Did you see? Todd's Road Grace Church would
like to invite you to listen to a sermon by our pastor, Todd
Niver. We are located at 4137 Todd's
Road, two miles outside of Manowar Boulevard. Sunday services are
at 1030 a.m. and 6 p.m. Bible study is at
945 a.m. Wednesday services are at 7 p.m. Nursery is provided for all services.
For more information, visit our website at toddsroadgracechurch.com.
Now, here's our pastor, Todd Nibert. If you can follow along
in a Bible this morning, it would be helpful. I'm speaking from
1 Peter chapter 1, and I've entitled this message, A Portrait of the
Believer. Now, in this passage of Scripture,
we're going to find out what a believer, a Christian, really
is. I'm greatly desirous to know,
aren't you? We're going to see what a Christian looks like. Now, before I look at this passage
of Scripture, I want to remind you that the Bible, Genesis through
Revelation, is the inspired, inerrant Word of God. That's what the Bible claims
for itself. In 2 Timothy 3, verse 16, we read that all scripture
is given by inspiration of God. This book is literally God-breathed. Now, someone may say, can you
prove that to me? No, I cannot. But I can't prove
to you that God created the universe either. I can't prove it to you,
but I know He did. As a matter of fact, it takes
a whole lot more blind faith to believe that He didn't create
the universe, that somehow life arose out of some primordial
stew or a big bang, and all of a sudden there was life. That
takes much more of a stretch of blind faith to believe something
like that. than it does to believe that
God created the universe. And I know God created the universe. And if God can create the universe,
he can give us a word through sinful men writing those words
that is infallible and without error and that's preserved up
to this day. If God can create the universe,
he can do that. and how we need a word from God. I don't want to hear man's opinions.
I don't want to hear about the commandments of men. I want to
hear what God says in his word. Now, God has given us his word
to tell us who he is and what he's like. He's the creator. He's the savior. He's absolutely
holy. He's sovereign. He's in control
of everything. The Bible was given to tell us
who man is, a creature created by God, and what he's like, a
fallen creature. The Bible was given to tell us
how this God that the Bible describes can save fallen creatures like
me and you through the gospel of His dear Son, And the Bible
is given to paint us a portrait of what a Christian really is,
somebody that God has saved. And in this passage of Scripture,
we're given a beautiful portrait of the believer. Now, let's start
reading. Like I said, if you can follow
along in a Bible, I think it would be very helpful. But Peter
says in verse 1, Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ. That means he
was sent of Christ to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus,
Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia. Now a Christian, first
of all, is a stranger. He's a foreigner. This world
is not his home. A stranger is somebody who is
from somewhere else. The place they're in right now
is not their home. They're pilgrims, strangers,
passing through, looking for a heavenly place. And this world
is not their home. The Lord said in John chapter
17 verse 22, they are not of the world. They is speaking of
every believer. He says, I pray for them. I pray
not for the world, but for them which you've given me. for they
are thine, they are not of the world, even as I am not of the
world. Now the Lord is from heaven.
He says, I'm from above. You are from beneath. He's from
heaven, and every believer is from heaven. That's their homeland.
They've been eternally united to the Lord Jesus Christ. They've
always been in Him, according as He hath chosen us in Him before
the foundation of the world. Now, as far as my physical existence,
it didn't begin until September 9, 1959. But as far as my eternal
existence, I've always been in the Lamb. I've always been in
the Beloved. I've always been eternally united
to Him. And this world that I'm passing
through is not my home. I don't feel comfortable with
it. I don't admire its ways, its maxims. I hate its religion. I hate its purpose. No, the world
is not of the Lord. And while we're in this world,
every believer is passing through as a stranger. Peter says to
the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia,
Asia, and Benathenia, verse 2, elect according to the foreknowledge
of God the Father. What is a believer? They are
elect. They are chosen of God. That's what elect means, chosen
of God. They were chosen before the foundation
of the world, and that's true of every believer, and no believer
will argue with that. "'Tis not that I did choose thee,
for, Lord, that could not be. This heart would still refuse
thee, hadst thou not chosen me.'" I don't have to argue with a
believer about election. I don't have to debate with the
elect about election. If you're saved, you know that
He saved you. You know that salvation was of
the Lord, and if you're saved, it's because God elected you
before time began. Now, all election says is God
is God. I love that. God's in absolute
control of everything. And election tells us that salvation
really is all of grace, not of works, lest any man should boast. If you don't love election, you
don't love God. If you don't love election, you don't believe
grace. Election glorifies God. And Peter says to every believer,
elect. If someone would have said to
Peter, well, I don't believe in election, I can imagine the
way Peter would look at them. What? Who are you? You certainly
have a very high opinion of yourself and a very low view of God if
you don't believe in election. Election says God is God and
salvation is by grace. And notice what he says next.
He says elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father. Now what is foreknowledge? Does
that mean that God looked through the telescope of time before
time began? and saw what would happen. He
saw who would believe and who wouldn't believe. And the ones
he saw who would decide to believe, he'd go ahead and make them elect.
And the ones he saw would not believe, he passed them by. That's
foolishness. That's all that is. God's foreknowledge,
the words only used one at a time in the scripture, Him being delivered
by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God. God's foreknowledge is him knowing
everything that takes place because he purposed everything that takes
place. Known unto God are all his works
from the beginning. And a Christian is someone who
lives in God's world where God has foreknown and caused all
events to take place. He is absolutely sovereign. He is so sovereign that He is
completely sovereign over the free actions of men. Everything
you do, you're held responsible for. When you sin, it's your
fault. Whatever you do, you do because you want to. But you
know who controls it? God does. He controls everything. And we were elect according to
His foreknowledge, whom He did foreknow. whom he did for love. He also did predestinate to be
conformed to the image of his son. The Christian believes in
the God of foreknowledge. But let's go on reading verse
2. Elect according to the foreknowledge
of God the Father through sanctification of the Spirit. Now the word sanctify
means to take something common and ordinary and set it apart
for holy purposes and make it holy. Now everyone that God elected,
God the Holy Spirit is going to sanctify. He's going to give
them a new nature. He's going to birth them. He's
going to give them a holy nature. II Thessalonians 2.13 says, But
we're bound to thank God always for you, brethren, beloved of
the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation
through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth. Now, what is the evidence that
I've been sanctified by the Spirit of God and been given a holy
nature and a new heart? I will believe the truth. If someone doesn't believe the
truth, There's no evidence that God's done anything for that
person. All of those who have been elected, all of those who
have been sanctified by the Spirit of God and given a new and holy
nature have this in common, they all believe the truth. Let's
go on reading. Elect according to the foreknowledge
of God through sanctification of the Spirit unto obedience
and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ. Now, here's what
someone who believes the truth believes. He believes that the
obedience and the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ
is all in his salvation. Now, listen to me real carefully.
I'm going to hear the Lord say to me, well done. thou good and faithful servant."
And you know why I'm going to hear this? Because I have been
a good and faithful servant. Somebody says, how could you
say something like that? because my personal obedience
is nothing less than the obedience, the perfect righteousness, the
law-keeping of Jesus Christ. His obedience, His perfect obedience
is my obedience before the Father. His righteousness is my righteousness. The Scripture says we're to bring
every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, His
obedience. is my obedience before God. The obedience and the sprinkling
of the blood. The only way my sins are purged
is because of His blood. His blood put them away when
He had by one offering perfected forever them that are sanctified.
That's what He did. He purged our sins by Himself
with no help from us. Now, here's all my salvation.
His obedience, His precious blood. That is everything in the belief
for salvation. Now, everybody who is a stranger,
everybody who's elect, everybody who has been sanctified by the
Spirit of God, they all see the obedience and the sprinkling
of the blood of Jesus Christ as everything in their salvation. Now, look what he says next. Grace unto you, and peace be
multiplied. Now, there are two things that
arise from the obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus
Christ. Number one, grace caused this. God's free, unmerited favor. Grace caused this. Grace elected
me. Grace sanctified me by the Spirit. Grace caused me to be a stranger.
Grace causes me to see the obedience and blood of Christ as everything
in my salvation. And what comes as a result of
that? Peace. Peace. I'm at peace. God's at
peace with me. Why? Because I have no sin. Because I have the obedience
of Christ as my personal obedience before God. because I have the
sprinkling of his blood purging away and putting away my sin
to where I don't have any sin. That's the privilege of every
believer, grace and peace. Now go on reading, verse 3. 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." Now, two things
are said here concerning the Christian. First, he's been born
again. And second, he has a living hope. At first, he's been born again. He's been given a new heart.
He's been born from above. And this is because of the abundant
mercy of God. Now, in your first birth, what
did you have to do with it? Nothing. Nothing. Well, what do you have to do
with your second birth? How did you bring it about? You didn't. It came as a result of God's
abundant mercy. You were given life that was
not there before. Every Christian traces every
blessing he has to the abundant mercy of God. And because of
the abundant mercy of God, they have a living hope. Peter calls
it a lively hope. That means a living hope. Why?
Because my hope lives. My hope is Christ Jesus himself. My hope lives, so I have a living
hope. My hope is seated right now at
the right hand of the Father, living, ruling, and reigning. Therefore, I have a living hope. And this living hope is all because
of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. That's
why I have a living hope. Christ was raised from the dead.
Now, why did he die? My sin became his sin, and he
bore the punishment of my sin. The wages of sin is death. Well, why was he raised up? because
God was completely satisfied with his sin payment, and the
very justice of God demanded his resurrection. And all my
hope is found in his resurrection. Who is he that condemneth? It's
Christ that died, yea, rather that's risen again, who is even
at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for
us. Now because of his resurrection
from the dead, look at verse four, to an inheritance incorruptible,
undefiled, that fades not away, reserved in heaven for you. Every Christian is an heir, an
heir of God. and a joint heir with Christ. What an inheritance every believer
possesses. Everything that Christ possesses
is His because I'm an heir of God and a joint heir with the
Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord said, Come ye, blessed
of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation
of the world. Now an heir is someone who's
given what they have 100% because of their relationship with somebody
else. It's not because of any worthiness or merit in their
part. It's because of their relationship
with somebody else. And all that I have as an heir
is because of my relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. Now
go on reading. It says, to an inheritance incorruptible,
not liable to corruption or decay, undefiled, free from that which
could debase it, sin, that fadeth not away. It's perennial. It's eternal. And notice he says
it's reserved. It's reserved in heaven for you. Now, beloved, this is true of
every believer. I've got a place with my name
on it reserved in heaven for me. My name is there. It's reserved because of what
he did for me. But heaven's a big place. There's
going to be a lot of people there, a vast multitude which no man
can number, 10,000 times 10,000 and thousands and thousands. but there won't be one empty
chair. You see, every chair there was reserved by the Lord Jesus
Christ. And the inheritance every believer
has is reserved by Jesus Christ. To an inheritance incorruptible,
undefiled, that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you who?
You who are kept. by the power of God through faith
unto salvation. What is a believer? What is a
Christian? What do they look like? They're somebody who is
kept. They know they can't keep themselves.
I know as sure as I'm a foot and a half high, if God takes
his hand away from me, I will fall and I'll fall away. The only way I can persevere
is if I'm kept. kept by the power of God, now
unto him that's able to keep you from falling, and to present
you faultless before his presence with exceeding glory. That's
the keeping power of Christ. And it takes the almighty power
of God to keep me. To them who are kept through
the power of God, or by the power of God, it's God's almighty power
that keeps me, kept by the power of God through faith. Now, this
keeping comes through faith, through me believing the gospel. That's what faith is. It's believing
Christ. It's believing that He's all
I need to make me acceptable. We're made partakers of Christ
if we hold the beginning of our confidence. steadfast to the
end. Now, when I first believed on
Christ, I knew He was all I had. I wouldn't make any other plea
about my works. I looked to Christ alone. Do
you know it's no different now? He still is all I have, and He's
still the only place I look. That's what faith is, to you
who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation. Salvation. What a word. Salvation. Matthew 121, Thou
shalt call His name Jesus, for He shall save His people from
their sins. That's what I need saved from.
Now I want to be saved from bad circumstances, no doubt about
it, but that's not salvation. Salvation is being saved from
my sins. I'm not going to have to pay
for my sins because He paid for them. I've been saved from the
penalty of sin. I've been saved from the power
of sin. There was a time when I couldn't believe. I do now.
You know why? Because I've been given a heart
that believes. I've been saved from the power of sin, saved
from the presence of sin. One of these days, I'm never
going to sin again. Even saved from the pleasure of sin where
in heaven, I won't feel any pleasure towards sin. Now, right now,
I do. There's pleasure in sin for a season. But thank God one
of these days, I wouldn't even find it pleasurable. I'd be perfectly
conformed to the image of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now let's
go on reading. Who are kept through the power
of God to salvation, ready to be revealed in the last time,
wherein you greatly rejoice. Rejoice, you rejoice in the salvation,
though now for a season. If need be, you are in heaviness
through manifold temptations. Now you greatly rejoice in this
salvation, but now for a season. If need be, if it's necessary,
if it's for your good, you are in heaviness through manifold
temptations. Now, here is a glorious truth. If you're a believer, everything
is for you. Even these temptations, they
are for your good. Now, if need be, if need be. God is going to give you exactly
what you need. And if you're in heaviness, well,
no trial seems joyous, but it's for your good, and it's for the
glory of God, and it's going to work toward your ultimate
good because the scripture says that all things work together
for good. to them that love God, to them who are the called according
to his purpose. So he says, now if need be, you're
in heaviness through manifold temptations, verse 7, that the
trial of your faith, the testing of your faith, being much more
precious than that of gold that perishes, though it be tried
with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at
the appearing of Jesus Christ. Now your faith is going to be
found to His praise and His honor and His glory. He gets all the
glory in you persevering through the trials He sends your way.
And He does it for your good and His glory. Now watch this,
verse 8. Whom, having not seen, you love. Now we have this message on DVD
and CD. If you call the church, write
or email, we'll send you a copy. This is Todd Nyberg praying that
God will be pleased to make Himself known to you. That's our prayer. Todd's Road Grace Church located
at 4137 Todd's Road, two miles outside of Manowar Boulevard.
Sunday services are at 1030 a.m. and 6 p.m. Bible study is at
945 a.m. Wednesday services are at 7 p.m. Nursery is provided for all services.
For more information visit our website at ToddsRoadGraceChurch.com
To request a copy of the sermon you have just heard, send your
request to messages at ToddsRoadGraceChurch.com Or you may write or call the
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