This has been our text, and we
will be in it again, no doubt, this morning and otherwise. But
here it is again, always fresh on our mind as we reread it again. Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ
to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia,
Asia, and Bithynia. Elect, according to the foreknowledge
of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience
and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ, grace unto you,
and peace be multiplied. Blessed be the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy
hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus
Christ from the dead. to an inheritance incorruptible
and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven
for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith unto
salvation, ready to be revealed in the last time. Whereby, wherein
ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye
are in heaviness through manifold temptation, that the trial of
your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perishes, though
it be tried with fire, might be found under praise and honor
and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ. whom having not
seen ye love, in whom though now we see him not, yet believing,
ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory, receiving
the end of your fate, there's another one, even the salvation
of your soul, of which salvation the prophets have inquired and
searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come
unto you, searching what or what manner of time the Spirit of
Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand
the sufferings of Christ and the glory that should follow."
unto whom it was revealed that not unto themselves, but unto
us they did minister the things which are now reported unto you
by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy
Ghost sent down from heaven, which things the angels desire
to look into." Now for a second time, we have lighted upon this
particular text as our guide in opening up the doctrine of
the perseverance of the saints of God. And we're not disappointed
at all. for the apostle gives us a good
and a full description of Christianity and of Christian salvation in
this first chapter that we have read from. Now we know that the
author of these things is none other than the apostle Peter,
who was the leading Jewish apostle in the city of Jerusalem. Paul called him and Paul recognized
him as a standard bearer of the gospel under the circumcision
as stated in Galatians chapter 2 and verse 7 and verse 8. He said there that God worked
effectually in Simon Peter to the ministry under the circumcision
or the Jew even as he did under Paul under the uncircumcision
or literally under the Gentile. So the apostle Peter by the commission
of Christ held a special commission from the Lord himself. You see that in Matthew chapter
16 and verse 16 through verse 20. And this same apostle, Peter,
Cephas, the rock, the stone, was used of God on the day of
Pentecost to guide the church as they received the outpouring
of the Spirit. It was Peter that was sent down
to the house of Cornelius, where there the Spirit of God came
upon the Gentiles as well. and they experienced their Gentile
Pentecost. But in spite of that, and the
office of Peter, and the commission of Christ, we deny that the apostle
Peter was made the first pope by the commission of our Lord,
or that he ever pretended to be or to act in the capacity
of a pope. Though I admit at times He acted
like one when he denied Christ and perverted the doctrine of
grace down at Antioch. But the first epistle of Peter
here is general in its nature. By general in its nature, we
mean that it is not addressed to any particular individual,
nor is it sent to any particular congregation or church of people. but it is addressed to strangers
that are scattered abroad or scattered throughout. Some think
that that refers to the Jew who was dispersed, who were scattered
under the persecution that came upon them at Jerusalem for the
sake of Christ and the sake of the gospel. You have that in
chapter eight. You have it again in Acts chapter
11 and verse 19, through verse 21, where they that were scattered
and persecuted went everywhere preaching the gospel of the Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ. Now, it is clear that he addresses
them as Christian. He addresses them as the saints,
as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, and wishing unto them
that grace and peace might be multiplied in their case and
in their experience. And he refers to them as being
the elect of God according to the foreknowledge of God, and
he speaks to them of the salvation of their soul. in verse 5, in
verse 9, and in verse 10 of this passage. And he assures them,
or comforts them, that they will endure time after their perseverance
in this world, after their trials and their tribulations here,
they will persevere through the power of God, through faith,
and they will receive that inheritance that is reserved for them and
that is laid up for them in heaven. Now, we notice something that
we want to bring out about this passage of the scripture. And
though there are here in it, there is here in it, multiple
doctrines contained, great doctrines that have to do with salvation
and with the saints of God and their life and their final salvation. Looking through the passage,
We find election. We find the foreknowledge of
God, which most people misunderstand. We find the hope of the Christian
life and the endeavor. We find sanctification here,
sanctified by the sprinkling of the blood of Christ. And we
find the saving sacrificial blood of Christ mentioned here, his
resurrection, as that which begets us unto a lively hope. We find an inheritance here that
is reserved for the children of God in heaven. But this morning,
there are two words here that I would like for us to mostly
focus on, and that are given prominence in this passage of
the scripture. And the first word that I mention
is the word faith, and you have it in verse 5, you have it in
verse 7 and you have it in verse 9 where the apostle said that
the power of God sustains the faith of God's elect in them
so that it die not out or they make not shipwreck of it so that
Even though their faith be tried with fire, the fire shall not
consume it or destroy it. For they are like the three Hebrew
children in the fire, that are preserved in and through the
fire by the power of God, and their faith is likened unto that. that it might be tried with fire,
and the fire will prove it of what sort it is, that it is pure,
and that it is the genuine faith of God's elect. In verse 7 and
the last part. that it might be found under
the praise and the honor and the glory at the appearing of
our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." Then in verse 9, he said, they
will receive the end of their faith. And here's an interesting
word that we can study for a bit, and that is the word end. E-N-D
as it is used in the scripture. Receiving the end of your faith. Obtaining the end. This word is, I think, the word
telos or telos, which means a set goal. It has various meanings,
seems like. A definite point is mentioned
by the end, a limit that might be aimed at or that is to be
reached. The point of conclusion is what
we might say about the end, the final result of a process, the
end of their fate. There are other places where
the word is used, and here are some of them. In Romans chapter
6, 21 and 22, it is used in two senses here, or rather to two
type of people. It is used twice in those two
verses, and Paul writes to them, what fruit had you then in those
things wherein you are now ashamed? That kind of life that you used
to live. What fruit had you? What boast
had you in it? For the end, same word, the end
of those things is death. That is, the aim, the goal, the
finished process, the culmination of it is death. But now, Paul
says, being made free from sin, you have your fruit unto holiness
and the end, same word, everlasting life. The end of the wicked way
is death. The end of the righteous way
is everlasting life. And then you have perhaps the
most famous way that it is used in Romans chapter 10 and verse
4, where Paul says unto them, Christ is the end, same word,
Christ is the end of the law for righteousness, everyone Believing
so the word faith will come before us and the second word that we're
interested in is the word salvation that the end of their faith is
salvation and you have this word in verse 5 verse 9 and verse
10 of the text that we read. And here is a key word but also
a key doctrine of the scripture as the word salvation describes
deliverance from danger. Salvation is a rescue. It is a deliverance from a dangerous
situation are plagued. It is a rescue and it is bringing
to a present safety out of the danger. And it can refer to temporal
deliverance as well as to spiritual salvation. For there is a temporal
saving or deliverance, and there is a spiritual deliverance. And let's look at them. In verse
5, kept by the power of God, now kept here, some say, is a
military term. Kept, garrisoned about as in
the military, and that it is a continuing process. Kept are being kept. Therefore,
Robertson and others say, a military expression it is to be garrisoned
all about, to be surrounded on every side, so as to be kept
in so that there is no way escape and in verse 5 being guarded
through faith to a salvation ready to be revealed in verse
9 it would be the salvation of your soul with the article and
I think in verse 10 it is simply salvation from a word that means
to deliver, to save, and to protect. To rescue and deliver is the
meaning of salvation. Now, concerning the salvation,
let's consider what the apostle says about it in verse 10 through
verse 12 that we read, and the impact of this paragraph on the
overall passage that we have read. What is the intent of verse
10 through 12 in connection and toward those to whom he is writing
these things, who are strangers scattered in the five providences
that are mentioned back in verse 1, all of them in Asia? And some of them were under fiery
trials in verse 7, and yet they had and inheritance laid up incorruptible
and undefiled awaiting for them in heaven and reserved in their
own name." Then look at verse 10 again. Those things are amazing. Of which salvation? Of which salvation for the apostle
now feels that he is compelled to expand upon the salvation
of their soul and the full consummation of it. And so he said, concerning
which salvation? That is, that salvation the prophets
foretold and desired to look into and studied and wondered
what time their prophecy would come unto pass. Now the word
salvation seems to linger or to stay in the mind of the apostle
or upon his pen. The salvation mentioned in verse
5 and in verse 9. is now viewed from three aspects
in the paragraph in verse 10 through 12. And the intent of
it, I think, is to put a great glory in the mind of the people
upon this so great salvation in the eyes, the ears, and the
understanding of the readers. That this gospel of salvation,
for one thing, is not a modern invention. It is not something
that Paul devised or Peter devised or the other apostles devised. And it is not a passing novelty
that might be here today and gone tomorrow. And most of all,
it is not of human invention. It is of old. Embedded in the
prophet and their word now. I said that three aspects of
salvation that are mentioned here Let's look at them now under
the influence of the Spirit sent down from heaven verse 12 as
a revelation Now, first of all, let's look at verse 10 and 11. This salvation, the grace that
should come, was a leading subject of the prophetic oracles in the
Old Testament. Time and again, they spoke of
it. Each and every one of them just
about spoke of this great salvation. They are prophetic oracles set
for this salvation. Peter calls it the grace that
should come unto you. So it is a matter of the prophetical
oracle. Those who preach to them the
gospel did so under the influence of the Holy Spirit sent down
from heaven, verse 12, as a revelation. It is not just a dogma of men,
it is a revelation of the Almighty God. And thirdly, what an interesting
thing, in the end of verse 12, what a statement is this. What
does it mean? How are we to understand it?
That the angels had an intense interest in this great salvation. Peter writes, which things the
angels desired to look into. Now let's take them in their
order, the prophets and the grace to come. What they spoke of was
future prophetic in their day and time. And in verse 10 and
verse 11, there are some interesting and some unique action that are
ascribed here to the Old Testament prophet and the coming to pass
of their prophecy when they made them at the time did not fully
understand them, or the time frame in which they were to occur,
as they prophesied of the grace of God that should come. And look what Peter said. They
inquired, they searched diligently, verse 11, seeking to know. what person or time the Spirit
of Christ meant in foretelling the sufferings of Christ and
the glory that was to follow. And was their curiosity satisfied
in their day and in their time? was it showed unto them exactly
what they had written in verse 12, to whom it was revealed,
it was made known, it was shown them that not for their sake,
but for you, to whom these things have been proclaimed to you by
they who preach the gospel unto you under the inspiration and
unction of the Spirit of God sent down out of heaven." I sense
that there are two conclusions that we ought to draw from these
unique words that the Apostle Peter, using the question Why
does Peter make reference to these things in verse 10 through
verse 12? What, if any, is the relationship
of these things unto the larger context? Well, number one, it
shows that the Christian gospel of salvation by grace is in perfect
harmony with the Old Testament scripture. That this great salvation
is not at variance with the Old Testament scripture, but is perfectly
in harmony with them. For example, Moses wrote of Christ. Moses wrote of one that should
come, that they should hear. David wrote of one that should
come and prophesied of his death and of his resurrection. And
who wrote greater about his suffering than the great prophet Isaiah,
particularly in the 53rd chapter of that wonderful prophecy. In Luke chapter 24, verse 26
and verse 27, Christ is speaking to the two on Emmaus Road and
he says this, Ought not Christ to have suffered these things
and to enter into his glory? Then listen, And beginning at
Moses and all of the prophets, he, Christ, expounded unto them
in all the scripture the things concerning himself." He found
many, many prophetical scripture that spoke of him. And he opened
them unto these two on Emmaus Road. What a Paul's claim in
the 26th chapter of Acts, verse 22 and 23, when he is brought
before the court of Agrippa. And he is charged by the Jew
with being an apostate from the things of God and from the Old
Testament scripture. And what does Paul say? I'm quoting. He says, I continue unto this
day, witnessing to small and great, saying none other things
than those which the prophets did say should come, that Christ
should be a sufferer and be the first that should rise again
from the dead, unquote. So they're in harmony with the
Old Testament Scripture. Number two, what is the main
topic carried in the passage that we are using? And the answer
is, don't miss it, the final happiness of the saints of God. The great culmination of the
happiness of the children of God. And verse 10 through 12
confirmed that. John Brown wrote, one of my favorite
authors, by showing that the certainty and the finality of
salvation, quote, is a leading subject of the Old Testament,
unquote. Prophecy, apostolic preaching,
even angelic study, had to do with the final happiness of the
saints of God. Yes, many of the sayings in the
Old Testament scripture declaring the hope and the expectation
of the children of God will be realized in a glorious and a
happy day and a happy state. Psalm 17 and verse 15. As for me, wrote the psalmist,
I will behold thy face in righteousness. I shall be satisfied when I awake
with thy likeness. Psalm 23 and verse 6, we all
know it, we hear it at nearly every funeral. Surely goodness
and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life and I will
dwell in the house of the Lord forever. That passage in Job
chapter 19. 23 through 27 that says, in effect,
I know that my Redeemer liveth, and though my body be destroyed
in the grave, yet in my flesh shall I see God, whom I shall
see for myself, and not another. So the Old Testament prophets
and saints believed in a consummation of this happiness. Now as for
preservation or perseverance, it too is a doctrine that is
taught in the Old Testament scripture. The perseverance of the saint
is not new doctrine, it is also the doctrine of the Old Testament
scripture. We'll just look at a few. Psalm
37 and verse 28. The Lord loves judgment and forsakes
not his saints. They are preserved forever. Job 17 and 9. The righteous also
shall hold on his way. The righteous shall hold on his
way. Proverbs 24 and verse 16. A just man may fall seven times,
yet rise up again. They are preserved forever. As Spurgeon wrote on Psalm 38
and 28, by covenant engagement, their security is fixed. By surety ship fulfillment, it
is accomplished. And they are preserved in Christ
Jesus, unquote. They are in union with Christ. The people of God are as their
ever-living head. What the Lord say, because I
live, ye shall live also. Our life is in Christ. All that
we have is in, with, and through Christ unto us. Now, concerning
perseverance and preservation. It is rooted in the eternal decree
of election and the purpose of God, who has determined to bring
a people unto glory. He has ordained them unto glory. He has chosen them in Jesus Christ. He has ordained them to the adoption
of son. If you want to read that, it's
in Ephesians chapter one and verse three through six. And
Christ has chosen you or them out of the world and by his death
has redeemed them with the blood shed at the cross. And then the
Spirit of God is sent into their heart to quicken them and also
to seal them under the day of redemption. We read in the scripture
that Christ loses none that are given unto him by the Father. Of all those you've given me,
I've lost none of them, and they are kept. How, then, is perseverance
secured in the experience of the child of God? We look at
it from the eternal standpoint, the decree of God, the purpose
of God, His full ordination. But then how is it experienced
in the experience of the child of God? How is it that they hold
on their way? How is it that they follow Christ
and they hear His voice? They are not drawn back into
the world like some others were. What is it that binds them to
this new way of life? Is it the diligence of the individual? Many believe that today. I must
keep myself. I must keep sin out of my life.
I must not do that or I will be lost again. Or is it personal
sanctification and self-denial that keeps the knot tied between
them and their salvation in Christ? Is it their obedience that they
walk in the way and obey what Scripture said? Now the Scripture
gives a prominent place to the faith of the elect in the experience
of them in their sanctification and in their perseverance. So
this morning from here out, Let's consider the part and the influence
of faith on their relationship unto Christ and final salvation,
to justification, to sanctification, and even to the perseverance
as to their persevering unto the end. We've already seen some
very candid connection between faith and perseverance in the
text that we read. Shall we see them again? Verse
5, who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation,
ready to be revealed even in the last time. And verse 9, receiving
the end of your faith, even the salvation of your soul. One of the most famous verses
in all the New Testament is that one in Ephesians chapter 2 and
verse 8. For by grace are you saved. But it says this, for by grace
are you saved through faith and that not of yourself, it is the
gift of God. In Romans 4 16 we read an amazing
thing where Paul discussing imputed justification said concerning
Abraham, therefore it is of faith that it might be by grace. It is a faith in order that it
might be of grace. Of faith that it might be a matter
of grace. So that as to its origin, salvation
is by grace. It is all of grace. Every aspect
of salvation is of the grace of God. Nothing saving have we
but grace supplied it, and it dwells in the Lord and Savior
Jesus Christ. Again, as to the nature of it,
it is free. It is an unmerited gift. It is the gift of God. It is not a reward for works.
It is not a reward for keeping the law. It is the gift of God
given without merit or dessert or works. Then, as to the experience,
to the knowledge, to the belief that Christ is our Savior, it
is by and through faith that we have an experience of this. We do not know Christ or believe
on him or trust him or love him or follow him prior unto God
working faith in us. None of these things were possible
or were present apart or from faith, nor any saving thing has
ever come without the grace of God or been believed by us apart
or prior unto faith. nor can any commit the keeping
of their soul unto him, until there is the faith of God's elect
that have been worked in them. The man Abraham Kuyper wrote,
since nearly everything about salvation is related unto faith,
quote, hence a correct conception of faith is essential, unquote. Now it is the thinking of many
that all have faith in them. You talk to a lot of people today
in churches. It is their belief that all have
faith, that faith is down in them, It might be lying asleep,
it might be dormant, but that is there. And it just needs a
little fanning, just needs stirring up by a little sad Willie's grave
story tale or something like that. And then that faith will
burst into a flame. That's the belief of so many.
They believe that faith is abiding, is innate, and dwells in every
believer. They believe that it just needs
to be awakened, or there's a word they sometimes use, channeled,
quote unquote. That this faith needs to be channeled
in the right direction, and that one can believe on their own
when they will. Now I must tell you that all
of these ideas are wrong. They are unbiblical. They are
not biblical. So let's consider faith under
two aspects. Number one, initial faith, justifying
faith, saving faith. When one believes that Christ
is their Lord and has paid their sin debt and espouses him to
the saving of their soul. And number two, we want to consider
the faith that abides, that grows, that perseveres in the child
of God. Not that these are two separate
faiths. No, not at all. Now concerning
the origin of faith, its beginning, its birth, its rise, its first
being, what is it that gives being to faith in God's elect? Since spiritual life is not native
to the natural man, and he is filled with unbelief until God
works in him, How then is faith wrought in such a one that he
or she believes upon the Lord? Some attribute faith to be the
result of hearing the word of God, Romans 10 verse 17, or the
gospel, 1 Thessalonians chapter 1 verse 4 and verse 5, and in
those contexts, so it is. Still some here and their hearts
remain as a stone. Many hear the gospel, they're
not moved at all. They're not changed. They're
not renewed. They're not convicted. Their
hearts remain even as hard as a stone. On the other hand, there
are some who hear the gospel in Christ's day, the apostles'
day, and ours, and blaspheme. Some hear the gospel and they
blaspheme. For you see, the natural man,
according to Scripture, receives not the things of the Spirit
of God, neither indeed can he, for they are spiritually and
only spiritually discerned. 1 Corinthians chapter 2. Verse
14 through 16. One must have hearing ears, spiritually
hearing ears to hear the things of God. That is to understand
them and to know them and to believe them. Blessed are your
ears for they hear. Matthew 13 and 16. He that hath
ears to hear, let him hear. Matthew 11 and 15. And those
are the words of our Lord, by the way. In Proverbs 20 and verse
12, the riddle is answered. The hearing ear, the seeing eye,
the Lord had made even both of them. The hearing ear, the seeing
eye, the Lord hath made even both of them. There must be enlightenment
in the mind and in the heart from God and the Spirit of God
for the heart to be able to hear in faith and to understand and
to receive as true and trustworthy the things of God. I think about
Lydia. Lydia's heart, the Lord opened
that she heard and attended what Paul said. You have that in Acts
chapter 16. They're in a prayer meeting by
the riverside. Lydia, the Lord opened her heart. She heard,
she did what Paul said. She was obedient. See how Paul
describes the work of God in bringing the elect to be believers,
I won't turn there, it's rather long, but in Ephesians 1, 17
through verse 20, especially in verse 19. He speaks there
of the exceeding greatness of his power to usward who believe
according to the working of the mighty power of God. And the
margin has there the might of his power. Such expressions are
the effectual, superabounding, excelling power that brings to
pass what God wills, and the power that works faith or made
us believers. Paul prays that we might understand
it in that Ephesians 1 passage. And in Ephesians 1 20, it operated
in Christ in raising him from the dead and elevating him into
heaven. You see, the same power that
raised Christ from the dead is the power that makes believers
out of the elect. Christ could not be held under
the power of death. It was not possible for Christ
to stay under the power of death, and neither is it possible for
the elect to remain under the power and the deadness of their
unbelief. They have been given the faith
of God's elect, Titus chapter 1 and verse 1. Now it does not
seem reasonable that the same ones chosen in Christ and ordained
to the adoption of son and made accepted in the beloved and redeemed
by Christ would then be abandoned unto unbelief, but that they
hear the gospel and believe, and be converted, believing by
grace. Acts 18 and verse 27. Now, let
us finish up today by seeing the relationship of faith and
perseverance. In that statement, they are kept
by the power of God through faith unto salvation, ready to be revealed
in the last time. And this faith that has such
a strong bearing upon the life and the perseverance of the elect
in conjunction, not separate from, but in conjunction with
the power of God is what we hear called saving faith and the Bible
as well. It being a work and a gift of
God, a work of grace, which takes its rise from the new birth or
regeneration when that is wrought in the intellect, giving the
soul of that individual a new disposition, which is then able
to understand and to apprehend and believe the things of God. And then they believe Christ
to be the son of the living God. They don't believe just in a
little baby Jesus. They don't believe in Jesus only
that went about doing social work. But like Peter confessed
it, believe that Jesus Christ is the son of the living God. Now someone I read called this
quote, a spiritual habit, unquote. implanted by God so that it consciously
believes and embraces Christ when he is declared in the gospel,
when it is preached through the power of the Holy Spirit. The hearing of the gospel, the
message of Christ then draws that renewed soul to believe
and to trust Christ to save their soul. They then can commit their
soul to Christ as one that keeps it well. Now, let's ask ourselves
the question, what are the quote, elements, unquote, of faith,
if we may use that term? In faith, do we find knowledge? In faith do we find assurance. In faith do we find hope and
perhaps other things. Now, faith does this. It approves
God's way of saving sinners. It agrees with the gospel and
counts it a sweet sound and a good doctrine, worthy of all acceptation. I think we could say that faith
leads the way as to the Christian graces. That faith leads the
way as to the graces of the Christian. I know that there are probably
more in Christendom that would give this high honor to our love
for God than unto faith. But that's because they have
a different view of the things of God. Now, remember what the
Lord told the Apostle Peter? this is a great passage of Scripture,
Satan hath asked for you, Simon, I think it said he's asked repeatedly,
that he might shift you like wheat, that he might shift you
like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith fail
not. What a word to the Apostle Simon
Peter. And if you go to John 17, again,
you will find the Lord saying, I pray for them. I pray for them. He's praying for first the apostolic
group and then for those who shall believe on him later on. What a word to Simon. I pray
Satan has asked for you, but I prayed for you. Let your faith
fail not. And then he asked, when you're
converted, strengthen the brother, as if to predict the fall of
Simon Peter. Now, would you agree Christ's
prayers are certainly effectual? What he prays for shall be granted. Our faith at times may be and
is weak. We cannot say that at all times
our faith is strong and vibrant. We may doubt at one time, stumble
at another. We see the saints in the scripture
doing that, but we remember that Jesus is the author and the finisher
of our faith as he is called in the blessed holy scripture.
And the power of God keeps faith alive. keeps faith alive in the
elect, revives it when it needs it, renews it when it is weak,
and of course we're not the keeper of our very own faith. How can
faith, when it is weak, strengthen itself, or bring it back to vitality. The work of grace, the hearing
of the Word of God, the fellowship of the saints, all of these act
a part in our faith. I will tell you, according to
perseverance, Once a believer, always a believer, not in our
own strength, but by the will, by the power, by the grace of
God, by the guidance and work of the Holy Spirit of God, kept
by the power of God through faith unto salvation, ready to be revealed
in the last day. Now, we do not steal the glory
of God in elevating our faith as our work and as our part of
our salvation, giving all the glory to God. And so we pray,
Lord, increase our faith. That ought to be the prayer of
the children of God.