WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:06.140 Now, let's read in our Bibles together. 00:00:06.799 --> 00:00:14.540 Firstly, from the Old Testament, our Old Testament reading is the first 19 verses of Deuteronomy 6, 00:00:14.880 --> 00:00:17.019 and then we'll be again in 1 Peter. 00:00:17.100 --> 00:00:18.900 So let's read Deuteronomy 6. 00:00:23.740 --> 00:00:28.940 These are the commands, decrees and laws the Lord your God directed me to teach you, 00:00:28.940 --> 00:00:32.340 to observe in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess, 00:00:32.660 --> 00:00:36.439 so that you, your children and their children after them, 00:00:36.980 --> 00:00:42.640 may fear the Lord your God as long as you live by keeping all his decrees and commands that I give you, 00:00:43.140 --> 00:00:45.000 and so that you may enjoy long life. 00:00:45.520 --> 00:00:51.040 Hear, Israel, and be careful to obey so that it may go well with you, 00:00:51.620 --> 00:00:54.740 and that you may increase greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, 00:00:55.200 --> 00:00:58.260 just as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, promised you. 00:00:58.259 --> 00:01:02.679 Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 00:01:03.359 --> 00:01:07.579 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 00:01:08.159 --> 00:01:11.659 These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. 00:01:12.319 --> 00:01:13.620 Impress them on your children. 00:01:14.239 --> 00:01:17.359 Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, 00:01:17.640 --> 00:01:19.719 when you lie down and when you get up. 00:01:20.159 --> 00:01:23.659 Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 00:01:23.859 --> 00:01:27.400 Write them on the door frames of your houses and on your gates. 00:01:27.400 --> 00:01:31.760 When the Lord your God brings you into the land he swore to your fathers, 00:01:31.900 --> 00:01:33.940 to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to give you, 00:01:34.280 --> 00:01:37.000 a land with large flourishing cities you did not build, 00:01:37.360 --> 00:01:40.340 houses filled with all kinds of good things you did not provide, 00:01:40.840 --> 00:01:44.600 wells you did not dig, and vineyards and olive groves you did not plant, 00:01:44.820 --> 00:01:47.080 then, when you eat and are satisfied, 00:01:47.079 --> 00:01:51.500 be careful that you do not forget the Lord who brought you out of Egypt, 00:01:51.500 --> 00:01:52.840 out of the land of slavery. 00:01:53.420 --> 00:01:57.420 Fear the Lord your God, serve him only and take your oaths in his name. 00:01:58.099 --> 00:02:01.079 Do not follow other gods, the gods of the peoples around you, 00:02:01.420 --> 00:02:04.560 for the Lord your God who is among you is a jealous God, 00:02:05.019 --> 00:02:09.060 and his anger will burn against you and he will destroy you from the face of the land. 00:02:09.539 --> 00:02:12.939 Do not put the Lord your God to the test as you did at Massa. 00:02:12.939 --> 00:02:19.159 Be sure to keep the commands of the Lord your God and the stipulations and decrees he has given you. 00:02:19.680 --> 00:02:23.539 Do what is right and good in the Lord's sight so that it may go well with you, 00:02:23.979 --> 00:02:28.460 and you may go in and take over the good land that the Lord promised on oath to your ancestors, 00:02:29.199 --> 00:02:33.439 thrusting out all your enemies before you, as the Lord said. 00:02:33.439 --> 00:02:41.520 And then over in 1 Peter, to continue our studies there, verse 13. 00:02:42.139 --> 00:02:46.460 Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, 00:02:47.120 --> 00:02:53.159 set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming. 00:02:53.659 --> 00:02:59.379 As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. 00:02:59.379 --> 00:03:04.159 But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do. 00:03:04.859 --> 00:03:08.780 For it is written, be holy, because I am holy. 00:03:09.419 --> 00:03:13.560 Since you call on a father who judges each person's work impartially, 00:03:14.099 --> 00:03:17.519 live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear. 00:03:18.019 --> 00:03:20.879 For you know that it was not with perishable things, 00:03:21.000 --> 00:03:26.280 such as silver or gold, that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, 00:03:26.280 --> 00:03:31.860 but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. 00:03:32.319 --> 00:03:37.840 He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. 00:03:38.520 --> 00:03:44.360 Through him, you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him. 00:03:44.819 --> 00:03:49.060 And so your faith and hope are in God. 00:03:49.060 --> 00:03:56.000 So if you have your Bibles, maybe have them open at the book of 1 Peter. 00:03:56.900 --> 00:04:01.060 As we continue to think about this letter with its message to a suffering church, 00:04:01.159 --> 00:04:04.640 to stand firm and to stay joyful in the Lord Jesus. 00:04:05.219 --> 00:04:08.159 Today, we move to a section about commands. 00:04:08.640 --> 00:04:14.000 And we see three commands and three priorities for God's family. 00:04:14.000 --> 00:04:19.980 I use the word family because I want us to think about the theme of home 00:04:19.980 --> 00:04:24.620 and home as a shaping influence in our lives. 00:04:25.060 --> 00:04:28.540 It has an impact on our heart and our will and our actions. 00:04:29.579 --> 00:04:34.279 Like me, you may have grown somewhat weary of lockdown icebreakers, 00:04:34.339 --> 00:04:38.279 but one helpful icebreaker question from last week was this one. 00:04:38.279 --> 00:04:44.219 When restrictions end, what's the first thing you want to do? 00:04:45.539 --> 00:04:46.979 Maybe you have an answer to that. 00:04:47.659 --> 00:04:51.519 The top answer in the group that I was in was the person, in my opinion. 00:04:51.619 --> 00:04:53.619 Anyway, the person who said, I want to go home. 00:04:54.939 --> 00:04:58.599 Because I feel that, I'm sure perhaps many of us feel that. 00:04:58.659 --> 00:05:03.439 I want to go home to Sky and to see home and see family. 00:05:03.559 --> 00:05:05.139 Home has a pull on our heart, doesn't it? 00:05:05.139 --> 00:05:07.959 And that shapes our priorities at the same time. 00:05:09.119 --> 00:05:10.659 And to think a little further about that, 00:05:11.079 --> 00:05:15.539 I was thinking too about those popular signs that you find in people's houses. 00:05:15.679 --> 00:05:16.739 And maybe you have one of these, 00:05:17.159 --> 00:05:19.539 in this house or in this family we do. 00:05:19.899 --> 00:05:24.039 And then there's a list of qualities or values. 00:05:24.459 --> 00:05:27.299 Because home, it serves that purpose. 00:05:27.399 --> 00:05:33.259 It provides a set of values, beliefs, rules that we seek to live by. 00:05:33.259 --> 00:05:36.519 Now, if we take that into our letter here, 00:05:36.879 --> 00:05:40.420 Peter in the first 12 verses has been saying to them, 00:05:40.819 --> 00:05:43.879 remember, heaven is your true home. 00:05:44.599 --> 00:05:47.159 He said to them, you've been saved by God's grace. 00:05:47.160 --> 00:05:53.680 So you're able to suffer with joy because you have this spiritual inheritance. 00:05:54.320 --> 00:05:58.660 You have a treasure in heaven that God is keeping for his people. 00:05:59.080 --> 00:06:02.360 And heaven is to have a pull on our heart because it's our true home. 00:06:02.360 --> 00:06:07.080 And now in verse 13 to 21, we see a change. 00:06:07.160 --> 00:06:07.439 He says, 00:06:07.439 --> 00:06:25.860 And I think, again, Peter's message is so relevant for us today. 00:06:25.860 --> 00:06:29.860 Perhaps, like the church in that day, we find ourselves suffering. 00:06:30.000 --> 00:06:31.199 We find ourselves discouraged. 00:06:31.360 --> 00:06:33.300 Perhaps we find ourselves stressed. 00:06:34.819 --> 00:06:38.259 So if you're a Christian today and that's your situation, 00:06:39.000 --> 00:06:41.780 Peter wants to, the Spirit using this word, 00:06:42.080 --> 00:06:48.139 wants to remind you of your certain future when you're in Jesus. 00:06:48.139 --> 00:06:51.819 He wants to bring to our minds again, 00:06:52.139 --> 00:06:56.719 our relationship to God through the Lord Jesus, 00:06:57.060 --> 00:07:03.000 to give us reasons to persevere with hope and with joy because of the gospel. 00:07:03.879 --> 00:07:05.680 And again, if you're not a Christian, 00:07:05.800 --> 00:07:07.939 but you feel that you're suffering and struggling, 00:07:08.599 --> 00:07:13.639 this is a chance again to see what hope Jesus offers 00:07:13.639 --> 00:07:16.759 and how that's greater than any other hope. 00:07:16.759 --> 00:07:23.579 To hear a message of love that is bigger than any trial that we will go through, 00:07:23.699 --> 00:07:25.219 pandemic or anything else, 00:07:25.599 --> 00:07:31.839 so that you might taste for yourself God's grace in your own life. 00:07:33.719 --> 00:07:38.079 So what family values can we expect to see in these verses? 00:07:38.259 --> 00:07:40.740 We see Peter talk about hope. 00:07:41.920 --> 00:07:44.180 We see Peter talk about obedience. 00:07:44.180 --> 00:07:48.519 And we also see him talk about reverent fear. 00:07:48.900 --> 00:07:50.720 So those are the values, those are the priorities, 00:07:51.160 --> 00:07:56.060 and all the while motivated by the reality that heaven is our true home. 00:07:56.699 --> 00:07:58.840 So let's begin in verse 13, 00:07:59.439 --> 00:08:04.860 recognising that in God's family, we do hope. 00:08:04.860 --> 00:08:20.600 So the command is to build our hope on a solid foundation, 00:08:20.800 --> 00:08:23.160 which is, according to our text, 00:08:24.000 --> 00:08:25.180 future grace, 00:08:25.520 --> 00:08:27.780 grace that will come when Jesus is revealed. 00:08:27.779 --> 00:08:30.619 And this is a reminder that the return of Jesus, 00:08:30.739 --> 00:08:31.959 the second coming of Jesus, 00:08:32.279 --> 00:08:34.139 when Jesus is revealed in his glory, 00:08:34.439 --> 00:08:36.139 that's key to our good news. 00:08:36.419 --> 00:08:37.740 Now, why is that so important? 00:08:38.319 --> 00:08:39.600 Well, for us as Christians, 00:08:39.679 --> 00:08:41.319 that means it's going to be the end of our suffering. 00:08:41.779 --> 00:08:43.779 It's the end of facing opposition. 00:08:44.279 --> 00:08:48.220 It's the end of misery and sin and loss. 00:08:48.500 --> 00:08:50.659 It's going to be the entry into true life 00:08:50.659 --> 00:08:52.819 and love and joy that never ends. 00:08:52.820 --> 00:08:55.960 And all of that is going to centre around the Lord Jesus. 00:08:56.760 --> 00:09:00.020 So he's really important to our future and to our message. 00:09:01.420 --> 00:09:02.500 So that's the command, 00:09:02.640 --> 00:09:04.580 build your hope on future grace. 00:09:05.100 --> 00:09:05.940 And to help with the command, 00:09:06.040 --> 00:09:10.280 he gives us a picture of how to be obedient to that. 00:09:11.100 --> 00:09:12.700 And that's there at the beginning of verse 13, 00:09:13.140 --> 00:09:17.120 with minds that are alert and fully sober. 00:09:17.260 --> 00:09:19.020 To be alert, to be sober-minded. 00:09:19.019 --> 00:09:22.899 Imagine a soldier on high alert. 00:09:23.539 --> 00:09:26.559 We can perhaps think of the security personnel 00:09:26.559 --> 00:09:29.620 at the Capitol building for the inauguration. 00:09:30.340 --> 00:09:33.319 You can be sure that there would be no dozing off, 00:09:34.199 --> 00:09:37.759 no dulled thinking because of drink or anything else. 00:09:38.240 --> 00:09:41.379 Conscious of the danger of attack, 00:09:41.980 --> 00:09:43.620 they were to be fully alert. 00:09:43.819 --> 00:09:46.699 And Peter says that's to be true of us 00:09:46.699 --> 00:09:48.639 in our minds as Christians. 00:09:49.019 --> 00:09:51.759 So where's the danger likely to come from? 00:09:52.659 --> 00:09:54.960 Well, remember, this church is facing suffering and opposition. 00:09:55.579 --> 00:09:58.659 And those two things can steal away our hope, can't they? 00:09:59.919 --> 00:10:02.319 And then there's the devil who knows us well 00:10:02.319 --> 00:10:04.340 and he wants to tempt us, 00:10:04.960 --> 00:10:06.600 perhaps by our circumstances, 00:10:07.199 --> 00:10:08.620 to lose hope. 00:10:09.419 --> 00:10:11.500 There's that constant temptation to swap 00:10:11.500 --> 00:10:13.259 our ultimate hope in Jesus, 00:10:13.539 --> 00:10:14.360 which is eternal, 00:10:14.620 --> 00:10:16.340 for something else that is smaller 00:10:16.340 --> 00:10:17.460 and doesn't last, 00:10:17.460 --> 00:10:18.779 but we can see it and we can feel it. 00:10:18.779 --> 00:10:21.939 So Peter says we must be on our guard 00:10:21.939 --> 00:10:23.559 to guard our hope, 00:10:23.639 --> 00:10:25.699 to make sure our hope is always in the Lord Jesus. 00:10:25.919 --> 00:10:30.579 Now, how does the gospel help us to hope? 00:10:31.419 --> 00:10:34.659 Peter has shown us the wonder of all that God has done for us. 00:10:34.740 --> 00:10:35.839 He says, because of that, you obey. 00:10:36.539 --> 00:10:38.159 Because of the gospel, you can hope. 00:10:38.159 --> 00:10:39.980 So how does the gospel help us hope? 00:10:39.980 --> 00:10:42.759 Well, verse 3, if you go back to verse 3, 00:10:43.100 --> 00:10:45.219 he's already told us that in God's mercy, 00:10:45.279 --> 00:10:47.939 he has given us new birth into a living hope. 00:10:48.500 --> 00:10:51.439 Because Jesus has been raised in victory, 00:10:52.079 --> 00:10:54.459 our salvation is secure in him, 00:10:54.699 --> 00:10:56.079 we have a living hope. 00:10:56.360 --> 00:10:59.439 And we have that promise of an eternal inheritance 00:10:59.440 --> 00:11:01.480 that cannot be taken from us. 00:11:01.540 --> 00:11:03.300 And of course, verse 13 says, 00:11:03.600 --> 00:11:07.020 our ultimate hope is Jesus Christ himself. 00:11:07.080 --> 00:11:08.720 When he is revealed, 00:11:08.820 --> 00:11:09.940 our hope is from Jesus, 00:11:10.080 --> 00:11:11.060 it's in Jesus. 00:11:11.220 --> 00:11:11.980 And one day, 00:11:12.520 --> 00:11:13.540 as the people of God, 00:11:13.640 --> 00:11:15.480 our hope will become glorious reality. 00:11:15.600 --> 00:11:18.420 We will stand in the presence of Jesus, 00:11:18.560 --> 00:11:19.060 our saviour, 00:11:19.060 --> 00:11:19.980 and we can worship him 00:11:19.980 --> 00:11:21.680 and enjoy him for all eternity. 00:11:22.539 --> 00:11:23.359 So in God's family, 00:11:23.459 --> 00:11:24.059 we do hope. 00:11:24.139 --> 00:11:25.959 Now let's think about this for ourselves. 00:11:26.120 --> 00:11:26.859 Two questions. 00:11:27.879 --> 00:11:31.639 One, what's the focus of your hope? 00:11:34.159 --> 00:11:35.399 Perhaps like many, 00:11:35.519 --> 00:11:38.839 we're discovering if our hope is focused on now, 00:11:41.099 --> 00:11:43.699 that there's a tendency towards sadness and bitterness 00:11:43.699 --> 00:11:45.359 because what's happening is our idols, 00:11:45.539 --> 00:11:48.500 our dreams are crashing around us. 00:11:48.519 --> 00:11:50.059 All those things that we placed our hope in, 00:11:50.059 --> 00:11:52.559 they seem to be disappearing. 00:11:54.639 --> 00:11:56.319 Perhaps in those losses, 00:11:57.299 --> 00:11:58.599 God is reminding you 00:11:58.599 --> 00:12:00.759 that we were always made for more, 00:12:01.179 --> 00:12:02.539 that we were made for him. 00:12:03.179 --> 00:12:04.019 By contrast, 00:12:04.099 --> 00:12:05.639 if our hope is focused on Jesus, 00:12:06.219 --> 00:12:07.899 he is our treasure in heaven. 00:12:08.379 --> 00:12:10.279 That is something that is unshakable. 00:12:10.279 --> 00:12:11.859 That's a future-proof hope. 00:12:13.059 --> 00:12:15.859 So perhaps today is a time to reset, 00:12:16.459 --> 00:12:17.759 to readjust our lenses 00:12:17.759 --> 00:12:19.459 so our hope is in the Lord Jesus. 00:12:20.059 --> 00:12:20.919 Another question, 00:12:21.000 --> 00:12:22.319 what's the foundation of our hope? 00:12:22.379 --> 00:12:22.919 It's very similar. 00:12:24.879 --> 00:12:26.179 And we need to recognise, 00:12:26.259 --> 00:12:27.259 and the Bible teaches us, 00:12:27.359 --> 00:12:29.979 if the foundation that we build our life on 00:12:29.979 --> 00:12:32.019 is anything other than Jesus, 00:12:32.579 --> 00:12:34.699 we will be disappointed. 00:12:35.199 --> 00:12:37.639 We will come up empty. 00:12:37.639 --> 00:12:39.960 So whether our hope is in a vaccine, 00:12:40.639 --> 00:12:42.299 or in a politician, 00:12:43.299 --> 00:12:45.019 or in a particular relationship, 00:12:46.019 --> 00:12:48.699 none of those are big enough 00:12:48.699 --> 00:12:52.879 to hold all our hopes and dreams and longings, 00:12:52.879 --> 00:12:55.580 because they are temporary, 00:12:56.139 --> 00:12:57.559 and we are made for eternity. 00:12:58.019 --> 00:13:00.939 Only Jesus can fully satisfy. 00:13:00.940 --> 00:13:04.280 In him there is the guarantee of the world we all want, 00:13:04.340 --> 00:13:07.320 a world free of pandemic and pain and suffering 00:13:07.320 --> 00:13:11.320 and loss and grief and injustice and racism, 00:13:11.820 --> 00:13:13.540 that we don't want those things. 00:13:13.860 --> 00:13:16.260 And Jesus guarantees when he returns 00:13:16.260 --> 00:13:18.160 that those things will be no more, 00:13:18.360 --> 00:13:20.380 and all that will be left for the people of God 00:13:20.380 --> 00:13:22.560 is love and joy. 00:13:22.559 --> 00:13:25.239 And so there is an invitation to us 00:13:25.239 --> 00:13:27.500 to build our life on him. 00:13:28.899 --> 00:13:30.559 So Peter reminds the church, 00:13:30.659 --> 00:13:32.199 he reminds us that hope is vital 00:13:32.199 --> 00:13:34.459 to our Christian life to keep us going, 00:13:34.559 --> 00:13:35.839 and it's vital to our witness 00:13:35.839 --> 00:13:36.679 that people should see 00:13:36.679 --> 00:13:38.399 there's something different about us, 00:13:38.439 --> 00:13:41.079 because we're not consumed by now 00:13:41.079 --> 00:13:42.019 and all that's wrong. 00:13:42.099 --> 00:13:43.959 We're consumed by hope in eternity 00:13:43.959 --> 00:13:45.219 and by our Lord Jesus. 00:13:45.739 --> 00:13:47.459 But that's not the only priority 00:13:47.459 --> 00:13:49.919 that he presents to us, 00:13:50.099 --> 00:13:51.219 the only family value. 00:13:51.220 --> 00:13:54.340 The next one we find in verses 14 to 16. 00:13:55.779 --> 00:13:56.480 And it's this. 00:13:56.639 --> 00:14:00.060 In God's family, we do obedience. 00:14:01.340 --> 00:14:02.420 The command is there, 00:14:02.639 --> 00:14:03.720 as obedient children, 00:14:04.340 --> 00:14:06.740 do not conform to the evil desires you had 00:14:06.740 --> 00:14:07.980 when you lived in ignorance, 00:14:08.259 --> 00:14:10.100 but just as he who called you is holy, 00:14:10.500 --> 00:14:12.300 so be holy in all you do. 00:14:12.360 --> 00:14:15.519 We are commanded to be obedient to our holy God. 00:14:16.560 --> 00:14:18.080 And Peter's readers are being told, 00:14:18.180 --> 00:14:19.399 look, don't conform. 00:14:19.399 --> 00:14:23.179 Don't go back to those old evil desires 00:14:23.179 --> 00:14:25.980 that you had while you were ignorant of God 00:14:25.980 --> 00:14:28.120 and of God's salvation and God's goodness. 00:14:28.240 --> 00:14:29.899 Don't go back to those days. 00:14:30.379 --> 00:14:31.840 Rather, be transformed 00:14:31.840 --> 00:14:35.240 by the holiness of God 00:14:35.240 --> 00:14:37.360 to want to live and to be like him. 00:14:37.360 --> 00:14:38.740 And that's a reminder 00:14:38.740 --> 00:14:41.680 that the people of God in every generation, 00:14:42.740 --> 00:14:44.159 those who love God, 00:14:44.539 --> 00:14:46.279 we are also to love God's law 00:14:46.279 --> 00:14:48.740 because we recognise the law of God 00:14:48.740 --> 00:14:51.379 is a reflection of God's perfect character. 00:14:52.240 --> 00:14:54.659 Therefore, it comes to us as a good gift, 00:14:55.139 --> 00:14:56.960 showing us how we might live, 00:14:57.080 --> 00:15:00.519 setting safe limits for our lives, 00:15:00.700 --> 00:15:03.000 that life goes well when we live within 00:15:03.000 --> 00:15:05.860 those boundaries that our creator sets for us. 00:15:05.860 --> 00:15:08.620 And Peter says to his readers, 00:15:09.019 --> 00:15:11.279 remember, you are called by a holy God, 00:15:11.759 --> 00:15:13.279 a God who is without sin, 00:15:13.820 --> 00:15:15.580 a God who is perfectly pure, 00:15:16.399 --> 00:15:18.800 a God who is in a different moral category to us. 00:15:19.080 --> 00:15:21.180 And you've been called by a holy God to be holy, 00:15:22.039 --> 00:15:24.080 that we have been set apart 00:15:24.080 --> 00:15:27.460 so that we might live for him. 00:15:27.919 --> 00:15:28.860 So that's the command. 00:15:28.960 --> 00:15:30.340 And then again, he gives us a picture 00:15:30.340 --> 00:15:33.300 to help us to think about what that looks like. 00:15:33.340 --> 00:15:34.860 And the picture in verse 14 00:15:34.860 --> 00:15:37.100 is of children in a family. 00:15:37.460 --> 00:15:40.560 It's as obedient children that we are to do this. 00:15:40.639 --> 00:15:42.620 So think with me of adoption. 00:15:42.740 --> 00:15:46.160 What happens in the adoption process to a child? 00:15:46.280 --> 00:15:46.759 Well, a child, 00:15:47.080 --> 00:15:51.019 there's that legal transfer of status. 00:15:52.300 --> 00:15:54.120 So they are now in a new family. 00:15:54.120 --> 00:15:55.659 They have a new surname 00:15:55.659 --> 00:16:00.159 and that new surname also brings a new home 00:16:00.159 --> 00:16:03.419 and that home brings a new set of values and beliefs. 00:16:03.879 --> 00:16:05.419 Now they have a new sign in their kitchen 00:16:05.419 --> 00:16:06.779 in this family, we do. 00:16:08.659 --> 00:16:11.139 And Peter says the same thing is true for a Christian. 00:16:11.639 --> 00:16:13.299 We have a new family. 00:16:13.500 --> 00:16:15.779 God has adopted us through the work of Jesus. 00:16:15.779 --> 00:16:19.199 And now we have this lifetime, 00:16:20.240 --> 00:16:24.120 a lifelong process of living out our new identity, 00:16:24.120 --> 00:16:28.079 which involves us learning what is God's will. 00:16:28.659 --> 00:16:30.279 What does the Bible teach for how to live? 00:16:30.659 --> 00:16:33.839 And that we'd be growing in our obedience. 00:16:35.600 --> 00:16:37.679 And again, bear in mind how much he said 00:16:37.679 --> 00:16:39.120 about the gospel previously. 00:16:39.500 --> 00:16:43.919 How does the gospel help us to obey? 00:16:43.919 --> 00:16:46.379 Well, first of all, 00:16:46.759 --> 00:16:48.939 it is a reminder to us 00:16:48.939 --> 00:16:52.379 that our obedience must be fuelled and empowered 00:16:52.379 --> 00:16:54.740 by the grace of God, 00:16:55.399 --> 00:16:56.799 not by our own efforts. 00:16:57.719 --> 00:16:59.939 We can go right back to the beginning of the letter. 00:17:00.639 --> 00:17:02.919 Peter in verse one calls them elect exiles, 00:17:03.019 --> 00:17:04.079 those who've been chosen. 00:17:04.740 --> 00:17:05.579 And then in verse two, 00:17:06.159 --> 00:17:08.420 we're reminded that we're saved by the Trinity, 00:17:08.639 --> 00:17:10.559 chosen by the Father, 00:17:11.039 --> 00:17:12.399 sanctified by the Spirit, 00:17:12.400 --> 00:17:14.240 sprinkled by the blood of Jesus, 00:17:15.040 --> 00:17:17.220 all of those gracious acts of God 00:17:17.220 --> 00:17:21.420 in order to be obedient to Jesus Christ, 00:17:21.540 --> 00:17:24.320 saved by grace for obedience. 00:17:25.360 --> 00:17:28.300 Not the case that we're saved by grace 00:17:28.300 --> 00:17:30.040 and then the rest of our life, 00:17:30.100 --> 00:17:31.500 we have to roll up our own sleeves 00:17:31.500 --> 00:17:33.420 and work really hard to try and please God. 00:17:33.420 --> 00:17:37.279 No, there's grace from God to save us 00:17:37.279 --> 00:17:41.120 and to help us in our day-to-day obedience. 00:17:42.380 --> 00:17:45.400 So the gospel promises grace to help us to obey. 00:17:45.840 --> 00:17:47.519 But also at the heart of the gospel, 00:17:47.660 --> 00:17:48.259 who do we have? 00:17:48.300 --> 00:17:48.940 We have Jesus. 00:17:49.100 --> 00:17:49.960 And who is Jesus? 00:17:50.860 --> 00:17:54.039 Jesus is the holy God. 00:17:55.039 --> 00:17:56.259 So Jesus, therefore, 00:17:56.380 --> 00:17:58.160 is for us the perfect model 00:17:58.160 --> 00:17:59.620 of what a holy life looks like. 00:17:59.619 --> 00:18:03.039 So you might think instinctively holiness, 00:18:03.199 --> 00:18:05.039 it seems dull perhaps, 00:18:05.159 --> 00:18:06.179 sounds outdated, 00:18:06.539 --> 00:18:07.859 sounds like for another generation, 00:18:08.000 --> 00:18:11.319 until we recognise Jesus was holy. 00:18:12.839 --> 00:18:14.739 And we would never surely call Jesus 00:18:14.739 --> 00:18:16.299 like dull and unattractive. 00:18:16.379 --> 00:18:20.459 Rather, everybody was attracted to Jesus, 00:18:20.979 --> 00:18:23.339 barring the sort of legalistic people 00:18:23.339 --> 00:18:25.639 who thought they were already right with God. 00:18:25.859 --> 00:18:28.039 People throughout history attracted to Jesus. 00:18:28.039 --> 00:18:31.379 His is the pattern of what a beautiful 00:18:31.379 --> 00:18:33.720 and good life looks like. 00:18:34.180 --> 00:18:36.319 So he is the model of holiness for us to follow. 00:18:36.440 --> 00:18:39.299 And also he is the one who dies to make sinners holy. 00:18:40.119 --> 00:18:41.519 So he is our model, 00:18:41.819 --> 00:18:44.440 but he's also the foundation for our holiness. 00:18:46.539 --> 00:18:50.220 So in thinking then about obedience in our own lives, 00:18:51.399 --> 00:18:53.740 a couple of things to say. 00:18:53.859 --> 00:18:55.920 First of all, if you're not a Christian, 00:18:55.920 --> 00:18:59.539 it's really of critical importance 00:18:59.539 --> 00:19:04.380 that we understand the order that the Bible teaches, 00:19:05.060 --> 00:19:08.100 that we are saved by God's grace 00:19:08.100 --> 00:19:11.200 and only then are we able to obey. 00:19:12.360 --> 00:19:15.320 Christianity is unique in this. 00:19:15.820 --> 00:19:17.480 It is a rescue religion. 00:19:17.860 --> 00:19:19.920 It's a religion rooted in God's grace. 00:19:19.920 --> 00:19:22.800 It doesn't say be a good person. 00:19:23.460 --> 00:19:25.880 And if you're good enough, God will accept you. 00:19:25.960 --> 00:19:27.180 No, it says you're a sinner. 00:19:27.300 --> 00:19:27.960 We're all sinners. 00:19:28.660 --> 00:19:31.019 And God, by his love and his grace, 00:19:31.680 --> 00:19:33.180 rescues sinners. 00:19:33.800 --> 00:19:35.820 And if we get that order wrong, 00:19:36.440 --> 00:19:40.060 you will find yourself on an exhausting treadmill. 00:19:40.200 --> 00:19:41.340 I want to know God. 00:19:41.420 --> 00:19:42.759 I want to be close to God. 00:19:42.820 --> 00:19:44.519 I need to keep doing and doing and doing. 00:19:44.519 --> 00:19:46.019 And you're working, but you're getting nowhere. 00:19:46.019 --> 00:19:48.379 Oh, it's like to use another one. 00:19:48.460 --> 00:19:50.400 It's like you're climbing a ladder. 00:19:50.960 --> 00:19:53.500 I want to reach up to God. 00:19:53.579 --> 00:19:55.559 And so I'm going to do all kinds of good 00:19:55.559 --> 00:19:56.440 and religious things. 00:19:56.460 --> 00:19:58.619 But it's like you're leaning on a ladder, 00:19:58.740 --> 00:20:00.660 but the ladder is not leaning on a wall. 00:20:00.700 --> 00:20:02.819 And so eventually you will crash. 00:20:03.180 --> 00:20:04.019 Because by ourselves, 00:20:04.019 --> 00:20:05.779 we can never be good enough for God. 00:20:06.879 --> 00:20:08.819 So it's so important for us to realise that. 00:20:09.019 --> 00:20:11.079 So we would trust in the only one who is perfect. 00:20:11.079 --> 00:20:14.099 We trust in Jesus to be our saviour. 00:20:14.099 --> 00:20:17.419 But then if we're Christians, 00:20:18.279 --> 00:20:19.899 to think about our own obedience, 00:20:20.000 --> 00:20:23.219 let me borrow from the title of a Kevin DeYoung book, 00:20:23.279 --> 00:20:24.079 which we're going to study 00:20:24.079 --> 00:20:26.000 as some of our younger guys in Bucleu, 00:20:26.500 --> 00:20:27.959 to ask the question, 00:20:28.139 --> 00:20:32.379 is there a hole in our holiness? 00:20:33.759 --> 00:20:35.559 DeYoung in his book argues that 00:20:35.559 --> 00:20:37.779 there is a danger in the modern church 00:20:37.779 --> 00:20:40.299 of being light on sin, 00:20:40.299 --> 00:20:44.319 that we want to blend in rather than stand out. 00:20:44.419 --> 00:20:46.859 And so we don't talk about obedience. 00:20:48.319 --> 00:20:49.799 And there is a danger in that. 00:20:49.899 --> 00:20:52.779 There's a danger of presuming on God's grace 00:20:52.779 --> 00:20:56.339 and of forgetting that the pattern has always been 00:20:56.339 --> 00:20:58.700 saved by grace in order to obey. 00:20:58.799 --> 00:21:00.980 We've been called to put on the family likeness. 00:21:01.079 --> 00:21:02.279 We've been called to holiness. 00:21:02.279 --> 00:21:05.639 And so we need to examine ourselves 00:21:05.639 --> 00:21:08.299 and to ask that God, by his grace, 00:21:08.819 --> 00:21:13.099 would encourage us towards willing and glad obedience. 00:21:15.099 --> 00:21:16.339 And before we move on, 00:21:16.480 --> 00:21:21.279 to see for all of us that our hope lies in Jesus. 00:21:21.279 --> 00:21:26.039 Think with me for a moment of the Grand Canyon. 00:21:26.299 --> 00:21:29.079 This is the biggest chasm or gulf, I guess, 00:21:29.200 --> 00:21:31.000 that we can think of easily. 00:21:31.319 --> 00:21:33.240 Whoever we are, we've probably heard of the Grand Canyon. 00:21:33.859 --> 00:21:36.359 And imagine that as a picture of the huge gulf 00:21:36.359 --> 00:21:38.899 that there is between the perfectly holy God 00:21:38.899 --> 00:21:41.059 and us as sinful people. 00:21:42.039 --> 00:21:43.539 Now, if we want to get to God, 00:21:43.619 --> 00:21:46.579 there is no way that we can jump that gap. 00:21:46.660 --> 00:21:48.480 There's no way by our effort we're getting there. 00:21:48.480 --> 00:21:51.720 The gospel, the good news at the heart of the Bible 00:21:51.720 --> 00:21:56.220 is that God, through Jesus, has bridged that gap. 00:21:56.519 --> 00:21:58.120 Jesus has become one of us, 00:21:58.180 --> 00:21:59.759 lived the perfect life we couldn't. 00:22:00.180 --> 00:22:02.740 He has then died on the cross for sin 00:22:02.740 --> 00:22:04.700 so that through faith in him, 00:22:05.660 --> 00:22:07.660 we have access to God. 00:22:08.500 --> 00:22:12.500 We are brought into the family of God. 00:22:13.140 --> 00:22:14.920 And so for each of us, 00:22:14.920 --> 00:22:19.180 we need our trust to be in our perfectly obedient, 00:22:19.660 --> 00:22:21.060 sacrificial saviour. 00:22:22.360 --> 00:22:25.160 And that as we are saved by him, 00:22:25.519 --> 00:22:27.100 we would turn from our sin 00:22:27.100 --> 00:22:30.880 and day by day seek with his help 00:22:30.880 --> 00:22:33.080 to be walking in obedience. 00:22:35.039 --> 00:22:37.160 Now, there's one last priority, 00:22:37.420 --> 00:22:40.180 one last family value. 00:22:40.180 --> 00:22:43.340 Perhaps it's a surprising one. 00:22:43.820 --> 00:22:44.740 Verse 17, 00:22:44.920 --> 00:22:45.940 in God's family, 00:22:46.240 --> 00:22:49.019 we do reverent fear. 00:22:50.539 --> 00:22:51.700 Since you call on a father 00:22:51.700 --> 00:22:54.060 who judges each person's work impartially, 00:22:54.600 --> 00:22:56.920 live out your time as foreigners here 00:22:56.920 --> 00:22:58.860 in reverent fear. 00:22:59.200 --> 00:23:01.360 Christians are commanded to fear God. 00:23:01.460 --> 00:23:02.480 The fear of the Lord, we're told, 00:23:02.539 --> 00:23:03.519 is the beginning of wisdom. 00:23:03.940 --> 00:23:04.680 What does that mean? 00:23:04.740 --> 00:23:05.880 What does that not mean? 00:23:06.620 --> 00:23:08.480 And how can our fear, 00:23:08.580 --> 00:23:09.380 having a right fear, 00:23:09.440 --> 00:23:10.820 how can that fuel our obedience? 00:23:12.660 --> 00:23:13.660 Michael Reeves, 00:23:14.000 --> 00:23:16.540 a theologian, 00:23:16.580 --> 00:23:17.460 has written a new book 00:23:17.460 --> 00:23:18.400 on the fear of the Lord. 00:23:18.560 --> 00:23:20.240 And to borrow from that, 00:23:21.040 --> 00:23:22.280 by way of definition, 00:23:22.780 --> 00:23:24.140 he says something along these lines, 00:23:24.240 --> 00:23:25.640 that the fear of the Lord, 00:23:25.720 --> 00:23:26.420 the fear of God, 00:23:26.500 --> 00:23:28.320 is a positive wondering, 00:23:29.020 --> 00:23:30.100 a sense of amazement, 00:23:30.580 --> 00:23:32.060 at who God is 00:23:32.060 --> 00:23:34.020 in all of his perfections. 00:23:34.680 --> 00:23:35.240 That's the fear 00:23:35.240 --> 00:23:36.319 that's the beginning of wisdom. 00:23:36.720 --> 00:23:37.519 It's not, 00:23:37.720 --> 00:23:39.019 there's a wrong way to fear, 00:23:39.559 --> 00:23:40.859 and there's a fear that's dread. 00:23:41.480 --> 00:23:42.960 Think of Adam and Eve in the garden, 00:23:43.079 --> 00:23:43.740 they sinned, 00:23:44.180 --> 00:23:45.359 and so they're hiding from God, 00:23:45.420 --> 00:23:47.200 they fear God as judge. 00:23:47.900 --> 00:23:49.879 That's not the fear that's in mind here. 00:23:50.519 --> 00:23:51.740 The fear that's in mind here 00:23:51.740 --> 00:23:53.099 is an awe, 00:23:53.220 --> 00:23:55.139 a sense of wonder at God's goodness. 00:23:55.900 --> 00:23:57.660 It's like we read in Deuteronomy 6, 00:23:57.720 --> 00:23:58.740 the people of God are called 00:23:58.740 --> 00:23:59.720 at one and the same time 00:23:59.720 --> 00:24:01.100 to fear God 00:24:01.100 --> 00:24:04.180 and to love God. 00:24:04.460 --> 00:24:06.360 To recognise his goodness 00:24:06.360 --> 00:24:07.620 is to have a sense of wonder, 00:24:07.740 --> 00:24:08.940 but also a sense of love 00:24:08.940 --> 00:24:10.880 and gratitude at the same time. 00:24:11.900 --> 00:24:12.960 So Peter's message 00:24:12.960 --> 00:24:14.600 to a suffering church 00:24:14.600 --> 00:24:17.480 is that they will stand firm 00:24:17.480 --> 00:24:19.539 and live with hope and joy 00:24:19.539 --> 00:24:21.920 as they have a high view 00:24:21.920 --> 00:24:24.120 of the glory of God, 00:24:24.620 --> 00:24:26.720 as they seek to honour him 00:24:26.720 --> 00:24:28.759 above all. 00:24:29.779 --> 00:24:31.299 The picture of obedience 00:24:31.299 --> 00:24:35.279 is the idea of living out our time 00:24:35.279 --> 00:24:36.620 as foreigners. 00:24:36.799 --> 00:24:38.819 It's the exile theme again. 00:24:39.400 --> 00:24:42.779 To live with a distinct set of values 00:24:42.779 --> 00:24:44.279 and beliefs and practices 00:24:44.279 --> 00:24:46.660 that mark out a person as different, 00:24:46.759 --> 00:24:48.759 that in a sense create a barrier. 00:24:49.579 --> 00:24:51.339 And those values don't shift. 00:24:51.660 --> 00:24:52.180 For a Christian, 00:24:52.299 --> 00:24:53.620 those values come from God, 00:24:53.920 --> 00:24:55.339 come from heaven being our home 00:24:55.339 --> 00:24:56.779 and we want to make him number one 00:24:56.779 --> 00:24:57.359 in our life. 00:24:58.859 --> 00:24:59.299 Perhaps, 00:25:00.379 --> 00:25:01.259 maybe some of us, 00:25:01.399 --> 00:25:02.299 maybe we have this 00:25:02.299 --> 00:25:03.319 by personal experience, 00:25:03.439 --> 00:25:04.179 but for me, 00:25:04.559 --> 00:25:05.579 it might be helpful 00:25:05.579 --> 00:25:07.659 to think of Scottish communities 00:25:07.659 --> 00:25:09.720 in Canada or Australia 00:25:09.720 --> 00:25:11.079 who, 00:25:11.659 --> 00:25:12.839 despite having been away 00:25:12.839 --> 00:25:13.539 from their homeland 00:25:13.539 --> 00:25:14.339 for generations, 00:25:14.539 --> 00:25:15.419 still keep up 00:25:15.419 --> 00:25:16.759 the Gaelic language, 00:25:16.980 --> 00:25:17.679 still have 00:25:17.679 --> 00:25:18.919 Highland Games 00:25:18.919 --> 00:25:20.019 and still celebrate 00:25:20.019 --> 00:25:21.659 Scottish culture 00:25:21.659 --> 00:25:22.919 because their heart 00:25:22.919 --> 00:25:23.919 is fixed on home. 00:25:23.920 --> 00:25:25.100 For Christians, 00:25:25.259 --> 00:25:26.440 our heart should be fixed 00:25:26.440 --> 00:25:27.100 on heaven 00:25:27.100 --> 00:25:28.259 where Jesus is 00:25:28.259 --> 00:25:29.800 and we should then live 00:25:29.800 --> 00:25:32.060 with the culture of heaven. 00:25:34.740 --> 00:25:36.740 Surrounded by different beliefs 00:25:36.740 --> 00:25:37.519 and values, 00:25:37.940 --> 00:25:38.440 we are, 00:25:38.600 --> 00:25:39.740 the Church of Peter's Day was, 00:25:40.279 --> 00:25:42.200 with a world trying to squeeze us 00:25:42.200 --> 00:25:43.400 into its moulds, 00:25:44.000 --> 00:25:45.580 the Roman Empire was doing that 00:25:45.580 --> 00:25:47.100 just as much as secular culture 00:25:47.100 --> 00:25:48.340 is doing that to us today. 00:25:48.339 --> 00:25:50.720 We are called to stand firm, 00:25:51.159 --> 00:25:52.500 recognising our home, 00:25:52.659 --> 00:25:53.179 our passport, 00:25:53.319 --> 00:25:53.980 our identity 00:25:53.980 --> 00:25:55.679 is in heaven. 00:25:56.799 --> 00:25:57.759 Two motivations 00:25:57.759 --> 00:25:58.439 are provided 00:25:58.439 --> 00:25:59.179 to help us. 00:25:59.279 --> 00:25:59.819 The first, 00:26:00.459 --> 00:26:01.500 as we already mentioned, 00:26:01.679 --> 00:26:02.879 was that of fear. 00:26:04.359 --> 00:26:05.179 Peter reminds them, 00:26:05.259 --> 00:26:06.819 God is your Father 00:26:06.819 --> 00:26:08.459 and your Judge. 00:26:08.639 --> 00:26:09.179 There is, 00:26:09.539 --> 00:26:10.599 in our relationship with God, 00:26:10.679 --> 00:26:11.619 both intimacy 00:26:11.619 --> 00:26:13.220 and awe. 00:26:13.519 --> 00:26:14.240 That sense that, 00:26:14.359 --> 00:26:15.319 I want to please 00:26:15.319 --> 00:26:16.199 my Father, 00:26:16.200 --> 00:26:17.319 I want to honour Him, 00:26:18.059 --> 00:26:19.039 I want to recognise 00:26:19.039 --> 00:26:20.559 I am accountable to God, 00:26:20.620 --> 00:26:23.460 I stand under His authority 00:26:23.460 --> 00:26:25.200 and that He will judge 00:26:25.200 --> 00:26:26.299 all of us 00:26:26.299 --> 00:26:26.940 on the basis 00:26:26.940 --> 00:26:28.620 of our works 00:26:28.620 --> 00:26:29.580 and so we want to live 00:26:29.580 --> 00:26:30.680 to honour Him. 00:26:31.960 --> 00:26:33.840 Now the Gospel says, 00:26:34.680 --> 00:26:35.620 in Christ, 00:26:36.779 --> 00:26:37.740 if we're trusting in Jesus, 00:26:37.880 --> 00:26:39.080 our verdict is secure. 00:26:40.759 --> 00:26:42.759 We can have a sense of fear 00:26:42.759 --> 00:26:43.539 as wonder 00:26:43.539 --> 00:26:44.100 when we think about 00:26:44.100 --> 00:26:44.759 the Judgment Day 00:26:44.759 --> 00:26:45.440 because we know 00:26:45.440 --> 00:26:46.980 Jesus obeyed the law 00:26:46.980 --> 00:26:47.660 on our behalf, 00:26:48.019 --> 00:26:49.019 Jesus satisfied 00:26:49.019 --> 00:26:50.220 the justice of God 00:26:50.220 --> 00:26:50.820 at the cross 00:26:50.820 --> 00:26:51.700 on our behalf 00:26:51.700 --> 00:26:53.059 and so we know 00:26:53.059 --> 00:26:53.779 that our verdict 00:26:53.779 --> 00:26:54.840 is that we will receive 00:26:54.840 --> 00:26:55.660 eternal life 00:26:55.660 --> 00:26:56.880 as a gift from God. 00:26:57.900 --> 00:26:58.960 But fear is still 00:26:58.960 --> 00:26:59.860 that motivation. 00:27:00.340 --> 00:27:01.759 I don't want to despise 00:27:01.759 --> 00:27:02.620 the work of Jesus. 00:27:03.380 --> 00:27:04.779 I don't want to dishonour 00:27:04.779 --> 00:27:06.220 my Father 00:27:06.220 --> 00:27:08.320 by failing to live for Him 00:27:08.320 --> 00:27:09.799 and failing to represent Him. 00:27:10.660 --> 00:27:12.440 But there's a second motivation, 00:27:12.640 --> 00:27:13.000 there's fear, 00:27:13.100 --> 00:27:14.759 but there's also love. 00:27:15.440 --> 00:27:17.660 love because God 00:27:17.660 --> 00:27:20.059 is our Redeemer. 00:27:20.059 --> 00:27:22.319 all we have, 00:27:22.779 --> 00:27:24.599 all we are 00:27:24.599 --> 00:27:25.819 as Christians, 00:27:25.940 --> 00:27:27.720 we owe to our God. 00:27:28.419 --> 00:27:30.019 He has sent Jesus 00:27:30.019 --> 00:27:31.359 to redeem us 00:27:31.359 --> 00:27:33.299 at the cost of His own blood. 00:27:33.879 --> 00:27:35.179 The people in Peter's day, 00:27:35.279 --> 00:27:36.720 they hear redemption language, 00:27:36.839 --> 00:27:38.019 they might think of a slave 00:27:38.019 --> 00:27:39.139 and the price paid 00:27:39.139 --> 00:27:39.779 to release them 00:27:39.779 --> 00:27:40.720 or a prisoner of war 00:27:40.720 --> 00:27:41.480 and the price paid 00:27:41.480 --> 00:27:42.099 to release them 00:27:42.099 --> 00:27:43.940 or Old Testament Israel 00:27:43.940 --> 00:27:47.120 and the Passover lamb, 00:27:47.200 --> 00:27:47.920 that sacrifice 00:27:47.920 --> 00:27:48.840 that ultimately 00:27:48.840 --> 00:27:50.059 that saw them released 00:27:50.059 --> 00:27:51.440 to become the people of God. 00:27:52.000 --> 00:27:52.500 Peter is saying, 00:27:52.580 --> 00:27:53.059 remember, 00:27:53.539 --> 00:27:54.279 God in His love 00:27:54.279 --> 00:27:55.200 gave His Son 00:27:55.200 --> 00:27:57.240 as a sacrifice. 00:27:58.420 --> 00:27:59.380 God raised 00:27:59.380 --> 00:28:00.880 and glorified Jesus 00:28:00.880 --> 00:28:02.279 for you 00:28:02.279 --> 00:28:03.700 is the message 00:28:03.700 --> 00:28:04.539 that Peter brings 00:28:04.539 --> 00:28:05.000 to the church. 00:28:05.500 --> 00:28:06.500 And when we think about that, 00:28:06.500 --> 00:28:08.319 in light of the Father's love 00:28:08.319 --> 00:28:09.660 in sending Jesus, 00:28:10.359 --> 00:28:11.900 in light of Jesus' love 00:28:11.900 --> 00:28:13.420 in becoming our Redeemer, 00:28:13.940 --> 00:28:15.619 how could we not love 00:28:15.619 --> 00:28:17.579 and honour God above all? 00:28:19.079 --> 00:28:21.319 How can the values 00:28:21.319 --> 00:28:22.220 of the world 00:28:22.220 --> 00:28:22.500 dominate 00:28:23.039 --> 00:28:24.619 rather than 00:28:24.619 --> 00:28:27.400 loving and honouring God? 00:28:27.400 --> 00:28:29.880 We need to ask ourselves, 00:28:30.000 --> 00:28:31.440 do we have a sense of wonder 00:28:31.440 --> 00:28:33.480 at God's perfections, 00:28:33.740 --> 00:28:34.800 at the gospel? 00:28:35.759 --> 00:28:36.440 This is how, 00:28:36.580 --> 00:28:36.900 as a church, 00:28:36.980 --> 00:28:38.440 we will stand out 00:28:38.440 --> 00:28:40.820 and we will stand firm 00:28:40.820 --> 00:28:42.040 in our hope. 00:28:43.860 --> 00:28:45.340 So to sum this all up, 00:28:45.420 --> 00:28:46.259 Peter's message, 00:28:46.400 --> 00:28:46.860 in a sense, 00:28:46.860 --> 00:28:47.400 is this, 00:28:47.840 --> 00:28:48.940 let home 00:28:48.940 --> 00:28:50.940 shape your hope 00:28:50.940 --> 00:28:53.180 and your holiness. 00:28:55.000 --> 00:28:56.300 Be so sure 00:28:56.299 --> 00:28:57.299 of your identity 00:28:57.299 --> 00:28:58.000 in Christ 00:28:58.000 --> 00:28:58.859 and your future 00:28:58.859 --> 00:28:59.559 in heaven 00:28:59.559 --> 00:29:00.740 that you live 00:29:00.740 --> 00:29:01.180 as people 00:29:01.180 --> 00:29:02.299 who hope 00:29:02.299 --> 00:29:03.680 in the Lord Jesus 00:29:03.680 --> 00:29:05.339 and who want to be 00:29:05.339 --> 00:29:05.940 holy 00:29:05.940 --> 00:29:06.960 and obedient 00:29:06.960 --> 00:29:08.460 to the Lord Jesus. 00:29:10.480 --> 00:29:11.940 I was listening 00:29:11.940 --> 00:29:12.519 to 00:29:12.519 --> 00:29:14.180 a short 00:29:14.180 --> 00:29:14.940 message 00:29:14.940 --> 00:29:16.180 from Rico Tice 00:29:16.180 --> 00:29:17.419 who's based 00:29:17.419 --> 00:29:18.159 down in All Souls 00:29:18.159 --> 00:29:18.599 in London. 00:29:18.919 --> 00:29:19.940 He organised 00:29:19.940 --> 00:29:20.440 the Christianity 00:29:20.440 --> 00:29:21.519 Explored courses 00:29:21.519 --> 00:29:22.779 and he said 00:29:22.779 --> 00:29:23.460 something like this. 00:29:23.519 --> 00:29:23.759 He said, 00:29:24.119 --> 00:29:25.119 before the pandemic, 00:29:25.119 --> 00:29:27.639 London had its back 00:29:27.639 --> 00:29:28.959 to our church 00:29:28.959 --> 00:29:30.579 but now 00:29:30.579 --> 00:29:32.379 it is looking 00:29:32.379 --> 00:29:33.419 to our church 00:29:33.419 --> 00:29:34.639 for answers 00:29:34.639 --> 00:29:35.739 and hope. 00:29:37.939 --> 00:29:39.299 What have we got 00:29:39.299 --> 00:29:41.239 as the Christian church? 00:29:41.719 --> 00:29:42.359 Peter says, 00:29:42.619 --> 00:29:43.359 remember you have 00:29:43.359 --> 00:29:44.459 a living hope, 00:29:45.079 --> 00:29:46.059 a hope that will be 00:29:46.059 --> 00:29:47.139 fully realised 00:29:47.139 --> 00:29:47.839 when the risen 00:29:47.839 --> 00:29:48.599 and glorified 00:29:48.599 --> 00:29:49.659 Jesus returns. 00:29:50.219 --> 00:29:51.239 So all our hope 00:29:51.239 --> 00:29:52.419 is not in the here 00:29:52.419 --> 00:29:53.119 and the now 00:29:53.119 --> 00:29:54.219 so we live 00:29:54.219 --> 00:29:55.000 with meaning 00:29:55.000 --> 00:29:55.519 and purpose 00:29:55.519 --> 00:29:56.259 and value 00:29:56.259 --> 00:29:57.379 that goes beyond 00:29:57.379 --> 00:29:58.519 whatever's going 00:29:58.519 --> 00:29:59.239 on right now 00:29:59.239 --> 00:30:00.579 and 00:30:00.579 --> 00:30:02.139 we have 00:30:02.139 --> 00:30:03.239 a true fear, 00:30:03.339 --> 00:30:04.359 the right fear 00:30:04.359 --> 00:30:05.679 that eclipses 00:30:05.679 --> 00:30:06.979 all other fears 00:30:06.979 --> 00:30:08.319 because we have 00:30:08.319 --> 00:30:09.799 that sense of fear 00:30:09.799 --> 00:30:10.819 as wonder 00:30:10.819 --> 00:30:12.879 of who God is 00:30:12.879 --> 00:30:13.659 and what God has done 00:30:13.659 --> 00:30:14.479 for us in Jesus 00:30:14.479 --> 00:30:16.659 and that's a message 00:30:16.659 --> 00:30:17.159 of hope 00:30:17.159 --> 00:30:18.059 to an anxious, 00:30:18.579 --> 00:30:19.039 hurting, 00:30:19.719 --> 00:30:20.539 stressed out 00:30:20.539 --> 00:30:21.859 and confused world 00:30:21.859 --> 00:30:24.099 that to know 00:30:24.099 --> 00:30:25.319 and enjoy 00:30:25.319 --> 00:30:26.779 the glory of God, 00:30:26.859 --> 00:30:27.779 the goodness of God, 00:30:27.859 --> 00:30:28.759 the gift of God 00:30:28.759 --> 00:30:29.879 in sending Jesus 00:30:29.879 --> 00:30:30.980 to be the saviour 00:30:30.980 --> 00:30:31.599 of the world 00:30:31.599 --> 00:30:33.659 in knowing that 00:30:33.659 --> 00:30:34.899 there is deep security, 00:30:35.619 --> 00:30:36.839 there is deep joy, 00:30:37.420 --> 00:30:38.359 there is deep peace 00:30:38.359 --> 00:30:39.659 that no circumstance 00:30:39.659 --> 00:30:40.519 can remove. 00:30:41.680 --> 00:30:43.079 It gives us joy 00:30:43.079 --> 00:30:45.440 to live as God's children 00:30:45.440 --> 00:30:46.379 in the world, 00:30:46.799 --> 00:30:48.359 to live as hopeful, 00:30:48.359 --> 00:30:51.240 obedient children 00:30:51.240 --> 00:30:53.000 honouring our Father 00:30:53.000 --> 00:30:54.139 who has done so much 00:30:54.139 --> 00:30:54.679 for us 00:30:54.679 --> 00:30:56.279 in giving us Jesus. 00:30:56.500 --> 00:30:57.599 Those are the family 00:30:57.599 --> 00:30:58.759 priorities 00:30:58.759 --> 00:31:00.919 that Peter reminds us of. 00:31:00.920 --> 00:31:11.640 from the world 00:31:12.140 --> 00:31:14.140 in all 00:31:14.140 --> 00:31:16.100 as little residents 00:31:16.240 --> 00:31:17.480 who have been 00:31:17.600 --> 00:31:18.740 out of reuse 00:31:18.960 --> 00:31:19.240 with our number 00:31:19.480 --> 00:31:20.620 of sealed 00:31:20.640 --> 00:31:21.920 and PLUS 00:31:22.140 --> 00:31:23.420 indad 00:31:26.120 --> 00:31:28.580 through