lord as we think about the the triune God at work in us we are chosen by God the Father we are cleansed by the blood of God the Son we are being changed we are being kept by the work of God the Holy Spirit that's what it means to be saved the work of God from beginning to end and we praise his name we thank him for his work we respond in obedience to his word as we come to the table confessing that we are great sinners that our faith is in
[60:34] Christ the great saviour we'll pray heavenly father we thank you for your word we thank you for the work of God that saving work that we remember as we come to the Lord's table thank you that you choose us that you have elected us you've opened our eyes that we have been enabled to see our sin and see Christ your son our saviour thank you Lord Jesus for laying down your life for the blood that was shed that cleanses us from all sin and thank you Holy Spirit for all that you continue to do within us opening our eyes day by day to see Jesus keeping hold of us when we as the hymn says are so prone to wander from you thank you that you are the
[61:40] God who saves help us to worship you as we conclude this out of worship and we pray this in Jesus name Amen we'll sing to conclude the verses of Psalm 62 Psalm 62 and verses 5 to verse 8 of the Psalm my soul wait thou with patience upon my God alone on him dependeth all my hope and expectation he only my salvation is and my strong rock is he he only my sure defence I shall not move be down to the end of verse 8 we conclude by singing these verses to God's praise verse 8 my soul with love with patience upon thy
[62:41] God alone Sappynthesis Independence on my hope and expectation.
[63:01] He only my salvation is, and my sorrow is He.
[63:22] He only is my sure defense, I shall not move with me.
[63:40] In God my glory, blessed it is, I my salvation is here.
[63:58] And God the rocces on my strength, my refuge most secure.
[64:16] It is a pleasure, confidence, and condeningly Behold in glory, a pure heart.
[64:47] God is a refuge, I am. Surely, me, me, not only He.
[65:08] And it is not a lie. In the palace, in the holy earth, More like land, but not in.
[65:33] In the palace, in the palace, in the palace, In the palace, no put my heart Essex.
[66:00] hearts when us in peace is you stand for the benediction and now may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ the love of God the Holy God the Father and the blessing of God the Holy Spirit be with us on all now and forevermore Amen