We Are on Guard
Who Are We? • Sermon • Submitted
0 ratings
· 2 viewsWe must remain vigilant to avoid the devil's snares.
Notes
Transcript
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
Reading: 1 Peter 5:8-11
8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
9 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.
10 And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.
11 To him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Pray
When Jesus was about to be turned over to be killed, he spent his final hours with his disciples instilling the kingdom into them. In one of those exchanges with Peter, Jesus informs him (and us) of the nature of the spiritual war occuring at that very moment:
31 “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat,
32 but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.”
There is an ongoing spiritual battle, even to this very day. The fight is on, and we as Christians are engaged in the battle.
Jesus Calls Us to Be “On Guard”...
Jesus Calls Us to Be “On Guard”...
8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
…Because We Have an Enemy Seeking to Destroy Us
…Because We Have an Enemy Seeking to Destroy Us
8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
How do we stand “on guard,” ready to defeat the devil?
We Actively Oppose Our Enemy
We Actively Oppose Our Enemy
9 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.
We Are Firmly Rooted in Faith
We Are Firmly Rooted in Faith
9 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.
We Struggle Together within the Body
We Struggle Together within the Body
9 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.
We Look Forward to God’s Future Rewards
We Look Forward to God’s Future Rewards
10 And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.
11 To him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen.
The brevity of our suffering pales in comparison to the eternality of his glory.
The severity of our suffering falters in comparison to the greatness of his grace.
The anguish of our suffering dims in comparison to the effervescence of his rewards.
He will restore us - the loss we incur fighting this good fight will be more than repaid.
He will confirm us - he makes us more capable to fight the good fight of resisting Satan
He will strengthen us - God will provide the strength they need to stand firm and fight.
He will establish us - God will lay the sure foundation and set us upon Christ, our solid rock.
And I don’t know if you caught this, but take a big picture look at this whole chapter, and you’ll see something amazing happen. Through the calls for humility and vigilance, the reminders of reward amid the reality of suffering, we find that God is maturing us. All this evil and anguish are tools God uses to build us into complete, mature followers of Christ.