to 1 Peter chapter 4. As you know, we've been studying
through the book of 1 Peter, and now we come to chapter 4.
We've been looking at the true grace of God, the true grace
of God wherein you stand. We first looked at grace bestowed, chapter one, and we looked at
grace tasted, chapter two. Chapter three, grace lived or
professed. And then this morning, we're
going to look at grace tested. Chapter four is grace put to the test. That's what this chapter is about.
The trial of your faith. That's what he said in, look
back at chapter 1. Just mark 1 Peter 4. We'll get to it eventually. But in chapter 1, verse 7, Peter
begins this letter by talking about and preparing us for the
trial, verse 7. Verse 6, do you remember this? If need be, you rejoice in Christ,
he said, those who are elect, those who have been blessed by
God, given as inheritance, reserved in heaven, kept by the power
of God through faith, and given faith, and kept by this gospel. You rejoice. But now, if need
be, do you remember that? If need be. You are in heaviness
through manifold temptation, heavy trials and troubles, if
need be. Remember who decides who it need
be? Our God, our Father, if need
be. And if it be, it need be, or
it wouldn't be. Remember that. Now look at why
he sends them. Verse 7, the trial of your faith
being much more precious than of gold. faith, that is, go to
perish it, though it be tried with fire, your faith, that it
might be," here it is, found, that praise might be unto the
praise and honor and glory of our God at the appearing of Jesus
Christ, his glory. It might be for his glory, not
ours, but his. And that's the purpose for this
whole ball of dirt, God's glory. And that's the purpose of God
trying his people, putting them through trials, trouble. It goes back to Hebrews 11. Hebrews
chapter 11. You know, this is the chapter
that deals with so many of God's saints, people that went through
Terrible trial, huh? I was amazed. Weren't you amazed
at how this chapter which our brother
read went with what we studied this morning? Isn't that amazing? If I'd have planned it, I couldn't
have planned it this way. Weren't you amazed at how it
just was a commentary on what our Lord said in Luke 17? Well, Hebrews 11, look at verses
25 through 27. It says, Moses choosing rather
to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the
pleasure of sin for a season. He esteemed the reproaches of
Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt. He had respect
unto the recompense of the reward. The reward. By faith, read on,
he forsook Egypt. Not fearing the wrath of the
king, for he endured." Now, this is how he endured, and this is
how we endure. He endured as seeing him who is invisible. Chapter 12
says, looking unto him. We're encompassed with such a
cloud of witnessing. Didn't you stop and think as
we were looking at the sufferings that God's people have gone through.
Didn't you stop and think, I haven't gone through that. My light affliction, huh? I just
heard a message by my pastor on that passage, our light affliction. Didn't you think that after you
read or heard me read of the things that God's people went
through? Here in chapter 11, it talks
about them Going through the sword and the fire and sawn asunder
and tortured and cruel mockings and scourgings and bonds and
stoned and tempted and so forth, wandering about. Well, Peter
mentions suffering. Now you can go back to 1 Peter. Peter mentions suffering sixteen
times in this first letter alone. Why? Why? Because only through the trial
of faith will faith be found unto God's
praise and honor and glory. Let me see if I can make us understand
this. It's easy to talk a good profession, especially among those that believe, isn't it? We can stand with someone
that agrees with you, and we can be so gung-ho and enthusiastic
and zealous and all. But now, stand as Peter did,
as Peter did before someone who said, I'm going to kill you if
you profess Christ. I'm going to beat you to death
with a whip if you preach that name one more time. Now let's hear what you believe. Peter said, I can't help but
speak the things I've seen and heard. Here's my back. That's not in a man. It's not
in a man. We saw that. Peter one time said,
everybody's going to leave you but me. And a little maiden came
up to him. So you're one of them. No, I'm
not. There's a man left to himself. Now, here's faith. Christ said,
when you're converted now. And God gave him this faith. It's a gift of God. And he said,
Go ahead and beat me. I can't help. I can't help it.
It's easy to say God is sovereign. Talk is cheap, isn't it? It's
so cheap. I'm speaking to myself here. It's so easy to say God
is sovereign, God working all things. But now do like Eli. Somebody comes to you like they
did to Eli and says, both your boys are dead. First, he told him, they're going
to die. Eli said, it's the Lord. Let him do what's in him to do. That's not in a man, Stan.
A man won't do that of his own. My boy, that's of God. That's going to be found under
praise and honor and glory of God. God's going to have to do
that. God's going to have to give a man that kind of thing. Say with Job, he slays me, I'll
trust him. Say with Job, well, the Lord
has taken away. Bless God. It's easy to bless
God when he gives. The Lord gives it. But say when he's taken away,
the Lord gave to take away. Sit in a jail cell with the Apostle
Paul. It's easy to say God's doing
all this, but sit in a jail cell with the Apostle Paul and say,
I'm the Lord's prisoner. It's not Nero, it's not Rome,
it's not the Jews, it's Christ putting me here on purpose. That's
not in a man, that's not in a woman. That's God. That's going to be
found under praise and honor and glory. It's easy to say of
health and wealth, God sends health. God's blessed me. Isn't it? That's easy. I've heard
unbelievers say things like that. They've been blessed. But then
sickness comes. Say with the Apostle Paul, this
thorn was given me of God. God's blessed me. Say with David,
it's good for me to reflect. God's blessed me. Sit with Job as he scrapes the
boils off of his whole body, and nothing in this world left.
Nothing. Sitting, scraping boils, and
say, God did this. That's just not our man. How does, which way does God
get more glory? Do you see that? This can be
found under praise. Take a husband and wife. Let's
take a husband and wife as an example. All lovey-dovey, you
know, when they first get married, things are so lovey-dovey. Why?
Well, because they just got back from Hawaii. Sure they're lovey-dovey, you
know. He's still got a week off from work. Everything's just
wonderful. I love you forever, honey. Oh,
me too. Oh, you're the only one. And then things start turning
sour. Let's let some real sickness set in. Incapacitate that wife. Incapacitate that husband. Let's
see who loves now. Let's see who stays now. Let's
let some financial troubles crop in. Let's see who loves. In sickness and health we make
these vows. Well, the supreme example now
of faith found under the praise and honor of glory is the Lord
Jesus Christ himself. He lived by faith. Yes, a man. Jesus Christ was a man and lived
by faith. Not just a man, mind you, but
he became a man. He did it on purpose. Why? And
he lived by faith. Why? to the praise and honor
and glory of God and for our salvation. Look at it here in
1 Peter chapter 4 verse 1. It says, well, 1 Peter 4 verse 1 says, For as
much then as Christ has suffered for us in the flesh. Back up
in chapter 3 verse 18. He says, Christ also hath once
suffered for sins. Now, whose sins did he suffer
for? Not his own. He had no sin. And here's the sense in which
our affliction and our life. There's one sense. And it's,
thank you, Amy, for giving me that tape by my pastor. I was
there when he preached that years ago. But he said in this one sense,
our afflictions are like compared to what we deserve. Compared to what we deserve.
Barnard used to say, anything that's out of hell is mercy.
It's of the Lord's mercies, scripture said, that we're not consumed. snuffed out immediately. It is
of the Lord's mercies that we are given anything good and not
everything that we deserve. You see that? We deserve the
wages of sin is what? Death. We deserve the wrath of
God. We deserve the punishment of
God. We deserve God's anger. And we receive so light affliction
compared to what we deserve. Well, Christ didn't deserve it.
Christ suffered for sins. Whose sins? He could have complained,
couldn't he? He could have complained, I don't
deserve this. He didn't. Well, why did he do it? Why did
he suffer? Well, he was doing it, verse
18, the just for the unjust. That he might bring us to God. Oh, right here is the same thing
Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5.21, isn't it, John? God hath made
him, Christ, to be sin for us. To be sin. All the sins of all
of God's people were laid on him, the iniquity of us all,
Isaiah 53 says. God hath laid on him the iniquity
of us all. Smitten, stricken of God. For
our transgression, for our sin, he took my weapon. He took my
sins, my punishment, my judgment, my guilt on him. The justice
for the unjust. Why? It's the only way I'm going
to get to God. The only way is for Christ to be made my sin,
to take my sin, my guilt on himself. God is holy. We sung that song.
God is holy, holy, holy. The world doesn't know anything
about this. But this is what the Bible talks about, a holy,
angry God. Why did he punish the world by
a flood? It wasn't the love of God that
was holy. Why was he going to punish it
by fire? Not the love of God. It was the holiness of God. Why
did he punish his son on a cross? I've heard, I've heard preachers
say that in many ways, you know, in many ways. No, no, there's
one way. If there'd been any other way
for God to save me than to put his son through that, he'd have
done it. But he made his soul an offering for sin. That's the
only way. That's what God thinks of me.
what he did to his son on the cross. That's what God thinks
of sin. You want to see who God is and what he thinks of sin,
look at the cross. When he made his son me, made
his son to be sin for me, who knew no sin, made him a bloody
piece of meat. But worse, separated from him,
turned his back on him. that I might be made the righteousness
of God in him, through his what places? Your substitution and
satisfaction. You might not get to chapter
four. This is the gospel. Christ satisfied
the justice of God against my sin. I had enough. My sins are
gone. Of course, Christ put them away.
He put them away. They're gone. And now God accepts
me. Why? Because I've decided to
live a good life? No. Paul said after the fact. In my flesh dwelleth no good
thing. But I want to be found in Him. Not having my own righteousness,
but wearing His righteousness. Christ's righteousness. God sees
me as being holy like Christ. No, I can't. That's the best
I can explain. It's a mystery, really. I can't explain how God
did that. Transferred my guilt to him and
his holiness to me. But faith says, I believe. Abraham believed God, and it
was counted under him for righteous. And God says, now, I don't see
your iniquity. I don't see him. I don't remember
him. You don't have any. You look for him and can't find
him. And I punished them all. The
just for the unjust. Do you see that? Do you understand
that? Chapter 4, verse 1 says, For as much then as Christ has
suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with
the same mind. The same mind. Why did Christ
do it? Why was he of a mind to do this?
The same mind. Why did Christ suffer? Why would he do that? In Hebrews
12 it says, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despised and
ashamed, felt nothing of it. For the joy that was set before
him endured it. See here, Christ endured because
he loved his people. He loved his people. Much more
so than we love our own children, and you would endure and go through
just about anything. Well, he did. He gave himself
for us. For his children. Gave himself. I mean, laid down his life for
his sheep. For the joy it was set before.
What was the joy? Well, it pleased the Lord to
make you his people. And this was the only way. Well,
now God says, now this is the only way. for you, believer.
This is the only way that you're going to really glorify me. This
is it. You love me? Peter, you love me? Well, you're
going to have to go through. It's not only given unto you
to believe, but to suffer. Why? Why should I? I'm going
to be found under praise and honor and glory. Arm yourselves, he said, with
the same mind. He loved me, he said. Look at verse 1. He that has suffered in the flesh
has ceased from sin. Oh, what a commentary on what Christ did
for us, huh? He suffered in the flesh, and
we have no sin. But this is speaking to us here. It says, He that has suffered
in the flesh has ceased from sin. Christ was crucified and
buried and arose and went back to glory and now is no longer
in this world of sin. Well, in the same sense, arm yourselves with a like, sane
mind. Verse 2, that we should no longer live the rest of our
time in the flesh to the lust of men, but to the will of God.
What's this all about? What are all these trials and
tribulations and why our believers, Paul said in 1 Corinthians 15,
he said, listen, if in this life only we have hope in Christ,
we're of all men most miserable. We're of all men most miserable.
If we're following Christ and suffering because of it, and doing without and not going
after and suffering. And this is all
there is. And there's no life after. There's
no... Christ is not dead. There's some
bones over in Israel. Man, we're miserable. Let's quit
this. Let's eat and drink. Get married.
Tomorrow we die. This is it. Die like a dog. Nothing
left. Let's have at it. Grab the gusk
up. Close these doors. Forget this
stuff. But he said, no, no, wait a minute.
Now Christ is risen. And he's seated at the right
hand of God. He is risen. He is. Peter said that. We've seen him.
And he said that we were there with him. We saw him when he
arose. We saw him when he was killed. We saw him when he arose.
We saw him when he went back to glory. We were standing there
with our mouths open watching him go back to glory. And he
said, but now you have even a more sure word of prophecy. And I'm writing it to you. He says, now, this is what this
is all about, that we're not living now with this. Why? Well,
all these things go past with rain. Over in chapter 3, verse, well,
no, it's here in chapter 4, verse 7, says, The end of all things
is at hand. The end is at hand. Be sober. Don't be under the influence
of anything, anybody. It's going to pass away. It's
vanished. It's not going to last. Read on. He said that we should
spend the rest of our times seeking this world. Why would you spend
all of your time, labor, for that which, the need to perish
it? Isaiah said. Why would you do
that? Why do we do that? Don't do it. We don't. Verse 3, the time past
of our lives was suffice for us to rock the will of the Gentiles,
walk in lasciviousness, lust, excessive wine, reveling, banqueting,
and abominable idolatry. See, that's what he's talking
about there. Hey, party hardy, man, this is it. He who dies
with the most toys wins, huh? That's what the world says. That's
what the world believes. Well, let's do it. Feels good,
do it. Grab it, get it, go after it. Most toys, this is it, man,
this is it. Better get it while the getting's
good. That's what the world believed. But now believers, they instead
have had their understanding enlightened, not darkened, to
see that, man, this isn't all there is. A man's not a dog to
die. A man's got a living soul. that goes somewhere. Job said
that. He said, if a man die, will he live again? He sure will. The soul goes back to God who
made it. So, oh, that they were wise and would consider their
ladder in and not live like dogs. Not think like dogs. Reveling, banqueting, abominable
idolatry and so forth. Read on, verse 4, it says, And
the world, they that do these things, think it strange that
ye run not with them to the same excess of rioting, speaking evil
of you. There was a time when every,
well, most believers, because they, God saves the worst. He saves the publicans and sinners.
He saves the harlots and the gutter people. And there was
a time when they literally did these, I mean, just lived for
the day, you know, for party animals. That's who God saved.
He sure does. Like that prodigal son, you know.
But he ended up in a hog pen. That's who God saved, I'm telling
you from experience. That's who God saves, to praise
and honor and glory for his saving grace. Well, it says now you
don't live in the hog pen. You feel like you've still got
the hog pen inside of you, but you don't live in the hog pen
anymore. And so those that are still in
the pen think you're strange. They think you're strange. It
just made me think of myself when I was back in the 70s, you
know. You ever look back at the pictures
of teenagers in the 70s? Sixties and seventies? Boy, they
looked strange, didn't they? I didn't think I looked strange
then. With my pants this wide at the
bottom, bell bottoms, and what have you. I didn't think, I thought
I looked good. Oh, I looked crazy. And I look at these kids now,
people now, I think, they think they look good. And they look at, you know, just
an ordinary person, you know, and they think, well, he's strange. Well, they think it's strange
that you run a knot with them to the same excess of right.
And they speak evil of you. There's one of those do-gooders. What's wrong with doing good? There's one of those. He doesn't stay drunk like us. Speaking evil of you. Verse 5, it says, They will give
an account to him that is ready to judge the quick and the dead. All men are going to. Verse 6,
For this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are
dead. Back in chapter 3, it talks about
Noah in the Spirit, Christ in the Spirit preaching through
Noah. Nobody's gone to hell and preached
to the people down there. That's not what this is talking
about. It's saying here, everybody who's
ever lived on this planet has heard the gospel. That's what
he's saying here. They've all heard the gospel.
that they be judged by the gospel. That's what they're saying. For
this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that
they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live
according to God in the Spirit. You see, you're not talking about
somebody going to hell and preaching to dead men, and then they're
going to live in the Spirit. No. No. Those who have heard the gospel
and rejected it, They're going to be judged. Those who have
heard the gospel and received it by His grace, they're going
to live. See that? It says the dead. He doesn't
call believers dead. They're asleep. But the dead
are going to be judged. He that believed it will never
die. They heard the gospel. Words
of life. Not judgment, life. Are you with
me? Now, he says in verse 7, the
end of all things is at hand. Be ye therefore sober and watch
unto prayer. Sober. Turn over to Ecclesiastes
7 with me. Ecclesiastes chapter 7. Very
quickly. I'm not going to keep you long.
I've already skipped over a lot of notes. I'm going to just get
through this. Ecclesiastes 7. When he says
be sober, he doesn't mean just don't drink, don't get drunk.
Wine or liquor or whatever. That's not what he's saying here.
Be sober when you're drunk. You can be drunk on a lot of
things, not just Franklin County's finest. You can be drunk on Franklin
County's finest home, car, the finest that everything has to
offer. You can get literally drunk on
it. This world is an intoxicating place. You understand what he's
saying here? Much more than liquor. It says,
not under the influence of, inebriated by. Back when I was, back then,
they used to call it stoned. Absolutely under the total influence
of things is to be stupid. Stupid. I'm not talking just
about liquor. I'm talking about a piece of
iron and metal that your whole life revolves around. A piece
of wood, hay, and stubble. It's the home you live. To be
absolutely consumed by it is stupid. One match will take that
thing down. One little, you glance this way
and you're red, you're blue, white, sports car is going to
be gone by it. Stupid to be under the influence,
absolute, all consumed with. Be sober, he said, not under
the influence of. Riches, very deceitful. Worldliness.
Thoughts and opinions of this world, everything about it is
wrong. That's what God said, everything about it is wrong.
Wrong is a way that seems right. Everything the world is doing
and saying is wrong. Don't be influenced by it. That's
stupid. It's stupid to follow this world, because they're all
wrong. Who said that? Christ did. Didn't he? His way, it seems right. End
is destruction. And to be influenced, controlled
by whatever it may be, it's stupid to be controlled by peer pressure. Hey, you don't have a hole in
your lip. You're weird. And I'm going to let this stupid
world decide whether I'm cool or not. You've got to put a hole
in your lip, your nose, your eyebrow, even your tongue to
be cool. Man. World approval? Man, you see who the world's
approving of, don't you? a world criticism for that matter.
Don't let that bother you. Be like that dead man. Remember
that dead man? You'd go to a dead man and you'd curse him out. It doesn't matter. He doesn't
hear you. Or you can praise him. It doesn't
matter. Don't listen to that either.
That's what Christ says and Paul says when we're crucified to
the world. Better is the end of a thing
than the beginning thereof. And they need to look to the
end. Look at verse 14. In the day of prosperity, be
joyful. Enjoy it. That's what this book is about. In the day of prosperity, enjoy
it. He talks about enjoy the home
you live in. And whatever you have, enjoy the wife of your
youth, the husband. Enjoy your children. Enjoy, enjoy,
enjoy. Remember who gave them to you. Give him all the glory.
Enjoy. In the day of prosperity, enjoy.
Or you don't. But in the day of adversity,
consider. Now here's a word for the believer. Consider this. God set one over
against the other to the end, but you won't hang on to it. Do you understand that? Do I
understand that? Go back to the text now. Mark that passage down. So he
says, Be sober. See what he means by being sober?
Think right thoughts. When you're drunk, it means you're
not in your right mind. You're not thinking straight.
When you're sober, you're thinking straight. You're looking at things
as they are. You see in 2020, not double,
only one end to all of this. It's an end. When you see the
eye of faith, your mind, your right mind, the mind of Christ,
you say, now there's the end. And it's just the beginning.
The end of the thing is better than the beginning. be sober. And he giveth it lift. Lord,
teach me. Well, this is how he teaches
us. Try us. Don't hang on. It's borrowed. You're living on borrowed time.
Everything you have is borrowed. But that which is not seen is
eternal. We have an inheritance, Peter
said, incorruptible, undefiled, that fadeth not away, reserved
in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God. This is
what's going to keep you from hanging on to this and let go
of this and hang on to Him. You see that? Kept what? Kept holding steadfast to the
beginning of our conflict to the end. And not holding this
to the end. That's what these trials do. Let go. It's not your... The Lord said
thorns or roses are beautiful, except when you grab them. It'll hurt you. You understand? I understand that. We're all
going to need to understand. You know what my job is as a
pastor? Is to prepare you. Because when it comes, it's too late. It's being prepared. It's because the trial doesn't
give faith. You understand? And so this is my job as a pastor,
to prepare. And so he says, the end of all
things is in the hand. Watch unto prayer. Prayer. Lord, help
me. Lord, help me. Lord, help me.
Lord, help me. Lord, help me. Faith. How's it come? Y'all come here. You need to
hear this. You need to hear this. You need to hear this. You need
to read this. You need to read this. I need to read this. I need to
read this. Oh, physician, heal yourself. Listen to yourself. Read, read, read, hear, hear,
hear, this is it, this is the only hope, hear, hear, hear,
hear. Come thou with us, we'll do thee
good. Watch unto prayer. Read on, verse 8. Peter talks
a lot about this, doesn't he? Among yourselves have fervent,
above all things, have fervent charity among yourselves. Why? Oh, you're going to need it. You're going to need it, boy. We're going to need it. Have
you ever been hurt or betrayed by a brother? Everybody has. Disappointed? Every one of us wants to disappoint,
hurt, and offend one another eventually. Well, did you forgive
that brother? marry them up, pray for them,
or do you censure them? Well, you forgive them. Why? Because you're going to
need it, we're going to need it. There's going to come a time
when we're going to do to them what they did to us. You know
that? We're going to do to them, we
might act like them, get in a situation and act like them. understanding,
their compassion, and so forth, and want their forgiveness. We're
going to need it above all. That's the reason he says, above
all, have fervent love among yourselves. Love is going to
cover a multitude of sins. We've got a lot of them, don't
we? And they're going to need covering. What a gospel verse! What a gospel
verse! He whose love truly covered our
sins for eternity. Read on. It says use hospitality
one to another without grudge. You want to know how we're going
to love one another like this? Hospitality. You don't know somebody until
you eat with them, drink with them, spend time with them. How did you go to love that man
you're married to or that woman you're married to? Those children
you have, your parents, how'd you go? You're with them all
the time. Huh? You grew to love them until
you thought, I can't live without them. That's love. That's how we're going to love
one another. Use hospitality one to another without grudging.
How could you grudge? You can't grudge or be stingy
or, you know, unwillingly Not want to do things for those
you love? Can't do it. It's an impossibility. Grudging.
Can't do it. Hospitality. It's a glad. God loves a cheerful giver. Verse 10, And every man hath
received the gift, even so minister the same one to another. What's
the gift that we have received? Every
believer. The gift. The grace. What's the gift of
God? Is it not? Is it not? Minister
the same, the gift, the grace of God. We're talking about the
true grace of God, wherein we stand. We receive this gift. So he says, minister the same,
one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. Minister the same. What grace?
All grace, the fruit of the Spirit, the grace can be Summed up this
way, we've received mercy, haven't we? Be gift. That's the gift
of all gifts, isn't it, John? Mercy. He says, as you receive
mercy, shall it be merciful. Have you received grace? Everything
given to you. I mean, God just freely bestowed
upon you a gift. Bestow some gift. Be grace. Have you received forgiveness? Have we received forgiveness? How much? A lot of it. Show a
lot of it. You see what he's saying there? Has God been generous to us? God helped us. Oh, my. He administered
the same. Here's a word to preachers, teachers,
those who witness, those who read, lay the instrument. If any man speak, whatever you
do, let him speak as the oracles of God. I intend to have more
of you men stand up here and read the scripture and
lead us in Now, you men have quit breathing,
haven't you? I know, I know. You know why
I haven't done that at this point? Too much? I know where you're
coming from. I remember the first time my
father asked me to stand up and pray. My priest, just read. What? No. And these people love you, know
you, know me all your life. Neighbors, friends, you know.
But it's just a weighty thing, isn't it? That's why I feel for you. That's
why I haven't done it too much. I intend to do more of it. Why?
I was just blessed. I saw this, when he read it,
better than I saw it when I read it. I sure did. And this is a word to those of
you, to myself and to those of you who are going to do this,
have done it and are going to do it. If any man speak, do it as the oracles of God.
Let no man despise you. Yeah, but I can't speak. Moses
said that, didn't he? I can't speak. I'm not eloquent. Folks, I'm glad you didn't know
me twenty-five years ago. I'm glad you didn't know me.
It wouldn't have anything to do with me. But I'm telling you,
I never had a speech class in school. I never had a speech
class in school. I didn't go to college. You say
it's evident. Maybe it is evident. Who's weak and I'm not weak?
Who's a babbler and who's sufficient for these things? Moses was sat
looking at the backside of a sheep for forty years, and God said,
now you're going to go speak to millions. What? What? Me? Don't send me. There's Aaron. Get him. You see? But if any
man speak, I kept putting it off and putting it off, and my
father said, you are standing up at such-and-such a date. Insanity,
he's quit asking me now. He's quit asking me. He said,
you will preach on such-and-such a date, won't you? Yes. I still
feel this way. Brother Scott Richardson called
me to preach this conference. I'm not a conference speaker. But Don Fortner is somebody,
you know. Still feel that way. If any man speak, Timothy, let
no man despise your uses. Do it as oracles of God. If you
stand up there, it's because God put you there. Oh, he uses
means, yeah. He uses a man, say, eeny, meeny,
miny, moe. Who am I going to get to read
to that? The lot is cast in the lap, but the whole disposing
is of the Lord. That's what we believe in. So
do it as the oracles of God. Stand up, we're reading God's
Word, and do it with authority. Read verse 11. To any man minister,
let him do it as the ability which God giveth him. And do
the best you can, another one. What is it all about? That God
might be glorified through Jesus Christ. To whom be? This is what
it's all about. To him be praise and dominion
forever and ever. You know, we don't get to glorify
him much, and if we do get opportunities, we miss it, don't we, Henry? We have denied him an awful lot. So when we get an opportunity, here's a chance, for lack of
a better word. Praise and First, let's read
on. Let's just hurry down through
here. Beloved, don't think it's strange concerning the fiery
trials that trial you, as though some strange thing happened unto
you. This is the reason He keeps telling
us. Our Lord kept telling them. He
kept preparing Peter, didn't He? He kept preparing them. They
weren't unprepared. The Lord kept telling them, Peter,
there's going to be a time when they're going to carry you in
a place you don't want to go. So when the time came, Peter said, well, it's not strange.
The Lord said it happened. How can this be? The Lord said
it happened. See? Some strange thing. Not strange. It's common. There's nothing that's taken
you but such as is common to man, the Scripture says. In chapter
5, it says the same afflictions. are accomplished in your brethren
throughout the world. The same, very same thing you
go through. There's nothing you go through
or are going through that believers all over the world from the beginning
of time haven't gone through. From Adam to the last one. Son of Adam.
It's the same thing. So don't think it's strange what
happened. Don't think it's happening to you. It's happening to all
of us. And you're partakers of Christ's
suffering, verse 13. Christ's suffering. Now, he's
talking about persecution for the gospel more than anything
else here, because even the world goes through some things that
we go through. But this persecution, oh, my. When his glory shall be revealed,
you're going to be glad. Oh, you're going to be with the
prophets, he said. Ah, so they persecuted the prophets
before you. If you were reproached for the
name of Christ, You think you're the only one. Right, don't you? Everybody else is wrong. Who
do you think you are, Noah? You think you're the only one. You're telling me that all these
people have a false God. All these people are so sincere.
Homosexuality, you know, he's a good person, but he's gay.
You think he's going to have, and you're going to have a lot, No, Lot said, I didn't say that.
God said it. No, Noah said, I did. This is
not my opinion on the matter. It doesn't matter anybody's opinion.
God said it. And I believe God's truth. And
every man's a liar. And I do believe this, though,
Lot said, if it wasn't by the grace of God, I'd be right there
with you. But by the grace of God, I'm leaving Sodom. It's by the grace of God. I'm
not better than you, I'm a sinner just like you, but I'm telling
you, if I stay with you, I'm going to die. But by God's grace,
I've got to get out of here. Ha, go on, lot. Fire? No, I'm
going in that boat. He's a fool. Noah's a fool. He's
a fool for the Ark's sake, isn't he? Why? Because God said it. He
believed God, and boys counted unto him for righteousness. And
it came to pass even as he said it. A little time, you'll see. But don't suffer as a murderer,
a thief, an evildoer, or a busybody. In other men's matters, verse
16, if any man suffers as a believer, a Christian, let him not be ashamed.
Oh, Lord, help me not to feel ashamed. Shame to myself, yes. I'm so ashamed of myself. Ashamed
of the fact that I'm not more ashamed. Oh, let me glorify God. Give
me an opportunity. Let me do it. These people, we
have such a cloud of witnesses before. We're encompassed about
with such a cloud of witnesses. Let me glorify you. I haven't done it
heretofore. Verse 17, time has come, judgment
must begin at the house of God. If it first began at us, what's
the end of these that don't believe the gospel? If the scribe and
the righteous scarcely be saved, where is the ungodly and the
sinner going to appear? them that suffer, whatever it
may be, according to the will of God. Whatever it may be, it
wouldn't be if he didn't say it need be. It's according to
the will of God, because we know, don't we? Not just in doctrine,
not just Romans 8.28 in word, but in truth, that all things
work together for good. Don't we know that? You've got to know that. All things work together for
good to them that love God. Do you love God? Do you love
me? Well, let me know. For good, called according to
his purpose, according to the will of God. Then what should
you do? Commit. Submit. Does that sound familiar? Come
here. Might as well. He's got it anyway. Hadn't he? Might as well. Like
Abraham with his son Isaac. Might as well put a knife in him. He's God's anyway. God gave him.
God gave that boy, didn't He? Abraham didn't have a boy a hundred
years. God gave him. Now he says, bring him up here
and kill him. Fiery trial. But Abraham, I gave him to you. He's not yours. I gave him to
you. The Lord gave and the Lord takes away. Okay. And you'll get him back. Forever. The end of a thing is better
than the beginning. Commit him. Commit that child. Lord, he's yours. Please. I can't do anything. Please do something. to a faithful Creator, committing
one, as unto a faithful Creator. He's the Creator. Is he not?
He created all things. Why were they created? Isaiah
43 says, for his glory, for his good pleasure. He's the Creator,
he's the owner. He said, cannot I do with my
own what I will? Yes, and that's what he does.
Now, commit. That's yours. Paul said this, what did Paul
say? How did Paul get there? Paul's sitting in a jail cell.
Everybody left him. Getting ready to die. Getting
ready, he knew he was going to have his head cut off. He's going
to have his head cut off. Literally. He's sitting in a
jail. Everybody's gone. Not a friend
of his name. Talk about lonely. He's getting ready to have his
head cut off, lights on. And he said, I know whom I have believed. It's the Lord. I'm here because
I'm the Lord. It's going to happen because
it's the Lord. Everybody's gone, but it's the Lord. I know whom
I have believed. I'm swayed, and he's able to
keep that which I've committed unto him against that
day. And then when that day comes,
the former things will not even be remembered. The end of a thing
is better than the beginning. Oh, Lord, teach me this. There's
only one way he teaches it. All right. John, you got a hymn
picked out? 249. Come up here and read
it. 249. This thing, verses 1, 2, and
5.