Open your Bibles with me to the
book of 1 Peter chapter 4. 1 Peter chapter 4. The Apostle Peter in this first
epistle has been talking much of the trials and the testings,
the troubles, the suffering that believers, true believers, go
through in this life. But he's very specific about
these tribulations, these troubles, very specific. And he makes it
clear that if we suffer, that we ought to, in our minds and
in our determinations, make certain that we're suffering for the
right reason. and not for the wrong reasons. Look at verse
15 of 1 Peter 4. He says, let none of you suffer
as a murderer. In other words, if you're suffering,
don't let it be because you're a murderer. Now, as I dealt with
the law of God in the last couple of Bible studies in our 10 o'clock
hour concerning the Ten Commandments, I made it clear that we are all
guilty of breaking the Ten Commandments, all ten of them. If not in action,
we're guilty of breaking these things in thought. And Christ
made that clear in Matthew chapter five. He said, you know, you've
heard it said of them, thou shalt not kill, but I'm telling you,
if you're angry enough, if you ever wished anybody dead, that
kind of thing. You shall not commit adultery,
but if you lust, then you're guilty of these things. And all
of that, of course, is given and revealed to God's people
not to bring us under the whip of the law so that we might straighten
up and try to work our way into God's favor, but it's given to
show us our need of God's grace. If I am saved, which I believe
I am, It's not because of anything I have done or have not done,
it's because of what Christ has done. It's His blood, His righteousness,
the grace of God that reigns through righteousness unto eternal
life through righteousness by Jesus Christ our Lord. And I
have to say that, I must say that at my worst times and at
my best times. We were talking about the depravity
of man this past Wednesday night in a meeting on the internet. And somebody made the statement,
said, you know, we really do not fathom the depths of the
depravity of man as far as understanding and realizing how sinful we are
in God's sight based upon ourselves. And I told him this, I said,
well the Bible does give us somewhat of an understanding of that in
one statement. And you know what that one statement
is? Man at his best state is altogether what? Vanity. Man at his best? We naturally think that man at
his best ought to count for something. What does that mean? That means
find the best person you can ever find in your mind, whoever
that is. It might be your grandfather,
your father, your mother, whoever it is. To some people it might
be the Pope. Others, it might be Billy Graham
or somebody like that. Whoever it is you have in your
mind that is the best person that has ever lived on earth,
the Bible says that person at their best is altogether vanity,
worthless. That's what that means. Well,
what are you talking about? That person did a lot of good.
He helped a lot of people or she helped a lot of people. It's
talking about a right relationship with God. It's talking about
salvation. How a sinner is accepted and
blessed by a holy God. And it makes that statement,
a blanket statement. Man, at his best, is altogether
vanished. Now, if I'm altogether vanity
at my best, what does that say about me in my worst? You see
what I'm saying? Whenever we suffer, as God has
brought us to a saving knowledge of Christ and some understanding
of our sinfulness and our depravity, realizing that, hey, if I'm saved,
it's grace. It's grace. If you catch me out
doing something that men call evil, that's bad. But standing right here behind
this pulpit reading from the Word of God and preaching the
gospel to you, it's still grace. I can't say, Lord, Lord, haven't
I preached in your name? Haven't I done many wonderful
works? Remember those fellas? He said, depart from me. You
that work iniquity, I never knew. Preachers will tell you, well,
they just weren't sincere. Listen to them. How sincere do
you have to be? Because I know man at his best
state in sincerity is altogether vanity. I'm as sincere as I can
be to you, but my sincerity is not my righteousness before God.
Christ is. Do you understand that? Do I
understand it? So Peter says, now if you suffer,
don't be because you've murdered somebody. I know of a believer
who murdered somebody and suffered for it. His name was David. He
wrote that seventh song. Brother Jim ran. That was before
he murdered Uriah the Hittite, or had him murdered. Basically
put a contract out on him. Told the captain of his armies,
have Uriah at the front of the battle and draw back from him.
Let the enemy have him. And David suffered for it. Does
that mean that we always suffer? in direct correlation with our
sinfulness? If it is, we wouldn't be here
today. We wouldn't be able to lift up our hands. You wouldn't
be able to get out of bed. Neither would I. Think about it. Let's be real. But let none of you suffer as
a murder or as a thief. If you steal and you get caught
and put in jail, don't think you're in there for a righteous
cause, because you're not. You're a thief. Are we all thieves? In some ways
we are. I spent a lot of my life in false
religion, not knowing it, but doing it, trying to rob God of
His glory and give myself a little bit. or as an evildoer, or as
a busybody in other men's matters. You know why that's specific?
You think about it, he says murder, thief, as an evildoer, and then
he says as a busybody in other men's matters. You know why that's
put there? Because that seems like a little
bit out of place, doesn't it? I know a person's a murderer,
and a thief, and an evildoer, but a busybody? You know why
people are busybodies? because they think they're better
than others. That's the basis between being
a busybody. Looking at everybody else, pointing
out their faults, trying to bring them down, it's self-righteousness. So he says don't do that. But he says in verse 16, yet
if any man suffer as a Christian, You know, that's one of two times
that the word Christian is used in the Bible to describe God's
people. The other one is in the book
of Acts. I think it's chapter 26. But it was a name of derision
used by unbelievers towards the followers of Christ. You Christian.
I've even heard some people say we shouldn't even call ourselves
that because that's what unbelievers call it. Well, that's crazy.
What is a Christian? It's a follower of Christ. A
sinner saved by grace who follows Christ. But he says, if any of you suffer
as a Christian, don't bring suffering upon ourselves because of sinful
behavior. What should sinful behavior do?
Well, it's to be repented of. Paul said in 2 Corinthians chapter
7, the Corinthians were doing some awful things in the church
of Corinth. And Paul wrote them a letter and he said, look, you
need to straighten up. Now your straightening up is
not gonna save you, it's not gonna make you righteous, but
you're here to glorify God. That's what we were put on this
earth for, to glorify God. To honor God in his word. And
he says you ought to be ashamed. And they read that letter and
it appears that according to the book of 2 Corinthians that
most of them, the Holy Spirit brought them to godly sorrow
over sin. That's a good thing. Somebody said, well, a true Christian
is sorry for his or her sins. I believe that, but I want to
tell you, sometimes we're not sorry enough, are we? And Paul
deals with that in 2 Corinthians 7. You can read about that. But he says, if any man suffer
as a Christian, let him not be ashamed. Now, what is it to suffer
as a Christian? What's suffering over our testimony
of the gospel and our identification with Christ and the people of
God. That's what it is. Suffering for righteousness sake,
he called it in Matthew 5. Blessed are you when you suffer
for righteousness. The world hates the truth. Especially when they recognize
that the truth that we believe exposes their false hopes and
their false refuge and the wickedness of their best efforts to be saved. We read about that last week,
John 3, 19. This is the light. This is the condemnation. Light
is coming to the world and men love darkness, hate the light
because their deeds are evil. All of the works, all of the
best works of the best people are evil in the sight of God
when aimed at earning or attaining salvation. And the reason they're
wicked is not because they're immoral or insincere. The reason
they're wicked is because they deny the glory of God. They deny Christ. Listen to this
statement, Galatians 2.21. If righteousness comes by the
law, now how does righteousness come by the law? By the works
of people. If righteousness comes by the
law, then Christ died in vain. Do you realize that if you're
trying to be the best you can be in order to earn yourself
a righteousness that equals and answers the demands of God's
requirement, you're a walking testimony claiming that Christ
died in vain. That's unbelief. That's wicked in the sight of
God. Again, Lord, Lord, haven't we preached in your name? Haven't
we done many wonderful works? Haven't we cast out demons? He said, depart from me, you
that work iniquity, inequity, I never knew you. What do you
mean iniquity? It means you're preaching in
his name, you're casting out demons, and you're doing many
wonderful works, does not measure up to the requirement of the
law of righteousness that can only be found in the obedience
unto death of the Lord Jesus Christ. You want to find righteousness?
Look to Christ. Over here in Psalm 7, this is
King David suffering. I believe in the right gen, this
is the time when Saul was after him, I think. And he says in verse 8 of Psalm
7, he says, the Lord shall judge the people, judge me, O Lord,
according to my righteousness, according to mine integrity that
is in me. Now people read that and they
think, well, David's just being persecuted because he was such
a good guy. No, David was being persecuted by Saul because he
was chosen of God to be the king of Israel. And Saul was rejected. David, just like me and you who
are saved, was a sinner saved by grace. What is my righteousness? My righteousness is Christ. My integrity is faith in Christ. I believe in Him, I look to Him,
I rest in Him. He goes on, he says, verse 9,
He says, oh, let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end,
but establish the justified. Who are the justified? Sinners
saved by grace. God justifies the ungodly. What
is it to be justified? It's to be forgiven of all my
sins on a just ground, a righteous ground. Well, what is the ground
of my forgiveness? The blood of Jesus Christ. What
can wash away my sins? Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
What is it to be justified? Not only to be forgiven of all
my sins based on a just ground, but to be declared righteous
before God, not based upon my good doings, because they're
not enough. They always fall short. You don't
believe that? Then don't quote Romans 3.23
ever again. We've all sinned and come short
of the glory of God. My best efforts will always fall
short. So how does God declare me righteous
in his sight? Through Christ, who is my righteousness. Blessed is the man to whom the
Lord imputeth righteousness without works. Whose righteousness? The righteousness of God that's
revealed in the gospel, the merits of the obedience unto death of
the Lord Jesus Christ. So God's going to establish the
just, and he says in verse nine, for the righteous God trieth,
testeth the hearts and reins. God tries and tests the hearts
and reign, what moves us, what motivates us, what our goals
are. And back here in 1 Peter 4, this is what he's saying.
Verse 16. Yet if any man suffer as a Christian,
let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God on this behalf. Now look at verse 17. Here's
where I got the title of the message. Judgment at the house
of God. For the time has come that judgment
must begin at the house of God. And if it first begin at us,
what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God? Now, first of all, he says judgment's
going to begin at the house of God. What is the house of God?
You know, people talk about church buildings. These are houses of
God. No, they're not. Church buildings, just brick
and mortar and paint and carpet and all that. The house of God
refers to the household, the family of God. It's the true
church, the people of God, believers. We're the household and family
of God. How are we the household of God?
By sovereign electing grace before the foundation of the world.
God chose us in Christ, gave us to Christ. justified in him,
forgiven of our sins, righteous in his sight, and we are the
redeemed of the Lord. Christ purchased the church with
his own blood. Acts chapter 20 tells us. You
weren't redeemed with corruptible things as silver and gold and
vain traditions of men, but with the precious blood of Christ
as of a lamb without spot and without blemish. Christ said,
upon this rock, he's the rock, not Peter. Upon this rock I'll
build my church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against
it. That's the household of God. How do you know if you're a member
of the household of God or not? Well, look back at 1 Peter 4,
verse 17. For the time has come that judgment
must begin at the house of God, and if it first begin at us,
what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel? Have
you obeyed the gospel? What is the gospel? It's that
message of God's grace in the salvation of sinful people who
cannot save themselves. who deserve nothing but damnation
and condemnation forever, based upon their best works, it's God's
grace and love and mercy saving them through the blood of Christ,
the righteousness of Christ. The gospel is the power of God
and the salvation to everyone that believeth, to the Jew first,
the Greek also, for therein is the righteousness of God revealed.
The righteousness of man is not revealed in the gospel, for man
has no righteousness. There's none righteous, no not
one. Man at his best state, altogether vanity. What is the righteousness
of God? It's the obedience unto death
of the Lord Jesus Christ as the surety, the substitute, and the
redeemer of his people. He is the Lord our righteousness.
It's that message that points sinners away from themselves
and to Christ as the author and the finisher of their faith.
It's the message of salvation conditioned on Christ, who by
Himself, for His people, fulfilled those conditions and ensured
their salvation. There'll be no one perish for
whom Christ died. It's not conditioned on you,
it's not conditioned on me. Somebody said, but we must believe.
Oh, if He, if God chose us, if He justified us, if Christ redeemed
us, we will believe. So who are the household of God? Those who obey the gospel, those
who hear and believe it by the power of God, by an invincible
power of the Holy Spirit, giving them life. You must be born again
or you cannot see or hear the kingdom of God. And that judgment, he says judgment
must begin here. He's not talking about the future
final judgment in which it will be declared before the whole
universe who God's household is, who the people of God are.
Saved by grace, washed in the blood of Christ, clothed in his
righteousness. He's talking about the context
tells us. He's talking about God's judgment
brought on by trials that God sends to those who profess to
believe the gospel, which either reveals a genuine God-given faith
in Christ or a false profession. One of the two. Trying his people. Saving faith will be tested.
It will be tried. Being a Christian is not a bed
of roses. It's not the power of positive
thinking. People want to hear that. They'll flock to hear that
message. But let me tell you something.
Listen to what he says in verse 18. If the righteous, now who
are the righteous? Sinners saved by grace, washed
in the blood of Christ, clothed in his righteousness. If the
righteous scarcely be saved, Where shall the ungodly and the
sinner appear? He makes a distinction here.
Actually, what he does is he divides the whole world into
two classes of people. There are the righteous, and
then there are the ungodly, sinners, he calls them. Well, we're all
sinners. We're either sinners saved by grace or sinners lost
in our sins. But here he's talking about those
who do not believe the gospel. And he makes this statement.
If the righteous, scarcely be saved. Now what does that word
mean? Well, again, the righteous are sinners saved by grace, they're
in Christ, clothed in His righteousness imputed, evidenced by their God-given
faith in Christ, as opposed to the ungodly and the sinner, all
who are either ignorant of or not submitted to Christ and His
righteousness, who do not believe. That word scarcely doesn't mean,
I actually heard a person read it like this. He says, if the
righteous be saved by the skin of their teeth. That's not what
it means. Or partially saved, no. The word
scarcely here means with difficulty. If the righteous be saved with
difficulty. What does that tell you? It tells
you that the life of a believer is a difficult life, not an easy
life. As we said, not a bed of roses.
You know, living in this world, I look back on my life, I'm 67.
Is that right, Randy? We're 67. I've had some really good times
here on this earth. I really have. Times of joy. But here's what I know about
them. They didn't last. And I've had some really tough
ones. Hopefully I have a few more times of joy to come between
now and eternity. But I know if I live long enough,
I'm gonna have some hard times coming. And what Peter's saying
here is this, if God is pleased to put his dear children through
the furnace of affliction, and what he says, in the world you
will have trouble. And he does it to prove, to test
our faith and show us, as blessed of God and righteous in his sight,
that we have no hope. and no assurance and no real
lasting peace here on this earth, it's all in God. My hope is built on nothing less
than Jesus' blood and righteousness. I dare not trust the sweetest
frame, not even those times of joy that I have in this life.
Don't trust them. I enjoy them, don't get me wrong,
nothing wrong with, Ecclesiastes tells us that a believer, there's
nothing wrong with enjoying the fruits of this life and the joyous
parts of this life if you keep things in perspective. That's
what Peter's saying, let's keep it in perspective. If you're
a believer, if you're a child of God, if you're a member of
his household, if you're righteous in God's sight, your faith is
gonna be tested. And these tests don't give you
faith, they reveal faith. They'll help us grow. And the point here is this, as
I said, the Christian life is a difficult life. Think about
it. Think about those you love who
do not believe this gospel. That's hard, isn't it? Think about how we experience
the persecution of our testimony when we tell sinners the truth.
The derision that comes from the world. Alienated from the
fellowship of people over the gospel. Because we cannot speak
peace to them and enter into religious fellowship with them.
You know what the Bible tells us to do? If anybody comes to
you seeking religious fellowship and does not believe this gospel,
he says don't bid them Godspeed. Don't support them. They're lost
in their sins. They have no hope if the Lord
doesn't bring them to hear and believe the gospel wherein the
righteousness of God is revealed. No wonder that Paul wrote in
1 Corinthians 15, 19, if in this life only we have hope in Christ,
we are of all people most miserable. And consider this, when we see
unbelievers prosper, especially in false religion, oh, doesn't
it just gall you to death when you see a false preacher standing
up preaching to thousands? Living in the lap of luck, it
does me. Sending people on the broad road
that leads to destruction. Many bet they'd be there and
they'd find it. I was driving by. A church that
I know they don't preach the gospel. Cars, I mean, you couldn't
even get a parking place. Yesterday, on Saturday, there
weren't even Jews, or Jehovah's Witness, or what is it? Seventh-day
Adventist. And sometimes I'll get down in
the dumps, I'll say, why Lord, why don't we have a thousand
people? They'd say it's because of me. That's difficult. Why do the
heathen prosper? David asked that, didn't he?
And he said this, he made this statement. I think it's a Psalm
73 that he said that in. I have to go back and look it
up. He said, why do the heathen prosper? And he said this, he said, you
know, when I try to figure all that out, it's just too tough
for me. I don't have an answer. Until I go to the house of God
and hear what God says. You know what God says? Consider
things in light of eternity. Consider their end. Oh, judgment must begin at the
house of God. Don't be discouraged. You see,
our happiness, our riches, our joy is in the Word of God. It's
in Christ. It's in our fellowship together.
But like David of old, we have to realize that this happiness,
these riches, this joy comes as we look to Christ, as we depend
upon His Word. It doesn't come in this world
and prospering in this world now. I mean, you may have it
and you may enjoy it, but it's not going to last. You may have
it until you die, but you're going to die. And somebody else
is going to get it, spend it, divide it up, whatever. This isn't it. Christ is. Consider their end, he says.
And so he says in verse 18, if the righteous be saved with difficulty,
where shall the ungodly and sinner appear? That's what he's saying,
consider their end. How am I going to stand before God in the end
days, in the judgment? Verse 19, for this reason, wherefore,
let them that suffer according to the will of God, that is in
line with God's glory and God's way, commit the keeping of their
souls to Him in well-doing, as unto a faithful creator. Let
me close with this. Turn to 2 Timothy chapter one. I wanna read a few verses and
then we'll close with this. Commit your soul to God, who
judges righteously, who loves His people. We read about that
last week in Hebrews 12, the loving chastisements of our Heavenly
Father. Verse 6, Paul writes to Timothy,
wherefore, it's 2 Timothy 1 verse 6, wherefore I put thee in remembrance
that thou stir up the gift of God which is in thee by the putting
on of my hands. Timothy with Ability to preach
the gospel. For God hath not given us the
spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord,
nor of me his prisoner. You know Paul was in prison when
he wrote this? I've never been put in prison. I hope I never
am. But be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according
to the power of God. Paul was put in prison because
he preached the gospel. He told people the truth. God,
verse nine, who has saved us and called us with an holy calling,
not according to our works, but according to his own purpose
and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world
began, but is now made manifest by the appearing of our Savior,
Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death and hath brought life and
immortality to light through the gospel. Whereunto I'm appointed
a preacher, and an apostle and a teacher of the Gentiles for
the witch cause. I also suffer these things. That's
the reason I'm suffering, Paul says, because of this very, the
greatest truth that any sinner could ever hear on this earth. The greatest man, I mean, this
is better than if I stood up and told you every one of us
have won the lottery. This is better. Paul says, I'm suffering because
I'm in prison over it. If I told you guys that y'all
won the lottery, you wouldn't put me in prison, would you? If I went over to a false church
and stood up and said, y'all won the lottery, they wouldn't
get mad. But if I tell them you're believing
in a false Christ and you're on your way to damnation, I'd
probably have some trouble. Paul says, nevertheless, I'm
not ashamed for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that
he's able to keep that which I've committed unto him against
that day. There it is. There's our joy
and there's our peace in the Lord. All right.