Lord, let us in our homes agree
this blessed peace to gain. Unite our hearts in love to Thee,
and love will reign. Good hymn, that. All right, thank
you, Robin. Good hymn. Lord, this blessed peace, unite our
hearts in love today. Love to reign. 1 Peter 3 now. 1 Peter 3. This, we're looking at the grace
of God. And in this chapter, it's grace
adorned. The grace of our God adorned,
the gospel of God's grace adorned by wives and husbands and each other
toward one another. This is not only glorifying to
God, not only, that's what Peter says that this grace of God does,
glorifies God before a godless world, but it also promotes peace,
peace amongst ourselves, peace in our homes. And blessed are
the peacemakers. The fruit of righteousness is
sown in peace by them that make peace. He tells us to make peace,
do whatever it takes. If possible, he said, live peaceably
with all men, even people in the world. Try to live at peace.
He said, make peace and ensue it. That is, go after it. Be a peacemaker. One time Paul
said, provoke one another to love. We provoke one another
enough to anger. James said, in many things we
offend all. It's high time we start trying
to provoke one another to love one another, to love us, be lovable,
peaceable, gentle, easy to be entreated, as James said. So
it begins with the wise. It says, likewise. You don't
begin with likewise. He was just talking to us servants,
wasn't he, in verse 18 of chapter 2. Servants. Servants of God,
that is. We're all servants of God. He says, be subject to your masters. Remember that? And then verse
1 here in our text is likewise, in the same way, ye wives be
in subjection to your own husbands. Subjects. Subordinates. In submission to. Look at the last verse of chapter
3. that all things are going to
be made subject unto Christ. Look at chapter 5. This is a
theme throughout this book. Chapter 5, verse 5. You younger, submit yourselves
unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one
to another, and be clothed with humility, adorned with. Humility. For God resisted the
proud. God hates pride. He said it's the principal thing
he hates. He resisted the proud. You don't want God resisting
you. You want God for you. So he says this. He giveth grace
to humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God,
that he may exalt you in due time. So he's talking about being
in subjection and submission. This is so foreign to this generation. It's the opposite of what this
generation is teaching. what they believe. People condone
and even promote and, what's the word that I'm looking
for, laud pride. Don't submit, don't be in subjection,
but rather act up, rebel against the establishment, rebel against
authority. Isn't that what our generation
is teaching, isn't it? Attitude. That's been a thing
that people take pride in and urge children to have, have an
attitude. That's just another word for
pride. This is the attitude that we're all to have, one of humility
and being submission and subjection to all authority. We looked at
that in Romans 13, didn't we? The powers that be are of God.
And if you resist whatever authority it is, you're resisting God.
And God resisted the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. Well,
he begins with the wives being in subjection to their husbands.
Look, read on. Wives being in subjection to
your own husbands. That if any obey not the word. He's talking about an unbelieving,
unregenerate husband. Or this can be the other way
around, can't it? A man married to an unbelieving
woman. If so, then subjection that they
also may without the word be won by the conversation of the
wise. No one is saved apart from hearing
the gospel. The gospel is the power of God
unto salvation. Whosoever shall call on the name
of the Lord shall be saved. Well, how are they going to call
on Him whom they've not believed? How shall they believe in Him
whom they've not heard? How shall they hear without a preacher?
How shall they preach except to be sent? Faith cometh by hearing,
hearing by the Word of God. Nobody is saved apart from preaching
the gospel. He's not saying that anybody's
soul is one or they're saved by observing somebody's good
works. You know that. We're not saved
by our good works. We're not saved by anybody else's
good works. We're saved by grace. He's not contradicting Scripture.
What he's saying is, you win them over. Win them over by your
chaste, look at verse 2, they behold your chaste conversation
or life coupled with fear. They behold your subjection,
your submission, your humility, your chaste, that's pure, that's
sweet and kind and Christ-like. That's another word for Christ.
Chaste even sounds like Christ. Christ-like attitude. Before
we go any further, it's not possible for a regenerated, born again,
new creature in Christ, a woman, for this to bother her. It's not possible. Every true
daughter of Abraham, like he's going to talk about, daughter
of Sarah, every true child of God is humble, is meek, wants
to be in subjection, wants to be in submission. I know we all
have this old man that rises up. Women have this feminist
in them. It's there by nature in them.
But now this new man, creating the image of Christ, like Christ,
is meek and in subjection. Our Lord is the example, is He
not? If anyone could have rebelled
against authority, man's authority, if anyone had the right to rebel
and say, this is all wrong, this is corrupt, It would have been
the Lord Jesus Christ. But no, He's our example. He's our example. He's submitted.
He lived by faith, teaching us that God reigns and rules even
over the evil. He's made all things for Himself,
even the evil, the wicked for the day of judgment. Christ is our example. So it
tells us, and surely, well I know you all, I don't know, there's
no woman in here that would recoil at this at all. There are very few women out
there that would want to hear this. Obey. Are you kidding me? Submit? We still use that when
we marry our sons and daughters. We use that term when you promise
to obey your husband. That's completely taken out of
modern marriages aren't it? Because marriages are not... We act according to God's Word,
don't we? This is what we want. This is the way. This is what
God tells us. It's not just good advice. He
says this is the only way it is. This is the only way it is. A soft answer turneth away wrath.
Submission and meekness and kindness will win over all but the hardest
of hearts. It would take an absolute monster
not to be won by and influenced by A kind, loving, gentle, submissive,
humble woman. Or vice versa. Be an absolute
monster. And if that be the case, leave. That's right. 1 Corinthians 7
tells us you can. So, but he says here, and I didn't
mean to give him that, that's another subject. But he says,
they may be won by your conversation. They behold your chaste conversation
coupled with fear. Not fear of them, but not to
fear men. A wife shouldn't fear her husband,
but fear of God. Fear God, whose adorning, let
it not be the outward adorning, of plaiting the hair and of wearing
of gold and putting on of apparel, let it be the hidden man of the
heart, the inward adorning of the heart, that which is not
corruptible like apparel, but the ornament of a meek and a
quiet spirit, which in the sight of God is of great pride. Now,
every single commentator I read on this, even the old Puritans,
they all agreed. None of them said that this is
forbidding women to wear gold. None of them said, kind of surprised
me actually, I thought one of them would misinterpret this,
because look at it, he says, let it not be the adorning of
putting on of apparel. Let's see, is he condemning putting
on of apparel? No, not at all. But what he's
saying is the adorning that you need to wear, we're not talking
about an outward adorning, trying to make yourself look beautiful
outwardly, but inwardly. This is true beauty, he says.
This is true beauty. Anyone can make themselves look
beautiful, you know, paint yourself up, right? Anybody. And that's not, that's
not the adornment he's talking about here. He's not forbidding
that. He's talking about The adorning
of a meek and a quiet spirit, which in the sight of God is
great value and beautiful. Look at Psalm 45 with me. Psalm 45. This is the psalm of
the king and his bride. I love this psalm. Oh, I love
this psalm. Psalm 45. And this is the adorning. He says of our Lord, oh my, I'd
like to read the whole thing, but he says, of Christ, thou
art fairer than the children of men. Grace is poured into
thy lips. All right, here's a good example.
When our Lord became a man, what kind of body did He take? He
made Himself. He made His body. Exactly like
that. There was no form of compassion. No outward beauty. He chose that. He chose a body for himself that
had no physical beauty whatsoever. But he was altogether lovely. No outward beauty. None. So what does that tell you about
beauty? What's the old saying, skin deep? Oh now, so God says,
God doesn't look on the outward candidate. And neither should we. Read on. He's a sparer. And he, oh my,
I'd love to preach on all this. But it says down in verse 7,
Thou lovest righteousness and hatest wickedness. Therefore,
thy God hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy
fellows. All thy garments smell of myrrh
and aloes and cashew. He wore a very common garment,
a common robe, not a robe of gold or silk. But, oh my, His character, everything. These
are types of his character. Myrrh and aloe and cashew out
of the ivory palaces. They made thee glad. King's daughters,
verse 9. King's daughters were among thy
honorable women. Harken, verse 10, O daughter.
Harken, consider and incline thine ear, forget thine own people.
This is saying come to Christ and marry him. Your father's
house, leave and come to your Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
So shall the King greatly desire thy beauty. Now, did Christ marry
a beautiful bride? Did He come for a beautiful bride?
Huh? Oh, no. He came for an ugly bride. He came to marry an ugly bride
that He might make her beautiful. Like in Ezekiel 16, a child in
the field, He said, she was made beautiful through His coming.
She was cast out in the field, the loathing of herself, and
that's us, like Gomer. And look at verse 13. The king's daughter is all glorious
within. Her clothing is wrought gold.
He wrought it. She'll be brought to the king
in raiment of needlework." That's Christ's work, the robe of righteousness. That's the dress code of heaven
in it. The white robes is the righteousness
of saints. And Christ is the one who clothed
her like Eve in the garden. Now go back to our text. So this
adorning is to be the hidden man, not outward
adorning, although he doesn't forbid that. Although in 1 Timothy
2 says adorning women should adorn themselves in modest apparel,
shouldn't come to worship God to be seen, fashionistas, But
a modest affair was shame-faced and sobriety, that which becometh
women professing godliness." Good work, Adornis. And he goes
on to say, "...let the woman learn in silence with all subjection."
This is all through the Scripture, all through the Scripture. It's
not to keep women oppressed, it's to keep peace. It's to keep
peace in the home. It's to keep them from being
a fight. Not good advice. It's the only way. Our Lord said,
a soft answer turns away wrath. He said, when he was reviled,
reviled not again. He said, turn the other cheek. That'll stop it. That'll stop
it. So, a loud and proud woman. There's nothing more unbecoming
of a believer, a daughter of Christ, of God. to be loud and
proud and bossy. Let it be the hidden man, the
meek, quiet spirit, and humility and subjection in the sight of
God. Beautiful. Beautiful. Look at Titus 2. The whole second
chapter of Titus is concerning this. Look at Titus. Look at
verse 1 of chapter 1. He begins this epistle, this
short epistle, by saying that I'm a servant of God, an apostle
of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God's elect. That's
the way Peter began it. Acknowledging of the truth which
is after godliness. This is the truth that promotes
and produces godliness. Look at chapter, well, verse
16 of chapter 1. It says, some profess they know
God, but in works they deny Him, being abominable and disobedient
unto every good work, reprobate, void of judgment. But he says
to Titus, young Titus, a preacher, you speak the things that become
sound doctrine, the doctrine according to godliness, he said,
Christ-like. The aged men, be sober, grave,
temperate. Peter said the same thing, didn't
he? Be sober. Sound in the faith. Charity and
patience. Aged women, likewise. Be in behavior
that becometh holy. Holy women. Do you dislike that
word? Do you think you don't like that
word? We've just read it three times now. What's wrong with
it? It's wonderful. Holy women. That means godly women. That
means consecrated women. That means women that know the
Lord. not false accusers, not given
to much wine, teachers of good things, that they may teach young
women by example and in word, teach them to be sober, not taken
up with the things of this world, vanity of this world, but to
love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet,
chaste, what we just read, keepers at home, good, obedient to their
own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed. Are you
reading it with me? Verse 6. Young men, likewise, exhort to
be sober-minded. He doesn't leave anybody out.
We're all in subjection. In all things, show in thyself
a pattern of good works, doctrines showing uncorruptedness, gravity,
sincerity, sound speech that cannot be condemned. That he that is of the contrary part
may be ashamed. Having no evil thing to say of
you. Exhort servants to be obedient of their own masters.
Is this important? How much of Scripture is filled
with that? This is glorifying the God. This is good for us. This promotes peace. Are you
with me? Read on, verse 9. Exhort the
servants to be obedient of their own masters. Please them well
in all things. Not back talking, not answering
again. Not purloring, stealing time
or money. Showing all good fidelity or
faithfulness, that they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior
in all things. Four, here's what the grace of
God. teaches. Here's the grace of God in truth
Peter told us he's writing about. This is what true grace promotes. Look at verse 11. The grace of
God that bringeth salvation at the pier to all men. The gospel
of God's grace has gone out everywhere and it teaches us that denying
ungodliness and worldly lusts we should live soberly. righteously
and godly in this present world, looking for that blessed hope
and glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior, Jesus
Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from
all iniquity and purify unto Himself a peculiar people. Remember that? A royal priesthood. Chosen generation. Peculiar people. Zealous of good work. Going about doing good like the
Lord Jesus Christ. These things speak and exhort
and rebuke with all authority. Let no man despise you. The way
he's preaching works. Yeah, I'm going to preach exactly
what the Lord says. I don't care what anybody says.
That's what Paul said to Titus. You preach this. That's what
the Lord said. The Lord even said, if any man
teaches contrary to this, he's least in the kingdom of heaven.
So, it's for our good, for God's glory, for peace. All right,
go back to 1 Peter 3. So he says in verse 5, after
this manner, in the old time, the holy women, also, holy women. Peter talked about holy men in
2 Peter 1, didn't he, who wrote the Scripture. consecrated, sanctified,
being set apart for God, dedicated, pious. Pious is a good word. Devout. I want to be devout. Holy women, it says, who trusted
in God adorned themselves, being in subjection to their own husbands,
even as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him Lord. Remember that in Genesis 18,
where the Lord came and said, Sarah's going to have a child.
And she in her tent laughed. She said, shall I have pleasure?
And my Lord hath pleasure. He's a hundred years old. She
laughed. And the Lord said, why did Sarah laugh? Well, she quit
laughing and rebuked her. But she called him Lord. Sarah
obeyed Abraham, calling him Lord. whose daughters ye are, as long
as you do well. She called him Lord. Now, he
doesn't tell us. And I'm not telling you to call
your husband that. And it says to the preacher of
the gospel, the pastor, the overseer, the bishop, it says over in chapter
5, that feed the flock, taking the oversight thereof, not as
being lords, over God's heritage. But example, the word Lord here
is not one who reigns and rules like a sovereign. The word Lord
is often used throughout Scripture for the word master, mister. This is where we got the word
mister. You know where Mr. and Mrs. came from? Master and
mistress of a house. The head of a house and his wife.
Master and Mrs. We shorten it to Mr. and Mrs.
We tell our young girls to call people Mr. and not Mrs. Yes, sir. It's just respect. And she called him that, Mr. Avery. But the point is that she She
referenced him, yeah, that's what Paul wrote. She respected
him in such a way. Now, was Abraham a sinner? Oh, my. A couple of times he
denied he was afraid for his life. And he told Sarah, she
was so beautiful, even in old age, that he acted a coward. He was afraid that the men would
kill him and take his beautiful wife, Sarah. Twice, not once,
but twice he told her, now you just tell them you're my sister.
And it's true, he said, it's true, I'm not lying, it's true,
because we were both born. Abraham, the father of the faithful,
Does he deserve respect? Well, yes and no. He was faithful. And she obeyed. When God called Abraham to leave
Ur of the Chaldees and leave and follow Him, Abraham left.
He said, Sarah, we're leaving. Now, I don't know if Abraham
was called in or saved them or not. We looked at that. I think
she was dealt with in Genesis 18 later on. But he said, Wife,
we're leaving. I'm going to follow God. Who?
I'm going to follow Jehovah. She said, Okay. And she left. So, in that sense,
she left. Obeyed him. Called him Lord. whose daughters are you, if you're
a daughter of Abraham, as long as you do well. That is, it says
that you have this meekness and quiet spirit. Trust in God. She trusted in God. And you,
if you do well in that way. And not afraid with any amazement.
That means don't be afraid of Him. Fear God. And don't be afraid
for yourself. God's going to take care of you,
no matter who you're married to. You know, why did he deal with
the wives first? Why didn't he deal with the men?
Men have the greater responsibility. Men, as a type of Christ, have
the greater responsibility. Actually, the more difficult
job than to love the woman as Christ loved the church. That's
what they're told to do. They have a greater responsibility
to provide for her, to care for her, to watch over her, to protect
her, to lead and guide her, to be the spiritual leader of the
home, and to dwell with them according to wisdom, and dwell
with them according to knowledge, and, you know, do what's right. Oh, she's just a submitter. But why does he deal with the
woman first? Because knowing human nature, knowing men, that
they're sinners, that every man in his best state, and how difficult
it must be, it is, to follow a sinful man. And knowing the
oppression of women, this is a man's world, and the women
are oppressed the world over, aren't they? Most women the world
over are under oppression, terribly, treated terribly, aren't they?
And so knowing that, he tells them, believe in women, even
an unbelieving husband. This is the way. This is the
way. And knowing that women are the
deceived one, that's what he dealt with, Paul dealt with in
two places. The woman being deceived was
in the transgression. Women are, he's going to talk
about the weaker vessel being Weaker, not all women, but most. Weaker emotionally and are easy
prey. A good word, Scripture says,
in fair speech is to deceive the hearts of the simple. No
one is more deceived than a woman or a slick-talking man. It happens
all the time. So that's why he talks to women
first. So he says, be insubjectionate. Now, men, verse 7, likewise,
ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge. Dwell with them according to
knowledge. Dwell with them means just that. Dwell with them. They want and need you to be
with them. That's why they married you. They want you, right? You don't want what He can provide.
You're not even the protection and feeling of safety and all
that. You want to be loved. No. You want Him to want you. and be with you. Dwell with them. Dwell with them. And dwelling
with a woman and a man with a woman and a woman with a man means
much more than being in the same house. You can live in the same
house and not be dwelling together. Dwelling together means dwell
together in love and unity and harmony and peace and kindness. Dwell together. be one in union,
united in one mind, one spirit, one attitude, one accord. Dwell together. Dwell with them
according to knowledge. Understanding them. Understanding
their needs. Knowing their frame. Knowing
what they need. He says here, giving honor unto
the wife as unto the weaker vessel. into the weaker vessel. Dwell
with your wife. Let me read from my pastor's
commentary. He says, use wisdom. Your wife
is not a slave, but a loving companion. She's not a subject
to be ordered about by law, but a part of you to be led and provided
for in love. One of the other men, John Brown,
an old Scottish preacher, said, she's not a subject that you
can dismiss at will and be done with her. And she's not a friend
which you can dismiss lightly. She's your intimate companion
to promote that. She has needs. A woman needs
to dwell with a man, say. Right? know one another's needs. But the man has a greater responsibility
in knowing her needs, knowing her frame as a weaker vessel. Now, you know that, as I said,
some women are stronger both physically and mentally. But
for the most part, women want a man to provide for and protect
and nurture and lead. And in the garden, the Lord said
to the woman and all women, that man shall have the rule over
you. And it says, your desire shall
be to him. It's a good thing to be a kept
woman, isn't it? Aren't we all? I am. I'm Christ's bride, and
that's exactly the way I want. I don't want to believe. So,
it says here in verse 7, giving honor unto the wife. Honor to the wife. Oh, my. That she is created by God to
bring joy and companionship and comfort to you. She is your wife. Is no one closer of more importance
to the husband on this earth, of more importance, than she
is? If she's a mother, she's the
mother of his children. Oh, what a responsibility. What could carry more honor,
respect, or recognition? What higher calling could a woman
be called to? A faithful wife or mother. And he says, treat her with tenderness,
gentleness, kindness. Treat her this way. That man
who holds his wife in contempt, belittles her, no respect, no
honor as beneath her, holds God in contempt. And God will deal
with him. It goes on down to say, his eyes
are over her. He's watching. And won't get
away with it. So, likewise he husbands. We're vessels, we're heirs, verse
7, I love this, heirs together of the grace of life. Robert
Layton, a bishop in Scotland said, This is what a sweet word,
the grace of life, the gift of life. He's talking about eternal
life, talking about two believers, two believers dwelling together
in love. There's nothing more beautiful,
nothing more wonderful than two believers, wonderful. He that
obtaineth a wife, obtaineth favor of the Lord. It's a good thing,
obtain favor of the Lord, the Proverbs said. And especially
a believing wife or husband, oh my, what a blessing, what
a blessing, what a gift. Now you're not only husband and
wife, and by the way, that relationship ends with death. It ends. And they won't marry
in a given marriage in glory. That ends, right? But if you're
brother and sister, it won't end. Put your heirs together, brothers
and sisters, of the grace of life, the gift of eternal life
through Jesus Christ our Lord. So, he said to the woman, be
wise, be in subjection, submission. Maybe the unbelieving husband
will be won by your Christlike life and adorn yourselves with
this meek and quiet spirit. And obey your husband. Be submissive to them. Don't
be afraid of them. But do well. And let your prayers
be not hindered. Let your prayers be not hindered.
God's not hearing us when we're in a state of rebellion and a
state of conflict and wrath and schisms and strife. And then
we should pray. He's not hearing that. David said, if I regard iniquity
in my heart, the Lord doesn't hear me. In another place, in
the Lord's Sermon on the Mount, he said, if your brother has
something against you, you better go to him. Don't come in here
and try to worship. He said, go home to him. This is what
our Lord said. You go make up with that brother, or God's not
going to listen to you. He's not going to listen to you. And you're not going to hear
from him. Make up. This is what he did. And the
whole motive behind all this is God, for Christ's sake, because
Christ was beaten by his stripes, you're healed, because Christ
did this for us. It shouldn't be difficult for
us. Forgive someone. We know them. We know they're
just like us. And if you don't forgive, our
Lord said, you won't be forgiven. Now your prayers will be hindered.
Finally, verse 8, be all of you of one mind, having compassion. I'm going to end right there.
I'm going to pick that up next Wednesday night. All right, let's
stand together. Our Father in Heaven, thank You
so much for Your Word. Oh my, it's a light under our
feet, a lamp under our feet, a light under our path, a way
of righteousness. Set our feet, Lord, in paths
of righteousness. For Thy name's sake, for Thy
glory, for Thy honor, let's walk in love as Christ loved us. I mean, lights in a dark world. your people in the midst of a
wicked and perverse and crooked generation. Oh, Lord, make us
like Christ. Oh, may we be good examples.
May we be good testimonies of Thy grace. Let us adorn the doctrine
of God our Savior in all things. Let us be like Him. Oh, Lord,
may we be like the Lord Jesus Christ. Meek, lowly, loving,
kind, gracious, merciful, forgiving, forbearing, long-suffering, gentle,
tender, easy to be entreated, understanding, wise, considerate,
pitiful, courteous, oh Lord, we come far short. Oh, create in us a clean heart,
renew within us a right spirit. Send Thy Holy Spirit to give
us the fruit of the Spirit for Thy glory, to the praise of the
glory of Thy grace. Lord, You must give these things
or we won't have them. So we call upon You. Forgive
us. Forgive and give, we pray. In Christ's name, amen.