In 1 Peter chapter 3 and reading
verses 1 to 9. Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection
to your own husbands, that if any obey not the word, they also
may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives,
while they behold your chaste conversation, coupled with fear. whose adorning, let it not be
that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold,
or of putting on of apparel, but let it be the hidden man
of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament
of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great
price. For after this manner in the
old time, the holy women also, who trusted in God, adorned themselves,
being in subjection unto their own husbands. Even as Sarah obeyed
Abraham, calling him Lord, whose daughters he are, as long as
he do well, and are not afraid with any amazement. Likewise,
ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving
honour unto the wife as unto the weaker vessel, and as being
heirs together of the grace of life, that your prayers be not
hindered. Finally, be ye all of one mind,
having compassion one of another, lovers brethren, be pitiful,
be courteous, not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing,
but contrarywise, blessing, knowing that ye are there unto called
that ye should inherit a blessing. Joe and Anna, addressing you
in particular for a while this afternoon, I would direct your
attention to those words that we find in particular at the
end of verse 7 as being heirs together of the grace of life
that your prayers be not hindered." And I want us to consider those
two words, heirs and prayers as being heirs together of the
grace of life that your prayers be not hindered. But First of all, to say something
with regards to that expression, the grace of life. The word grace
reminds us that all life, every sort of life, is a free gift
from God. and how true that is with regards
to our natural and our physical lives. As the psalmist says,
Know ye that the Lord, he is God, it is he that hath made
us, not we ourselves. We are the creatures of his hand. And Job, there in the book of
Job in chapter 12, He declares, in whose hand is the soul of
every living thing and the breath of all mankind. The very air
that we breathe is the gift of our Creator. He is the author
of every good and of every perfect gift. For in Him we live and
move and have our being, says the apostle Paul. Well, how true
it is then that our very life, this life that we're living today,
is a gift from God. And it is God who preserves us
again. The psalmist addresses Him, O
Lord, He says, Thou preservest man and beast. But here in this text, the seventh
verse, where Peter speaks of the grace of life, it's not so
much that physical, that natural life that we're living. But surely
here he has in mind that new life and that eternal life which
is in the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord says himself in the
course of his ministry concerning those who are his people, those
who are the sheep of his pasture, I give unto them eternal life. and they shall never perish,
neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father which
gave them me is greater than all. No man can pluck them out
of my Father's hand." Remembering then that gift, not so much of
physical life, but spiritual life, the life of God in the
soul of the sinner. It is that that both Job and
Anna have been favoured with that life that is in the Lord
Jesus. Heirs together of the grace of
life. Well, what is it? What is it
to be an heir of this true spiritual life? Well, we might ask another
question. What is usually involved in being
an heir? Well, the heir is of course one
who is a child of the family. The heir of all that his parents
possess. But by nature, none of us are
those who are really children of God. God might be our creator. But alas, we're in an awful condition
of enmity against God. We're those who are born dead
in trespasses and in sins. Having the understanding darkened,
says Paul, alienated from the life of God through the ignorance
that is in us because of the blindness of our hearts. By nature, we're those who are
children of wrath. We're children of disobedience. How is it then that any can be
an heir of God? An heir of that grace of life
that we read of here in the text. Well I want to mention, reminding
both Joe and Anna in particular, of three great biblical truths
concerning those who are the heirs of the grace of life. What are these great truths that
we have said before us in Scripture with regards to these people,
the heirs of God. Firstly, there is that great
truth of adoption. They have been adopted into the
family of God. The Lord Jesus Christ himself
is the only begotten Son of God. He is the Eternal Son of the
Eternal Father. But those who are heirs are such
as God has purposed to have mercy upon. He has adopted them. In
the language of Paul in Ephesians 1, having predestinated us unto
the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself according to
the good pleasure of His will. He has adopted such as Anna and
Jo. And Paul says, "...because ye
are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your
hearts, crying, Abba, Father, wherefore thou art no more a
servant but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Jesus
Christ." There is that great truth then of adoption. Though
by nature we are in that condition of enmity and alienation to be
adopted by God, to become His child, to call upon Him as our
Father which art in heaven. But then, the other great truth
of Scripture that is so necessary in the experience of those who
are the heirs of God is what we call regeneration or the new
birth. The new birth. The Lord Jesus
says, except a man be born again He cannot see the kingdom of
heaven. There must be that new life brought
into the soul of those who by nature are dead in trespasses
and sins. The Lord says it time and again
there in John's Gospel chapter 3, ye must be born again which
were born not of blood nor of the will of the flesh, nor of
the will of man, but of God. For a man can receive nothing
except it be given him from heaven." Born again, born from above,
that great work that comes into the soul of the sinner, that
mighty work of the Spirit of God where there is the communication
of new life, of spiritual life, the doctrine of regeneration
and so closely associated with that the third thing that we
must know is what is termed God's effectual call and we see it
here in the in the passage that we read the end of verse 9 knowing
that ye are there unto called that ye should inherit a blessing,
called that ye should inherit a blessing. To hear God's call,
God's voice. The hymn writer says the appointed
time rolls on the pace not to propose but call by grace to
change the heart, renew the will and turn the feet to Zion's help. This is how the Gospel has to
come to us. This is how the Gospel came to so many of those who
were favoured to hear the preaching of the Apostles there in the
New Testament, when Paul writes to the church at Thessalonica,
he says, Our Gospel came not unto you in word only, but in
power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance. and again he says to them for
this cause also thank we God without ceasing because when
you receive the word which you heard of us you received it not
as the word of men but as it is in truth the word of God which
effectually worketh also in you that believe all that word of
God it works effectually it's efficacious, it's powerful where
the word of a king is there is power And as God's call is effectual
in the soul of that sinner, so that sinner is moved to call
upon God. God calls. And God calls in that
mighty way. And the sinner cannot but then
call upon God. And that brings us to this other
word, prayers. prayers, heirs together of the
grace of life, that your prayers be not hindered." Now, Joe and
Anna, I know that each of you have prayed personally. You've
sought God individually. You're well aware that real religion
is something personal. It's a matter between you And
God, it's true of each and every one of us, we all have to give
our individual accounts unto Him. And you are those who have
sought Him. All the encouragement that we
have to seek Him. The Lord Jesus says, Ask and
it shall be given you. Seek and ye shall find. Knock
and it shall be opened unto you. Everyone that asketh receiveth.
And he that seeketh findeth unto him that knocketh. It shall be
opened. Every encouragement. ye shall
seek me and find me says the Lord when ye shall search after
me with all your heart and you too each of you have sought him
in that fashion and found him or rather you're those who have
been found of him you've not only prayed individually I'm
sure that you have also in the years that you've been courting
you've prayed together you've read the Scriptures together
and I would urge that you continue with that reading the Word of
God daily, family worship and heeding the words that we find
in Scripture these very practical directions and precepts that
we find how the Apostle Peter here specifically addresses the
wife and then the husband Likewise ye wives, he says, be in subjection
to your own husbands, and if any obey not the word, they also
may without the word be won by the conversation, that is the
manner of life of the wife, the gracious living of the wife,
while they behold your chaste conversation coupled with fear. Likewise ye husbands, dwell with
them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife,
that's unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together.
of the grace of life, that your prayers be not hindered." It
is evident that the roles are quite different and distinct,
the responsibilities are different. It's not only as we have it here
in Peter's epistle, but many of you are familiar, I'm sure,
with what the Apostle Paul also says, similar words at the end
of Ephesians chapter 5. The roles are different, the
responsibilities are different, but there's no superiority and
no inferiority with regards to the man and the woman. Listen to the comments that Matthew
Henry makes there at the end of Genesis chapter 2 where we
have the account of God's creation of the woman of Eve. Matthew
Henry says, "...as she was made of a rib out of the side of Adam,
not made out of his head to rule over him, nor out of his feet
to be trampled upon by him, but out of his sight, to be equal
with him, under his arm to be protected, and near his heart
to be beloved." there is the relationship how the husband
is to love in that tender way his wife to care for her, to
provide for her and how she is to be in subjection to him that's
chaste conversation that we read of coupled with fear there is
a certain mutuality here in the relationship between the husband
and the wife. We know when it comes to salvation
there is neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ
Jesus. That's true with regards to salvation,
but when it comes to the relationship, there are these different roles
that the Scripture so evidently sets before us. And Jo and Anna,
I urge you not to be forgetful of that biblical pattern. What
do we read in the text? These words that I want to bring
to you this afternoon, being heirs together, being heirs together
of the grace of life that your prayers be not hindered. What
would hinder your prayers? Disobedience to the order of
God, disobedience to the commands of God, or God grant grace that
you might be those then who will together seek His face and read
and meditate in His Word. And God be pleased to deal mercifully
and graciously with us, each of us, all of us, as sinners. We concluded the reading there
at verse 9 where we read of those called that they should inherit
a blessing or that we each of us might be those who are called
to know that gracious work of God, that effectual call that
new birth that we might find that we are those who can in
truth call upon God and address Him in sincerity as our Father
which art in heaven. May the Lord be pleased to bless
to us his truth. We're going to now sing, concluding
praise, the last hymn on the sheet. Sovereign ruler of the
skies, ever gracious, ever wise, all my times are in thy hand,
all events at thy command. I'm sorry skies, ever gracious, ever wise. All my times are with thy hand. face thy first and second birth. Parents, mated, place and time,
all appointed were born. He shall guide me to the truth,
all my times shall ever be. Times of sickness, times of health,
times of pain, worry and wealth. Times of trial and of grief,
times of triumph and grief. Chimes to taste the Saviour's
love. All must come and last and end,
As shall please my Heavenly Friend. Peace and bliss around me flow,
to keep it I cannot die. Not a single shot can hit, till
the God of love The Lord bless thee and keep
thee. The Lord make his face to shine
upon thee and be gracious unto thee. The Lord lift up his countenance
upon thee and give thee peace. Amen.