I pray that you would be glorified
today and magnified, and that your word would go forth with
power, and that you give me an unction from on high to boldly
proclaim thy gospel, the gospel of the free grace of God in Christ
Jesus our Lord. May he be magnified and lifted
up high and mighty, in Jesus' name, amen. 1 Peter chapter 1. We'll continue our study here
in 1 Peter. The name of the message is past,
future, and present. Past, future, and present. Normally we talk about past,
present, and future. But the name of the message today
is past, future, and presence. 1 Peter chapter 1, verses 1 to
5. Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ
to the strangers scattered throughout Pontius, Galatia, Cappadocia,
Asia, and Bithynia, elect according to the foreknowledge of God the
Father through sanctification of the Spirit unto obedience
in the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ. Grace unto you
in peace be multiplied. Blessed be the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ. And here's our text, verses 3
to 5. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
which according to His abundant mercy hath begotten us again
unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, and that fadeth
not away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the
power of God through faith unto salvation, ready to be revealed
in the last time." Now one of the other titles I was considering
for this message is the word kept. Last week we finished up verse
2 in our study in 1 Peter looking at the precious blood of the
Lord Jesus Christ and how He has obtained salvation for His
people and how He has purchased our pardon and our redemption
by the shedding of His own precious blood. And we also considered
that this verse proclaims in verse 2 that as Jonah proclaimed,
salvation is of the Lord. Because in verse 2 we see the
whole trinity in action in the salvation of a sinner. And we
who are born again by the Holy Spirit of God were saved and
redeemed by Christ 2,000 years ago when He purchased our salvation
upon Calvary's cross. Today I'd like us to consider
verses 3 to 5 where we will see wonderful truth proclaimed here
before us. And we see that God's mercy is
manifold. It's manifold. and it will comfort
the Christian pilgrim as we sojourn upon this earth. Look at verse
3 to 5 again. Blessed be the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy
hath begotten us again into a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus
Christ from the dead to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and
that fadeth not away reserved in heaven for you who are kept
by the power of God. through faith unto salvation
ready to be revealed in the last time. Now it is a cold and lifeless
thing to speak of spiritual things on a mere report from a head
knowledge and not of a heart knowledge. When men and women
who have been born again by the Holy Spirit of God speak of spiritual
things as their own and as having experienced the grace of God
in their lives and in and through the Lord Jesus Christ. There's
a sweetness to their words. There's a sweetness to their
words. And they cannot but proclaim the great things that Christ
has done for them. And they cannot but do it with
praise, with praise and with thanksgiving for what Christ
has done for them. May the Lord keep us from dead,
dry formula, formalism, where it's just, oh, well, yeah, I
know that. Oh, Lord, keep us from that. Keep us from that. Protect us from that. May our
hearts burn within us when we hear the Gospel. May it burn
within us when we hear the Gospel preached and when we think upon
the wondrous works of the Lord Jesus Christ. May it never become
commonplace to us. May it always be fresh and new. when we can't even plumb the
depths of this great salvation in Christ. We can't even plumb
the depths of it. And we see Peter doing this in
the scriptures here before us by the inspiration of the Holy
Spirit of God. Peter is penning these words to comfort saints
who are going through trials and tribulations and sufferings.
He's penning these words to comfort them and confirm those who have
been born again by the Holy Spirit of God while they go through
these difficulties. And he's penning these words
to give them comfort that they have absolute security, absolute
security in Christ Jesus our Lord. And we see that in verse
three, as Peter speaks about the abundant mercy which has
been given to the elect in and through Christ Jesus our Lord.
It says, blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again
into a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
So let us consider this, the privilege. The privilege. And it is a great privilege.
The privilege of being one of the elect of God. The privilege of that. Blessed
be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according
to his abundant mercy hath begotten us. Jehovah is the author of all
our blessings. Jehovah himself. And it's by
his abundant mercy that he chose us in Christ. by His abundant
mercy that He chose us in Christ in eternity. This is love unmeasurable. You can't measure this love. It's God who has made us His
children. It's God who has made us to differ.
And we're born again, it says, born again. He's begotten us.
We're born again by the Holy Spirit of God. It's God who's
done this. We're purchased by the blood
of the Lord Jesus Christ, God incarnate in the flesh. This
is a work of God. And Peter brings the believers
who are going through trials and suffering in this world back
to the past. Look, blessed be the God and
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant
mercy hath begotten us. He's bringing them back to when
they're born again by the Holy Spirit of God. showing them the
abundant mercy which has been bestowed upon them. And we should
consider that, we who are born again, should consider that today. The abundant mercy which has
been shown us in and through Christ, that we're born again
by the Holy Spirit of God. In the Greek, abundant means
many, much, large. In other words, you can't measure
this mercy. You can't measure this mercy.
of God in Christ to His people. And notice in the text they've
been born again, half-forgotten us. That's being born again by
the Holy Spirit of God. It speaks of the new birth, which
only comes by the power of the Holy Spirit of God. Look down
a little bit in our chapter to verses 22 and 23. Seeing ye have
purified your souls and obeying the truth through the Spirit
unto unfrained 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. Let's look at verse three again.
It says, blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
which according to his abundant mercy, hath begotten us again
unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
So we see the cause of our salvation is in Christ. And it's according
to God's abundant mercy. The cause of it is God's abundant
mercy. That's wonderful. In the latter part of this verse,
we see the means of our salvation, the resurrection of our Lord
Jesus Christ from the dead. He died in our place and he rose
for our justification. And our sins are all forgiven.
And he said, because I live, ye shall live. Because I live,
ye shall live. Gil brings forth this, had he
not risen from the dead, none would have been quickened, or
made to live, or have been raised to newness of life. His resurrection
is the exemplar of regeneration. There is a likeness between them,
as his resurrection was a declaration of his sonship. So regeneration
is a manifestation of adoption. It's a manifestation of adoption,
that we're chosen in Christ. And as Christ's resurrection
was his first step to glory, so is regeneration to eternal
life. And both are wrought by the same
almighty power. It's God who's done this. This
is God's work. And see, Peter's bringing this
forth to these Christians who are being persecuted and going
through trials and tribulations and difficulties in their lives.
And every one of us in this room have things we're going through.
So this speaks to our hearts too, doesn't it? It can bring
us great comfort. This is God who's done this.
I'm born again by the Holy Spirit because of God, because of what
He's done. And then look at verse 4, it
says, "...to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, and that fadeth
not away, reserved in heaven for you." So again, Peter's writing
to the, we know he's writing to the elect of God, because
that's what it says right off the bat in verse 2, right? Those
who are born again by the Holy Spirit of God have a lively hope,
a living hope, and it's in Christ. It's in Christ. Our hope is called
lively. It's a lively hope. Because it's not based on dead
works, but it's based on a person and work of Christ. Look at verse
three, to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a
lively hope, a living hope, Christ, Christ. My hope is in Christ,
is yours. It's wonderful, it's wonderful. Now let us consider verse four
in light of this, as we who are the blood washed saints of God
have an inheritance. And the scripture here says it's
incorruptible and it's undefiled. and it fades not away, and it's
reserved in heaven for us. He's pointing us to the future,
beloved. So he had us look to the past,
and now he's pointing us to the future. And look what the scripture declares.
I remember talking to Brother Bruce Crabtree one time, we were
talking about our salvation and how we can't mess it up. Isn't
that what this verse is? To an inheritance incorruptible
and undefiled, that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for
you. You know why we can't? Because it's based upon Christ.
Now that doesn't give us a license to go out that door and go crazy,
does it? Not at all. That's an antinomian that believes
that. And that's a person who's lost. But this, it says right
here. To an inheritance incorruptible
and undefiled, that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for
you. God himself who chose us, God himself who redeemed us,
God himself who regenerated us, gives us an inheritance that's
incorruptible. It's incorruptible. We'll never
be defiled, and it'll never fade away, because it's in and through
the Lord Jesus Christ who is God. Who is God. And this speaks again, this verse
speaks of our glorification at our death, to be in the presence
of the Lord in glory. And again, what's the cause of
that? The abundant mercy of God. The
abundant mercy of God in Christ. And Peter brings this wonderful
truth before these suffering saints. And may we consider this,
what an abundant hope we have. What an abundant hope we have
right now, right now, while we live in this world. We have an
inheritance that's incorruptible and undefiled and that fades
not away, reserved in heaven for you. When you reserve a table
at a restaurant, they usually put a little sign on there, don't
they? Reserved. Reserved. And it's nobody else's
table until you come. Look at that, beloved. Reserved
in heaven for you. My, it's wonderful. Wonderful. Let us remember how
secure this inheritance is. It's from the Father through
the Son, and it's sure to all the seed, sure to every one of
God's elect, who were chosen by the Father, redeemed by the
Son, and will be regenerated by the Holy Spirit of God. And
note the words here, incorruptible, undefiled, and the words, fadeth
not away. Now, the words fadeth not away
is one word in the Greek, but incorruptible, undefiled are
their own Greek words. And it says, to an inheritance
incorruptible, Undefiled, and that fate is not a way reserved
in heaven for you. In the Greek, the word incorruptible
is defined as this, uncorrupted, not liable to corruption. Not
liable to corruption. Not liable to corruption or decay.
And I love this word, imperishable. That's what the Greek word means
for that. That's wonderful. My inheritance in Christ is uncorruptible. My goodness. Things that we inherit
here, things that we have on this earth, they're liable to
decay, aren't they? But not this inheritance, beloved.
Not this inheritance here. Oh, do you see what hope this
would give those saints as they're suffering through things in this
world? What joy this would bring them. Oh my. My goodness. And this inheritance
is incorruptible. Not as material inheritances
like these that we inherit on earth. This is a spiritual inheritance. It's not composed of things such
as silver and gold. Oh no. but of knowledge and of
holiness and of Christ. It's more valuable than all the
silver and gold in this world. And what a source of joy this
is for the believer, this precious truth. Our inheritance in Christ
is incorruptible, therefore it's everlasting. It's everlasting. In the Greek word, the word undefiled
is defined as not defiled, unsoiled. Not defiled, unsoiled. Here's
another precious truth of our inheritance in Christ. It's undefiled. Everything we
do is defiled with sin. Everything we do is defiled with
sin. Everything. Our best prayers, our best worship,
it's all defiled with sin. Our best service for the Lord
is all defiled with sin. It's all tainted with sin. And
so what comfort the believer can draw right here? Right here
in these words here. Our salvation, our inheritance
which is reserved in heaven in Christ is undefiled. Undefiled. It's a pure, perfect inheritance
because it's in Christ. Because it's in Him. This is
a far more excellent inheritance than any earthly inheritance.
And this will fill the believer's heart with joy and gladness.
Now in the Greek, the words fadeth not away is one word, and it's
defined as unfading, not fading away. And here's a key, perpetual. Perpetual. Oh, can you plumb the depths
of this inheritance, beloved, that we have in Christ? I can't. What a great and amazing inheritance
we have in and through Jesus Christ our Lord. Here we see
that this wonderful heavenly inheritance is unfading. Time
does not affect this inheritance. Time doesn't affect this inheritance. It will never cease to be. It'll
never cease to be. And it will never cease to bring
joy to the believer. Because think of this, when we're
in glory, we're praising our King. It'll bring joy to the
believer here on earth. It'll bring joy to the believer
in heaven. Oh my, it's wonderful. It's absolutely wonderful. Now
worldly possessions can bring joy for a season, but then they
can cease to bring joy. But this celestial inheritance
spoken of in our text will bring joy throughout eternity to those
who are the receivers of it. Now consider the excellence of
this inheritance in our text. It comes from God himself, therefore
it's incorruptible. Neither moth nor rust nor decay
nor years have any effect upon it. It's absolutely undefiled. Because our God's eternal, Therefore,
that which he gives is eternal. Oh, it's wonderful. And it's
pure and holy. It's untouched by sin. It'll
never fade away. It'll never fade away as the
things of this world do, because our inheritance is in Christ
Jesus, our Lord. And again, this fills the believer
with great joy. With praise and thanksgiving,
my salvation, the whole of it is in Christ Jesus, the whole. My inheritance is in Christ Jesus. The whole of it. And it's incorruptible,
undefiled, and will never fade away because it's not dependent
upon me. Just let that sink in. This inheritance is not dependent
upon us. If it was, it would be corrupted. It would be defiled. And it would
fade away. But this inheritance spoken of
in the text is not dependent upon you and I. It's in and through
Christ Jesus our Lord. Oh, my. Is this not abundant
mercy? Now we see why Peter penned that.
This is abundant mercy. Abundance. And note the latter part of this
verse is honey for the soul of the believer. Honey for the blood-washed
saint of God. Balm for believers going through
trials and tribulations and sickness or pain. Peter declares to the
weary Christian pilgrim that this wonderful inheritance is
given by God through Christ Jesus our Lord and it is right now
reserved in heaven for you. No matter what you're going through. It's reserved in heaven for you.
It's secured beyond the reach of anyone who would spoil it. It's secured beyond the reach
of anyone who could spoil it. No one can spoil it because it's
wrought out by Christ and Christ alone for his people. And this
wondrous inheritance is more precious than all the riches
in the world. And it's as secure as it is precious. It's as secure as it is precious
because it's in Christ. Christ is precious to the believer.
This inheritance is secure and precious as it's in Christ and
Christ alone. Reserved in heaven for you. My,
what joy that brings my heart. I know I'm a sinner. I know I
fail all the time. But this wondrous salvation here
that I have in Christ, and if you're a believer that you have
in Christ, is reserved for us in heaven. Makes you want to
shout. It's wonderful. It's absolutely
wonderful. Absolutely wonderful. Again,
this is abundant mercy. This is abundant mercy. God,
the Father, who graciously elected his people in Christ, has also
graciously appointed their inheritance so that the believer can cry
out with the psalmist. Turn, if you would, to Psalm 16. Psalm
16. The believer can cry this out
with the with the psalmist. It's God the Father who graciously
elected us in Christ. And it's God the Father who has
graciously appointed our inheritance in Christ. And the believer again
can cry out with the psalmist, Psalm 16, verses 5 and 6, the
Lord is the portion of my inheritance. Psalm 16, verses 5 and 6, the
Lord is the portion of my inheritance. It's in Him. My inheritance is
in Him. All my He's my exceeding reward,
beloved. My, the Lord is the portion of
my inheritance and of my cup. Thou maintainest my lot. He keeps
us. This inheritance is reserved
for us in heaven. Reserved for us in heaven. The
lions are falling onto me in pleasant places. Why? Because
I've been redeemed by the Lord Jesus Christ. My goodness. I have a goodly heritage. It's
all in Christ. It's all in Christ. Let's go
back to 1 Peter now. We'll consider verse 5 in light
of these wonderful truths that we've looked at so far. Look
at verse 5 here. And this is speaking of those
who Peter are writing to, the elect. the elect strangers scattered
throughout Pontius, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia,
those who are the elect according to the foreknowledge of God the
Father through sanctification of the Spirit and obedience of
the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ." Look at what it
says in verse 5. "...who are kept by the power
of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last
time." Here Peter Here Peter is writing to these suffering
saints to look now to the present. See, he's had them look to the
past. He's had them look to the future. Now he's having them
look to the present, right now. Right now. Right now, we who
believe are kept by the power of God. Right now. There's things
we go through that would normally crush us. if it wasn't for our
Lord. And every one of us have experienced
those. We've looked back and went, how did I make it through
that? Because the Lord carried us through. Because he kept us. And he keeps his people. He keeps,
it says, who are kept by the power of God through faith unto
salvation, ready to be reserved, or ready to be revealed in the
last time. God's people are kept. by God. And this is a wonderful
precious doctrine of the preservation of God's people. And it's right
here on full display in this verse right here. Who are kept
by the power of God. Kept by the power of God. I can't
keep myself, can you? Left to ourselves, we're like
wandering sheep, aren't we? Oh, what's over here? That's
what we're like. God keeps us, doesn't he? He
keeps us. Keeps us. I thank God he keeps
us. What a gracious shepherd our
God is. And what comfort this would bring
to those whom Peter is writing, to the strangers scattered throughout
Pontius, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, who are struggling in their
everyday life. What comfort this would bring
them as they go through manifold temptations. What joy this would
bring them. who are kept by the power of
God through faith unto salvation, ready to be revealed in the last
time. Kept. Kept. What a wonderful word. Four letters, but so much. Kept. The beloved of God are kept by
the power of God through faith. In biblical faith has one object,
doesn't it? One object, that's the Lord Jesus
Christ. We are kept by the power of God.
And is this not what our Lord was proclaiming? Turn if you
would to John chapter 10. Is this not what our Lord was
proclaiming? What Peter is writing here, is this not what our Lord
was proclaiming over in John chapter 10 when he was talking
about his sheep? This is wonderful. And then put
your finger in Romans chapter 8 also. John chapter 10, and
then put your finger in Romans chapter 8, because we're turning
right after this. who are kept by the power of
God through faith and the salvation ready to be revealed in the last
time look at John chapter 10 this is the master proclaiming
this John chapter 10 verses 27 and 28 my sheep hear my voice
and I know them oh that's Gnoska he knows them with an intimate
knowledge beloved he's loved them from before the foundation
of the world I know them and what and they follow me he doesn't
say well they might follow me if they if they let They let
me be the shepherd know that people are made willing in the
day of his power He draws his people with cords of love and
then he leads them and he keeps them beloved and they follow
him They follow the voice of the ship. Look at this and I
give unto them eternal life Salvation is a gift from God and they shall
never perish neither show any man pluck them Out of my hand
they're kept by the power of God Who's speaking these words?
God himself. God incarnate in the flesh is
speaking these words. And that's what Peter's talking
about over there in 1 Peter 1 and 5. Who are kept by the power
of God. God's people are kept. The Lord
said he keep his people and they are kept. They're kept, beloved. Go over to Romans chapter 8. We're kept by the power of God.
The Apostle Paul also writes of these wonderful truths. This
wonderful truth that we're kept by the power of God. Look at
Romans chapter 8 verses 35 to 39. Who shall separate us from
the love of Christ? Romans chapter 8 verse 35 to
39. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation,
or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, Now
Paul knew about this stuff, didn't he? Paul knew what it was like
to go through trials and tribulations. We know that. Scriptures declare
that. He went through a lot. It is written, for thy sake we
are killed all the day long. We are counted the sheep for
the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors
through him that loved us. For I am persuaded that neither
death nor life nor angels nor principalities, nor powers, nor
things present, nor things to come." That covers everything
pretty much, doesn't it? And then he goes on, "...nor
height, nor depth, nor any other creature shall be able to separate
us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Now go back to 1 Peter with that in mind, with what we just read
there in mind. Go back to 1 Peter. Why, when
Paul wrote that, he said, nor height, nor depth, nor any of
the creatures shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which
is in Christ Jesus. Why won't these things separate us from
the love of God? Because who are kept by the power of God.
We're kept by the power of God. Now think of this, because sometimes,
like I say, Lord keep us from dead, dry, well I know that already,
God himself, is the one who keeps us. Jehovah is the one who keeps
us. May this be fresh for us every
day. Things come all the time, unexpectedly
in our lifetime. We're kept by the power of God.
This makes believers' hearts sing. I know we have trials and
tribulations and tears. We do, a lot. But we're kept. We're kept, beloved, by the power
of God. My, who are kept by the power
of God through faith unto salvation, ready to be revealed in the last
time. Now the word kept in our text
in the Greek is defined as, this was marvelous as I looked up
the definition for this Greek word, kept. Little word, K-E-P-T,
four letters. But the Greek says to guard,
protect by military guard, to prevent hostile invasion, or
to keep the inhabitants of a besieged city from flights. We are totally
kept by God, beloved. We are encircled and protected
by our great Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, and we're kept
by Him. As I said, look, to ourselves,
we'd be, we'd wander right off, wouldn't we? We know we would.
We would be redeemed, know we would. But we're capable of it.
This is wonderful. We're guarded by the Savior. Just as a shepherd guards the
sheep, our Savior watches over us. Do you see, do you see what hope
this would bring these believers as they're going through things?
Does it not bring us hope to see these wonderful truths proclaimed? Oh my. Who are kept by the power
of God through faith unto salvation, ready to be revealed in the last
time. The believer is kept by the power of God, preserved safe
amid many dangers to which we are exposed to in our lives.
We're kept. We're kept. And sometimes when a situation
comes up and the squall of it catches us off guard, doesn't
it? Sometimes it does. But God keeps us through it all.
He knows what's happening. He knows what's going on. He's
fully aware. And He keeps us. Oh my. The faith that God gives,
beloved, is preserving faith. It's preserving faith. The faith
that he gives is preserving faith by his power. We keep believing
amidst all the trials, tribulations, temptations, and sufferings that
we go through, whether they be physical or mental. Right? It's true. We go through tribulations
in our mind sometimes, and we go through tribulations in our
everyday life sometimes, don't we? In trials. I'll tell you
what, sometimes the agony in the mind is worse than physical
things we go through. I've experienced that. It's not
easy. It's not easy. But God keeps
his people, doesn't he? He keeps us. We're kept by the
power of God. Kept by the power of God. In the living or lively hope
of verse three that we have is all in Christ. Of the inheritance
that we have is all in Christ. Now, mankind in their natural
state have no hope, because their hope's not in Christ, their hope's
in themselves. And this was true of every one
of us who are the elect of God. At one time, we hoped in ourselves,
didn't we? At one time, we did. I did at one time. We hoped in
ourselves. But now we're born again by the
Holy Spirit of God, and we have a lively hope. We have a living
hope. We have been shown abundant mercy
in and through Christ Jesus our Lord. And He is our hope. The finished work which He accomplished
as our substitute, both in life and in death upon the cross,
where He made a perfect atonement for all the sins of all His people,
where He paid the debt. He paid the great sin debt of
all His people, a debt that not one of us could pay. And He paid
it all. What a Savior. is Jesus Christ our Lord. And
beloved, may we remember that we have an inheritance awaiting
us in glory. We have an inheritance. Scripture
declared that, didn't it? It's reserved in heaven for us. My! And then may we leave here
today rejoicing, too, that not only do we have an inheritance
that's incorruptible, undefiled, and fadeth not away, but we're
kept by the power of God. We're kept by our Redeemer. Oh,
what a Savior. What a Savior is Jesus Christ,
our Lord. Heavenly Father, we thank Thee
for Your mercy and goodness and grace, and what a wonderful text
we looked at today, Lord, that You keep us, You save us, You
chose us, God the Father, You chose us in eternity. We're redeemed
by the precious blood of Christ, and then You keep us. regenerated
by the Holy Spirit, and you keep us. It's amazing. Grace is truly,
truly amazing, Lord. May we worship thee and adore
thee for the great things you have done for us today and in
the rest of our service. In Jesus' name, amen.