Sermon Tone Analysis

*BE SECURE THROUGH SUFFERING*

*July 24, 2005*

 

*Introduction*: A letter from a loved one means a lot at any time but especially so if you’re lonely, discouraged or depressed.

Peter’s first letter was written to uplift and encourage people who were hurting and suffering, people who were being ridiculed and persecuted because they lived for Jesus Christ.

His words of encouragement lightened their burden and made their pathway clear.

Throughout the Roman Empire believers had been attacked and were being savagely persecuted—so much so that they had been forced to flee for their lives.

They had been forced to leave everything behind: homes, property, estates, businesses, jobs, money, church, friends, and fellow believers.

Believers had apparently taken their families and what belongings they could carry and fled for their lives.

Peter is writing to five Roman provinces where most of the believers had apparently tried to hide and find safety.

But note how the church is continuing on as an underground church.

When these believers received Christ as Savior and Lord everything was so new and wonderful to them.

They rapidly grew both spiritually and numerically.

They formed new churches and met regularly for worship, Bible study, and fellowship.

Then the trouble began.

Imagine the fear, uncertainty, and insecurity; the wandering about and the searching for a safe place and for a way to earn a living.

In some cases, the believers did not even know where their next meal would come from.

The church and its dear believers were fleeing for their lives.

I believe that all the feelings that attack human emotions when a person is being hunted down for brutal slaughter were attacking these believers: fear, concern, restlessness, sleeplessness, anxiety, stress, uncertainty, insecurity, and a pounding heart at the slightest shadow or noise.

The believers desperately needed strong encouragement.

But how?

How do you shore up and strengthen a person who is suffering and hurting so much?

How can a person be secure through suffering and persecution?

There is one way and only one way: he must know that he is saved and be absolutely sure that he is under the care and love of God.

This is the discussion of the first section of First Peter.

It clearly tells us how to be secure through suffering.

Our security is this: knowing that we are saved, that we belong to God and are looked after by God.

Would you turn in your Bibles to 1 Peter 1:1-2 and follow along as I read:

/This letter is from Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ.

I am writing to God's chosen people who are living as foreigners in the lands of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, the province of Asia, and Bithynia.

God the Father chose you long ago, and the Spirit has made you holy.

As a result, you have obeyed Jesus Christ and are cleansed by his blood.

May you have more and more of God's special favor and wonderful peace.

/

/ /

In the light of their present suffering, you can imagine the joy that was theirs when they heard the good news that Peter had written them a letter which would soon be read aloud in their church.

What excitement there must have been as their leaders called them together one day and carefully unrolled the scroll and began to read.

Some of these new believers were so discourage that they must have been having second thoughts about this Christian life they had chosen to follow.

As Peter’s words were read to them, however, I believe their doubts began to slip away and they were comforted by the assurance that they had been chosen as the special recipients of God’s grace.

Peter reminded them that they were the chosen of God and, as such, were aliens and pilgrims in this world who should not expect this life to be a bed of roses.

This letter is full of hope, promise, and help for troubled believers.

I trust it will be a help and encouragement to you as well, for the troubles experienced by these people are ones which could afflict us today.

Peter begins his letter by giving us three of the marks of a Christian.

A Christian is a sojourner in this world (we are visitors, not permanent residents), elected by God, and a saint – that is to say, we are set apart to God and covered by the blood of Christ, we are people who obey God, and we are people who experience grace and peace (regardless of our circumstances)

So, where we live on this earth does not matter all that much.

No matter where we live, it is not our permanent home.

Our home is in heaven.

We may be forced to leave our homes and countries because of trouble and persecution—we may be poor and suffer great hardship in this life, but it is only for a brief time.

We are only strangers and pilgrims on earth.

We shall soon be called to go home—to go to our permanent home in heaven and be there forever and ever.

And there shall be no hunger or poverty or suffering or hardship in heaven.

We need to remember this when our daily routines or the problems of daily living get us down and we lose out perspective or identity as a Christian.

May we today regain or refresh our sense of belonging and purpose in life as Christians as we keep our eyes and minds on three things:

 .  focused on heaven as our permanent home.

how short life is.

  how uncertain, insecure, and short-term all things upon earth really are

Let me read you affirmation of Peter’s words from elsewhere in Scripture.

I’ll just quickly read them, so don’t bother trying to look them up.

You may want to not the references so you can look them up later:

 

/ *"* We are here for only a moment, visitors and strangers in the land as our ancestors were before us.

Our days on earth are like a shadow, gone so soon without a trace.

*" (1 Chron.

29:15).*/

*/ /*

*/" /*/Hear my prayer, O LORD! Listen to my cries for help!

Don't ignore my tears.

For I am your guest— a traveler passing through, as my ancestors were before me.*"

(Psalm 39:12).*/

\\ */"/*/I am but a foreigner here on earth; I need the guidance of your commands.

Don't hide them from me! *" (Psalm 119:19).*/

*AGAIN, REMEMBER  THAT WE ARE NOT HOME YET.

HEAVEN IS OUR HOME*

/ /

*A.BELIEVERS ARE THE ELECT*

One distinctive of all Christians is that we are *chosen of God.

*It has often been said that “we may not be good but we are God’s”.

This word “election” seems to cause more questions than it gives answers for some people.

Many can’t grasp the teaching that God has chosen some for eternal salvation, with the teaching that man has a free will and must chose for himself.

Basically the only reason for the confusion is that people are inclined to take the extreme position.

Some say that God, in eternity past, chose some people to be saved and some to be damned.

These people put all the emphasis on God’s sovereignty and deny man’s free will.

As one man said, “Man doesn’t even have the ability to choose yes or no as far as his relationship with God is concerned.”

By saying and preaching that, people are relieved of any responsibility whatsoever for their souls or the soul of anyone else.

Other emphasize the free will so much that the poor Christian is saved today, lost tomorrow, and then saved again and his only assurance is his own faith, not God’s faithfulness.

Election and free will are both taught in the Bible.

There is no doubt that God’s word teaches that God has chosen some to be saved, but that no one is saved unless he makes a free will decision of his own, however, it is/ /clear that God’s desire is that all be saved/  *Ephesians 2:8** *says// “God saved you by his special favor when you believed.

And you can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God//.” / 2 Peter 3:9 adds/:* *The Lord isn't really being slow about his promise to return, as some people think.

No, he is being patient for your sake.

He does not want anyone to perish, so he is giving more time for everyone to repent.

/1 Timothy 2:4 affirms this desire by adding:  /for he wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth.

/

/Ephesians 1:45// says: “ Long ago, even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy /(separated and set apart unto Himself) /and without fault in his eyes.

\\ His unchanging plan has always been to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ.

And this gave him great pleasure/.(

God has called believers to turn away from the old life that showed hatred toward God, the old life that rejected, rebelled, ignored, denied, and was constantly cursing in the face of God.

God has called believers to be the beloved of God, the persons who receive His love in Christ Jesus and who allow Him to shower His love upon them.)

From this and 1 Peter 1:1-2 we learn four things:

1. God elected (chose) some to be saved.

He knew who would be saved.

2.

His election was not based upon any merit He saw in man, but grounded entirely in His good pleasure.

3.

This election took place in eternity past, before the worlds were created.

4.

God’s election is “according to foreknowledge.”

All this means is that God’s election and foreknowledge are in complete harmony.

(Foreknowledge can mean two things.

First, foreknowledge means that God sees the future.

No matter how far a person looks into the future, God has already seen it.

God knows...