Come back to 1 Peter chapter 4, the title of this message, glorifying God in all things. I realize now more than ever, THAT I AND EVERYTHING ELSE AND EVERYBODY ELSE ONLY EXIST FOR GOD'S GLORY. WE ARE GOING TO EITHER BE TO THE PRAISE AND GLORY OF HIS GRACE OR TO THE PRAISE AND GLORY OF HIS JUSTICE. AND OUR LORD IS GOING TO GET ALL THE GLORY. And every knee, this is a promise, every knee is going to bow and every tongue is going to confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. That one whose face they spit in, rejected, despised, rejected of men, They are going to bow to that man that they hated and nailed to a cross and mocked him, made fun of him. He's a son of God, let him come down off the cross. Wow, can you imagine, can you imagine to die and see that, see him with that kind of attitude? But you and I who, by the grace of God, have been saved, that's amazing, we've been saved. Saved from the wrath of God that ought to astound us every day. We will never know what that really is because we'll never taste it. We'll never taste the wrath of God, because our Lord did. To the nth degree, He tasted it. Now Peter writes this epistle to believers. You know, one of the mistakes that is made, and it's a grave mistake, is when people, so-called preachers, take what is written to believers and try to apply it to everyone in general. You can't do that. It's written here to believers, to those scattered abroad if you go back to the first chapter, scattered abroad from persecutions. And Peter's writing this epistle to believers who were suffering persecution for Christ's NOW I KNOW THAT WE HAVE NEVER SUFFERED PERSECUTION FOR CHRIST'S SAKE LIKE THEY DID. I THINK THE CHURCH HAS HAD IT EASY FOR A LONG TIME IN THIS COUNTRY, HAS HAD IT PRETTY QUIET FOR A GOOD MANY YEARS. WOE UNTO THEM WHO ARE AT EASE IN ZION. We've had it quiet for a long time, but they were persecuted. Homes were taken, families separated, they were scattered abroad, they had to leave because of the persecution. And yet as they left, they preached the gospel, and the gospel was spread across the world. God used that persecution just like He did Israel and Egypt. The more they were persecuted, the more they multiplied. And the more the church is persecuted, the more she multiplies. But He writes this epistle to them and to us. You a believer? I believe the gospel. Well, it's written to us too. And He writes this to comfort and encourage them in their sufferings because all of God's children HAVE A MEASURE OF SUFFERING THAT'S MEASURED OUT TO THEM BY GOD FOR THE BODY OF CHRIST AND FOR CHRIST'S SAKE. IF THEY HATED THE HEAD, THEY WILL HATE THE BODY ALSO. Christ said, IF THEY HATE ME, THEY WILL HATE YOU ALSO. So we all have a measure of suffering to do, but in our suffering WE ARE CALLED TO DO SO IN A MANNER THAT GLORIFIES THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. LOOK HOW HE GLORIFIED GOD THE FATHER IN HIS SUFFERINGS. AND HIS SUFFERINGS ARE IMMEASURABLE. I CAN'T EVEN BEGIN TO ENTER INTO HIS SUFFERINGS. AND IN HIS SUFFERINGS HE GLORIFIED GOD THE FATHER. by God s grace and God s help and the suffering that we will do, what I call the little suffering compared to His, we are to glorify God, not complain like Israel of old, I was just reading before coming out here, And this is the next chapter in Exodus when they start complaining about having no water. They complained about having no food, now they have no water. This is when Moses strikes the rock. But they are complaining all the time. I have seen this, and this is a little bit off my subject. I've seen this, I've seen some who claim to believe the gospel not another gospel but they claim to believe the gospel and every time a trial comes along they murmur and complain and fail it, they fail it every time. One time I was going through something. Well, Vicki had wrecked a car, but it wasn't her fault, but they totaled it. The woman had no insurance. Well, I went over and talked to Henry. I went over and sat down and I said, Henry, how should I handle this? And he said, I said, what should I do? He said, you know how to handle it. That was it. That was it. That was the advice. And now all these years later, I know what he's saying. You believe God, you'll know how to handle it. You'll know how to handle it, if you believe God. Well, all these years later, I learned what he was saying. But this passage here, this portion of scripture, and I'm only going to go down to verse 11. This passage teaches us what it looks like to LIVE FOR GOD'S GLORY! You know, there's a purpose in our living on this earth. There's a purpose why you and I get up in the morning. It's not just to go to work and pay the bills. It's literally to glorify God every step and every breath we take is to glorify God. And so we have this passage and it teaches us what it looks like to live for God's glory in the midst of a perverse and hostile God-hating world. And the first thing we see is the right mindset. In verse 1, For as much then as Christ has suffered for us in the flesh, because that s what He says. If you look back here in chapter 3, look here. For Christ, in verse 18, For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, our sins, my sins, all of them, all of them. Every one of them, I can't even, I don't even know every one of them, can't even begin to, can't even begin to enter into how many sins I have. How many seconds in a day is there? That's how many sins I have every day, every second. Sin enters into everything I do. I can't even pray without sin. For Christ also has once suffered for sins, the just one for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit. He suffered for us in the flesh for our sins. Now let us consider, and we should do this often. WHO SUFFERED? Let us think often upon WHO SUFFERED FOR OUR SINS. Not us, not if God saved us, we haven't suffered for them. The Son of God, the incomprehensible God suffered for our sins. The Holy One, the Just One, suffered unto death, suffered God's wrath. Can you even begin to think of what that's like? No one has ever suffered as He suffered. Job's suffering is LIGHT, it's LIGHT compared to the sufferings of Jesus Christ. this light. His suffering is the very reason you and I are able to be here tonight and worship Him, to read His Word and rejoice in His Word and to sing His praises as all because Christ suffered for our sins. And He did so that He might bring us to God, present us without fault or blame or without blemish. And He suffered in the flesh. He truly suffered in His humanity. He felt the pain. He felt the pain of those nails. He felt the pain of every strike. He felt the pain of their hatred. He felt the pain of God's wrath. He cried, I thirst. That's pain. That's feeling pain right there too. To thirst like that? He felt the pain of being forsaken. My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? I'm looking at the reason God forsook Him. You. That He might have you in His presence forever. You who believe. Our Lord truly suffered in His humanity and His suffering was substitutionary. I can suffer for somebody and it's not going to do any good. It's not going to make them accepted of God. My suffering for you would never make you accepted of God. His suffering was substitutionary, the just were the unjust, as I read to you. He who knew no sin was made to be sin for us, that we, we wretches That's why this gospel is not popular. Don't call me a wretch. Don't call me that. Well, you are, and everybody here who believes the gospel says, Amen. Every one of us. Oh, wretched man that I am! He who knew no sin was made to be sin for us that we might be made the righteousness of God. in Him, and we will not know the value of that until we stand in His presence. We have some idea of it, but not like we are going to have. Not like we are going to have. Arm yourselves likewise. See, if the head suffered, the body is going to suffer. So you arm yourself. Don't say, Why is this happening to me? Arm yourself with this mind that you're going to suffer for being a believer. If you stand up for Christ, you're going to suffer for it. If you stand up for the truth, you'll suffer for it. Arm yourselves likewise. Take on the same mindset as Christ. You know, we suffer from, listen, we suffer from a sinful nature that we have. We suffer from that daily, don't we? Does your sinful nature trouble you? Does it really trouble you? Sometimes I like to bang my head against the wall. I said, I hate myself. I hate myself. Why do I think like that? Why do I say that? There's just so much sin. Oh, we suffer from that sinful nature. And then we suffer from living in this present evil world. But our suffering is not wasted. It glorifies God. As Peter said, if you take it patiently. Oh, if you take it patiently, it glorifies God. It has a purpose in it. It has a purpose. And it's given to us to suffer for Christ's sake. Listen to Philippians 1 29. For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on Him, it's given to you to believe on Christ. That's exactly why you and I believe. It's given to us. But here's something else also given to us. but also to suffer for His sake. Just stand up for the truth and it won't take long, you'll find out. You'll be excluded. You'll be excluded from most company. You'll be excluded by the world. Tell the truth about sin. Tell the truth about sin. YOU KNOW WHAT WAS AN ABOMINATION TO GOD IN THE OLD TESTAMENT IS STILL AN ABOMINATION TO GOD IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. IF HOMOSEXUALITY WAS AN ABOMINATION TO GOD IN THE OLD TESTAMENT IS IT NOT AN ABOMINATION TO GOD IN THE NEW TESTAMENT? WELL, JUST SAY THAT ON TELEVISION AND SEE HOW MUCH TROUBLE YOU GET INTO. JUST SEE HOW MUCH YOU GET IN TROUBLE. And it says here in verse 2, that he no longer, if he suffered in the flesh, he ceased from sin, that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lust of men, but to the will of God, to the will and glory of God. That is why we live. WE DON'T LIVE TO OURSELVES AND WE DON'T DIE TO OURSELVES. WE LIVE TO GOD'S GLORY AND SOMEDAY WE'RE GOING TO DIE AND WE'RE GOING TO STAND IN GLORY FOR GOD'S GLORY. CHRIST SUFFERED IN THE FLESH, AND THIS IS WHAT IT'S SAYING HERE, FOR HE THAT HAS SUFFERED IN THE FLESH HAS CEASED FROM SIN. OUR LORD SUFFERED IN THE FLESH AND HE HAS SATISFIED JUSTICE AND SIN HAS NO MORE CLAIM ON HIM NOW. HAS NO MORE CLAIM ON HIM. and in Him it has no claim on us. Sin has no claim on us now. Paul said that sin is not our master, we're not under the dominion of sin now. He said you're not under the law, you're under grace. You're under the grace of God. If you and I were under the law, we'd be goners. We have so much sin in us, we'd be goners. But we're not under the law, we're under the grace of God. And His grace reigns, now listen, through righteousness. It says in Romans, through the righteousness of Jesus Christ. His grace does not reign on me because I'm living right. His grace reigns on me and it reigns on you because of the righteousness of that man, Jesus Christ. That's why God's grace keeps raining on us. That's why. And though we still wrestle with sin, it is no longer our master. You know, at one time I didn't realize this until God saved me. And you didn't either. But sin was my master. It was my master. It just, you know, it just whistled and like a dog we just come running, just giving ourselves to the lust of the flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind which is wicked, sinful. That he no longer should live the rest of his time on this earth That's what he's talking about. We don't live the rest of our time on this earth in the flesh to the lust of men, but to the will of God. TRUE CONVERSION! And this concerns me because I just don't see it that much. But true conversion brings a radical change. It does, doesn't it? It brings a radical change. IT TRANSFORMS OUR AFFECTIONS. WE LOVE WHAT WE ONCE HATED AND HATE WHAT WE ONCE LOVED. IT CHANGES OUR DESIRES. WHOM HAVE I IN HEAVEN BUT THEE AND THERE IS NONE UPON EARTH THAT I DESIRE BESIDE THEE OR MORE THAN THEE. IS THAT NOT A RADICAL CHANGE? THE FACT THAT YOU'D RATHER BE HERE THAN SOMEWHERE ELSE IS A RADICAL CHANGE. It changes our conversation, the way we talk, it changes that, it really does. It changes our very purpose in life, our ambition. Here's the believer's ambition, OH THAT I MIGHT KNOW HIM IN THE POWER OF HIS RESURRECTION, IN THE FELLOWSHIP OF HIS SUFFERINGS. THAT I MIGHT HAVE FELLOWSHIP WITH HIS SUFFERINGS, BE A PARTAKER OF IT, PART OF IT. And I thought this afternoon as I was writing these down, I thought a gospel that cannot save me for time cannot save me for eternity. It cannot save me. If it can't do anything for me now, If the power of God in the preaching of the gospel and the power of the Holy Spirit, if it can't change me, if it can't save me in time from my sins and my sinfulness, why would I think it could save me when I stand before God? Why would I think that? Well, I sure wouldn't want to risk that if that's a way that I can say it. WE NOW HUNGER AND THIRST AFTER RIGHTEOUSNESS. NOW YOU AND I KNOW WHAT WE USED TO HUNGER AND THIRST AFTER. OH, WE KNOW. GOD REMEMBERS OUR SINS NO MORE, BUT WE DO. WE REMEMBER OUR LIFE AND OUR LIFESTYLE. WE HAVEN'T FORGOTTEN THAT. BUT NOW WE HUNGER AND THIRST AFTER RIGHTEOUSNESS. THOSE ARE SIGNS OF LIFE, SPIRITUAL LIFE. That's a radical change for a sinful person to actually hunger and thirst after righteousness, to be after the righteousness of Christ and to be right with God. I want to be right with God. I'm not trying to just miss hell and go to heaven. I want to be right with God. I want to know God. I want to have fellowship with God. I want to have communion with God. God's my Creator, God's my Savior. I am a just God and a Savior, and I want to KNOW Him HERE! HERE! I don't want to wait until I die to know Him, so I can get to know Him after I leave this place. No, you're not. No, no. It doesn't work that way. Some people want to be saved from hell, but God's people want to be saved from their sins. I WANT TO BE SAVED FROM MY SIN AND MY SINFUL SELF! I WANT TO BE SAVED FROM THE LUST OF THIS FLESH AND I WANT TO HUNGER AND THIRST AFTER RIGHTEOUSNESS! Because I have this PROMISE, THEY SHALL BE FILLED! THEY SHALL BE FILLED! And look in verse 3 or 4, 4 For the time past of our life may suffice us To have wrought the will of the Gentiles when we walked in lasciviousness, lust, the excess of wine, revelry, banqueting, and abominable idolatries, lasciviousness, evil, orgies, and we read it in other translations, sexual immorality, and you know for the time past of our life is sufficient IT WAS SUFFICIENT TO FULFILL THE LUST OF OUR FLESH. I DON'T WANT NO MORE OF IT. I DON'T WANT NO MORE OF IT. It's like the message we looked at in Exodus last Sunday, when he gave them flesh, he gave them all they could eat until they was vomiting it out their nostrils. I've had enough of myself. I've had enough of my flesh. Give me Christ. Give me Christ. Oh, that God would give us a heart to know Him, seek after Him, and not be satisfied with just a knowledge that we have. But we would know Him more and more. That we would know Him more and more. Because He's God. Knowing Christ, you can't exhaust that. Can you exhaust God? You can't do it. Oh for the past time of our life may suffice us we walked, we walked in the flesh. You know walk speaks of a lifestyle which was ours at one time if you go over and read Ephesians chapter 2. We were children of wrath even as others. We fulfilled the desires of our mind, of our flesh, but no longer, no longer. We don't live after the flesh, we still have the flesh. And those desires do rise up, I'm not gonna deny that, they do rise up. You know, Paul one time called himself a wretch, but as I've said many times, he didn't live like one. He didn't live like, I don't have to live like a wretch to prove I am a wretch. We're children of God, sons and daughters of the King. In fact, he said, listen to what Paul said here in 1 Corinthians 9 27, But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection. His passions, all those things. You know, Paul was a man of like passions, just like me and you. Just like me and you. God gave him a thorn in the flesh to keep him down so he wouldn't be exalted above measure because of the abundance of revelation he'd be lifted up with pride like the devil. I keep under my body and brain into subjection lest that by any means when I have preached to others I myself should be cast away. And He meant that too. Now look here in verse 4, he says here, WHEREIN THEY THINK IT STRANGE THAT YOU RUN NOT WITH THEM TO THE SAME EXCESS OF RIGHT, SPEAKING EVIL OF YOU. They speak evil of you. If you take this Bible and you tell what it says, first of all, they don't understand why you don't run with them no more. I told you this before, but there's people watching that haven't heard this, but a friend of mine said, I wish you hadn't got saved. That's the way he put it. That's the only way he knew it. I didn't go running around with him no more. We didn't go to the same places no more. I was totally cut off. Cut off. He said, why don't you want to go no more? You wouldn't know it if I explained it to you. I could explain it to you and you'll never know because you've got to be born of God to understand why I don't want to do that no more. You have to be born of God. And they will speak evil of you. Just take this Bible, say what it says. That's all you've got to do, just what it says. Fornication, adultery, homosexuality. Just say what it says about Jesus Christ, His sovereignty, who He died for. You will not be popular, I promise you. You will not be popular. They'll hate you. They'll take this Jesus who wants to save everybody and the one that gets us, they'll take that one. BUT NOT THIS ONE, NOT THE SOVEREIGN CHRIST OF GOD, NOT THE SOVEREIGN CHRIST OF THIS BIBLE, NOT THE SOVEREIGN CHRIST WHO IS SEATED ON THE THRONE RULING AND REIGNING AS HE WILL, SAVING WHOM HE WILL AND HARDENING WHOM HE WILL. Is that the truth? That's the truth. That's the truth. They think it's strange the world doesn't understand you no more. They speak evil of you. And then look here in verse 5 and 6, Who shall give account, these people here, when they think it strange that you run not with them to the same excess of riot? Riot, that's where their life is. EXPLAINED, SPEAKING EVIL OF YOU, WHO SHALL GIVE ACCOUNT TO HIM THAT IS READY TO JUDGE THE QUICK AND THE DEAD? They are going to give an account to God, everybody is. JESUS CHRIST, ALL JUDGEMENT HAS BEEN TURNED OVER TO THE SON. ALL JUDGEMENT HAS BEEN TURNED OVER TO JESUS CHRIST. HE IS GOING TO JUDGE EVERYBODY ON THIS EARTH. THANK GOD OUR JUDGEMENT HAS PASSED. OUR JUDGEMENT HAS PASSED. GOD JUDGED US AT CALVARY. Isn't that good news? My soul, that's something to go home with. And the gospel is going to reach all. I want to read to you in verse 6. That's not an easy verse to interpret. I read a lot of different things today. But I'm going to just read you what Henry wrote on this, and Spurgeon had this, and John Gill had this, and I believe they're right. In verse 6 it says, This is the reason the gospel of Christ was preached to those who are now dead, such as Noah, Abraham, Moses, and David. They're not dead spiritually, they're with God, but they're dead to US. They're dead to US. THAT THOUGH THEY WERE STILL MEN IN THE FLESH, SUBJECTED LIKE PASSIONS, CHASTENED OF GOD, HATED AND MISUNDERSTOOD BY NATURAL MEN, THEY LIVED THEN AND NOW LIVE FOR THE GLORY OF GOD IN THE SPIRIT. THEY LIVED BY FAITH THEN, WALKING IN THE SPIRIT, AND THEY LIVE ETERNALLY NOW BY GOD'S GRACE. THE SAME GOSPEL OF CHRIST QUICKENED THEM THAT NOW MAKES US LIVE IN THE SPIRIT." That's the best way I can explain that one. They live now in glory to the glory of God, but that same gospel that quickened them has quickened us. And we live to His glory now on this earth. And in a short while, we'll be in His presence. We'll be in His presence. I thought today, and I know I'm, well, it doesn't matter how long ago here, but I thought today when I was walking across the parking lot here and I was looking at the clouds and the sky, And I was looking at that, taking notice of that. And it just struck me, it just struck me strongly. I could see Jesus Christ before I get across his parking lot. I could see him right now. And within a second, within a second, a friend of mine got up on a Sunday morning getting dressed to come over to 13th street to the service and just fell over dead on the bed just it was that fast no warning just bam it happened he went from going to go to the service to being in the service and in glory it and i thought you know we always we always think of life being way out there it's day by day second by second Then he says here in verse 7, The end of all things is at hand. Boy, if we could keep that in front of us. We know that there is an end to all things. There is an end to this day. There is an end to this night. There is an end to this service. And here just, believe me, there is an end to this service. I am trying not to go too long, but there is an end to this service. There is an end to our sorrow, our happiness. One follows the other. Well, if we just learned that I might be hurting today, but tomorrow will be okay. It may take a few tomorrows before it's okay, but that's okay. There's an end to our careers. Then there's an end to our life on this earth. And then there's the end to this earth. As it says in 1 Corinthians 15, 24, then come at the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the father, when he shall have put down all rule and all authority. But there is no end to glory. There's no end to knowing God, there's no end to love, there's no end to those things that are above. So therefore, redeem the time, be sober and watchful. Be sober and watchful, don't have panic attacks over it, but live by faith. Watch unto prayer, seek God for sustaining grace and preserving or persevering grace. Love one another fervently, verse 8. Let me move this quickly. Love one another fervently. Above all, he says, have fervent charity. I like the meaning of fervent up. Now listen to this. I thought about my love to you, our love to one another, my love to my wife, and my love to God. Listen to this. Very hot, glowing, That's what it means, glowy, very hot. Exhibiting or marked by great intensity of feeling, zealous. That's the way we are to love one another. And practice hospitality in verse 9, be welcoming, be generous on purpose, on purpose and not without grudge. You don't say, well, I've got to do this. Bible says I got, you know, that's what the Bible says. No! You don't want to do it, don't do it! But do it on purpose. You see, these are marks of grace in the soul, as I've said before, grace in, grace out. And be good stewards of the gifts that God's given to you. He's given you riches, use them for His glory. He's given you talent to sing and to pray, to read, do it for His glory. and do it freely Christ said to his disciples heal the sick cleanse the lepers raise the dead cast out devils freely you have received freely give be faithful stewards of his grace it says there in verse 10 as good stewards of the manifold grace of God the many-sided grace of God be good stewards of God's grace his grace been good to you Use what God's given you, use the talents God's given you. You know James said this in James 5.3, Your gold is silver's canker and the rust of them shall be a witness against you. The rust, that's right, you know, you've got a big fat bank account and he said the rust of that is gonna stand in judgment against you and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. You've heaped up treasure together for the last days. Retirement. afraid to use it. I told somebody not long ago, I said, don't be afraid of making money. Ask God to give you a heart, give you a heart, give you a heart to give, and wisdom, and wisdom in giving. I said, somebody's got to support the gospel. God's blessed you. Somebody's got to support the ministry. And serve God in the strength He gives you. Preach, teach, minister according to the power that God provides. And last of all, I close. We are not called to live easy lives and have what we want to live. I like comfort, I do. I'm not going to act like I don't. But we are called to live for God's glory, that's what we're called for. And He's given us pretty easy lives, hasn't He? He has done so, and we're thankful for it. But whether we suffer, serve, speak, or love, let us do it unto the Lord. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 10, verse 31, Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God. This would be a good motto, if you can't do it for His glory, don't do it. There's a good guideline. Our business is to glorify God in all things, to Him be the glory, both now and evermore. We were made for His glory. And the sooner we realize that, the better. All right.