Purchased With His Precious Blood Series

1. One of the greatest encouragements in tough times is the wonderful truth that Jesus is coming again.

Psalm 30.5 For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for life; Weeping may endure for a night, But joy comes in the morning.

a. The pains, the problems; the trials, the troubles.

b. They won’t LAST FOREVER!

c. That’s the word Pastor Peter has for the troubled, scattered flock receiving this letter. -- He begins v13…

I. (1:13-16) HIS CALL TO READINESS

1. (13) Get Ready…

• What does GIRD UP mean? We don’t use that phrase much.

• It’s an old phrase that actually means to “get rid of the things that can tangle you up and cause you to fall.”

• Men in those days wore NOT pants, but robes.

• In the hot, dusty, dry desert, having good air flow helped to keep the men cool in all their work.

• When they needed to RUN or DIG IN to get to work, they would take their robes up and tuck it into their belts.

• They would GIRD UP their robes, to help them move better!

PETER says… get rid of the things in your mind that are making the situation worse. Paul would encourage us this way…

2 Cor. 10.4-5 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, 5 casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ…

It’s NOT PARTY TIME right now, it’s time to be ready, be sober.

• Be sober… speaking I believe of a soberness apart from any substance that would numb & dumb the mind!

• Literally: “watchful, upright, not intoxicated”

So that we can REST OUR HOPE FULLY UPON THE GRACE that is going to be revealed to us at the revelation of Jesus Christ!

• His appearing will change everything in our lives, wouldn’t you agree! Maranatha, Lord, come quickly!

• But until that time, Peter says REST YOUR HOPE… on His grace.

APP: I wish we would do that, fix & fasten our hope on His grace.

• A lot of us are discouraged because we haven’t fixed on hope on that but we’ve fixed our hope on other things or other people.

• We’ve looked to other institutions, or to our marriages, or our parents, or our kids… but they can & will let you down!

• So he says let the thing that you’re hoping in be the glorious return of your Lord & Savior Jesus Christ!

Titus 2.11-13 For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, 12 teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, 13 looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,

REMEMBER, Peter’s writing to a struggling group who is about to walk into the biggest trial of their lives!

• When that happens, you begin to appreciate the coming of the Lord more than ever before. You long for it.

• Resting all the more upon the promises of God!

• You see our nation, our city and the state we’re in.

• The perversity of man, the horrible tragedies all around us.

• Our hearts cry out, MARANATHA, Lord coming quickly!

• And that hope doesn’t remove us from the world, it literally moves us to engage this world with the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Romans 1.16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.

• And in it all we know Jesus could come at any moment!

• We expect it. We long for it. We love it…

2 Timothy 4.8 Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.

NOTE: The only reason I believe there appears from our standpoint to be a delay in His coming is that there are STILL SOME who have not received Jesus Christ yet.

2 Peter 3.9 The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.

SO GIRD UP: your mind… get rid of the baggage holding you back.

BE SOBER: keep ready & alert under the influence of nothing.

REST YOUR HOPE FULLY: upon the grace revealed Jesus returns!

2. (14) As Obedient Children.